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A Moving Experience

July 11, 2014 by Julie B Cosgrove

ID-100131553Maybe some of you who follow me on Facebook heard of my plight…

During the recent move to a new apartment, I lost my desktop computer to damage. Not only that, but my laptop and projector I use for all my talks and workshops “walked away”.  We also were without TV for two days.

With tongue firmly planted in my cheek, I’d posted before the move that I’d be out of cyberspace for a day or so – could I handle it?

God tested me on that. Big time.

I wish I could tell you my piety kicked in and I enjoyed being still and reconnecting with my Savior. I tired, really I did. But… the hush was deafening. After a few minutes, I’d jump up to find something to “do.” In fact, in those three days, I totally exhausted myself by unpacking every box, hanging the curtains and the pictures, and rearranging the knick-knacks several times.

Finally, my sweet techie son “Humpty-Dumptied” parts from my desk top and from an old one he had, and not only got me up and running in three days but re-downloaded all my flies. He also got the TV and wireless networking up and running. I praise the Lord for my son’s God-given intelligence and patience when it come to electronics.

Two things I learned:

First – I need to turn off the electronics more often and get back to quietness and meditation (listening) with my Lord. I thought I was doing a pretty good job, but He showed me differently.

Second – Whatever in our lives we feel is damaged, burned out, or missing a vital function, God as the Master techie can piece back together and make work again–sometimes with the talents of others. We just need to stay patient and prayerful in the process.

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World Blogs Tour

July 8, 2014 by Julie B Cosgrove

Decades ago book signings were the vehicle to which an author became better known to the public. Today, it is social media. So, I am participating in a blog tour–and you are cordially invited to come along.

These are Christian writers all, so you will find God in their messages, and hey, you might discover a new favorite author! Their writings may be page-turners, but they will never voilate your ethics.

I was invited to participate in this blog tour by a fellow author with my publishing house, Prism Book Group. paula Her name is Paula Mowery, and actually it’s her birthday today, so a great present would be to click on the link, cruise through her blog, and take notice of her books. Oh – and leave her a comment. (You can also check out the other Christian authors on her blog tour – Delia Latham who helped me edit Hush in the Storm, Rachel James and Suzanne Purvis.)  Paula, thanks for including me in this effort.

Now, on to the questions I am to answer…

1. What am I working on?
I just finished the proofs and approved the cover design for Hush in the Storm which debuts August 6th and am beginning the editing process on Legitimate Lies with Suzanne Baganz which launches in January, 2015. I am also finishing up a week of devotionals for two pre-assigned weeks in 2015 for Good News Daily and a weeks’ worth of commentary for The Journey for 2016. Then, on to finish the second of a trilogy, a novel a called Grounded, which follows Focused (published in 2012.) Of course, I also write monthly for Truth Media’s Power to Change and quarterly for Faith-Filled Family Magazine.

2. How does my work differ from others of its genre?   
Well, I write across many genres. My non fiction is Biblically based and relates to real issues people encounter and how they can find God’s fingerprints on whatever life is slinging into their yard. I guess that is also true for my fiction in that each one has an underlying plot about a social issue God has called me to promote, be it surviving empty nest syndrome,grief over death, human trafficking, abortion recovery, or racial and socio-economic prejudices.
3. Why do I write what I do?
It is truly a God-thing. Six years ago when I was unemployed, I took the advice of three different friends to write for a living out of my home. I began to make an income pretty quickly, so in thanksgiving to my Lord who provides, I tithed my writing day to Him first. Even through unexpected widowhood, He sustained me with clients who’d contact me to ghost write for them. Now that I have a part time job as a church secretary, I have dropped my secular freelancing and write only for His glory.

4. How does my writing process work?
I truly write the first draft in the style of “never lifting my pen.” As I write, I am often amazed where God leads me. Inevitably, it is for someone else needs to hear that devo that day, or it inspires a a plot thickening that is makes my novel so much more intriguing. Then I backtrack, research, run it through my critique group, Write 4 Him, self-edit several times… all the while praying and asking others to pray for me during this creative process. In Legitimate Lies, I knew I wanted to continue the story about the characters in Hush in the Storm, but just wasn’t getting “into it”, until I prayed about it for several weeks. Faithfully, God showed me the social issue He wanted me to promote. After researching that, words flew off my keyboard.

For this blog, I ask God to help me discover ways He is speaking to me daily so I can relate that to others. It has opened my faith eyes further to His hand in my life, and I hope in doing so, it inspires others to look closer as well.

Well, that’s a bit about me. Now please return on JULY 15th and click on these three authors” blogs or websites below. You will learn a bit about them and their works as well. Isn’t this fun? It’s like a cyberspace authors’ party.

 

diane DiAne Gates – DiAne is an amazing wordsmith, and her blog, Moving Ancient Boundaries,  always touch hearts as well as pointing to ways we can live out our Christianity in a broken world. She is definitely someone to “follow”.

 

 

 

leannLeann Harris, who is a fellow member of the DFW chapter for American Christian Fiction Writers, is an amazing  Inspirational Romance author with many novels under her belt. Her recently launched eBook, Last Lie, promises to be a real page turner. I definitely have it at the top of my “have to read” list. Download it from B&N or Amazon.

 

 

 

 

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERALee Carver also writes for Prism Book group and is president of the DFW Chapter of the American Christian Fiction Writers. She has written several novels and has two about to launch within the year!  If you like history/adventures flavored with a little romance, watch for her books releasing soon.

 

 

         Through cyberspace, we can co-promote His works, and each other who are faithful to write and read them. Please join in this effort. 

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Look More Closely

July 1, 2014 by Julie B Cosgrove

printcover_hush copy (2)My publisher emailed the cover of my novel, Hush in the Storm, which launches August 6th. It looked perfect. With dancing fingers over my keyboard, I sent it out to my family and friends who have been so instrumental in helping this book become a reality.

My niece, who is artistic and always has a keen eye for detail, wrote back. “It would look better if the heroine on the cover didn’t have cacti growing from her shoulders.”

Whaatt????

I hadn’t noticed that. I concentrated on the clouds, the landscape, the girl hushing.  I emailed the comment to my publisher. Within minutes, the graphic artist corrected  it. Whew!! Thank you, Lord. I marveled at her mastery in technique and  greatly appreciated her immediate response to make things right.

Where did I see God in all this? Sometimes there are little flaws which may hinder how we are perceived. Our witness may be hindered by them. They may blare out to other people and cause them not to focus on the real message we are trying to convey.

Of course we are all works in progress and perfection will only reached  through the mercy of Christ when we escape our human nature and reach Heaven. But I also believe God brings people into our lives who have a keen eye and can point out the flaws we need to correct — the ones we don’t notice but others do, like breadstick cacti growing out of a pair of shoulders.

Because it is a Christian publisher, no feathers were ruffled. Authors, editors, proofreaders, and the graphics masters have the same goal – spread the message of redemption  and grace through wholesome, yet intriguing fiction.

But, it made me ponder. Am I as gracious when someone in the Body lovingly and  tactfully points out an area in my life that could use some more work? How quick am I to go to the Master to correct it?

 

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limitless

June 24, 2014 by Julie B Cosgrove

from Timeline Photos- posted by 88.3 The Journey Christian radio station’s Facebook –

 

limits

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Unseen Smudges

June 21, 2014 by Julie B Cosgrove

I got an eTablet. Ever since it came free with my new cell phone contract, it’s been glued to my hip. (There, I’ve confessed!)

Now I do read my Bible on it…and play Words with Friends…check my email…read my downloaded eBooks…check the weather…look up facts on the internet…check out who’s said what on Facebook…hey, my Toastmasters’ group even uses the timing app on it. I think it even has a camera.

A few days ago I showed a friend my nifty new toy – but when I turned it off, my cheeks heated. I know my face was crimson. Oh my, all IMAG0021the smudged fingerprint marks! Yuk. Once the screen went dark, they blared at me. I couldn’t see them when the screen was illuminated.

Ah-hah. My thoughts became illuminated as well. I found a lesson from God today on my eTablet screen.

Here’s the God lesson…

If we’ve confessed our wrongs as our faces hit the pillow the night before, and thanked Him for the day we had – whether it was good or bad  – then when another day dawns, our slate is clean. His mercies are new every morning, right?

Yet, as we go through the day, we leave marks. They may be good, or not so good. Depends on our attitude, our actions and our words. If Christ is shining through, the smudges are not as visible. But if we turn off His influence and the screen we call our life goes dark, then all the smudges become more evident. In fact, they are the only things people see.

From now on, I a going to wipe that eTablet down before I go to bed. Maybe it will remind me to wipe the slate clean with my Lord as well.

 

 

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Hidden Dust

June 17, 2014 by Julie B Cosgrove

AAAchoo. Packing to move sure stirs up the dust. hidden dust

I consider myself a good housekeeper. I dust regularly. But, when I began to empty out shelves and pack away books and knickknacks, the dusty back corners loomed at me. Tiny scraps of paper, dust bunnies, cat hair.

My nose twitched. My eyes watered. As I grabbed the dusting cloth and furniture polish, I pondered. “Sniff. Now where did I pack the facial tissue?”

How could I have not seen all that dust lurking? Because the things of my life – books, heirloom figurines, family photos, mementos –  were hiding it. I regularly dusted around them, maybe even lifted them and dusted underneath. But the pesky specks settled in the far back depths, unseen until I emptied the shelf. I thought to myself. Hmm. Perhaps I should take more time on a regular basis, say every few months or so, to empty the shelves and dust more thoroughly. If I could find the time…

A faith lesson tickled my mind –

Sometimes, God moves us in order to shake up the dust a bit. He takes us from our comfort zones where life has settled around us, and in the process of rearranging and weeding out the things we have gathered to us, our patient Lord reveals the accumulation of specks we have neglected.

Perhaps a negative attitude towards someone.

Maybe a lie we regret telling.

The time we acted less that Christian,yet left unconfessed.

LIttle things we have tucked away in the back of our lives and not tended to very well. But no one sees that, do they? Over time, we may not notice it either. We have cluttered up our life-shelf with other things. The more current things get our attention. Those we confess, and clean away. Yet, these other things in our past continue to accumulate in the depths of our souls.

Today, I found a message from God in some dust bunnies at the back of my shelves: Cleaning up my act may mean rearranging things in my life so God can point out to me the areas I have neglected – the ones out of sight.

Perhaps I need to carve out more time with Him on a regular basis so He can help me reveal my past mistakes. That way, they don’t build up. Maybe, I can do that while I am dusting my shelves more thoroughly in the new place. With each swipe of the dusting cloth, my Lord will show me where I need Him to wipe away my sinsfrom the corners of my heart.

Lord, help me find the time to do both, and, no matter how arduous, rejoice in it.

Where will you find God today?

 

 

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Broken, but Bearing

June 12, 2014 by Julie B Cosgrove

garden of grace

 

 

Along the river bank at my family place in the Texas Hill Country is an old cypress. Long before my birth, it’s trunk was bent in half by a raging flood. Yet, it’s not only lived but thrived. Its shady limbs continue to stretch out into the waters.Some reach high towards the sky. Each year it bears fragrant cypress balls, and is a celestial highway for squirrels. In times of flood and storms, it is a refuge for the birds.

Christians are not immune to tragedy in this broken world. But, as Rick Warren says, even then, we can still bear fruit because we are grafted into Christ’s loving strength and merciful grace.

“…do not consider yourself to be superior to those other branches. If you do, consider this: You do not support the root, but the root supports you. You will say then, “Branches were broken off so that I could be grafted in.” Romans 11:18-19

Others see there is hope in our eyes not washed away by our grief-stricken tears, Even in our deepest sorrow, there is a peace. And that, my friends, speaks volumes without one whispered word.

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Thorned for a reason

June 9, 2014 by Julie B Cosgrove

ID-100169178How do you see someone who is being a thorn in your flesh?

I am struck by David’s words in 2 Samuel, Chapter 16 when Shimei, a relative of Saul, curses him and pelts him with pebbles  David, God’s anointed king, could have ordered the man to be imprisoned or killed. But instead, he tells his soldiers to leave him alone because, “It may be the Lord will see my distress and repay me with good for the cursing I am receiving today.” (vs.12)  David also indicates that God may have told the man to curse him. Why? My guess would be as a test of humility. The interesting thing is this happened while David was in a low period in his life. His own son was trying to dethrone him and kill him.

Is there someone in your life who just rubs you the wrong way? Maybe it is a neighbor who always complains, a coworker who is a backstabber and gossip, an in-law you just can’t please, or even a ID-100156152member in your church who likes to find fault with every little thing. How will you react? When our tolerance levels are like a rain gauge in a drought, it seems people just get on our nerves more than when our lives are overflowing with happiness. Is it because it is the straw that breaks the camel’s back, or might it be because God is sending us a message to lean on Him a bit more instead of on our own understanding and strength?

Christ came to love the unlovable, which if I am totally honest about it, includes me. Who am I to judge others?

Perhaps the best thing we can do when someone needles us is to take it to God. Maybe He is allowing this person to be like a sticker burr between our toes for a reason.

  • Is He using them like a mirror to reflect a sin we have yet to deal with in our own lives? (Remove the log in your eye before you comment about the speck in theirs idea.)
  • Is He testing our humbleness, or our faith-strength?
  • Is He preparing us to deal with someone ten times worse who is just around the bend that He can see coming into our lives even though we cannot?

True–Christians, in turning the other cheek,  are not called to be like wimpy spaghetti noodles and people should be held accountable for their actions. But, Scripture tells us to give thanks to God in all circumstances — that goes for those we just cannot seem to get along with at the moment.

Maybe if we all had the attitude of King David, it would then open the pathways a bit wider to spreading Christ’s message of forgiveness and love.

 

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The Little Drips

June 4, 2014 by Julie B Cosgrove

Recently a foul odor whisked through my living room.  In my somewhat open-concept space, the kitchen is separated from the living room by a half-wall, so I ran the disposal – nope. I emptied the trash- no, not that.  With a shrug, I sprayed some air freshener just as my Bible study group arrived. But, they began to smell it as well.  It became more predominate as the evening progressed.

What was it???

After they left, my foot hit the carpet by the couch and a felt a squish. The carpet was wet! Moving the couch, which butts up to the half-wall that separates the kitchen from the living room, revealed the source. The wall was bulging, the baseboard cracked and the carpet tinted blackish-brown where it met the wall. We had a leak!

It seems one of the apartments above us had a crack in the disposal drain pipe. Water had been dripping down the wall and pooling behind ours on the first floor. Mildew had taken over as well as tiny water bugs. YUK . IMAG0015 (1)

When they opened the wall, it all cascaded out, along with the stench.  It was pretty nasty. It took two maintenance men and a carpet/mildew specialist, all with skills I did not possess using materials and lots of tools I didn’t have, to clean it up. That took time. The wall had to dry, the carpet had to be sanitized, stretched and dried. The sheet rock replaced, and new baseboards installed. Finally, a fresh coat of paint was applied.

What struck me is that the same can be said of the little sins in our lives. Nothing big by the world standards, mind you. The white lie to a friend, using the office copier for personal use, sleeping in instead of having your prayer time, being purposely rude to someone in traffic, not quite tithing in the offering this week because that dress on sale needed to be in your closet,  losing your temper with your kids and saying something cutting about their character instead censuring their actions, never quite apologizing to a hurt friend, watching that soft porn movie or reading that steamy romance novel…

…drip, drip,drip behind the walls we build up. No one needs to know, right?

But eventually, some physical evidence will emerge. It may be restless sleep, a tendency to be grouchy, muscle tension, or a sour stomach.

It may take more than just you to solve the problem if you let it go too long. Of course, Our Lord is the master fixer – the only true One who can make our mess clean and pure again. His mercy can cut through  the walls we’ve  built to reveal the accumulative effects of our “little drips” sins. But He may bring in other people or tools to help do the clean-up work. It may be a passage in Scripture or a sermon by your pastor that whacks the first blow at the wall. Perhaps a close friend to pray over you, or a Christian counselor,  will provide the tools or the know-how to eradicate that pesky little sins that have been eating at you deep inside where you thought nobody could see.

You will probably have a part in the process as well. It will take time. It may get a bit nasty. But it will be worth it.

..because on this day atonement will be made for you, to cleanse you. Then, before the Lord, you will be clean from all your sins.   Leviticus 16:30

...let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Hebrews 10:22

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Daily Bread or Doughnuts

May 29, 2014 by Julie B Cosgrove

ID-10067177I stared at a freezer full of the same ol’ stuff I’d been eating for weeks on end. Veggie burgers, frozen vegetables, skinless chicken breasts.  I opened the fridge to the same stuff. Reduced fat this and that, no-calorie dressing, salad bags, zero-fat Greek yogurt. Sigh – Losing a pound or so a week on this healthy diet gets monotonous at times. I crave French fries, grilled cheese, a chocolate shake, Alfredo pizza, Mexican food. Lord, why does all the good stuff have to be so bad for me, so high in calories and ssoooo tasty? When I was younger I could eat it all and not gain an ounce.  I grumbled under my breath, grabbed a protein drink and some celery stalks, and slunk to the couch to read my assigned Bible passage.

Half way down the page, my mouth opened into a large “o”.

The rabble with them began to crave other food, and again the Israelites started wailing and said, “If only we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we ate in Egypt at no cost—also the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic. But now we have lost our appetite; we never see anything but this manna!”  (Numbers 11:4-6)

When God told them through Moses that pork and shell-fish were a no-no, did they complain as well? Possibly.

I’m no different. I can continue to pig out on fast foods and shell out my money on prepackaged meals, or choose to buy healthier, fresh food choices and exercise more. I can be thankful for what God provides from the earth for my nourishment, or crave the sugary, fatty, salty, and carb-laden man-made things that I can’t or shouldn’t have and grumble about it.

The Hebrews had herds of animals with them and money to buy grains and fruits as they wandered past other nomadic tribes in the wilderness. But did they consume them after the first were tithed to God? The BIble doesn’t say. It does say that God gave them manna –  the bread of the angels – to be their wholesome daily supplement. Each daybreak they were provided just enough for one day, except the day before the Sabbath when the Hebrews received two day’s worth of manna so they wouldn’t have to labor on their commanded day of rest.

What was God teaching the Hebrews? Two things. Rely on Him each day and He will provide what we need, but not necessarily what we want.

He wishes to teach me the same thing.  In my diet, as in every aspect of the rest of my daily life, I need to rely on Him to provide my needs.  I shouldn’t whine because I can’t eat or buy certain things. But unlike the Hebrews, I am still in Egypt.  In today’s pre-packaged, credit-happy world, it is way too easy to buy more than we make, eat three times a day what people used to consider an occassional treat, and waste more time on useless entertainment like Tv, video games and social media sites than ever before. How easily we can become enslaved!

I need my Lord, each day, to help me choose between what He wants to provide and what I want to grab or grumble about having.  Promised Land up ahead or stay in Egypt.

Maybe it would be easier if God isolated me from the world and gave me the food I should eat to lose weight each day at daybreak – just enough for that day.

Give me this day, my daily bread.. but, not the doughnut, Lord.

Nah, like the Hebrews, I’d probably grumbled about that as well after a few months.

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