It's All About the Cross!

 A song writer once wrote, "Nothing in my hand I bring, only to Thy Cross I cling."

Hallelujah, what a Savior! 

I've been listening to the song, "It's All About the Cross" as sung by The Ball Brothers off and on all day, ever since a friend posted the clip on her FB wall. 

Wow and double wow!

What a mix of emotion--tears, joy, shouts!

Because of the empty tomb, I live!

And that makes all the difference . . .

The question's been perking in my mind . . .

What in my life today will show others Jesus lives?

Listen to the following powerful song sung by The Ball Brothers.

"It's All About the Cross" as sung by The Ball Brothers

ACFW March Virtual Book Party!

Join me and other ACFW authors this Friday, March 18 for a virtual book party! Event begins at 1:30. I will be discussing my novel, Masquerade (formerly Laughing with Lily), at 2:00. Same suspenseful love story with a brand new cover and title!

A long-buried secret. An unexpected encounter. A quest for answers. Celeste Tatem, a special-education teacher, couldn't be more in love with her husband, Joe. But a haunting memory threatens their relationship. When Joe dies in a factory explosion, she sinks into depression. It will take the arrival of a new student, Lily, and her delightful honesty and joy at life's little things to awaken Celeste to hope. When Don, an old flame from college, reenters Celeste's world, the flickers of love stir once again, and startling questions arise. Questions that threaten to rip the veneer off of her carefully guarded secret. Then the most unexpected thing of all happens . . . . A story of love and forgiveness in the most unexpected places.

TWO FREE EBOOKS  to two participants during my 30 minute discussion. Leave a comment on one of my posts for a chance to win!

The link to the online FaceBook event is provided below. Can't wait to visit with you this Friday as we talk about relevant issues presented in Masquerade and the story behind the story! If you have a heart for those suffering in the aftermath of abortion, you won't want to miss this discussion. 

ACFW March Virtual Book Party

Friday, March 18, starts at 1:30

Life Lessons from Art

In a recent art class, I picked up techniques to help me draw better. But I also picked up a few life lessons in the process. 

My instructor insisted that his number one challenge in teaching art is getting his students to really see what they are drawing. To observe the visible, tangible item and apply the brain/hand connection on paper.

As a writer of eternal themes, I share a similar challenge, but in reverse: helping readers see the invisible--what God has revealed about Himself through His creation, His Word (the Bible), and His Son (Jesus Christ).

As with drawing, sometimes brain blockers exist, hindering one's ability to see. Really see. Damaged love receptors can distort one's view of who God really is--an eternal being full of love, grace, and truth. 

Yet the physical world around us, the Bible, and Jesus testify to the truth.

For those with spirit eyes to see . . .

Life Lesson 1: My instructor taught me to identify my light source so that I know where to apply specific shading. Jesus is my spiritual Light source. He is truth and the revealer of truth. 

Life Lesson 2: My instructor taught me how to use horizontal/vertical lines to draw a figure. When he stood in the center of the classroom with outstretched arms it reminded me of Christ's death on the cross as payment for my sin and provision for my forgiveness. 

Life Lesson 3: My instructor taught me how to use one/two point perspective. This technique reminded me that Christ and His Word is the reference point which provides proper perspective for shaping my life. 

Life Lesson 4: My instructor taught me how to draw with ink. This reminded me of the old hymn, "The Love of God" penned by Frederick M. Lehman in 1917. 

Could we with ink the ocean fill,
And were the skies of parchment made,
Were every stalk on earth a quill,
And every man a scribe by trade,
To write the love of God above,
Would drain the ocean dry.
Nor could the scroll contain the whole,
Though stretched from sky to sky.

(View the full hymn and story behind the hymn)

I'm amazed, awed really, that no matter the discipline, God is there, revealing Himself--the Designer of all things beautiful, chief of which is a redeemed soul!