A Builder, an Architect , and and Angel

Escape the humdrum with a Sarah and Laney. You'll laugh and cry.  You'll also wonder who the stalker is and if he'll succeed in killing Laney.  Why does he want to?  What's his motive, anyway?

Can Sarah help prevent Laney coming to harm, or will she get in the guardian angel's way?

Beautiful, talented, and stubborn, architect Laney Taylor battles her attraction to handsome, wealthy, but mulish builder Cannon Carlson.  After all, he is her employer, and business and pleasure don’t mix, do they? When Sarah, the blonde, blue-eyed, dyslexic angel reaches Houston with her assignment to bring these obstinate people together, she faces a major challenge, especially since Laney is threatened by a mysterious stalker who plans to kill her.

When the Commander of Heaven’s Host dispatches the seasoned warrior angel, Tomas to Earth with divine instructions to protect Laney, Tomas wonders if a hit-or-miss Sarah will get in his way. That charming, little angel loves red stilettos, can’t fly in the same direction twice, and craves cheeseburgers. When the need to appear human presents itself, Sarah manages one fashion gaffe after another.  Angels in The Heavenlies are still twittering about Sarah’s goofs on her first mission to Earth.

Known in the upper realm as Heaven’s Little Romance Angel, Sarah has no sentinel duties, but can Tomas succeed in his duty to protect Laney with a bumbling angel who wants to help?  Can Sarah unite Cannon and Laney romantically together?

Oh merciful heavens!  What will Sarah do this time?

2.99

On Amazon, eBook, print and audio available.e

Setting Records in Houston

Down in Houston, we're setting records for February. Ugh.

I dread summer. Looks like it may be one of the hottest on record.

Mother Nature forgot to tell Houston that spring doesn't come until March 20.

Oops! Dear old Mother Nature goofed.

Even though they are early, the azaleas are beautiful

FAITH AND HUMOR

He Got My Goat

Anyone ever get your goat?

Funny expression, isn't it?

To make someone annoyed or angry: 

“Gavin may seem unflappable, but I know 

a way to get his goat.” This expression comes from a tradition in horseracing. Thought to have a calming effect on high-strung thoroughbreds, agoat was placed in the horse's stall on the night before the 

race.Unscrupulous opponents would then steal the goat in an effort to upset thehorse and cause it to lose the race."

Quote From the

 http://www.dictionary.com/browse/get-someone-s-goat

So anyone angry today? Gay raises her hand. Well, frustrated is more like it. Frustrated over events and people I can't control and don't know what to do about.

Sigh.

Wouldn't it be easy if like was filled with sweet, docile sheep like the one above and not silly goats? I can't imagine a goat calming a racehorse. Goats butt their heads against things and cause anger.

My goat has gone missing today. 

If you find him, please let me know. I'll go get him and bring him home. I'll lend him to someone with horses.

God Can Touch You

"You don't believe in God doesn't mean He doesn't believe in you." Jody Picoult from the novel, The StoryTeller

I enjoy Jodi Picoult's books. Most of them anyway. The Storyteller was one I liked and didn't like, but I'll never forget it.

In the novel from Picoult, we learn the tragic story of a Jewish family and two German officers who tortured them.

This quote stayed in my mind, and I wanted to share it with you. "You don't believe in God doesn't mean He doesn't believe in you." 

That remark hit home. Long before we recognize God, He already knows who we are. Have you read Psalm 139? No?  It's a great read. Try it. Even if we never want a relationship with Him, he knows us and desires us to love Him as He does us.

Hard to accept, isn't it? I mean after all, He's God and we're...well, we're not. We're mere humans who mess up big time. Why would a perfect God want a relationship with a mess like us?

Pure love.  That's the simple answer.

And it's one I'm grateful for.

This Guy Needs Help

Ever get tired of carrying a burden and wished someone would help?

Are you carrying a load and you don't know where you're going with it?

Will you ever get rid of it, or will you carry it forever?

Can't put it down to rest? Even for a day or two?

Jesus promises rest if we call on Him and trust Him to take care of our burdens.

Look at this beast of burden. He's on his knees.

How about you?  Been there lately? This camel rests. He's tied up. Not free. The next leg of the journey is difficult. But he's planning to get up and go, humps and all.

Good lesson, right?

Let's kneel and rest a few moments. Like the camel, we may get back up to carry a load, but the rest will do us good.  

God may not take away my burden, 

but I can rest in Him as I carry it. 

                                               FAITH AND HUMOR

Walking and Talking

As we think about Naomi and Ruth taking that 30-40 mile road from Moab to Bethlehem, what did they walk and talk about?

Ruth must have asked, "what's it like there? Will your people accept me? Any idea where we will live? What will we eat? Does my clothes look okay?"

Ruth was walking into the unknown. 

Courage joined her faith for the journey.

She had no idea that one day

 she would be King David's grandmother.

She was clueless  that she'd be an ancestor to Jesus.

Hang tight. God blesses faith and courage.

Don't you know Ruth was and continues to be surprised?

We may not know how wide reaching our influence is until our earthly road takes us to heaven. Our deeds and actions will bring results far into the future that we'll never see down here.

What's Up Ahead?

When Ruth began her journey with Naomi to a foreign country, she had no clue what was up ahead. So why did she leave the familiar and branch out into the unknown?

1. Love for her mother-in-law. 
The obvious reason is love. Marches for women's rights hadn't begun back in those days. Such a thought would never cross a female's mind. Social Security and Medicare didn't exist either. Men in the family were to take care of the widows and orphans. Naomi had no husband and no sons. Naomi had a faithful, loving daughter-in-law who shouldered the responsibilities. Ruth was willing to take on duties that should have belonged to her husband. She loved Naomi.

 Hmmm. She sounds like a modern lady, right? Many women these days are assuming men's responsibilities. Is that good or bad? Remember, Ruth wouldn't have stepped in if she'd had a husband.

2. Faith in her new God.
Ruth's previous Moab god, Chemosh, was not real. Through the testimony of Ruth's new family, Ruth came to believe in the One and Only God.  In Ruth 1:16, she tells Naomi, "Your people will be my people and your God my God."

Wow! What did Ruth see in this Jewish family that made her want what they had?

Would your lifestyle 

bring someone to your faith? Do you have someone willing to give up parents, country, and privilege to move away with you?

3. The Commitment is Certain. The Decision made.

Ruth tells Naomi, "Where you die, I will die. Where you are buried, I will be buried"

In other words, Ruth says to Naomi,

"I'm not going back. I'm staying."

FAITH MOVES FORWARD. NEVER BACKWARD.

Hebrews: 11:1 says "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." KJV.

Ruth hoped and had faith in God that she and He could take care of Naomi. Even though Ruth couldn't see around the bend in the road, or what was over the mountains, her faith kept her plodding forward. One step at a time. Doing what she needed to do. 

Ruth set a good example for us, didn't she?

Take heart dear woman or man of God. Even if you don't know how to get across the hardship, God already knows.

As we study Ruth. We'll soon see how God rewarded Ruth's faith.

FAITH AND HUMOR

That Lonely Road

So Ruth set off with Naomi on a lonely road. They walked for miles and days, not knowing what might be waiting for them around the bend. The ladies knew heartache. Both were widows.

Naomi, the older of the two, had experienced more than her share of sadness. While she lived in Judah, she, her hubby, and two sons experienced a famine. Hunger drove them to leave family and friends and head to greener pastures. They traveled east to Moab. 

How hard would it be to pick up

 and leave for parts unknown? 

You're hungry. 

No job.

Homeless. Searching. 

Scared out of your mind. 

Would Naomi have left Judah if she'd known her hubby and two sons would die in Moab? I doubt it, but since we can't see into the future, we make decisions based on current circumstances.

Two daughters-in-law chose to return with Naomi. All three started out on that lonely road to Bethlehem.  Somewhere along the way, Naomi insisted the two young women go back to their mother's house and worship Chemosh, the god of the Moabites. Not much is known about this god, but he was supposed to give protection. Ha! He hadn't protected these three women, had he? Truth be told, he couldn't. He wasn't real.

At this point in the story, we might say the same thing about the One and True and Only God. Why didn't He protect the ladies from heartache? Why didn't He give them a better life instead of a bitter one? 

He had great plans for Naomi and Ruth, but they must experience the bad stuff to get to the good stuff.

To understand the outcome, we must wait for the author to write, "The End." Okay, back to the story.

Naomi insisted these two young women return home. Her pleading caused them to make a choice.  One turned around on the road to return to the familiar and one chose to go forward into the unknown.

Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, wept, and waved goodbye. I wonder what God had planned for her had she stayed with Naomi. We all make choices, and sometimes our choice causes us to miss God's blessing. Ruth trudged on in faith.

Yes, the road is difficult and decisions can be hard. Hang in there. Stay focused. God has good stuff headed your way. Let's see what happens to Ruth.

FAITH AND HUMOR

A Long Walk

The story of Ruth and Naomi.

It's a beautiful story of love and family.  

Naomi lived in the land of Moab due to a famine in Bethlehem. Her husband and two sons died, leaving her with two daughters-in-law. Somehow she heard that Bethlehem once more had bread. (Bethlehem means house of bread). She decided to make the thirty mile or more journey back to her native land.

Three women start out, but Naomi convinced Orpah, a daughter-in-law to turn back and stay with her own kin. She would have more opportunity for marriage if she did. Ruth will not turn back. She uttered that famous verse we find in Ruth: 1:16. "where you go I will go, and where you stay I will say. Your people will be my people and your God my God." NIV.

We hear that verse quoted often at weddings, but Ruth said it to her mother-in-law.  Can you imagine? I'd probably have said, "I love you and wish you well, but I need to take care of my own mom."

Now the trek back to Bethlehem wasn't easy. When one has been away from God, the road back isn't always the easiest, is it?

The road back was not easy, especially for two widows traveling alone. The Bible doesn't say if they occasionally met up with a caravan or not, but Scripture says they traveled along the road leading back to the land of Judah. This probable road was north of the Dead Sea. These women would need to descend from the mountain region near Mount Nebo, enter the Jordan River Valley, and then begin the gradual climb to Jericho. On the map below, you'll find Jericho just north of the Dead Sea. From Jericho, they'd have to go west toward Jerusalem and then south to Bethlehem.  If they could have crossed the Dead Sea by boat, it would have been closer.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kingdoms_around_Israel_830_map.svg

And they had no GPS or map!

Brave ladies, don't you think?

That journey could take weeks. How about food? Perhaps people along the way gave handouts. No handy dandy motels existed either. Perhaps they slept side by side on the ground at night. No street light, only a moon and stars guided them until they found a spot to rest.

We can see multiple lessons in this story, but the one I want to focus on today is this:  These two widows had no idea I'd be talking about them today. They'd be shocked to read their names in Scripture. And............they'd be more amazed to how see Ruth is in the genealogy of King David and Jesus.

I don't know if I'm touching lives as I go about my day daily existence, but God knows. Maybe one day from on high, I'll be flabbergasted to see some of the choices I made helped transform a life down here. 

You don't know the influence you have either. But like Ruth and Naomi, make the journey. Even if you can't see the road you're on.

BUT USE A GPS IF YOU HAVE ONE! 

FAITH AND HUMOR

Valentine's Day. Happy or Sad?

Valentine's Day is my least favorite holiday. I love romance. I write love stories, but as a kid I never liked Valentine's Day.

I loved creating the box when I was in elementary school, but if I didn't get many cards, I was sad. These days, the kids give to all the classmates and that's a good idea.

My mother always sent cards. She went to heaven in January of 1992. While cleaning her bedroom, I found the Valentine cards she planned to send to me and my hubby. They weren't signed yet, but I kept them. They are on the reverse of this framed Valentine note from her mother.

I have this framed note in my bookcase. I remove it on February 14 to read the notes my mom sent back in the day. Sweet memories. Happy ones, but maybe a little sad too.

What kind of Valentine memories are you making?

Love Time Again

Valentine's Day is Coming

Do you like it?

Some of my characters in my books love it.

In Sarah: A Mission of Love, Sarah the dyslexic angel, must find Tom a mate by Valentine's Day.

She has a problem. She's new at this angel business and now she has a mission with a time limit on it!

Merciful Heavens!

Why can't the Superiors take her newbie status into consideration? Couldn't they at least give her until July 4 instead of February 14 to find Tom a mate?  Those extra months would come in handy, but after arriving on earth, she discovers she has a mere matter of weeks by the human calendar. Can she do it?

3.99 in eBook on Amazon

Also available in audio, and paper back

Here's a blurb:

Handsome, single, and wealthy, Houstonian Tom Shoemaker must decide if he should give up his successful business to assume a country pastorate. When a blonde, blue-eyed, dyslexic angel arrives from The Heavenlies to locate a mate for Tom by Valentine’s Day, she’s havoc in outlandish red stilettos. But despite numerous goofs in her efforts—many caused by her passion for eccentric footwear the other angels would never dare adorn—love is indeed in the air.

After Marcy Montgomery’s husband was killed in Afghanistan, she relocated to a small, central Texas town with Hope, her five-year-old daughter. When Sarah accidentally introduces Tom to Marcy, she sets about discovering if the two would make suitable mates. The Superiors certainly wouldn’t approve of a romantic link between the wrong people. But Hope wants a father, and when the five-year-old meets Tom, she immediately decides he is the perfect candidate.

Is Tom the right one for Marcy? Or has Sarah made her biggest blunder of all? Oh merciful heavens! What’s an angel to do?

ROOT FOR SARAH TO HELP TOM FIND HIS LOVE BY THE CRUCIAL DATE!

The Long and Short of It.

There's nothing wrong with long, braided hair.

There's nothing wrong with short hair.

So what was Samson's problem?

God told him not to cut his hair.

Moral of the story?

If you're a man and like long hair, 

don't let Delilah into your life.

FAITH AND HUMOR

Babies and Bunco?

Babies and Bunco, now there's a combination!

My friend, Julie B. Cosgrove comes up with the wildest ideas for a mystery. Here's a blurb from her latest book.

Who would leave a newborn baby in the bathtub of a condo in Sunset Acres, a retirement community, and why? 

And was a young woman slain behind the convenience store across the highway it’s mother? 

Janie and the Bunco Biddies want to find out, but soon they discover sleuthing can get a bit dicey.

Julie B. Cosgrove deserves this seal of approval, and she received it last year. If you aren't reading Julie, you're missing a treat. Some of my fav books are authored by her.

I read the first Bunco mystery and it was a doozy. The title of it? Dumpster Dicing (Bunco Biddies Book 1)

The ladies introduced in Dumpster Dicing make another appearance, God love 'em, and once more, they prove they aren't too old to be detectives. 

HOLD IT!!!

Here's a scoop for you. You don't need to read book one first. I did, but you can meet these cute, funny ladies just as easily in book two.

Here's part of a scene from Chapter One in Baby Bunco

Janie led Mildred back to her designated chair. She patted her on the shoulders and scanned the room, making certain every slightly glaucoma-pressed or cataract-corrected eye fixated on her.

"Now we must figure out who placed a newborn baby in a vacant garden home bathtub. and why?" 

Babs cocked an eyebrow."We do?"

"Absolutely. Let’s face facts. Someone put the little thing in a home in our community so she would be discovered. Therefore, it is our responsibility—"

"Well, now. I’m not sure..."Mildred frowned. 

"We are all over fifty-five, correct? The child certainly doesn’t belong to one of us. If so, we should be renamed Sarah after Abraham’s elderly wife in Genesis."

"Or Elizabeth in the New Testament," Betsy Ann added, this time with a forefinger, not a full hand, aloft. 

Janie gave her a soft smile. "Exactly. Therefore, unless one of you wants to confess..."

Cackles ensued.

Two Editions on Amazon eBook and paperback

Feeling Guilty? Don't

"For as high as the heavens are above the earth,

    so great is his love for those who fear him;

12 

as far as the east is from the west,

    so far has he removed our transgressions from us."

 Psalm 103

We often regret and feel guilt over sin and past mistakes. We all miss God's mark one way or another, but this verse reminds us we don't have to worry about it. God has removed them farther from us than we can imagine.

Faith and Humor