Encouragement Tidbit

Straight from God's Word:
"I always thank God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus.... You do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed. He will keep you strong to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God, who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful" (1 Corinthians 1:7-9).

Household Hint

Don't toss away that sliver of bar soap! While it's soft from use, press it against a new bar. If you always do this, you'll never have to throw away soap.

Lynette Bonner tells how a fictional character comes to life

1. How did Nicki from High Desert Haven come to life in your mind?

I’m a seat of the pants writer. When I started this story all I had to go on was a glimpse of an Hispanic woman, struggling to scratch out a living with her family. I knew she would have to be tough to make it in another country, and especially in the hard-scrabble west. Jason, a secondary character from the first book in this series, needed a tough woman in his life. The two just seemed to naturally go together. :)

2. How did you choose the setting?

The setting was chosen for me because of the historical details I wanted to bring out in this one. I had come across some very interesting research about Crook County, Oregon and that made choosing to set the story near present-day Bend, easy for me. Especially since I spent several of my growing up years in a small town only about 13 miles from there.

3. Did you have the crisis—the dark moment—figured out when you started Chapter One?

No. Like I said, I’m a seat of the pants writer. The story comes to me as I write it and I sort of go along for the ride.

4. How did the final draft of Chapter One win your approval? Which took the most thinking—the beginning or the dark moment?

The beginning of a story is always fairly easy for me. Because I have several characters in my head and I am starting out to explore their stories. Definitely the middle of a book is generally the hardest for me. That and the wrap-up – deciding how many details are important to share and which already feel tied up for the reader.

5. Did any of your characters take on a life of their own? Who was your favorite minor character who was able to steal a scene?

I had two minor characters in this story that I loved. The first is Ron, the elderly ranch hand who has stuck with Nicki through thick and thin. I love his fatherly concern for her. But I think the character that surprised me the most by stealing a couple scenes was Janice, the daughter of the local mercantile owners. Her talkativeness and insecurity combine to make her an endearing, memorable character.

6. Was it easier the create the female lead or the male? In my historical romance, The Belle of Peachville, Jenny is the lead character and is running away from abuse, but William always captures my critiquers’ hearts. William often is Jenny’s rescuer and encourager who keeps popping into her life, although toward the end of the book he could be as fearsome as her pursuer.

I think I generally have an easier time creating my female leads, over my male leads. Although, at the start of this book I was more familiar with Jason, since I’d already written about him in book one, Rocky Mountain Oasis. (http://amzn.to/PBRMO)

7. How does Nicki’s faith or lack of it affect your story? If she actually were alive today, would she have a word of encouragement for my blog followers?

Nicki’s faith is a key element in the story, although she struggles with why God allows bad things to happen to good people. In the end she comes to the surrendered faith of realizing she has nowhere else to turn. Faith is, after all, putting our hope in things unseen, sometimes, yet being certain that our hope is not in vain.

8. What is your favorite fictional character of all time?

Hmmm…. This question gives me pause. I’ve been a reader all my life and have had many stories that I loved. When I was very young, I loved The Adventures of Peter Cottontail series by Thornton W. Burgess. The series name isn’t coming to me right now, but they had many different stories each about a different animal in the forest. When I got a little older Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys were favorites. Then in high school, I read and reread the Zion Chronicles and Zion Covenant by Bodie Thoene. Those stories have so many memorable characters, but I think Lucy, whose baby was going to be taken for the cause of the Reich, might be my favorite. My heart is still stirred when I think of her story. I would be remiss if I neglected to mention Angel from Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers, Percey Blakeney from The Scarlett Pimpernell, Hawkeye from The Last of the Mohicans (movie), or Benjamin Martin from The Patriot (movie.) And there are many more, but I will stop with those.

9. Why and how did you become a novelist?

I’ve always had a love for great fiction. And I toyed with writing for many years. But it wasn’t until I came across the historical tidbits at the center of Rocky Mountain Oasis, that I had a story I simply couldn’t stop writing. My journey to publication after completing it took nearly a decade, but the Lord kept prodding me to keep submitting. I was finally pulled from the slush pile at OakTara and, trust me, no one was more shocked than I was that I was finally going to be published.

10. What is your greatest ambition now that you have achieved seeing your books published?

I think every writer would love to see their stories made into a movie. But I think the thing that would give me the most joy would be to hear about a life that was changed because of these books.

Note: The book will soon be available in many locations but right now it may be purchased at:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/high-desert-haven-lynnette-bonner/1038860321

Happy Home Hints and Tidbits

Ponder This:

Solomon's hard-to-find virtuous woman looked well to the ways of her household and ate not the bread of idleness (Proverbs 3:27).

Did you Know?
You can clean out the dishwasher in only a few more seconds than it takes to microwave water for tea.

Easter Excerpt from Swallowed by LIFE by Ada Brownell

The moment of brain death appears to be the time when the soul leaves the flesh. I believe it is the moment that death is swallowed by life.
As I said before, from what I understand in scripture, the soul will be with the Lord immediately and we will have some kind of spirit body, but the earthly body, laid aside and unnecessary for now while we are with God in spirit, will live again. Just as we go to sleep and know nothing for several hours, then awaken as if nothing happened, the Bible tells us when our eyes close in death—at whatever age—there will be a resurrection—an awakening—of the physical body.
I’ve previously mentioned the Apostle Paul’s explanation of death in 1 Corinthians 15 where he likened the death of the body to a seed planted in the ground:
Someone will say, ‘How are the dead raised up? And with what body do they come?’ Foolish one, what you sow is not made alive unless it dies. And what you sow, you do not sow that body that shall be, but mere grain—perhaps wheat or some other grain. But God gives it a body as He pleases, and to each seed its own body…So also is the resurrection of the dead. The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption. It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body and there is a spiritual body.

There is so much our finite minds can’t comprehend about death, the eternal, and our God. But this we know, as did Job of old: “I know that my Redeemer liveth and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth.” He added, “Even if worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh I shall see God” (Job 19:25–26).
But our flesh will be changed. Until then, we are mortals. Every human is at risk of death every moment he lives. That’s why it’s vitally important to investigate and know about eternal life. While the body decays in the ground, the eternal soul lives on.
When I think of death I’m reminded of this epitaph quoted by an evangelist at our church. It reportedly appears on a grave from the 1880s in Nantucket, Massachusetts:

Under the sod and under the trees
Lies the body of Jonathan Pease.
He is not here, there’s only the pod:
Pease shelled out and went to God.

To order the Kindle verson: http://www.amazon.com/swallowed-by-life-ebook/dp/B007BGCVSU/ref=sr_.1_3?s=books&ie+UTF8&qid=1330035854&sr+1-3
Paperback: http://amzn.com/1466200936 or http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/Ada-Brownell?keyword=Ada+Brownell&store=book

FINISHING LIFE STRONG

Here's what you'll find in Second-Half Missionary John Heidi's book and Bible study "Finishing Life Strong."

With forty percent of people in the U.S. now over fifty years of age, millions of baby boomers and beyond are facing new challenges and choices as they journey through the second-half of life. This study guide helps to provide answers to the pressing issues that those in the second-half of life find themselves dealing with.
Included in this guide is information about:
• Raising Grandchildren-over 6 million children live with grandparents.
• Dealing with Depression--the most common illness found among Second-Halfers
• Surviving the Death of a Spouse-the number one cause for stress
• Finding love a second time-read about couples who found spouses on the internet
• Health, Finance, Scams, and other important Retirement issues
• Making sense out of life by developing a "Lifetime Message" From 82 year old Marlene who is raising her great granddaughter to 95 year old Nola Ochs, America's oldest college graduate to 93 year old youth pastor Howard Fox

The book by John Heidi contains true stories from the lives of second-halfers who have experienced both tragedy and triumph.

“ If you are new to the ‘second half’ or have been traveling this road a long time you will find yourself laughing, crying, learning, and being encouraged at God's plan for every person...regardless of age. If you have a PULSE, you have a PURPOSE and whether you use this guide in a small group, a Sunday School class, or as an individual study, you can find inspiration and hope. YOU can FINISH LIFE STRONG! Looking for inspiration and hope? This book is for you. You will find numbers of practical and helpful suggestions to get you on the road to a whole new life of excitement in your second half.”
-- From the foreward by Ken Horn, Editor ot The Pentecostal Evangel.

Second Half Achievers

John Heide serves as a missionary to those in the Second Half of Life. Along with his wife Judy, they travel in full time ministry to churches across America.
His new book, “Finishing Life Strong…Issues and Inspiration for those in the Second Half of Life” is a 10 topic study guide for those journeying (or soon to be) in their second half! From, finding purpose in the Second Half of Life, Dealing with Depression, Raising Grandchildren (over 6 million children are being raised by their grandparents today), to Finding Love the Second time around, the book addresses relevant topics for today’s adults. The author can be reached at: johnheide2002@yahoo.com or, www.50alive.com The book is available at Amazon.com

Today, over 140,000 Americans are 100 years of age or older and people are asking, “what can I do at my age?” Satchel Paige became a major league pitcher when we was forty two years old and pitched until he was 60. Colonel Sanders started Kentucky Fried Chicken when he was 65. Ronald Reagan became president at 69, and Grandma Moses picked up a paint brush for the first time at age 75 and painted over 1500 paintings, several of which she painted after reaching 100 years of age. Moses led the children out of Egypt when he was 80 years of age and don’t let me scare the reader but Abraham became a father at 100 years of age (his wife was a young 90 years old!).

It can be an exciting time in life when you reach the Second Half. John Wooden the famed UCLA basketball coach would tell his team at halftime, “As long as there is a Second half we can win this game….they usually did! In the book of Job chapter 42:12 the Bible reads “God blessed the Second Half of Job’s life more than the first!” Each of us can have hope that there is a plan for ALL of life. Discovering, developing, and deploying that plan can bring great satisfaction and make the Second Half of life significant for time and eternity!
Bill was 73 years old and wrote out a “game plan” for the next 20 years of his life. He went back to college, learned a foreign language, learned to play the piano and tackled the computer! Bill was into living, not dying! From his youth Jim had always wanted to be a Doctor. However, as a young married man with small children he had to settle for another career. Later in life at age 68 Jim had just retired but still felt as though God wanted him to be in the medical field. He quickly counted that if it took 12 years in medical school that he would be 80 years old and no hospital would let him near their place unless he was a patient! So, Jim settled for something less, in 3 short years he became a registered nurse and was taking medical trips as a missionary to help people around the world.
Perhaps, your Second Half is just waiting for you to discover that you can, “Finish Life Strong!”
As another baseball great Yogi Berra once said “It ain’t over til it’s over!”