Author Archives: Janet Sketchley

About Janet Sketchley

Janet Sketchley is an Atlantic Canadian writer whose Redemption’s Edge Christian suspense novels have each been finalists in The Word Awards. She's also the author of the devotional collection, A Year of Tenacity. Janet blogs about faith and books. She loves Jesus and her family, and enjoys reading, worship music, and tea. Fans of Christian suspense are invited to join her writing journey through her monthly newsletter: bit.ly/JanetSketchleyNews.

Merry Christmas

When the Wait is Long

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Jesus’ birth ended a period of 400 years of silence from God. The angel Gabriel had brought personal messages to Zechariah and to Mary, and we don’t know how young Simeon was when God promised he’d see the Messiah before he died, but these were private revelations. The nation of Israel as a whole heard nothing. Not even a whisper.

400 years.

No prophets. No angelic visitors. Silence.

A remnant of Israel had returned from exile and begun to rebuild, as God had promised.

He also promised a Messiah, a King to come who would rule in power and justice and break the people’s bondage for good.

Nobody expected the King to suffer and die first.

Nobody expected to wait so long.

400 years.

Are you waiting today?

God hasn’t forgotten, or changed His mind, or discovered He can’t do what He promised.

He’s waiting too, for the best time to unveil what’s coming.

May His peace, hope, love and joy sustain each of us in the waiting.

And Merry Christmas. Christ has come.

Joy Under Pressure

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As pressure and stress bear down on me,
I find joy in your commands.
Psalm 119:143, NLT*

If that’s not a Christmas-related verse, I don’t know what is.

All jokes aside, you can’t read Psalm 119 and not see how the psalmist loves the Law of the Lord, how he thrives on it. I’ve been praying to better understand and follow his example.

At first this verse didn’t make sense to me. Pressure and stress bearing down… and he finds joy in God’s commands?

Pressure: God is the ultimate authority. This verse reminds me to trust Him to care for me and to ask for equipping wisdom or deliverance.

Perspective: It’s not me against the universe. God is bigger than the problem.

Focus: Centering on God’s way builds an attitude of God-trust instead of futile human striving or fighting the circumstances.

Wisdom: God’s code of conduct helps us know what to do, how to act in difficult situations.

Joy: There’s no joy looking at stress, but there’s deep joy in belonging to God. Keeping His Law, precepts and principles as the Spirit enables us keeps the barriers down between us.

Life: The next verse says

Your laws are always right;
help me to understand them so I may live.
Psalm 119:144, NLT*

Doing it God’s way brings joy and life in the midst of stress. What’s not to like?

God all-wise and loving, we can’t do this on our own, and that’s one reason You gave the Law in the first place, to help us see our need. Help us learn and understand, and through Your Holy Spirit keep us focused and following. Thank You for the joy and life You give.

∞

The Newsboys’ When the Tears Fall is a song of trusting God through hard times. That’s not happiness, but it’s joy.

*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: A Star Curiously Singing, by Kerry Nietz

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A Star Curiously Singing, by Kerry Nietz (Marcher Lord Press, 2009)

In a dystopian future of Earth with advanced technology and a repressive global regime, to be a tech geek is to be a slave. Anyone (usually male) chosen for this role at age 10 is implanted with a chip that allows him to wirelessly connect to machines, computers and serv-bots—to “stream” to them—and to perform necessary repairs.

These people are called debuggers, and Sandfly is a good one. He does what his master orders, and rarely gets “tweaked” for disobedient or dangerous thoughts, although his wry observances of life under the masters—the Abduls (Servants)—skate pretty close to the edge at times.

Sandfly’s world is ruled by a form of Islam that’s all rules and no faith. Absolute power seems to have corrupted absolutely, and Sandfly wonders if there are any good masters left.

A top-secret assignment lands him on a space station (he’s afraid of heights) where he’s introduced to the prototype space ship, Dark Trench. Dark Trench is a technological marvel, but its crew can’t be cleared to go home until Sandfly finds out what caused their only bot to destroy itself part-way through the mission.

There’s a lot more to the story than that, but you need to read it yourself. Part of the fun is being dropped into this unusual world and figuring out what’s going on as you read Sandfly’s narration. He’ll call you “freehead” and occasionally explain details, but most of the time you’re just along for the ride, learning on the fly (if you’ll pardon the pun).

A Star Curiously Singing is a fast read, with twists, turns, humour, faith and danger. It’s a good story, and Sandfly really makes the novel for me. He’s an engaging character with a distinctive voice. I look forward to reading the other two books in the Dark Trench series: The Surperlative Stream and Freeheads.

A Star Curiously Singing won a Reader’s Favourite Gold Medal Award, and was a finalist on a few other awards lists. You can learn more about Kerry Nietz at his website, and read a sample of A Star Curiously Singing on the Marcher Lord Press site. And you can read an interview with Kerry Nietz, and a bit about his newest book, Freeheads, at A Christian Writer’s World. The draw is now over, and I won! Kerry very kindly substituted A Star Curiously Singing for Freeheads, rather than drop me into the series at the end.

Thoughts and Attitudes

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God has encouraged me through a few different writers recently, and I thought I’d share the highlights:

At Everydays, Ashley Clark posted about God Moments, and about how our thoughts and attitudes are a choice. The highlight for me:

God is present in every situation, so there is always a reason to rejoice. We have a choice in every moment. (Read the whole post: God Moments)

Jeff Goins’ most recent weekly e-newsletter built on the attitudes-as-choice theme:

“Our attitudes are habits, so why not practice the ones we’d prefer?” (Read the whole post: One Simple Idea that Makes Life an Exciting Adventure)

My biggest takeaway from Jeff’s post? He challenged us to intentionally smile. Know what? When I do that, my body believes my face and I feel happier.

At Hearing the Heartbeat, Carolyn Watts asks:

How might seeing life as an invitation to oneness rather than as an exam change our days? (Read the whole post: Life is not an Exam)

And at Chatting at the Sky, Emily Freeman offers both optimists and pessimists a different way. My favourite line:

Let the believers consider Immanuel, the with-ness of God, right where we are, not where we wish we were instead. (Read the whole post: One Alternative to Pessimism and Optimism)

Will we see the scarred pavement, muddy marks and old leaves, or will we see the heart in the puddle? [Photo credit: Janet Sketchley]

Obedient Thoughts

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We take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.
2 Corinthians 10:5b, NIV*

As I’ve been praying for grace to bring my thoughts under Christ’s authority, I’ve realized there’s more to this verse than avoiding sinful or tempting thoughts, as important as that is. There are at least three other types of thoughts that need to be kept in line:

Thoughts of self-focus, self-centredness or self-pity. When we’re preoccupied with our own opinions, choices and preferences, we can’t hear His.

Thoughts that ramble instead of being attuned to God’s leading. When we let our minds wander, even in safe places, we’ve lost focus and aren’t following our Shepherd.

Thoughts that yammer on and distract us from His voice. We need to still our thoughts and listen to God.

The other day at work I was tired and achy and tasked with moving boxes. Where ordinarily I’d be focused on muscle pain and “poor me,” I caught myself singing the same song over and over: “Hallelujah to My King.”

The Holy Spirit planted the song, but my moment of choice came when I recognized it: keep singing, or start complaining? For all the tests I (we all) fail, I’m glad this one I passed.

God our Maker, You know our weakness and how easily our thoughts slip away from the paths You’d like them to be in. Without Your Spirit to remind and guide us we don’t have a chance of keeping our thoughts obedient. Thank You for Your grace that helps us. Give us teachable minds and attitudes of obedient perseverance, and grow us in Your ways.

∞

“Hallelujah to My King,” by Paul Baloche, is a good song for us all today.

Review: The God of All Comfort, by Hannah Whitall Smith

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The God of All Comfort, by Hannah Whitall Smith (Whitaker House, 2003)

If God is indeed the God of all comfort; if He is our Shepherd; if He is truly our Father; if all the many aspects we have been studying of His character and His ways are true, then we must conclude that He is, in Himself alone, enough for all our possible needs. Therefore, we may safely rest in Him, absolutely and forever. (p. 284)

That’s an apt summary of the message of this book. Hannah Whitall Smith challenges readers to consider what the Bible says about God and His nature, and to compare that with what our inner responses reveal we actually believe. It’s not enough to have head knowledge that God is good, for example. We need to develop the heart knowledge that lets us base our lives and actions on the fact.

The version I’ve read has been “revised for clarity and readability” although it keeps the King James Scriptures. The next time I read it, I think I’ll look each one up in a newer translation as I go, for an even clearer grasp of what’s being said. And there are still some readability issues.

For example, Mrs. Smith refers to “comfortable faith,” meaning faith that’s not “uncomfortable” in the sense of distressing us because we have an unhealthy view of God as tyrant, weak or unloving. To my mind, “comfortable faith” implies laziness and stagnation.

I found much to bless, encourage and strengthen me in The God of All Comfort. Some things I didn’t quite accept, and I’m not sure if I didn’t understand them or if I take a different view.

According to the biography at the end of the book, Hannah Whitall Smith ended her days as a Universalist. In general, the teaching in The God of All Comfort meshed well with Scripture and drew me nearer to God, but with her change in mind I’m not too eager to adopt anything blindly (good advice at the best of times).

My copy of the book bristles with coloured flags marking key points. The best thing it did for me was challenge me to intentionally trust God as my Good Shepherd and to consciously rely on His Word.

According to the Wikipedia article on Hannah Whitall Smith, she lived from 1832-1911 in the US and England.

[Review copy from my personal library.]

Interview: Tadeo Turtle

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I’ve posted author interviews before, but today’s my first fictional-character interview. (Not, of course, that our guest thinks he’s fictional.)

Allow me to introduce TADEO Turtle. He pronounces his name TAD-ay-OH, and I believe we can also call him TAD.

Tadeo Turtle

Janet: Tadeo, welcome. I’m quite fond of turtles and pleased to meet you. What kind of turtle are you?

Tadeo: Hi Janet. Thanks for the opportunity to talk to you and your readers. I am a painted turtle – well not quite – as my creator used her imagination to create me. Janis started with a picture of a painted turtle and then let the colours flow and out I came.

Janet: Well, you’re a new kind of painted turtle then… a watercolour turtle! Do painted turtles live in most parts of North America? I’m in Nova Scotia, Canada, and I’m pretty sure we have some of your relatives here. We also have the endangered Blandings Turtle.

Tadeo: Yes we are native to most of North America and my cousins live in your neck of the woods. Thank you for bringing up the subject of endangered species. There are many turtles that are threatened by more than predators. Humans have made some of my relatives very scarce and that makes me sad.

Besides the Blandings Turtle we are also losing the Spotted Turtle and the Snapping Turtle as well as many, many others. These used to be common to you humans but we die on roads – did you know that? Have you seen the signs – Turtle Crossing – well watch out, we move very slowly and can’t get across your busy intersections very well. SLOW down when you see that sign – you might hit ME.

Janet: I’ve seen those signs, Tadeo. The only time I saw a turtle crossing the road was at night, and he was a big guy, a snapper I think. I didn’t think it was safe to stop on the side of the road and try to move him (snappers snap!) but I asked God to protect him and get him safely across. I assume the bigger turtles are the older ones. You’re still fairly young, yourself, aren’t you? I understand you like to laugh and play. What sorts of things do turtles do for fun?

Tadeo: I like to eat, fish, insects, plants – actually I am omnivorous, I love any food – it keeps me healthy. I look around at the lady turtles but haven’t found one I fancy yet. I have some friends – SAMMY SQUIRREL is my friend, you know. I am not sure about CAT as he was in my dream but maybe I could make friends with him some day.

Janet: It sounds like a good life. But for a while you were kind of sad about it. Care to tell us a bit about that?

Tadeo: Oh I started to feel sorry for myself when I looked at what my friend SAMMY SQUIRREL could do and I couldn’t because of my shell – it is cumbersome you know.

Janet: So you started to think your lovely shell wasn’t such a good thing?

Tadeo: My eyes looked at others instead of at God and I did envy what I saw. Now I think of people who have casts on their limbs, or are in wheel chairs. Maybe they feel like that too.

Janet: Perhaps they do. And perhaps if some of them read about your story, they’ll feel better about themselves. I wonder if SAMMY SQUIRREL or CAT wished they could have a cool shell like yours.

Tadeo: I guess so – maybe when they are being chased and can’t get away they would like a place to hide and be protected. Mmm I never thought about that. Thanks Janet for opening my eyes to that fact.

Janet: I think other than protection, the best thing about having a shell would be that your house is always with you. When you want to nap, you can tuck in and sleep wherever you are. Do you still wish you were different?

Tadeo: Well – I think know now a little bit more about God, the Creator. I know Janis made me in the book but in her heart my little life is real. And Janis knows God and knows that He created turtles to be as they are. So I know now that I have to accept that and try to be the way God created me. I feel more at peace now that I know that.

Janet: I’m glad. We’re all a little different, on the inside if not the outside. That’s part of the variety of God’s creation. He certainly has a big imagination! But we all fit together in His world.

Tadeo: Oh Janet – you get it too. That is awesome to know that we all have a special place in God’s heart. He cares for all of us – you know. Have you read 1 Peter 5:7 “Cast all your anxieties on Him because He cares for you.” I hear Janis saying that a lot.

Janet: Yes, I love that Bible verse. Janis is my friend too, Tadeo, and I have a lot of respect for her faith and wisdom. She’s encouraged me many times. Would you like to tell our readers a bit about her?

Author Janis Cox

Tadeo: Well I am happy that she created me. She told me that God gave her the words to come out of my mouth and that God inspired her to paint. Did you know that she didn’t think she could paint? I find that interesting because she knows that God can do anything. So why didn’t she believe Him right away?

Do you believe that? I think Janis knows now that He can do anything and when we don’t think we can do something we make excuses (just like Moses). But God CAN and DOES. I love that, don’t you?

Also I think Janis is learning to move more slowly – like me. She used to rush and rush – now she takes time to sit and talk to God. She also looks around herself more. Maybe I helped her do that.

Janet: Maybe you did! Isn’t that cool? If you could scurry like SAMMY SQUIRREL that wouldn’t have happened. I love the way her watercolour paintings let me see you and your world. What do you think, does she accurately capture what you look like?

Tadeo: Well sometimes I think that she might have made me a little more handsome so I would find that lady of my life. I want one – you know. But I am not in a hurry – as I know God does have a plan.

Janet: Well, thank you, Tadeo, for taking time for this conversation. I’m a little curious how you typed your answers! I wish you many happy adventures, and I hope to read more about them in another story. Keep your eye out for that special lady turtle!

===

For more about Tadeo Turtle, visit Janis Cox’s website. Janis also runs the Under the Cover of Prayer blog

You can also find her at:

The Janis Cox Facebook page

Tadeo’s Facebook page

Twitter: Janis Cox

Twitter: Under the Cover of Prayer

How Did I Come to Write Tadeo Turtle? (underthecoverofprayer.wordpress.com)
How Can I Share? (familyandfaithmatters.wordpress.com)
How Did I Find God or How Did He Find Me? (bythebloodofthelamb.com)

Not About Us

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But Samuel replied,
“What is more pleasing to the Lord:
your burnt offerings and sacrifices
or your obedience to his voice?
Listen! Obedience is better than sacrifice,
and submission is better than offering the fat of rams.”
1 Samuel 15:22, NLT*

What is it about humans that we always want to make it about us? And about outward, not inward, and doing, not being?

God’s been poking me about this in relation to why I do things and how I choose what to do. Too often my first line of thought is “what do I want/think/feel about this?” If Jesus is really Lord in my life, the better question is “what does God want/think/feel about this?”

Self-focus is insidious and I think we all struggle with it.

It’s silly, really, because if we know God’s way is best, why do we so quickly shift focus to what we want? When I’m focused on my own opinions and feelings I miss the better things God has for me. And I’m not pleasant to be around.

Focus on (and surrender to) His way brings joy, contentment, and a contagious sense of wellbeing. A much better choice… if only it were easier to keep this perspective!

Without this heart-choice—spirit-choice—we’ll either be doing the wrong thing or doing the right thing for the wrong reason. We can even turn the pursuit of holiness into being about us. Take a minute to read Violet Nesdoly’s post about victory vs. obedience.

God our King, Your wisdom and power, kindness and justice make you the perfect ruler. Forgive us when we try to re-take control of our lives, and draw us back to full surrender to You. There is none other like You, none other worthy to be God. Remind us who You are, and help us to trust and obey. Help us worship You with our lives.

∞

Today’s song is “Jesus, Lover of My Soul,” by ZOEgirl (not the same song that Hillsong does). Notice the part that says “It’s all about You… It’s not about me.”

Review: Worth its Weight in Old, by K.D. Hays

About Janet Sketchley

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[Review copy from my personal library.]