Loving God

I pray you have a wonderful day filled with laughter, family and friends!

A guest post by Johnnie Alexander

About a year ago, I moved from two decades of living in Florida suburbia to my sister’s four-acre hobby farm in western Tennessee. My little papillon Rugby moved with me, but only a few weeks passed before he wasn’t the only four-legged creature under my care.

My sister didn’t want to mow her sprawling front yard, and neither did I. So after researching our options, we bought four alpacas: Autumn, Winter, Sassy, and Starr. Over the next few months we acquired seven more: Charro, Di, General, Merry, Shelby, Snow, and Stonebride.

Though I grew up on a farm, I didn’t do much farm stuff. As the oldest of four, my chores mainly consisted of washing dishes, cleaning baseboards, and watching the youngest two children while Mom, Dad, and my brother did farm stuff.

But now I needed to learn about alpaca husbandry and something called herd distance.

You see, alpacas are skittish creatures. Though ours, especially young Starr and blue-eyed Snow, eagerly eat from our hands, they don’t like to be petted. Attempt to touch their luxurious fiber, and they’ll probably back away.

Sometimes it’s a challenge to get them where we want them to go. Get too close, and they flee. Too far back, and they head the opposite way. Like Goldilocks in the story of The Three Bears, you’ve got to get the distance just right.

Faith works both ways.

The herd needs faith that I’m not a predator. I prove this by paying attention to their body language and adjusting my behavior—and my distance—accordingly.

I need faith in my ability to appropriately respond to their cues so I don’t unnecessarily frighten them.

A year ago, I couldn’t have imagined living this kind of life. My personal circumstances had me as skittish as Winter, our youngest, who never eats out of anyone’s hand. But unlike our herd, whose faith seems to vary from day to day, my faith in God’s steadfast love rarely wavered.

During those unsettled months, through sermons, devotions, and Scripture, God promised me again and again to provide for me. Before I knew it, He had prepared a path before me. There’s no herd distance between us, only a minuscule “heart-distance.” Acutely aware of both my physical and emotional cues, He holds me as close as I will let Him.

Even though I may not always have the faith to move a mountain, I have the faith to move a herd of alpaca. And the faith to trust God to move me always closer to His will for my life.

“You visit the earth and water it; you greatly enrich it; the river of God is full of water; you provide their grain, for so you have prepared it” (Psalm 65:9, ESV).

“But I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation” (Psalm 13:5, ESV).

About Where Treasure Hides

Artist Alison Schuyler spends her time working in her family’s renowned art gallery, determined to avoid the curse that has followed the Schuyler clan from the Netherlands to America and back again. She’s certain that true love will only lead to tragedy—that is, until a chance meeting at Waterloo station brings Ian Devlin into her life. Drawn to the bold and compassionate British Army captain, Alison begins to question her fear of love as World War II breaks out, separating the two and drawing each into their own battles. While Ian fights for freedom on the battlefield, Alison works with the Dutch Underground to find a safe haven for Jewish children and priceless pieces of art alike. But safety is a luxury war does not allow. As time, war, and human will struggle to keep them apart, will Alison and Ian have the faith to fight for their love, or is it their fate to be separated forever?

About Johnnie

Johnnie Alexander is the author of Where Treasure Hides which won the ACFW Genesis Contest (2011 Historical Fiction). The first of three contemporary romances, tentatively titled Into a Spacious Place, releases from Revell in January 2016.

She also has won the Best Novel and Best Writer awards at the Florida Christian Writers Conference is a 2012 Bronze Medalist in the My Book Therapy Frasier Contest.

A graduate of Rollins College (Orlando) with a Master of Liberal Studies degree, Johnnie lives in the Memphis area with a small herd of alpacas, her dogs Rugby and Skye, and assorted other animals.

Connect with Johnnie on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Good Reads,  and Linked In

Since An Apple for Christmas features identical twins, Margil and Pippin Cortland, I thought it would be fun to look at memorable twins throughout history.

I had cousins who were twins, and my ex-husband’s grandmother was a twin. When I was pregnant, I was afraid I was carrying twins. (I wasn’t.)

In the Bible, we know about the infamous twins Jacob and Esau, sons of Isaac and Rebekah. Jacob cheated Esau of his birthright and his blessing, and had to run away when Esau wanted to kill him. They didn’t reconcile until twenty years later.Au

Judah had twin sons through Tamar, Perez and Zerah. One of the disciples was Thomas, known as “the twin.” We’re not told anything about his brother (if it was a brother and not a sister).

In the sky, one of the constellations is called Gemini, or, the twins Castor and Pollux in Greek mythology. Zeus granted Pollux’s request to make Castor immortal, by uniting them in the heavens.

P.T. Barnum’s circus featured conjoined twins Chang and Eng Bunker.

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen got their start acting in Full House and went on to a number of twin-themed movies. Eppie Lederer and Pauline Phillips—better known as Ann Landers and Abigail Van Buren—wrote competing advice columns. Two of the musical group the Bee-Gees were twins, Robin and Maurice.

Barbara and Jenna Bush, daughter of President George W. Bush and his wife Laura, are twins. In 2011, the crown princess of Denmark gave birth to twins, Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine.

In sports, we can look at Jose and Ozzie Canseco. We remember Chris Paul and his twin Cliff from their ads together on television. Even my favorite Bronco John Elway has a less famous twin, Jenna.

Margil and Pippin play an important role in their father’s romance. Hope you enjoy reading An Apple for Christmas!

About the Book: Ruby Nelson trades her job in the laboratory for teaching in a small girls’ school in Vermont. Twin sisters challenge her position—and their father captivates her imagination. Will the orchard grower graft Ruby onto his heart?

About Darlene: Darlene Franklin’s greatest claim to fame is that she writes full-time from a nursing home. She lives in Oklahoma, near her son and his family, and continues her interests in playing the piano and singing, books, good fellowship, and reality TV in addition to writing. She is an active member of Oklahoma City Christian Fiction Writers, American Christian Fiction Writers, and the Christian Authors Network. She has written over thirty books and has written more than 250 devotionals. Her historical fiction ranges from the Revolutionary War to World War II, from Colorado to Vermont. You can find Darlene online elsewhere at  https://www.facebook.com/Poet.Darlene.Franklin.

Hey yall, I’m talking about Materialism today on Laura Kurk’s blog! Hop on over and say ‘hello.’

For the past couple of months, I’ve been overloaded, too busy and too distracted to spend time with The Potter.

It reflected in everything I did: my eating habits, how I related to the kiddos, how I related to The Man…and in my laundry pile.

After a couple of month’s of frustration with the overall discombobulation of of my life, I decided to get back to basics: my journal, my pen, and my Bible. I started with baby steps, waking up a couple of minutes earlier than usual, and basically ranted to God about everything on my brain. Then I read some verses to hear what He had to say back to me. Many times, my readings didn’t directly relate to how I felt at the moment, but I left those God sessions feeling refreshed and empowered. As a result, I zoomed through my day, attacking my ‘to-do’ list with a vengeance, getting clear ideas on how to meet the goals I’ve set for myself. It was awesome.

So the next day, I did it again. And again. And again.

Funny how all my inner angst could be solved with some sessions with the Potter. He’s the Author and the Finisher of my faith, and so it would behoove me to tune in to His station to see what He wants to say. Yet I often get caught up trying to do things MY way or the way all the experts recommend. In the end, working apart from His plan left me tired, bedraggled and crabby.

Yet you, LORD, are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.

 (Isaiah 64:8, NIV)

How about you? Are you spending daily time in prayer and meditation? If not, what could you do to set aside 15 minutes each day for Your Maker?