Photo credit: Janet Sketchley
God’s timing… I saw this sign shortly after noticing His cues to write the devotional post, Accept the Gift.
Sometimes a sign says it all…
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Author Archives: Janet Sketchley
When Faith Affects Our Lives
Now someone may argue, “Some people have faith; others have good deeds.” But I say, “How can you show me your faith if you don’t have good deeds? I will show you my faith by my good deeds.”
James 2:18, NLT*
James talks about loyalty to God—faith—and about how that looks in the Christian’s life. He gives practical examples (don’t practice favouritism, actually help your friend instead of just wishing him well) and I think that’s so we’ll realize our faith isn’t something we compartmentalize. It’s meant to affect everything we do, say and think.
The good deeds he’s asking for are to grow naturally out of applying faith in Jesus to our daily lives. There’s no eternal value in good work without a heart for God. People judge by appearances and actions, but God looks at the heart.
If our faith is growing, it will cause visible changes in our lives. We’ll learn to rely more on God in our daily thoughts, responsibilities and experiences. That’s one reason a daily quiet time with God is so vital.
Remember James’ words on accepting the word of God planted in our hearts? Prayer, listening, reading the Bible are key ingredients in a growing faith.
In our culture of busyness, over-calendaring and of being always “on call” to texts, emails etc, the danger is that there’s no time for God. We’re busy, distracted, and it’s easy to take God for granted. But if we don’t read His word, don’t spend time getting to know Him, how will we know what’s true? How will we know how to live or have the confidence that He can—and wants to—help us? We’ll be the unstable people James warns us about in his first chapter.
God who created us, who knows our hearts, help us be intentional in taking time with You. Give us hearts that long to know You better and to please You. Give us wisdom in how to use our time so we can do what You’ve given us to do and yet grow in relationship with You and with those You’ve given us. Give us faith, and work that faith out in our lives in good works—not for You but because of You.
∞
Casting Crowns‘ song, “Lifesong,” makes a good prayer.
*New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Review: Undercurrent, by Michelle Griep
Undercurrent, by Michelle Griep (Risen Books, 2011)
In late-tenth-century Norway, Alarik regains consciousness to discover his cousin bleeding and his brother dead by Alarik’s own blade. With no memory of the fight, Alarik must flee or be executed.
Meanwhile, in the present day, Cassie Larson is a career-oriented professor and linguistics expert shepherding a group of university students on a tour of historic islands in England’s Northumberland Strait—until she falls over the side of the boat and surfaces beside Alarik’s small vessel.
Alarik’s cousin, Ragnar, is their village’s only Christian, who longs to convince his people of his Saviour’s reality and Alarik’s innocence. He’s often ridiculed, and his disfigured face keeps him unmarried, yet he dreams of a woman speaking a strange language, who will love him.
In some ways Undercurrent is a historical romance, filled with rich details of Alarik’s place and time. It’s also a time-travel fish-out-of-water story as a self-sufficient woman of our day learns to function in a primitive, male-dominated Viking society.
I enjoyed the characters, the peek into this period in history, and the occasional humour. Ragnar’s sincerity of faith is a good challenge to present-day Christians who may not feel our roles as ambassadors quite as strongly as he does among his people.
Michelle Griep has a fast-moving writing style that drew me in and made me care about the people and their circumstances. You can learn more about Michelle Griep at her website and her blog, Writer Off the Leash. She’s also the author of Gallimore and A Heart Deceived.
[Review copy from my personal library.]
Heaven’s Prey: My Novel
I’m expecting a book! Yes, I hope for grandchildren when the time’s right, but I’m excited to finally see some of my “imaginary friends” come to life in print (or e-print). Over the next few months, I’ll introduce them to you.
The novel’s called Heaven’s Prey and it’s Christian fiction. Choose NOW Publishing plans to release it in November. Here’s the tag line:
A grieving woman is abducted by a dangerous offender—and it may be the answer to her prayers.
It’s about a serial killer’s last chance at redemption—not the gentle inspirational read many associate with the Christian genre. I’ve aimed for a suspense level similar to Brandilyn Collins or Terri Blackstock. Not as intense as Ted Dekker or Steven James.
Like this sort of thing? Great! I hope you’ll read it and spread the word.
Not your cup of tea? No worries! I hope you’ll tell your friends who might enjoy it.
Sign up for my author newsletter for advance news on Heaven’s Prey. Subscribers’ contact information will be kept confidential, and I promise not to overload your in-boxes! [Sign up here or in the right-hand sidebar.]
I’m excited to be working with Choose NOW Publishing. As well as their new line of issue-driven books for adults and teens, Choose NOW Ministries has a popular radio show/podcast and a website filled with resources for parents and teens, specializing in hot button issues and empowering teens to make good choices. Stop by and check it out!
Enemies of God?
You adulterers! Don’t you realize that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again: If you want to be a friend of the world, you make yourself an enemy of God.
James 4:4, NLT*
James uses strong language here to make us see the seriousness of divided loyalty.
We live in the world, but as Christians we’re to live by God’s wisdom and not by following the world’s way.
“World” has two meanings here. We live in the physical world and are called to bring God’s love to our fellow inhabitants, but we’re also called to demonstrate a way of life that doesn’t match the natural, unredeemed human mindset.
It’s not about being against the world. It’s about being for God, choosing to stay close to Him, guarding our relationship with Him above all else.
It’s about faithfulness. Loyalty. Loving this God who loves us so much more.
The more we resist the desires and thought patterns that would damage our intimacy with God, the more we can grow in the abundant life He wants to give us.
We want it all—want it both ways—and we fool ourselves that it’s okay. But it’s stunting our spiritual lives, making us poor examples of what God offers, and it’s making us much less than God designed us to be.
And it’s offensive to Him.
Holy God, You love us but You require our full allegiance. Please forgive our disloyalty and help us to live for You. Take Your rightful place in our hearts, exalted and adored, and help us conduct ourselves in a manner worthy of the hope and salvation You’ve so freely given us.
∞
Our song this week is Vicky Beeching‘s “Undivided Heart.” May it be our prayer.
*New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Review: Knowing God, by J. I. Packer
Knowing God, by J. I. Packer (InterVarsity Press, 1973)
In this collection of material previously published in his columns in the Evangelical Magazine, J. I. Packer emphasizes the foundational importance of knowing God—and challenges readers to learn who the Bible says God is instead of going with who we think He is. As we come to know God’s character and attributes, we can trust Him. It’s hard to trust someone whose character you don’t know.
The book explores key attributes of God, including such things as His majesty, wisdom, truth, love, justice, wrath, goodness and severity, and His adequacy. It’s not meant for a casual read, but to be considered, pondered and prayerfully ruminated on. There is much in its pages to nourish Christians.
The writing style is scholarly and includes references to teachers and hymn writers whose names may be unfamiliar to contemporary readers. Taking the time to Google these names would introduce us to many stalwarts of the faith. Knowing God is a valuable resource, and I’d love to see an updated edition for today’s readers. I think the deep content would be easier to process without textbook-level delivery.
Dr. Packer writes from a solidly Protestant/Evangelical point of view, and my Roman Catholic brothers and sisters won’t agree with his chapter about images of God. I’m not sure what to make of it, myself, but the chapter includes a challenge to examine one’s mental image of God to be sure it’s whole and true, and I found that very helpful.
Despite finding the book a hard read, I think it’s one that will benefit any Christian who takes the time to prayerfully work through it. For me, it’s a keeper that I’ll refer back to again.
Dr. Packer is a well-respected theologian and Board of Governors’ Professor of Theology at Regent College, Canada. In 2005, TIME Magazine listed him as “one of 25 most influential Evangelicals in America.” [Influential Evangelicals: J.I. Packer]
[Review copy from my personal library.]
Writing Stick-to-it-ive-ness!
Valerie Comer
Writing Stick-to-it-ive-ness! (Guest post by Valerie Comer)
Have you ever wanted something so much that you spent a decade learning how to do it with no guarantee you’d ever be successful. . . whatever that means?
Janet’s theme on this site is “tenacity.” It’s vital in so many areas of life. Sometimes we call it stubbornness, but tenacity and diligence sound so much more positive. Either way, it’s the ability to set a goal and dig your heels in until you’ve achieved it.
In 2002 I decided to learn to write fiction. Hours every day had suddenly opened up with nothing to fill them. I’d always toyed with the idea of writing a novel “someday,” and knew this was a God-given opportunity to take the next step. Actually the first step.
Only, I had no idea what that step was. How-to-write books from the library were of little help, but the relatively new Internet pointed to some sites where I could learn. And learn I did. I averaged one novel a year for nine years before I finally sold a novella (ironically unwritten at time of sale), and I’ve written two more since. Over half of these are unsalvageable drafts with huge problems.
The biggest hurdles for me were two-fold.
1. I had no concept of the over-all process. I couldn’t see the steps. You know the cliché “can’t see the forest for the trees?” Well, I couldn’t even see the trees for the twigs. I got bogged down in the minutiae of writing and struggled to find the horizon.
2. I thought writers were either seat-of-the-pants writers (pantsers) or plotters. It took me a long time to “get” that there was a large middle ground in which most writers live. Thus it took me about ten too many novels to find the best practices for me. Now I know better than to tell anyone “this is the way it must be done.”
This spring it seemed the time had come to pay forward and help other, newer writers develop their craft, so I opened a website, To Write a Story, dedicated to teaching fiction from beginning to end. It seems to me that there are six stages in writing: planning, plotting, writing, editing, publishing, and marketing. My goal is to provide an overview of each stage so that writers can keep the forest in mind while they’re focused on those twigs.
I’ve chosen a two-prong approach:
1. It’s a blog. I post a helpful article every Thursday on one of the six stages. Most of them are written by me, but I accept a small number of guest posts, too.
2. It’s a course. Writers can sign up in the sidebar for my FREE writing course via email. You’ll get a new lesson every week for the better part of a year, walking you through the process from beginning to end.
If you’ve ever wondered just what all is involved in writing fiction, I invite you to subscribe to the course (and/or the blog) and join the 70+ people (about one a day since I opened the course) who are already enrolled. We’re having a lot of fun and I think you will, too!
Want to learn To Write a Story? Then join in!
◊◊◊
Valerie Comer’s life on a small farm in western Canada provides the seed for stories of contemporary inspirational romance. Like many of her characters, Valerie and her family grow much of their own food and are active in the local foods movement as well as their creation-care-centric church. She only hopes her characters enjoy their happily ever afters as much as she does hers, shared with her husband, adult kids, and adorable granddaughters.
Valerie writes Farm Lit with the voice of experience laced with humor. Raspberries and Vinegar, first in her series A Farm Fresh Romance, releases August 1, 2013, from Choose NOW Publishing.
Wisdom: More than Choices
But the wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere.
James 3:17, NLT*
When we ask God for wisdom, it’s usually because we need to know what to do or what decision to make. Think of the stories and jokes about the guy who climbs the mountain to ask the wise man a question. It’s always about knowledge and choices.
Today’s verse, and I think the whole of James’ letter, says wisdom is about living wisely.
Living wisely as James defines it will result in wise choices because the wise Christian is living in obedience to the Master’s ways. This wisdom is the opposite of self-focused ambition and selfishness. It’s loyalty to God, following His path.
It’s bringing the human spirit in line under the Holy Spirit, submitting our wills to His and following Him instead of pushing ahead.
I think if we can live like this, we’ll find ourselves making the wise decisions we wanted in the first place, because we’ll be in tune with God.
God who is fully wise, Shepherd who is fully good, lead us in Your ways and train us in Your precepts. In You we find our wisdom, our health and our strength. We’re no good on our own. Help us stay in Your presence, where we can thrive.
∞
Think about Matt Redman‘s song, “We Could Change the World.”
*New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Review: Tadeo Turtle, by Janis Cox
Tadeo Turtle, by Janis Cox (Word Alive Press, 2012)
Tadeo (TAD-ay-OH) Turtle loves who he is—until he starts comparing himself to others. Suddenly his beautiful shell feels like it’s holding him back. Without it, he’d be faster, leaner, more agile.
One night he dreams of life without his shell. Freedom! Or is it? When a hungry cat spies him, he’s not so sure he likes being unprotected.
Tadeo Turtle invites children to think about how they’re different from their friends, to recognize their friends’ positive attributes and to discover the value of their own individual skills and abilities.
In a society where so many people think poorly of themselves or of others, this little book is a good way to encourage respect for diversity. I appreciate the way it acknowledges God as the designer of our differences and thanks Him “for making me so wonderfully complex” (Psalm 139:13-14, NLT).
Children and adults alike will enjoy the whimsical watercolour illustrations as well as the story’s simple rhyme. The book includes a few easy craft activities, with more available online at Janis Cox’s Creative Saturdays page.
Author-illustrator Janis Cox is a former teacher who’s now concentrating on painting and writing. For more about Tadeo Turtle, including a spot for children to share pictures of their turtle-related crafts, visit Tadeo’s page on the author’s website. There’s also a Facebook page for Tadeo Turtle. Best way to get to know the little guy? Read my Interview with Tadeo Turtle.
[Review copy from my personal library.]
Related articles
- InScribers Review: Tadeo Turtle (inscribewritersonline.blogspot.ca)
- Book Review: Tadeo Turtle by Janis Cox (thekoalabearwriter.com)
- Tadeo Turtle by Canadian Author Janis Cox Gets Great Reviews (www.madeinhaliburton.ca)
- Tadeo Turtle (ccbreview.blogspot.ca)
- Review of “Tadeo Turtle” by Janis Cox (readingauthors.blogspot.ca)
- Interview: Tadeo Turtle (janetsketchley.wordpress.com)
Fear as Opportunity
Stress and pressure are like strong winds. They knock us off our feet and send us tumbling, flailing for support.
As long as we keep God at our backs, we can stand.
I often use the prayer picture of a piece of paper, wind-plastered against a cliff, pressed so tightly against the rock face that you can see every groove and jut in the rock.
Isn’t that our prayer as Christians? “Lord, shape me to be like You.”
Life’s struggles are often His best tools.
So why hadn’t I recognized that fear is only another tool? Carolyn Watts writes that “fear can be an asset—if we learn how to let it lead us closer to Jesus.” (see How to Turn Fear into an Asset)
Or as a good friend said to me the other day, “Fear is a driver—it can drive you to God, or deeper into fear. Pray to choose wisely.”
This puts fear in the same category as trials, temptations, stresses and even gifts: something God can use in our lives to develop perseverance and endurance. Instead of freezing up or shrinking inward, we can invite Jesus into our fear, ask Him to use it to draw us closer to Him—to let it press us into His likeness.
We can praise Him and rejoice over what He’s going to do, even though we can’t yet see what that will be.
Thanking God in our fear, instead of letting it close us off from Him… this is delightfully subversive and not at all what the enemy of our souls has in mind, I’m sure. But it matches Scripture: “For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow,” (James 1:3, NLT) and “Be thankful in all circumstances” (1 Thessalonians 5:18a, NLT).
It comes down to this: who/what do we believe is stronger, God or fear? The loyalty to God that I’ve been reading about in the Book of James gives me my answer.
Not that I’m going to welcome fear, to throw open the door and invite it in, but this breaks its power. This lets me press into God, lets me know I’m in good hands and it’ll be okay. No matter what.
[If fear is one of your struggles, I highly recommend following the posts at Hearing the Heartbeat, beginning with How Do You Hear God’s Don’t Be Afraid?]