My last blog post ended with these words:
Paul reminds us that despite the bad things, the sad things, the storms in life, that we can find something to be thankful for.
Those of you who are facing the holidays without loved ones, for whatever reason, let's focus on the blessings that God has provided.
If you still have family nearby, hug them and tell them you love them.
And those of you who are separated from your loved ones, you’re in my prayers.
That is how I ended my last blog post.
We live in a time of unthankfulness and ungratefulness. Christmas is coming, and while it’s my favorite holiday season, all you have to do is go to the store to see the greed and the selfishness. People have lost all semblance of kindness and like in the movie “Christmas with the Kranks” will fight for that last spiral ham and sell items you don’t need at outrageous prices.
My preacher husband says in his messages quite often: “How much is enough? Just a little bit more.”
When I wrote my last blog post, I was anticipating Christmas day without my Coastie. We were planning on celebrating late, so maybe my Coastie could get a few days off and fly home. We are still hoping for that. He has his flights booked, but the needs of the Coast Guard come first. And the weather might factor in. Will he be here? We shall see.
At the beginning of this year, God gave me a verse. First time He has ever done so for me, and I wondered why other people got a “word from the Lord” and I didn’t. Was I the wrong religion? Maybe conservative Baptists didn’t get words from God about what they needed to know for the incoming year. But this year, He gave me a verse.
Not just a word. A verse.
Be strong and very courageous.
That told me all I need to know about this year. And it was hard. Hard. HARD. I hope I can claim to be strong and very courageous, but I have cried so much this year my eyes have sprung leaks and start dripping water without warning or reason.
My baby boy (who is so not a baby) joined the Coast Guard. Went to boot camp and is now at his first station (on the other end of the country from me).
My oldest son has continued to break my mama heart over and over this year. From getting arrested on my birthday last year (but released without booking because he wasn’t who they wanted but happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time), to moving out to live with druggies three times, but then coming home with, “I learned my lesson,” to the call I got yesterday. He’s in jail. This time booked for multiple charges. Court date is in mid-January. I can’t bail him out. I have no money. And even if I did have the money, did he learn his lesson? I don’t know. It will either break him or make him worse. I’m hoping it will break him. He called while we were at church today, begging me to get him out of there, and he cried. It made me cry.
I would be thankful if both my boys were around the Christmas tree this year, but they won’t be. One because he is serving our country, one because he’s serving time.
In this season of Advent, looking for the coming King, I am going to choose to find the blessings. To be thankful in the little things. My Coastie is becoming a man, and so far he is making wise choices. He has found a good Bible-believing church and is active in missions outreach with it.
My non-Coastie had a first offense—and nobody lost their life as a result of his bad decisions. And maybe, (please, God, please) this will be the wake-up call he needs to get his life on the right track. To turn back to God.
My oldest daughter—who is not a problem child—is going off to college in January. I have high hopes for her future there. While I will miss her like crazy, I am thankful she chose to go where she did, for reasons I will hold near and dear, just in case...
Merry Christmas – to you and yours.
Those of you who are facing the holidays without loved ones, for whatever reason, let's focus on the blessings that God has provided.
If you still have family nearby, hug them and tell them you love them.
And those of you who are separated from your loved ones, you’re in my prayers. I would appreciate prayers, too.
Award winning author, Laura Hilton, her husband, Steve, and three of their children make their home in Arkansas. She is a pastor’s wife, a stay-at-home mom, and home-schools. Laura is also a breast cancer survivor. Laura also has two adult children.
Her publishing credits include three books in the Amish of Seymour series from Whitaker House: Patchwork Dreams, A Harvest of Hearts (winner of the 2012 Clash of the Titles Award in two categories), and Promised to Another. The Amish of Webster County series, Healing Love (finalist for the 2013 Christian Retail Awards). Surrendered Love and Awakened Love followed by her first Christmas novel, A White Christmas in Webster County, as well as a three book Amish series withWhitaker House, The Amish of Jamesport series, The Snow Globe, The Postcard, and The Bird House in September 2015. See below for information on Laura's latest, The Amish Firefighter. Other credits include Swept Away from Abingdon Press. Laura is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and a professional book reviewer.
Connect with Laura
http://www.amazon.com/Laura-V.-Hilton/e/B004IRSM5Q
visit her blogs: http://lighthouse-academy.blogspot.com/ & http://lauravhilton.blogspot.com/
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/Laura_V_Hilton or @Laura_V_Hilton
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Author-Laura-V-Hilton/161478847242512
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/ver
 |
| Laura V. Hilto |
Paul reminds us that despite the bad things, the sad things, the storms in life, that we can find something to be thankful for.
Those of you who are facing the holidays without loved ones, for whatever reason, let's focus on the blessings that God has provided.
If you still have family nearby, hug them and tell them you love them.
And those of you who are separated from your loved ones, you’re in my prayers.
That is how I ended my last blog post.
We live in a time of unthankfulness and ungratefulness. Christmas is coming, and while it’s my favorite holiday season, all you have to do is go to the store to see the greed and the selfishness. People have lost all semblance of kindness and like in the movie “Christmas with the Kranks” will fight for that last spiral ham and sell items you don’t need at outrageous prices.
My preacher husband says in his messages quite often: “How much is enough? Just a little bit more.”
When I wrote my last blog post, I was anticipating Christmas day without my Coastie. We were planning on celebrating late, so maybe my Coastie could get a few days off and fly home. We are still hoping for that. He has his flights booked, but the needs of the Coast Guard come first. And the weather might factor in. Will he be here? We shall see.
At the beginning of this year, God gave me a verse. First time He has ever done so for me, and I wondered why other people got a “word from the Lord” and I didn’t. Was I the wrong religion? Maybe conservative Baptists didn’t get words from God about what they needed to know for the incoming year. But this year, He gave me a verse.
Not just a word. A verse.
“Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded you: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper whithersoever you go.” (Joshua 1:7 revised Laura version)
Be strong and very courageous.
That told me all I need to know about this year. And it was hard. Hard. HARD. I hope I can claim to be strong and very courageous, but I have cried so much this year my eyes have sprung leaks and start dripping water without warning or reason.
My baby boy (who is so not a baby) joined the Coast Guard. Went to boot camp and is now at his first station (on the other end of the country from me).
My oldest son has continued to break my mama heart over and over this year. From getting arrested on my birthday last year (but released without booking because he wasn’t who they wanted but happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time), to moving out to live with druggies three times, but then coming home with, “I learned my lesson,” to the call I got yesterday. He’s in jail. This time booked for multiple charges. Court date is in mid-January. I can’t bail him out. I have no money. And even if I did have the money, did he learn his lesson? I don’t know. It will either break him or make him worse. I’m hoping it will break him. He called while we were at church today, begging me to get him out of there, and he cried. It made me cry.
I would be thankful if both my boys were around the Christmas tree this year, but they won’t be. One because he is serving our country, one because he’s serving time.
In this season of Advent, looking for the coming King, I am going to choose to find the blessings. To be thankful in the little things. My Coastie is becoming a man, and so far he is making wise choices. He has found a good Bible-believing church and is active in missions outreach with it.
My non-Coastie had a first offense—and nobody lost their life as a result of his bad decisions. And maybe, (please, God, please) this will be the wake-up call he needs to get his life on the right track. To turn back to God.
My oldest daughter—who is not a problem child—is going off to college in January. I have high hopes for her future there. While I will miss her like crazy, I am thankful she chose to go where she did, for reasons I will hold near and dear, just in case...
Merry Christmas – to you and yours.
Those of you who are facing the holidays without loved ones, for whatever reason, let's focus on the blessings that God has provided.
If you still have family nearby, hug them and tell them you love them.
And those of you who are separated from your loved ones, you’re in my prayers. I would appreciate prayers, too.
 |
| About the Author |
Her publishing credits include three books in the Amish of Seymour series from Whitaker House: Patchwork Dreams, A Harvest of Hearts (winner of the 2012 Clash of the Titles Award in two categories), and Promised to Another. The Amish of Webster County series, Healing Love (finalist for the 2013 Christian Retail Awards). Surrendered Love and Awakened Love followed by her first Christmas novel, A White Christmas in Webster County, as well as a three book Amish series withWhitaker House, The Amish of Jamesport series, The Snow Globe, The Postcard, and The Bird House in September 2015. See below for information on Laura's latest, The Amish Firefighter. Other credits include Swept Away from Abingdon Press. Laura is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and a professional book reviewer.
Connect with Laura
http://www.amazon.com/Laura-V.-Hilton/e/B004IRSM5Q
visit her blogs: http://lighthouse-academy.blogspot.com/ & http://lauravhilton.blogspot.com/
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/Laura_V_Hilton or @Laura_V_Hilton
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Author-Laura-V-Hilton/161478847242512
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/ver
Amish Firefighter
by Laura V. Hilton
A Beautiful Young Woman Banished from Home
Abigail Stutzman thought it was bad enough being dropped at the nearest bus station and sent to live several states away with some relatives she'd never heard about, much less met. But now, just a week after her arrival in Jamesport, Missouri, she finds herself at the scene of a barn fire. An intentional barn fire. And all fingers are pointed at her. She's desperate to prove her innocence and protect her reputation, but nobody's making that easy to do. And God certainly doesn't seem willing to help.
A Brave Firefighter with an Agenda of His Own
Sam Miller is in the process of turning over a new leaf. Determined to atone for the follies of his past, he is a volunteer firefighter, an EMT, and a doctor-in-training. When local barn fires escalate, everyone suspects arson. And since the Miller family are among the victims, no one is more determined to see the perpetrators brought to justice than Sam.
A Kindled Flame Neither One Could Have AnticipatedWhen their paths first cross, at the site of a barn burning, the emotional intensity rivals the warmth of the flames. Soon, they must decide whether this fire is one they should feed or extinguish. And they'll discover that the truth can prove more dangerous than a blazing inferno.
by Laura V. Hilton
A Beautiful Young Woman Banished from Home
Abigail Stutzman thought it was bad enough being dropped at the nearest bus station and sent to live several states away with some relatives she'd never heard about, much less met. But now, just a week after her arrival in Jamesport, Missouri, she finds herself at the scene of a barn fire. An intentional barn fire. And all fingers are pointed at her. She's desperate to prove her innocence and protect her reputation, but nobody's making that easy to do. And God certainly doesn't seem willing to help.
A Brave Firefighter with an Agenda of His Own
Sam Miller is in the process of turning over a new leaf. Determined to atone for the follies of his past, he is a volunteer firefighter, an EMT, and a doctor-in-training. When local barn fires escalate, everyone suspects arson. And since the Miller family are among the victims, no one is more determined to see the perpetrators brought to justice than Sam.
A Kindled Flame Neither One Could Have AnticipatedWhen their paths first cross, at the site of a barn burning, the emotional intensity rivals the warmth of the flames. Soon, they must decide whether this fire is one they should feed or extinguish. And they'll discover that the truth can prove more dangerous than a blazing inferno.
