A Wedding In December by Sarah Morgan

Dec9

Fighting For Love

A Wedding In December by Sarah Morgan is a most delightful contemporary novel about love and family.

Families are complicated affairs with interactions that are constantly changing. The novel focuses on a family that is coming apart at the seams as everyone tries to cope alone, keeping secrets from others. A change of scenery brings more than just a new location.

The novel explores identity. Too often our identity is tied up in what we do instead of who we are. “Did her mother even have dreams?” has to be one of the saddest utterances… a character is more than just a mother. She has hopes and dreams too. We are never too old to dream.

Where our heart is, there lies our fortune. “Not all people were motivated by money and status. Some were motivated by love.” The richest people are those who love and are loved.

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The Camera Never Lies by David Rawlings

Dec8

The Greatest Gift

The Camera Never Lies by David Rawlings is a powerful contemporary novel about the importance of truth and integrity. As with the previous novel, The Baggage Handler, this book has the potential to change lives if we would just apply the advice given.

The Bible declares that ‘the truth shall set you free’, why then is it sometimes so hard to do? “Truth cannot simply be avoided, covered up or ignored.” Do we prefer to hide the truth because of embarrassment? Or fear? Or something else? We must be truthful because lies and secrets will destroy us sooner or later.

The novel explores the foundations of life. Have we built our houses on the Rock or sinking sand? “I think I’d die if I lost that kitchen.” Really? If our treasure is in stuff, we are in trouble. Treasure is to be found in people and God.

A marriage in trouble has far reaching effects. We need honesty to rebuild the cracks or our relationships will crash. We cannot afford to ignore or push our problems under the carpet. We need to deal with them now. We need to look “through the lens of honesty.”

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Eastbound From Flagstaff by Annette Valentine

Dec7

Coming Home

Eastbound From Flagstaff by Annette Valentine is a marvellous debut novel. The genre is Christian historical, covering the decade of the 1920’s.

The novel is about a journey – a physical journey and a spiritual journey to the heart of God. God never gives up on us. “That God you’re challenging is not going to give up on you, and He’s not going to let you be God either.” No matter how far we go, no matter what we do or think, our Father God, like the father in the prodigal son, waits for us. He longs for us and He desires us. No one is ever too far from the heart of God.

Life hurts. When troubles come, we can rest in God’s arms and trust Him, or we can run from Him in anger. “Those unfair events… hopes and dreams while the Creator stood by.” God is never silent or passive but in our pain, we cannot always see Him. “We’re at liberty to ask our questions, but God’s sovereign.”

The novel shows the two responses to hurt – there are characters who trust God’s goodness in spite of circumstances, and there is a character who blames God and himself, wallowing in anger. “But God… was silent” – or maybe we just aren’t listening? “Your fight with God is one-sided” – wise words spoken in love. Do we have a person who will speak the truth in love to us?

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A Beautiful Christ-Mess by Brenda Anderson

Dec4

A New Beginning

A Beautiful Christ-Mess by Brenda Anderson is a delightful Christian contemporary tale and features in Hope Is Born: A Mosaic Christmas Anthology. The story follows on from A Beautiful Mess.

God is at the heart of the story. He is our good, good Father who is waiting for each and every one of us to hear and respond to His voice. “It had taken years, but [he] had at last seen God’s light and run to it.” God is a patient God. Running to Him is the best decision we will ever make.

Prayer is important. It is our lifeline. “God was always ready with a listening ear.” God hears all our prayers. If we have a difficult situation, we need to take it to God first. “Before they talked… he needed to be all prayed up.”

Life competes for our attention. “Somehow being back in the states, God’s voice had lost its clarity.” We need to make sure we make God our priority.

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