How to Say 'I Love You' - Guest Post

I’ve been following Janie’s blog for a while now, and always enjoy reading her posts, so it was exciting when she contacted me about swapping guest posts. And after reading through what she wrote for this post, I realized just how privileged I am to have her words grace this blog. I hope you're blessed and challenged by them too, and Janie, thank you so much for suggesting this idea, and for sharing such a powerful post!

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Lately, I have been asking God to show me how to love others well. He answers with a vision of the cross. There is blood and agony, nails and thorns and mockery. There is a deep darkness of my sin laid upon the only sinless person to walk this earth.

This is how you know what love is; that Jesus Christ laid down His life for us.

The more I think about it, the more I realize that love and humility and sacrifice are inseparably intertwined. This is how God chose to reach out to us: Through a baby born in a stable. Through a life of frequent rejection. Through betrayal. Through an unjust trial and the degradation of a criminal's death.

This, then, is how I am to love.

I am to step through the door that Christ opened on the cross; that door into the Holy Place where I may begin to see others with God's eyes and feel for them what He feels. Where the love of Christ compels me. Where I no longer live for myself, but for the One who died for me and was raised again. Where I, who have been rescued from a life of selfish meaninglessness, am free to let offences and disagreements be expiated by that supreme sacrifice on the cross.

Where I can rejoice in affliction.

Where it is my delight to lay down my own will.

Where humility is glory and service is leadership.

God, in Jesus, is the embodiment of the most perfect of all loves.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

How do I love others well?

By laying down my life for those around me at every opportunity.

By thinking kindly, speaking graciously, responding patiently and acting unselfishly. By putting down offences and grudges and pride as soon as I find myself carrying them. By recognizing the image of God in all those around me and granting it the respect and consideration it deserves.

By coming, again and again, to the foot of the cross and allowing the fullness of true love to wash over me and permeate my entire being. By being firm in the knowledge that, no matter how difficult the situation, I have the power to love because He loved me first, and that love never fails.

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Caileigh Jane (Janie to most of her friends) has been described as an 80 year-old woman trapped in a 23 year-old body. She may have gotten a little too excited when she started discovering gray hairs. She loves to bake, do all manner of arts and crafts, and make sure that everyone around her is well-fed and comfortable. She loves bright colors. She loves the outdoors. She loves writing. She especially loves spending quality time with other people in order to encourage, uplift, and draw them closer to her greatest love of all: Jesus, the Christ, the Son of the Living God. On any given day, you might find her doing administrative work, reading books to kids in a silly accent, serving at a church, laughing about life's ups and downs with her friends, or navigating through crowded marketplaces and public transportation with her faulty Portuguese grammar. She blogs about her walk with God, her life in Mozambique, and occasionally her recipes at The Chronicles of Janie.

Interview with the Three Musketeers

Recently I had the opportunity to interview Emma, Anna, and Hannah from The Three Musketeers. It was great to work with them, and I'd like to share their answers with you!

Hello Hanna, Anna, and Emma! Thanks for agreeing to this interview; it's going to be lots of fun. :) Could you tell us a few facts about yourself?

Emma: Hello! I'm Emma, and I am 13! I have 12 siblings, and I'm the third youngest; there are 8 girls, and 5 boys. I live in North Carolina, and I've lived here my whole life, though many of my older siblings were born in Canada!  My Mum was also born in Canada, but my Dad is from Argentina.  I love to write, read, and act! I'm a Catholic, and wouldn't change that for the world!

Hannah: My name is Hannah and I’m 14 years old. I live in North Carolina, but I’m originally from New York. I have 3 brothers and 2 sisters, and I enjoy spending every second with them. I’m homeschooled in 9th grade and I’m also proud to be Catholic. 

 

Anna: I’m Anna. I’m almost 14 and a homeschooled freshman, this year. I have six sisters; three older and three younger and one older brother. I love to read!!! I also enjoy writing, although I write in short bursts of inspiration so I’m not the type of person who will sit down and write a novel. 

 

I believe you’ve just started a blog! Would you like to tell us a bit about the blog, and what inspired you to begin?

Emma: For me, The Three Musketeers is about friendship, books, hopes, dreams, and random thoughts that pop into my head. I also try to get to know my audience, and write what others are interested in. My first goal is to write with integrity, creating posts of substance and meaning.

 

What inspired us to make this blog? Well, I was thinking a group blog would be fun, but everyone was so busy, and I didn’t want to add to their stress, so I did not do anything about it. But Hannah took initiative! Here’s a peek of how it all began: 

(Hannah) “Hey guys, I was thinking, we should start a blog! I know that blogging by myself could be boring. So, I wanted to know if you guys would like to start one as a group, just the three of us! It would be so fun and I think a lot more people will enjoy it. The only thing is that we would have to figure out a name, and what it’s going to be about. We would have turns writing in it too. So, any name ideas? What’s it going to be about? I’m so excited right now!”

(Emma) “I would love to do this!! I really have not got very good ideas, I can only think of something like ‘the three musketeers’ …BUT I DO REALLY LIKE YOUR IDEA HANNAH!”

(Anna) “I think that this sounds really fun!!!!!!”

And that is only a (very) small portion of our emails, with all the planning and thinking of name. It turned out Hannah and Anna liked my idea of ‘The Three Musketeers’! I was so happy; I thought they would think ‘The Three Musketeers’ overdone!

I’d really like to hear your thoughts about inspiration, actually. What things inspire you?

Emma: What inspires me? The world, really. When I go outside ( esp. in fall!) the air, and the trees, and all just make me think, and I get ideas. The people I see inspire me too - really good, amazing people all make me want to be like them; to be better than myself, you know?

Hannah: Nature, art, and music inspires me a lot! 

Anna: I’m inspired by watching artists showing their skills. Watching artists draw or musicians play or reading the finished work of an amazing writer makes me want to jump up and do something great. 

Who would you say is your greatest inspiration? Why?

Emma: Well, this is a hard one; there are so many great people in the world, or who used to be in the world. I really love Laura Ingalls Wilder and her family, whenever I’m feeling down I love to read These Happy Golden Years. The Ingalls family were strong; they could make it through anything, and they were so loving. It seems that almost everyone from Laura's time had much more responsibility than people do nowadays. Laura is only one of many people who inspire me; it would take too long to name everyone who inspires me and why! On a Christian note, (other than God, of course!) I would say, St Maria Goretti. She was so young, but she could do what was right, and she showed so much forgiveness!

Hannah: I would probably say my family. They are always happy and joyful, and being an introvert, I tend to be down a lot of times, but my family are the ones who pick me up. And an Olympic ice skater named Meryl Davis also inspires me. She won the gold medal. I just think that she’s a great skater and never gives up.  

Anna: My dad is a great inspiration for me. He started a business on his own and it’s just getting bigger and bigger. He had another job beside the business but he quit it a few years ago because he wanted to spend all his time on the business. My dad has always worked incredibly hard and I’ve always been very inspired by him.

What would you like to inspire others to do/be?

Emma: I would like to inspire people to follow their dreams, to never doubt themselves, or their worth. Also, to be the best they can, to do the best they can, no matter how hard it seems. I myself have to do better with that.

Hannah: I would like to inspire others to be more kind and to see the good in everybody. I would like to inspire others to be forgiving too. 

Anna: I want to inspire people to do what they love. I hate it when I hear people making fun of someone because they want to be an actor or a musician or something else that is often thought of as cliché. I want people to be inspired to do what they love without being worried of what others will think of them.

Thanks for answering those questions Anna, Hannah, and Emma! It’s been great getting to know you better, and hearing your wonderful answers to the questions! You all have big dreams to inspire people, and I’d encourage you to go for it! And trust God; He’s got great plans for each of you. :)

Thanks for reading! Check out The Three Musketeers and leave Hannah, Anna, and Emma some love. I’ll also be guest posting on their blog at some stage soon. And I’d enjoy hearing your answers to these questions too! What things or people inspire you? What would like to inspire others to do or be?

Guest Post - Incorporating Christianity Into One's Writing

Hello! I have something really exciting, and different, for you today! Remember I wrote about a young author - Emily Ann Putzke - who recently wrote a really good book called It Took A War here? Well, her and her writing buddy Emily Chapman have recently written another book called Ain't We Got Fun. They actually wrote it as a series of letters between their characters and posted it on their blogs early in the year, so I read it back then, and I can definitely say it is a really good old-fashioned story. Even though it does turn romantic, I wouldn't say it's all romance. It's more a story of two sisters learning to live, discovering, growing, falling and picking themselves up again. In short it's really good, and now it's published, so you can read it for yourself! Anyway, there's more information about Ain't We Got Fun at the end of the post, but in the meantime, I've been very privileged to have Emily Chapman write a guest post for my blog! Below she writes about how to incorporate Christianity, in a realistic way, into our writing:

"How is one to incorporate the Christian faith into one's writing? This is a difficult question to answer, and you could take it many different ways. However, I'm going to focus on the aspect of incorporating Christianity into a book that isn't necessarily “Christian fiction.”

I've written three novels/novellas in my lifetime. Cry of Hope, which was published in March of 2014, focused very deeply on Christianity. However, my other two novellas, Sensical Nonsense and Ain't We Got Fun, are rather light-hearted stories that focus mainly on relationships with fellow people. Both could, in fact, be classified as romances.

It's a bit more difficult to incorporate Christianity into these sorts of stories. Why? Because Christianity is such a wide-ranged topic that one simply cannot begin to delve into it only to drop it later on because it's drifting away from the storyline! Below I have a list of ways that I try to incorporate the faith into my writing.

1. Keep it moral. Something I hope that stands out in both Ain't We Got Fun and Sensical Nonsense (the latter of which has yet to be published) is the innocence in the romances. These stories do not involve the typical sensuality one might think of when you hear that a book is a “romance.” In fact, I hope that these stories will enlighten the audience. You see, love is more than a feeling. It's a choice. And a couple are more than just a couple. They are friends. And what comes with friendship? Laughter and loyalty; conversation and time spent together. Friends see one another through hardship and good times.

So you see, morality in a story is a symbol of Christ in its own way.

2. Don't hesitate to mention Him. In my everyday life, I don't talk about Jesus every hour and every minute of every day. However, I don't never talk about Him either. He's a part of me! So there is nothing wrong with the conversation in a novel turning to a topic of the faith, if it coincides with the story's plot. In fact, if you are a Christian and the character is a Christian and the character enters dark times, it would be abnormal for the character not to pray or speak with another character about Him!

3. Keep the characters real. This is a biggie. I have heard that many of the books under the label of “Christian fiction” seem to be stories with characters who are perfect—not only in their dashing good looks, but in their seemingly sinless life. If a character is a Christian, they are still bound to stumble. In fact, if they don't stumble, you are probably portraying the Christian faith in a … well, in a wrong way. We are all sinners. Even once we are saved, we still sin. Even if we desire not to sin, we still sin. Therefore, give your characters flaws.

A person could go on and on about this topic—how to incorporate Christianity into writing—for ages. Everyone has different opinions on this as well. Sometimes it depends on what you personally have been convicted upon. But despite all of that, I pray this has been helpful to you.

And that's another thing, and, probably, the most important thing: pray. Ask Him to be the guide of your pen as you incorporate Him into your story. He will most certainly be the best guide of all."

Thank you so much Emily! Those are excellent points, and really it's just making our characters as real as possible, as for us our loudest witness is the way we live, so it is for characters in stories!

Anyway, here's the information about the book Ain't We Got Fun, and the wonderful authors, Emily Chapman and Emily Ann Putzke:


About the book:




It was never much of an issue for Bess: living contentedly on her family's farm, despite the Depression which loomed around them. But when her older sister Georgiana takes off to New York City to make a fortune and help Papa out, feelings of adventure and wanderlust strike Bess at home. Through their lively letter correspondence, the sisters recount to one another their adventures, surprises, and heartaches, leaving little room for depression. For in a world of such wonder, ain't we got fun?

You can purchase Ain't We Got Fun through:

Amazon (Paperback) 

Amazon (Kindle) 

Createspace (Paperback)

Smashwords (ebook)

Author bios:

 
EMILY CHAPMAN, also known as Bess Rowland, is a young hobbit living in the dear old South, and she is entirely bonkers. She's a dreamer, an optimistic pessimist, and an introverted people person. Blue skies, dancing, Disney, and whipped cream make her happy, and she swears she's once been to Narnia. She's been a reader all her life, became a writer because of that, and published her first novel, Cry of Hope, in March of 2014. But without her Savior, all of this would mean nothing. It is in Him that she puts her hope.You can learn more about Emily Chapman and her books at www.emilychapmanauthor.com and www.facebook.com/emilychapmanauthor.

 
EMILY ANN PUTZKE and Gi Rowland have two big things in common: their love for God and coffee. Besides writing historical fiction, Emily enjoys being an aunty, photography, Irish dancing, spending time with family, attempting to play the guitar, reenacting, and reading. She loves polka dots, war movies, and all things vintage. Her first novella, It Took a War, was published in December of 2014. You can learn more about Emily Ann Putzke and her books at www.authoremilyannputzke.com and www.facebook.com/authoremilyannputzke. 

And if you live in the U.S, you can enter the giveaway below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thanks so much for reading... How do you incorporate Christianity into your writing? Have you read Ain't We Got Fun yet?


 Jessica xxx :)

Day Six - Shy Boy: The Horse That Came In From The Wild - Book Review

 Hello...

Are you sick of me yet? Well, tonight my sister has written a guest post for you - on one of her current favourite books. Apparently, in the world of horse lovers, Monty Roberts is a big name, and I must confess, Rachel has made this book sound so interesting, I just may read it...

Thanks so much, Chook - enjoy everyone!

Jessica xxx :)

Shy Boy is the story of how Monty Roberts, the man who listened to horses, got to live his dream, and prove that a wild horse can be broken in while still in the wild, using natural methods, instead of fear.

As a young fellow, Monty saw how his dad mistreated horses and he knew there would be a better way. Between 13-17 he had the chance of spending time with mustangs (wild horses in America), rounding them up for an annual Rodeo event. He learned how to communicate with horses from seeing them communicate with each other. Then a few times he tried it out himself. And he got to “join up” with a mustang in the wild! Joining up is basically when a horse accepts you as its leader. He told the other cowboys, but they just laughed. Then one year he 'joined up' with a mustang, and rode it back to the base. But still nobody believed him; they said he had either taken it with him, or got one that had previously been broken in.

But then many years later, he got the chance to show everyone that 'joining up' with a horse in the wild, without the help of yards or ropes, is do-able. He really had some miracles along the way, for example, he had to 'adopt' a mustang to be able to work with it. (Because of restrictions later imposed, he couldn't do it with a horse in the wild, so he had to 'adopt' a mustang that had previously been captured to be sold.) The 'adoption program' was the next day. Only a certain number of people are drawn, and get to 'adopt' mustangs. As the list drew to the end, and Monty's name still hadn't been called, he began to give up hope. But... the last name out of the hat was: Monty Roberts. He went to the pen and chose the horses he wanted (he wanted the mustang to work with as well as 2 backups) but being the last he thought he probably wouldn't get them. But he did. They were moved to a ranch that had its own private herd and put out with them, to remain wild until Monty was ready to work with them, particularly one, who was later christened Shy Boy. Monty didn't want them to have seen him, so another lady keep watch on them.

Finally, Monty was ready to go out to the property and find the herd. With the help of a few other fellows and their horses, he cut Shy Boy from the herd, and the others pushed the herd away. Shy Boy went into flight mode and Monty followed him on horseback for the rest of the day, night and some of the next day. He spent around twenty four hours in the saddle only changing horses a few times. Shy Boy soon started to slow a bit. Monty began to be able to work with him, stop him and get closer to him. After a little more work, he called Caleb Twissleman, who had helped him at the start, to come and work with him. Soon Monty could reach down and stroke Shy Boy on the neck – the very first time he had been touched by a human. Eventually, Shy Boy experienced his first lead rope, learned to walk beside Monty's horse, and wore a girth for the first time. That night, Monty and Shy Boy tried to get some rest. The next day, Monty worked Shy boy from the ground, and formed a stronger bond. The following day, Shy Boy accepted his first saddle. It took some time to be accepted, but because Shy Boy trusted Monty, it went well. Then it was time to introduce Shy Boy to the first person to ride him: Scott Sivera. After Shy Boy got to know Scott, he easily accepted being ridden. Monty said “He didn't put a foot wrong.” Caleb Twissleman, Scott Sivera and Monty Roberts along with Shy Boy, and the other horses went back to the ranch. Monty had proved – even in front video cameras – that he could 'join up' with a horse in the wild, and have it rideable within four days, by 'communicating' with the horse, instead of using fear as motivation. 

The book goes on to talk about a tour Monty did and one of the most difficult horses he has worked with. But everyone was asking: if Shy Boy was released back to his herd, would he return to Monty, or stay? About a year after Shy Boy came in from the wild, there was a round up at the ranch. Caleb rode Shy Boy, and he and Monty worked together at pushing the cattle back to the yards. It was Shy Boy's first round up, and he was doing well. They took the cattle back to the yards, and selected the cows they wanted to take back the ranch. That evening Shy Boy's herd came close and Shy Boy saw them. Monty said to Caleb “This is what we are here for; it's time to see what happens.” Straight away Shy Boy galloped toward the herd. Would he come back?

Monty didn't sleep that night. In the morning when still no Shy Boy came, Caleb and Monty were both discouraged. They prepared to leave, as slowly as possible. But... “Then I heard Caleb's little sister, Tara, call out, “Hey, look there; it's Shy Boy. He's come back. ….” Everyone in the camp was silent.” He looked at the herd a couple of times hesitatingly, and started to walk toward the camp. Then:“Shy Boy was running at a full gallop straight towards us. He gave a loud, clear whinny.” Shy Boy came back!

What makes this book even more amazing is this is what God wants to do with us. He wants to 'join up' with us. Just as Shy Boy had to accept Monty's leadership, so we have to accept and trust God. Shy Boy also chose for a time to go back to his herd and old ways. Sometimes we leave God's side.

But when Shy Boy returned, he wasn't turned away, but accepted with rejoicing. It is the same when we return to God; all heaven rejoiceth!