The world can wait

  Christmas normally involves travel, as families get together - but not this year!  Not so many will be driving home for Christmas in 2020 as a consequence of the social restrictions due to the pandemic.    Many people were travelling the first Christmas. Pregnant Mary and her husband Joseph walked 90 miles over the hills to reach Bethlehem. Many others like them were travelling because the Roman census required them to return to their ancestral towns to register. Some shepherds travelled a much shorter distance from the fields outside Bethlehem to see a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger, whose birth had been announced to them by angels!  The Magi (wise men) came many hundreds of miles, possibly on camels, as they followed a strange star in order to give presents to a new-born king.    But the person who travelled the furthest that first Christmas was the baby in the manger.  The distance he came isn’t measured in miles, but in...

Run With the Wind: Life on the scrub was rough, but it was all she needed. Then he arrived. He wanted to start over. But this . . . Life changed for the world in a stable one Christmas. Could it also begin for Linney in this stable? Excerpts: 1. Nellie moaned, and Linney pulled. The emerging calf licked her face. “We better hurry, Pa. He just done licked me. Don’t want him thinkin’ I’m his mama.”  “You’ll make a good one someday.” “That ain’t happenin’. Why would anyone want to go through this?” Pa looked around Nellie’s bulk. His eyes found Linney’s. “For the likes of you, girl. It’s worth it.”   2. Her eyes shifted to the rider. He appeared to be a few years older’n her. She caught her breath. What was that? His square shoulders and square jaw made him much wider than most  Crackers. But there was something else. It made her feel jittery. She must have overeaten, or that new calf licked her too much. Her stomach didn’t normally flop around like a snake hit by a cowm...

 Today is a guest post by Karen Malley.  Almost everyone has Christmas traditions, whether it’s attending a special church service, donating time or money to charities, decorating the house, baking treats, braving the malls, or simply taking the day off of work and spending time with loved ones. My husband and I started a tradition when we first married. Each year we’ve decorated a Christmas tree together. The first year, we each hung an ornament from our childhood trees, along with a “first Christmas together” ornament, representing our two separate lives coming together. Since then, we’ve added to the tree with special ornaments representing that year. Some years were more somber than others – an American flag represented 2001, and this year, yes, we actually bought a virus ornament. Other years, the ornaments marked special events in our lives, such as buying our house or the birth of our children. Some years we have ornaments from special places we’ve traveled, or a cham...

 Susan's book was highlighted on Dec 17. Today she has a guest post   Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.   Change is a part of daily life. There are few constants between the moment you take your first breath and the moment that you close your eyes to this world. This entire year of the world taken over by a virus and people battling people in one way or another has been proof of that. But even in the best of years, change happens. People grow up. Interests change. Careers change. Friends leave. New friends surprise us. Children bless our lives with daily change. Change is energizing and exciting. But there comes a point when change is not enough. Or it is too much! If only there were something dependable. If only friends and family were always there. One friend is always there. Jesus is always there. He is a friend that will never leave you, nor forsake you. He is a brother that is always where you need him most. He does not chang...

 Each year Pelican Book Group do an extravaganza of Christmas books. Most of this years have already been highlighted. Here are the remaining books. Undercover Santa      When candy store owner Kaylea Breslin's goober of an ex boyfriend jumps bail, she believes she's the last person he'll contact for help. After all, she found his stolen stash and handed--and him--over to the cops. Fugitive Recovery Agent Jace Talan believes Kaylea is the first person that escapee Jonathan Snead will contact. After all, what con man wouldn't try to trick his sweet, beautiful ex-girlfriend into trusting him again? When Kaylea discovers Jace watching her, can he convince her he's not the abominable creature she suspects him to be and that he's there to protect her? This Christmas, they'll have to con a con to catch a thief, save the day...and uncover a lasting romance. Buy link  Pixie's Almost Perfect Christmas   Pixie Mackowiak is thrilled to help her mom plan the Chris...

I am tickled to introduce you to Garrett the second novella in my Yorktown Christmas Time-Travel novella series. Walking into historic Yorktown gives me the feeling of walking into a toy village. The houses that remain from colonial times look very like they would have in the eighteenth century. It feels like I could walk up and touch a roof, and I’m only five foot tall As I wander its streets my mind takes trips back in time. It was on one of those days that I imagined Thomas Nelson and his wife, Lucy, waving at me from their garden. What would we talk about? What would they think of my blue jeans and boots? So Max and Olivia’s story was born. In Max, Max Ballard comes forward in time from 1769. He meets Olivia and she introduces him to the twenty-first century. It was fun to imagine a character from the eighteenth century finding himself plopped into ours. Book two takes us from our century to 1769. Garrett is Olivia’s best friend. When Max comes forward in time Garrett gets ...

 LoRee's book was highlighted on Dec 4th ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Devotion – Dec 19  Isaiah 9:6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. I venture to guess if asked what their favorite holiday is, most people would choose Christmas. However we view the holiday, I’m sure it’s based on childhood memories. (I know there are bad memories for some, and negative emotions, but God’s love and grace cover them all.) Mine are filled with warm fuzzies, centered around our Christmas Eve Sunday school program, the early gift of clothing received to wear for that event, singing carols, and the one-room country school festivities. Warm fuzzies indeed. Thankfulness should also continue all year long, not just during the American holiday. Oh my soul, the knowledge He lives within me, that He lowered Himself to be born among sinful man, either bri...

  We all have certain movies or TV shows we like to watch over and over again. One I always enjoy (although no matter how many times I watch it, the plot remains the same, and the ending never changes) is Miss Congeniality. The story is uncomplicated and entertaining.   When the pageant contestants are asked about their platforms, they offer a variety of responses, but one desire is repeated throughout… As many times as I’ve watched the movie, I still chuckle, when Sandra Bullock’s character presents her “non-pageant-ish” platform, and then, when the confused audience fails to applaud, she tacks on her desire for “World Peace” to receive audience approval.   I may laugh, but isn’t this desire for peace the craving deep within the heart of each person? Peace for our world, our neighborhoods, our friends and families, ourselves. While the view of peace may differ from person to person, it ’ s still an innate desire planted within the human heart.   I am a m...

  When compelled to spend Christmas on the private island of her father’s intended bride, Jeanine must cope with pirate legends, unexpected storms, and murder. Will she and her family discover the truth about Anne Bonny’s connection to the Banet family before someone else winds up dead? Back cover blurb:   Compelled to spend Christmas on a private island with her father’s future bride and family, Jeanine learns that Margo Banet is descended from a pirate queen. Relatives and friends all have their reasons for attending the festivities—including the legendary treasure. But when Margo’s nephew winds up dead and a violent storm cuts them off mainland, Jeanine has to wonder if they will solve the mystery before someone else dies trying. Book excerpt Aimee leaned into Frank. “I really think I’m going to like being a part of this family.” My father bounced off the couch faster than I could. “Does this mean?” Aimee shyly held out her left hand. A ring sat securely on her ring f...

Blurb: When seventeen-year-old seamstress, Josephine Nimetz, agrees to take care of a WWI amputee in a remote Alaskan lodge to escape the influenza of 1918, there’s enough friction to melt the Mendenhall Glacier. Her position is only until June, and it pays well enough to overlook the hardship of managing a rustic home and a shell-shocked veteran, Geoff Chambers. Geoff makes it clear that he isn’t too fond of the “runt” sent to take care of his needs, nor of her painful mistakes. Dealing with a depressed and addicted amputee, pushes Josephine to the brink of leaving, if not for the money her salary brings. But Josephine is a perfectionist, determined to get Geoff back on his feet—figuratively. Though, sending a rich, handsome veteran back into society may cost Josephine the man she has grown to love.                           Excerpt: As they exited the back d...