Book Review - The Desert Flowers - Willow - By Judith Keim - Publication Date: 10 February 2022

 Although this Desert Sage Inn book is the third in the series, it could stand alone.  This one is mostly about Willow Sanchez, one of  hotelier Alec Thurstan's 'Desert Flowers,' as he called his proteges.  Rose and Lily were the other two right hand women assisting him with the transition of the sale of his hotel, the Desert Sage Inn.  It was painful for these Desert Flowers, especially for Willow, as Alec was like a second father to her and he was now terminally ill.  There was great sadness that I could feel but also there were joys and energy of life.  Pedro and Juanita Sanchez, Willow's  parents, completed Alec's family of five other loving, and caring members in his circle.  

The question was, would Willow be part of the management team at the Desert Sage Inn under the new owners?  I sure hoped she would get that position as she wanted to stick around. However, was there something else in the wind?  Would she even find love despite her independent streak? Trace and Craig were certainly interested parties.

Even though there was sadness and loss, I really enjoyed this book and paradoxically felt that it was a happy read.  I could feel present in the story, waiting and hoping right along side Willow; waiting patiently impatient and  in suspense, for answers.

I do have issue with the pre-marital intimacy that happened between characters but other than that, it was interesting to learn of some of the hotel life and dynamics from the operational side of things.  I believe the story finished up very satisfactorily with the Desert Flowers finding a good cause along with Pedro and Juanita, to keep the memory of Alec alive and engaging in something that he would have truly sanctioned.

                                             ~Eunice C.,  Reviewer/Blogger~

                                                         January 2022

Disclaimer:  This is my honest opinion based on the complimentary review copy sent by NetGalley and the publisher.

Read review on Goodreads.

The Emperor's Highway

 The Romans believed in good highways, so built them throughout their empire.  It was awfully good of them as it stepped up trade and the economy.  More importantly, it improved travel from place to place.

Paul capitalized on this Emperor's Highway making it his personal Highway for the Kingdom of God.  Apparently, one could get from one main city to the next at a comfortable day's stretch of between 40-50 kms (20-30 miles), more or less, per day.*

Fortunate for Paul, since he often had to leave one city for the next in a hurry; one time let down over a wall in a basket or clandestined midnight ride escapes were on his unlisted bucket list of adventures.  Life was never dull in his neck of the woods.

He went from Phillipi, to Thessalonica, to Berea and Athens with seeming ease despite the whippings he and Silas had gotten in Phillipi.  He, along with Silas, pushed resolutely along, going for the "juglars" of Macedonian cities.  When they got to the cities, feet moving like Fred Flinstones in his automobile on higher speed, they'd go for the juglars within the juglars - the synagogues.  Here they would preach and many listened and were converted to Jesus Christ by Pauls' persuasive Holy Spirit led words.  Of course, this is when the religious leaders got furiously jealous and stirred up trouble.  Once again Paul would be in hot soup and have to bolt along to the next city often with the kind assistance of the new converts.

On  the highway again to the next major city, traveling on....  This pattern or modus operandi that Paul established, seemed to be most effective.  No doubt missionary organizations the world over have noted and adopted this  method to some extent.

In my mind I was thinking, however, shouldn't it be to the small outback regions they should target?  The people are just as needy of Jesus there as were the city folks.  In my limited experience, I have joined just such short term 'expeditions' to very rural areas.  This is the way it should be!  Such was my thinking.

However,  after further thinking, I had to laugh at myself.  Yeah, I came from the major city.  The major city folk who'd already accepted salvation through Jesus Christ because some missionaries had come, preached, taught, established a gathering of believers, and perhaps moved on, leaving the baton in those cities to those city folk to pick up and run with it to the outlying areas.  Go out from the city hub to the towns and villages beyond, this is the way, along the highways to the byways.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not criticizing anyone's mode of spreading the gospel.  I'm just making observations that have previously eluded my notice.  No matter how the Holy Spirit leads us to work in any one given situation, I think its' quite fine to use the benefits of the circumstances to our advantage as Paul used the Emperor's Highway when he was not using the sea route.  We do well to use our "King's Highway" He provides in any which form.  

So promote Christ and gain treasure for Heaven until He tells you to stop.

                                                      ~ERC  October 2021~

Based on Acts 17:1-9.

*SPM A Study Guide Book of Acts Bible Knowledge; Goh  Kim Guat; copyright 2005; Issachar Sdn. Bhd.

Inter-racial is NOT Inferior

 I really dislike the term "mixed marriage".  It really grates against the grain of my nerves.  A more preferred expression is "inter-racial".  Even that could be a bit off-putting though.  Whichever is used, it smacks of belittlement to the individuals and to the couple referred to with that labelling.  Are they not two human beings who fell in love and hopefully wanted to spend the rest of their lives together?  No doubt their ethnic genes may factor in but when it all boils down, they are each still a human being.

When we are introduced to the young man Timothy in Acts16:1-5, we are told that his mother was Jewish and his father a Greek.

EEK!

Stigma.

Anyway, Paul wants to mentor Timothy and have him tag along with him on his travels.  Due to Timothy's gene pool and the anathema of it in the minds of the Jewish community they'd be ministering among at the time, Paul went and circumcised Timothy.  

What a hullabaloo in my mind!

We'd just read of Paul's part in the dispute on that very topic in Acts 15!  What in the world is going on!?  The Jerusalem Council already said that the Gentile converts didn't need to be circumcised to have full salvation and gave the stated reasons, so why is Paul with the hot-off-the-press message he helped deliver to Antioch and nearby churches and to subsequent churches on his tour, why  would he suddenly do this for Timothy!  Isn't that a huge two-faced contradiction smacking of hypocracy!?

I'd like to quote the SPM Study Guide in answer.

"As the son of a mixed marriage (that ugly term), Timothy's position was unclear.  Jews were not supposed to marry Gentiles but if this did happen, the children were regarded as Jewish and therefore liable to be circumcised.  No reasons were given why this did not take place where Timothy was concerned.  Since Paul's mission would bring Timothy into contact with Jews, it was better in Paul's mind to circumcise Timothy to avoid problems with the Jews since he would be regarded as a Jew in the eyes of the Jewish world."*1

That puts things into some perspective.  Do you recall what Paul once wrote to the Corinthians?  In 1 Corinthians 9:19-23, especially verse 19, 20 and 23 (NIV), we read,

"Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible.  To the Jews, I become like a Jew, to win the Jews.  I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings."

This reminds me of several missionary stories I've read about.  Hudson Taylor who went to China (1873-1878), donned local garb and wore a queue of hair down his back; Lottie Moon (1873-1912) who also went to China, assumed the Chinese attire and ways; and Adoniram Judson and his wife Anne (1813-1850) who went to Burma doing similarly and even meeting the locals in local style in a 'zayat'*2 instead of a church.

This was what Paul was doing with Timothy.  Timothy was considered Jewish and they'd be among the Jews, so therefore Paul circumcised Timothy, NOT to "complete his conversion" but to remove any hindrance that would block the Jewish minds from receiving the precious message of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ.

In this, Paul was not going against the decision of the Jerusalem Council, I concluded, nor was he saying that because of Timothy's paternal parentage he didn't quite make the grade of full-fledged standard personnage.  Timothy was not an inferior specimen of humanity.  The message of Jesus could ring out unhindered and without distraction even when Timothy was along for the ride. Praise the Lord for that!

                                                    ~ERC  October 2021~

Based on Acts 16:1- NIV/Good News

*1. SPM A Study Guide to the Acts of the Apostles, Bible Knowledge; Goh Kim Guat; copyright 2005; Issachar Sdn. Bhd.

*2.  A 'zayat' is like a community cente.

To further this topic you can read some of my other blog entries which come in four parts.  Part 4 of the Who?  Me!!? is the one that most relates here but the other three lead up to it.  Here are the Links:

Who?  Me!!?  Part 1

Who?  Me!!?  Part 2

Who?  Me!!   Part 3

Who?  Me!!? Part 4

Sing, In All Things More Than Conquerors, with Stephen Curtis Chapman.

Lord's Day Devotional Prayer - Goblet of God's Wrath

 The goblet of Your wrath, Father God, is a terrifying thing to think of.  Yet, in Your unfailing mercy and love, You have taken it out of our hands as you did for the children of Israel, as Isaiah wrote.

That goblet of wrath that was poured out upon the House of Judah, because they'd failed to have no other gods but You.  They worshiped instead, the Queen of heaven and the Baal.  There was also the injustice aplenty perpetuated against the poor, needy, widows and the fatherless.  All this you could not abide any longer!

So that terrible wrath of Yours smashed and bashed the walls of Jerusalem down and even Your house, the Temple - that magnificiently constructed and designed Temple built during King Solomon's reign - in complete ruins!  The Jews were brutally conquered and marched to Babylon for 70 years because of their rebellious, stubborn and unrepentant ways.

When we read the books of Isaiah and Jeremiah we see just how horrendously devastating it all was.  Your wrath needed, and still needs, to be reckoned with as never before. Oh, what a wonderful promise You made though in Isaiah 52:22 (NIV).  It declares,

"This is what Your sovereign LORD says, Your God, Who defends His people:  "See, I have taken out of your hand the cup that made you stagger; from that cup, the goblet of wrath, you will never drink again."

"Never drink again..." is a promise like You made to Noah when You gave Him the sign of a rainbow to sign and seal the promise that You'd never destroy the earth again with a flood.  You've kept that promise all these thousands of years!  Thank-You Father.

That goblet of wrath for the sin of the whole world was also taken out of my hands and the hands of mankind when they believe, and You put it into Jesus' beloved hands instead!  He agonized about whether to drink that cup of Your wrath but submitted to Your will so that all that awful punishment for our sin, was place upon Jesus.

Oh, what a Savior that He died for me!

All the wrath and condemnation was put upon Jesus; into His hands!  It is with His stripes I've, and all my brothers and sisters-in-Christ have been saved and healed.  Thank-You, Father!

The bread has been partaken of and now we pass the cup of wine, symbolizing the blood of Jesus Christ giving His life for us, and taking all that wrath upon Himself, may we, each of the redeemed of the Lord, show our gratitude to You this Lord's Day for having taken that cup of wrath from our hands to Jesus'.

May continued repentance on our part and Jesus' forgiveness and sanctifying grace be our act of daily ongoing, living in Christ.  In this may we each show our thanksgiving and offer up sarifices of praise from our lips to His holy Name.  It is only through Jesus' sacrifice and having taken the goblet of Your wrath that we can do so.  We know Jesus will never have to drink this cup ever again because You are satisfied with His work and sacrifice on our behalf.  It is also in Jesus' Name we praise and give Him and You thanks.

Praise the Lord!

                                                ~ERC  February 2022~

Based on Isaiah 52:22 and Luke 22:39 (NIV).

Sing Oh What a Savior that He Died For Me, with Whitewell Metropolitan Tabernacle, Belfast - 2005.

'Old Faithful' Brother

 

It's always nice to unexpectedly bump into an 'old' friend or acquaintance after an extended stretch of time.  That's what we have here in Acts 15.  I was pleasantly surprized to come across Joseph Barsabbas Justus since the casting lots event as seen in Acts chapter 1.  This time he's gained yet another name, 'Judas'; a man with many handles.  Ha, ha.

This Judas was still a trusted, respected brother-in-Christ.  Isn't that wondrous to see?  He hadn't held a grudge because he wasn't chosen to fill the spot left available by Judas Iscariot.  No.  He had kept on, keeping on, faithfully, in his own particular service-for-the-Lord role.

That's why I'm so delighted to meet him again.  Did you read to see what was keeping him busy?

Judas Barsabbas and another brother, Silas, were two "highly  respected" (Good News) brothers, chosen for the special delivery of the letter and message from the Jerusalem Council regarding the sharp debate between the Gentile converts and the Judaizers about having to be circumsized in order to be fully saved.  (If you read the previous blog entry 'They Listened!', you'll see more fully how this incident panned out.)

These two men were chosen then, to accompany Paul and Barnabas back to Antioch with the answer.  We see them then, after doing their duty regarding the dispute, go another mile with the saints gathered in the Antioch region.  Turns out that both of these brothers were also "prophets".  Prophets who could speak "a long time."  

What were they saying?  Words of 'courage and strength".  The response was to send them off, back to Jerusalem, "in  peace".

Don't you just love that!  I do.

All was quiet on the set for a bit thereafter in referring to Judas Barsabbas.  He must have been a humble, steady and faithful man.  Next time we hear of him another choice is being made between him and another.  Ahh, another chance at postition of authority and priveledge....

You'll see that neither greed nor pride lifted up their ugly heads.  If you read the next section of verses from verse 36-49, you'll see that it was Silas who was chosen to accompany Paul on his next missionary journey, not Judas Barsabbas.  I find this intriquing.

We don't know the circumstances of why one over the other  in each instance but I believe that our friend Judas B. must have had the meekness of Moses, being steadfast in the Lord, no matter what.  Oh, to be more like that!  Let us be faithful to our God and Father  and to Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.  Let us serve and adore Him as Judas B. must have done without incident or argument over any assumed rights he may have had for the position.  May our Heavenly Father's will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

To tell you the truth, I want to bump into more 'old faithful' brothers like Judas B., don't you?

                                                  ~ERC  October 2021~

Based on Acts 15:22; 32-33; and Acts 1:21-26 NIV/GoodNews.

Sing, O Come All Ye Faithful, along with Northern Baptist Association.

Good Book - Daughter of China - by C. Hope Flinchbaugh - Copyright 2002

A friend of a friend gave this Daughter of China book to her and my friend passed it on to me.  It took some courage and fortitude to begin reading it after perusing the reviews on the back cover.  However, I'm glad I had the determination to read it and so become enlightened to the plight of our brothers and sisters-in-Christ in China back in the 1990's, in the time frame of this story depicting those years.  Although it is a work of fiction, it is based on real life happenings.   This story covers the persecution of believers and also the treatment of orphans in some of the more infamously notable orphanages.

My heart went out to Kwan Mei Lin and the house church believers in her village.  The horrific treatment perpetuated upon them and especially upon their pastor, Pastor Chen.  The passion for Jesus Christ that made them patient in affliction and not deny Jesus is difficult for us in 'free-er' countries to comprehend.  Yet we can rejoice in their supreme courage and perseverence despite beatings and the most disgusting situations of squalor forced upon them as well as upon the criminals in prisons.  Unexpected opportunities for Mei Lin to share her faith in Jesus will surprize you as much as it did her.  

Conditions in orphanges were not much better - more heartbreak.  We get to meet "Katou," a sweet little orphan urchin who will instantly win your heart especially for all she endured.  Zhu, her friend had it even  worse.

There is so much suffering at the hands of evil men and women, that it is striking when love, care and mercy are given to the victim.  To realize there are those who show concern to the point of doing something, truly made differences in a hundred and one ways to those suffering in such miserable  wretchedness.  Your tears may flow as you read along because of all that but you will encounter there will be times of joy too.

The Lord be praised because of those people who care.  These are the ones who will want  to read this book the most.  Beware, there  are hard  truths to swallow.

I want to believe that conditons, especially in the orphanages have greatly improved by this year of 2022. We do know that our Revenger God does have His eye upon each one and that He will make things right in ways we cannot manage to alliviate the  situations now.  We can look in our own backyards however, and do whatever we can as we have opportunity for those within our reach.

Additionally, there are some who have been able to be instrumental in helping both the persecuted and the orphans, although they likely come from different sources.There is a Jenny Bower who created Half the Sky Foundation now known as OneSky;  and there is the New Hope Foundation.  There are likely more.  

Acknowledgments at the end of this book list from whence the author gleaned some of her facts; give titles of videos and documentaries that would be helpful to watch, such as China Cry and Bamboo in Winter; and another list of organizations that provided facts about persecuted Christians such as Amnesty International, Open doors with Brother Andrew, Voice of the Martyrs and so on.

Obviously, I highly recommend this book.

                                                    ~ERC  January 2022~

Book Review - Revolutionary Prudence Wright - By Beth Anderson - Publication Date: 1 February 2022

 

I love reading about unsung heroines of the past.  This book about Prudence Wright is no exception.  Her rallying of her Pepperell, USA village lady friends, some armed even with pitchforks while their men were off fighting against rising taxes and King George III, helped their cause for Independance from the British.  They even caught  spy.  This is a very interesting way for children to learn a piece of their heritage, I believe, and to be grateful to those who have gone before them to gain freedom for future generations.  Children likely could be inspired to good causes of their own.  Hats off to Susan Reagan for her wonderful illustrations, which splendidly compliment Beth Anderson's rendering of the past.

                                              ~Eunice C., Reviewer/Blogger~

                                                          December 2022

Disclaimer:  This is my honest opinion based on the review copy sent by NetGalley and the publisher.

Read review on Goodreads.