Goodness and Mercy are Sure to Follow...

Jehovah is my shepherd, I do not lack,
In pastures of tender grass He causeth me to lie down, By quiet waters He doth lead me.
My soul He refresheth, He leadeth me in paths of righteousness, For His name's sake,
Also -- when I walk in a valley of death-shade, I fear no evil, for Thou art with me, Thy rod and Thy staff -- they comfort me.
Thou arrangest before me a table, Over-against my adversaries, Thou hast anointed with oil my head, My cup is full!
Only -- goodness and kindness pursue me, All the days of my life, And my dwelling is in the house of Jehovah, For a length of days!

Psalm 23~Young's Literal Translation

Another birthday approaches, another year of life, and today found me renewing my photo ID for my driver's license. I could not help but notice how much older I looked than the last picture. I am well into middle aged years. My life has been a journey for all these years, but one thing I know for sure, Jehovah is my Good Shepherd, and He is the One who keeps on leading my path.

He causes me to lie down and rest. I never would have found rest if it were not for learning His words, which grow dearer with each passing day. In a world where everything can change in a moment, one thing stays the same: God and His Words, which will never pass away. Everything else around me will pass away, but Jesus promised His Words would remain forever.

There have been dark times in my life. But He has always been there. It may have seemed that I was trudging along alone, but He silently walked along, keeping my feet from falling. The enemy of my soul likes to taunt with accusations constantly. But I keep eating from a table filled with goodness (for my needs) and mercy (for my sins), and the enemy has nothing he can say that can withstand it. The devil cannot deny the cross or that Christ rose again from the tomb so that I could be God's daughter. God's rod and staff kept me from falling off the cliff altogether, and even if I were that one sheep of the hundred who strayed from the flock, He would reach down with His shepherd's crook to get me.

I heard this week in a Bible teaching that we do not have to go running after happiness. If we follow the Lord, it only stands that happiness will find us. As we go about our days seeking first the Kingdom of God, David says that goodness and kindness pursue us.I just know that even though  the world demands that I grab "all the gusto," in Christ I am content with what He has given me, just where I am, just for today.

When I walk through my life's final valley, I need not be afraid of that either. Whether I die this year or go in the Rapture or have many years yet to live, I trust He will be there to walk it with me. C.H. Spurgeon, in The Treasury of David, says this of the death shadowed valley in Psalm 23:

"The dying saint is not in a flurry, he does not run as though he were alarmed, nor stand still as though he would go no further...Observe that it is not walking in  the valley, but through the valley...Death is not the house but the porch, not the goal but the passage to it...The storm breaks on the mountain, but the valley is a place of quietude, and thus full often the the last days of the Christian are the most peaceful in his whole career...And, then, it is not, "the valley of death," but the valley of the shadow of death," for death in its substance has been removed, and only the shadow of it remains...let us then rejoice that there is a light beyond. Nobody is afraid of a shadow, for a shadow cannot stop a man's pathway even for a moment. The shadow of a dog cannot bite, the shadow of a sword cannot kill...Let us not, therefore, be afraid."        Treasury of David Volume One by Charles H. Spurgeon, page 355.

So yes, I am getting older. But would I turn back to my youth if I had a chance? No! It has taken me some fifty odd years to come to this place of peace and reliance on God, and I am glad that each day given takes me one day closer to seeing Him face to face.

Thank You Lord, for Your goodness and mercy, all the days of my life.

9/30/2013 Blog Tour

Psalm 23 "The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

First off, thanks to my God for His everlasting consolation and salvation through Christ.

I want to thank my writing friend, Joan Y. Edwards http://joanyedwards.wordpress.com/2013/09/22/blog-tour/ for inviting me to be a part of this blog tour. I also want to thank her for helping me be the writer I am today and for introducing me to http://www.4rvpublishing.com/

If it weren't for Joan, I would not have my book: Sure Mercies: Hope for the Suffering undergoing edits for publication next spring (May or June, 2014). The Lord did direct my path, just like He did for David in Psalm 23. I would like to tell you a little bit about me and my book in this blog tour post.

1. I started writing as a child. I never thought of myself as a writer though. I did have stories in my head but did not always get them onto paper. One of the stories remains with me today. I guess I should get around to writing it. I remember one thing that encouraged me with my writing as a child. One summer, our library had a little writing contest for children. We were to read the book Strawberry Girl by Lois Lenski. I liked the book because of its story line and its pretty illustrations by the author. We were to write a book report about it. I won the contest that summer and received a "Snoopy" statue as a result. Growing up, I did not receive many rewards. I was just slightly above average in schoolwork. So, winning that small contest meant a lot to me. I never thought that it indicated I could have promise as a writer.

2. In high school, I wrote poems about things that affected my life. One of the poems was about my paternal grandmother. I only saw her once a year and "goodbyes" were always difficult because I never knew if she would be around the following year. My poem was called "Wise Old Grandmother" and was published in our high school literary magazine, along with one or two more of my poems.

She is in the picture below, with my Dad and Grandpa. I wrote about the values I saw in her: hard work,sacrifice, and a simple lifestyle.

3. When I went off to college, I ignored my stronger abilities and chose a career in the nursing field because I wanted to help people. It never occurred to me that possibly I could help people through writing instead. Although I loved interacting with my different patients, the medical part was not really for me. I managed to get my bachelor's, but when I married and began having children, I was glad to stay home with them.

4. I home taught my children and in the process, discovered many wonderful books that I had missed as a child. Reading aloud to my kids became a priority and one son claims he still sees some of the stories in his mind. That is when I discovered the wonderful world of children's literature.

5. About eight years ago, when my last child was entering high school, I signed up for the Institute of Children's Literature course, Writing for Children and Teenagers. When I graduated with my Basic diploma and had one of my stories published, I was recommended for the Advanced, Book Writer course. And that is how my book Sure Mercies was born. With the help of my instructor, I came up with an idea to write about my favorite Bible character, David. I always had loved David's Psalms. They helped me through the rough times of growing up and especially as a teenager. My sister got me a fascinating autobiography of David by F. B. Meyer. I wanted to tell more about these Psalms. I also loved reading about heroes of the faith. I came up with 40 of David's Psalms and a person to fit each one of them. In my stories I explained how each person overcame some difficulty in their life and exemplified a portion of that Psalm in that way. Some of the heroes were from modern days, but some in early church history as well. They spanned across the whole church age. I ended up putting a timeline at the end to show how their lives intertwined amongst themselves, one influencing the other like a stack of dominoes. I also put in a study guide for further contemplation on Scripture, and a Scripture index and resource guide. I wanted my readers to understand that not only the Psalms, but the whole Word of God directly fit together as the Ultimate Guide Book for our lives. My audience was originally for teenagers, because I remembered how difficult adolescence was for me personally. I wanted to show Jesus Christ is the best friend we can ever have. It ended up that this book will be appropriate also for adults. I want to reach as many people as possible with the message that in Christ there is hope for the bleakest situation. It is never too late as long as you have breath.

6. I have been extremely blessed to find 4RV Publishing, who was willing to take a chance on a first time author. In addition, I found a wonderful editor (who lived within walking distance) who helped me get my manuscript ready for submission to 4RV. Friends within my critique group believed in my book and helped me to carry on when I was ready to give up. My family cheered me on, with my husband, Kevin, the biggest helper of all. Now, I am hoping to write many more books. I love to write about the LORD and His love, but also have a funny side and enjoy writing about my cat Missy (aka "Super Cat") and her antics. I worked with children of varying ages for about nine years. My own children and the kids I cared for helped fuel my imagination for other children's stories and poems as well.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this blog. I recently began a new blog specifically about kids and adult books. It is my hope to direct you to great reads on there. I encourage you to stop by there as well. Come on over and also see me at: http://meganvance.wordpress.com/