Psalm 19 for Writers by Emily Conrad

Christian writers have a lot of company in telling the world stories of grace and truth about God.

And I don’t mean that our company is other writers.

The heavens declare the glory of God;

the sky displays his handiwork.

Its words carry to the distant horizon.

Psalm 19:1, and 4b NET

That’s right. We might work with critique partners, editors, agents, and others, but one of our coworkers when we set out to tell stories to magnify God’s holy name is the sky itself.

That's a humbling thought.

Memorizing Scripture Verses by Zoe M. McCarthy

I was six years old, living in St. Petersburg, Florida. My first-grade teacher said, “I need a volunteer to read Psalm 100 at the assembly tomorrow.” My arm shot up, and I got the job. At home, I couldn’t wait to share the news with my mother. Her eyes widened. She knew I couldn’t read. We sat together and practiced until I memorized the five-verse psalm. I still recall verses in the King James Version.

Zoe M. McCarthy

Around age forty, I became a Christian. I fell in love with the Twenty-third Psalm. Again, I memorized it in the King James Version. I recite the psalm a lot. It comforts me. John 3:16, too, but in the NIV.

Sometime after that, I memorized 1 Chronicles 4:10, the prayer of Jabez in the NIV. Probably because it was a fad, I remember the gist but the words have left me.
As a more mature Christian, I attended a Christian church conference. In one workshop, a woman recited the whole book of Ephesians, speaking as if she were Paul. Her performance awed me. I couldn’t stop contemplating how she took the time to memorize all six chapters and become Paul for others. 

While a children’s leader for Bible Study Fellowship, we studied Romans. The eighth chapter was rich with meaning. Recalling the woman who memorized Ephesians and moved on to memorize Philippians, I decided to learn the words of Romans 8. I did much of my practice when I had insomnia, but I mastered it. The meanings of the verses sank in, and I liked to think I was Paul, as I recited them to myself.

I drew enough courage from the Lord to recite it at a BSF leaders’ group fellowship. I spoke it, as I believed Paul would emote the words. Now, I can’t recite Romans 8, but I understand that chapter better than most.

A friend has scads of verses memorized. I can count on her to know a verse when we need it in the Bible study I lead. Her retention of so much Scripture is a gift.

What is your verse-memorizing story?

About the Author

A full-time writer and speaker, Zoe M. McCarthy, author of The Invisible Woman in a Red Dress, Gift of the Magpie, andCalculated Risk, writes contemporary Christian romances involving tenderness and humor. Believing opposites distract, Zoe creates heroes and heroines who learn to embrace their differences. When she’s not writing, Zoe enjoys her five grandchildren, teaching Bible studies, leading workshops on writing, knitting and crocheting shawls for a prayer shawl ministry, gardening, and canoeing. She lives with her husband in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. Zoe blogs regularly atwww.zoemmccarthy.com.


Cooking Up Kisses (Five Sweetly Scrumptious Novellas)

Cooking Up Kisses (Five Sweetly Scrumptious Novellas)

LOVE ON A DARE BY MARY MANNERS
Alana Mulvaney’s life is in a holding pattern. Consumed by day-to-day operations of the family business, Alana has no time for fun or romance. But a little fun and a whole lot of romance is just what Alana’s sisters have in mind when they learn childhood friend Donovan O’Reilly has returned to town.

HUMMINGBIRD KISSES BY DELIA LATHAM
Toni Littlebird believes that when she meets the man God created for her, she’ll know—and she’ll love him in that very moment.
But then Dax Hendrick roars into Hummingbird Hollow on a noisy, crippled Harley, stinking up the air and chasing away her beloved hummingbirds. One look into the intruder’s eyes and her heart sinks. He’s “The One.” She’d been right about knowing, but wrong about something far more important: She will never love this man!

HEARTS ON THE HARBOR BY ROBIN BAYNE
Cara Peyton is content with her life, her trendy Baltimore bookshop is perfect for her. But when her ex turns up to remodel the store, asking for a second chance, she’s torn and unsure about risking her heart again. Can he convince her to trust him, and God, before the job is finished?

HIS VALENTINE PROMISE BY DORA HIERS
Another Valentine’s Day and Quinn Randolph prefers to spend it with her sweet rescue lab. Who needs men and their broken promises? Especially Pierce Karson’s! Years ago, his desertion shattered her. Now he’s trying to steal the property she targeted to expand her florist shop! Pierce only wants to belong…and for Quinn to choose him. His Valentine Promise…

THE INVISIBLE WOMAN IN A RED DRESS BY ZOE M. MCCARTHY
Candace Parks lives a passionless life in Richmond. The computer programmer returns to the empty family home in the Blue Ridge Mountains solely to evaluate her job, faith, and boyfriend. Her high school crush, Trigg Alderman, who barely remembers her, visits his Gram next door. Sorting her life out? How about nothing of the sort!