Merry Christmas from the Blumers

A Hymn On the Nativity Of My Saviour from A Sinner’s Sacrifice

Ben Jonson (c. 1573-1637)

I sing the Birth was born to-night,
The Author both of life and light;
The angels so did sound it,
And like the ravished shepherds said,
Who saw the light, and were afraid,
Yet searched, and true they found it.

The Son of God, th’Eternal King,
That did us all salvation bring,
And freed the soul from danger;
He whom the whole world could not take,
The Word, which Heaven and Earth did make,
Was now laid in a manger.

The Father’s wisdom willed it so,
The Son’s obedience knew no No.
Both wills were in one stature,
And as that wisdom had decreed,
The Word was now made Flesh indeed,
And took on Him our nature.

What comfort by Him do we win,
Who made Himself the price of sin
To make us heirs of glory?
To see this Babe all innocence,
A martyr born in our defence:
Can man forget this story?

Kiriath's Quest by Rick Barry

This week JourneyForth released Kiriath's Quest, a fantasy novel by author friend Rick Barry. Here's more information:

About the Book

When King Jekoniah of Xandria is kidnapped by evil Grishnaki, the royal family searches for a way to save him. The desired ransom is impossible, and an outright war on the Grishnaki would end in disaster—so Prince Kiriath undertakes a secret mission into the Grishnaki’s valley. But danger slows the prince's journey, and as the ransom deadline approaches, Kiriath begins to wonder whether he will reach his father in time.

Read a sample chapter here.

For information about purchasing the novel, click here.

About the Author

Rick Barry is a Christian writer who has participated in more than 25 mission trips to Russia and Ukraine. In part, his writing helps to fund his missionary activities.

Although writing is basically an "in-doors" activity, Rick appreciates opportunities to get outside and try new experiences, which have included skydiving, mountain climbing, rappelling, canoeing, kayaking, wilderness hiking, white-water rafting, and a high-ropes course through tree tops. All experiences in life provide fuel for this writer's imagination.

Publishers who have purchased Rick's work include Focus on the Family, Regular Baptist Press, the Salvation Army, Writer's Journal magazine, In Touch, Power for Living, and others. Rick and his wife Pam currently live in Plainfield, Indiana. They have two adult children, Jessica and Josh.

Visit the author's Web site.

Author Jeff Shaara talks about his historical novels

This week the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing Dark Pursuit (Zondervan, December 1, 2008) by Brandilyn Collins.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR


Brandilyn Collins is known for her trademark Seatbelt Suspense®. She is currently working on her 20th book. For chances to win free copies of her work, join her Fan Club on Facebook. Here’s what Brandilyn has to say about why she wrote Dark Pursuit:

In John Milton’s Paradise Lost Satan’s followers, kicked out of heaven, boast about storming the gates and reclaiming their territory. Beelzebub scoffs at their boasting as merely “hatching vain empires” and suggests a different revengeful scheme: seduce mankind away from God. So Satan visits the Garden of Eden to teach humans the very thing he and his cohorts have learned to be futile—the dark pursuit of hatching their own vain empires instead of following God. He presented man with this “gift” of death, disguised as life. And man fell for it.

Upon this theme of man’s fall and spiritual blindness, I created the characters and events in Dark Pursuit. The story clips along at a fast pace, with much symbolism running underneath.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Dark Pursuit—A twisting story of murder, betrayal, and eternal choices

Novelist Darell Brooke lived for his title as King of Suspense—until an auto accident left him unable to concentrate. Two years later, reclusive and bitter, he wants one thing: to plot a new novel and regain his reputation.

Kaitlan Sering, his twenty-two-year-old granddaughter, once lived for drugs. After she stole from Darell, he cut her off. Now she’s rebuilding her life. But in Kaitlan’s town two women have been murdered, and she’s about to discover a third. She’s even more shocked to realize the culprit—her boyfriend, Craig, the police chief’s son.

Desperate, Kaitlan flees to her estranged grandfather. For over forty years, Darell Brooke has lived suspense. Surely he’ll devise a plan to trap the cunning Craig.

But can Darell’s muddled mind do it? And—if he tries—with what motivation? For Kaitlan’s plight may be the stunning answer to the elusive plot he seeks...

Read the first chapter of Dark Pursuit, here.

My Review

This one was good . . . really good. Once I got into this novel and understood what was happening, I had a hard time putting it down. Collins has done it again. The plot was riveting, and just when I thought I knew who was doing the murders, I was in for a big surprise. Great twist at the end. Believable characters. Real-life conflicts. A flawed protagonist who sees her need for God. A creepy killer who must be stopped before he goes after Kaitlan. What's not to like? I've read several by Collins, but I think this one is definitely one of her best. Don't miss this one.

One Perfect Day by Lauraine Snelling

This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
One Perfect Day
FaithWords (October 22, 2008)
by
Lauraine Snelling


ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Today, Lauraine Snelling is a member of the more than Two Million Books In Print club, but when she first began, she was a mother of three teenagers with a simple dream to write “horse books for kids.”

All told, she has over 50 books published. She thinks. She’s not sure. She’d rather write them than count them. Lauraine’s work has been translated into Norwegian, Danish and German as well as produced as books on tape.

Awards have followed her dedication to “telling a good story”: the Silver Angel Award for An Untamed Land and a Romance Writers of America Golden Heart for Song of Laughter.

Helping others reach their writing dream is the reason Lauraine teaches at writer’s conferences across the country. She mentors others through book doctoring and with her humorous and playful Writing Great Fiction tape set. Lauraine also produces material on query letters and other aspects of the writing process.

Her readers clamor for more books more often and Lauraine would like to comply, if only her ever-growing flower gardens didn’t call quite so loudly over the soothing rush of the water fountains in her back yard and if the hummingbirds weren’t quite so entertaining. Lauraine and husband Wayne have two grown sons and a cockatiel named Bidley, who loves to tease their Basset Hound named Chewy.


ABOUT THE BOOK


Two mothers end up more closely connected that they could dream...and yet they are strangers to one another.

The first has two children--twins, a boy and girl, who are seniors in high school. She wants their last Christmas as a family living in the same home to be perfect, but her husband is delayed returning from a business trip abroad. And then there's an accident--a fatal one involving a drunk driver.

Meanwhile, the other mother has a daughter who needs a new heart, and so the loss of one woman becomes the miracle the other has desperately prayed for. While one mother grieves, and pulls away from her family, the other finds that even miracles aren't always easy to receive.

If you would like to read the first chapter of One Perfect Day, go HERE

White Christmas Pie by Wanda E. Brunstetter

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing White Christmas Pie Barbour Publishing, Inc (September 1, 2008) by Wanda E. Brunstetter.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Fascinated by the Amish people during the years of visiting her husband's family in Pennsylvania, WANDA E. BRUNSTETTER combined her interest with her writing and now has eleven novels about the Amish in print, along with numerous other stories and ministry booklets. She lives in Washington State, where her husband is a pastor, but takes every opportunity to visit Amish settlements throughout the states.

This year Wanda also published A Sister's Hope.


ABOUT THE NOVEL

Step into Amish country for this bittersweet holiday romance. Here you'll meet Will Henderson, a young man tortured by his past, and Karen Yoder, a young woman looking for answers. Add a desperate father searching for his son, and you have all the ingredients for a first-class romance that will inspire and enthrall.

Abandoned by his father, Will Henderson was raised by an Amish couple. Now he's about to marry Karen Yoder but is having second thoughts. Can Will overcome the bitterness of his past in order to secure his future? Karen cannot break through the barrier her fiance has suddenly constructed around his heart. When she seeks the advice of an old boyfriend, Will begins to see green. Has he already lost his chance for happiness?

When an accident threatens Will's life, the strength of blood ties is tested. Will a recipe for White Christmas pie contain the ingredients for a happily-ever-after?

If you would like to read the first chapter of White Christmas Pie, go HERE.

Watch the book trailer:

My Personal Testimony

Reprinted by permission from SharperIron.org.

Confessions of a Classic Performer

I grew up on a farm without animals—domesticated animals, that is. Wild cats came and went like vagrants seeking shelter for a few months before setting off in search of something better. Those cats especially liked our classic circa 1900 red barn. As a boy, I remember sitting in the barn’s hayloft while dust motes danced in shafts of sunlight at my feet. Peering up at the cavernous ceiling, I imagined that I was inside a massive cathedral until the flutter of wings drew my attention to a four-paned window inset into the peak. Birds that had been trapped inside the barn fluttered against the glass panes in search of a way out. (Photo, clockwise: Adam, Kim, Laura, and Julia)

In many ways, aren’t we all like those birds before we meet Christ—trapped in the "barn" of self? No, I’ve never been trapped in a physical sense. In fact, I experienced a Christian background many might envy: godly parents and siblings; fundamental, Bible-preaching churches; and a quality Christian school education. But like everyone at birth, I was trapped in my sin as much as any drug addict. Though God spared me from the more obvious pitfalls of a life without Christ, He gave me just as much saving grace as He extends to anyone who calls upon Him. For that I am indeed thankful.

Sealed My Pardon

My mom led me to Christ when I was four years old. I remember sitting next to her in a Buick Opal (I’m dating myself now) on our way to who knows where and chatting about heaven and hell as casually as two friends might discuss the weather. Even at four, I knew I was going to hell if I didn’t trust Jesus Christ as my personal Savior. My mom pulled the car off to the side of the road, and Jesus "sealed my pardon with His blood. Hallelujah! What a Savior!" Yet as is often the case with early conversions, I had doubts. At age nine, I attended a Word of Life concert about the rapture. I remember a big auditorium, lots of people, red carpeting, and a balcony seat. The woman on stage sang a beautiful but frightening song about God's leaving unbelievers behind. Unsure about the decision I had made when I was four, I left the building with confidence that I was on my way to heaven and wouldn't, in fact, be left behind.

One Holy Night by J.M. Hochstetler

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance introduces One Holy Night from Sheaf House (April 1, 2008) by J. M. Hochstetler

ABOUT THE AUTHOR


J. M. Hochstetler writes stories that always involve some element of the past and of finding home. Born in central Indiana, the daughter of Mennonite farmers, she graduated from Indiana University with a degree in Germanic languages. She was an editor with Abingdon Press for twelve years and has published three novels.

One Holy Night, a contemporary miracle story for all seasons, released in April 2008. Daughter of Liberty (2004) and Native Son (2005), books 1 and 2 of the American Patriot Series are set during the American Revolution. Book 3, Wind of the Spirit, is scheduled for release in March 2009. Hochstetler is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers, Advanced Writers and Speakers Association, Christian Authors Network, Middle Tennessee Christian Writers, and Historical Novels Society.

ABOUT THE BOOK

In 1967 the military build-up in Viet Nam is undergoing a dramatic surge. The resulting explosion of anti-war sentiment tears the country apart, slicing through generations and shattering families. In the quiet bedroom community of Shepherdsville, Minnesota, the war comes home to Frank and Maggie McRae, whose only son, Mike, is serving as a grunt in Viet Nam.

Frank despises all Asians because of what he witnessed as a young soldier fighting the Japanese in the south Pacific during WWII. The news that his son has fallen in love with and married Thi Nhuong, a young Vietnamese woman, shocks him. To Frank all Asians are enemies of his country, his family, and himself. A Buddhist, Thi Nhuong represents everything he despises. So he cuts Mike out of his life despite the pleas of his wife, Maggie; daughter, Julie; and Julie s husband, Dan, the pastor of a growing congregation.

Maggie is fighting her own battle--against cancer. Convinced that God is going to heal her, Frank plays the part of a model Christian. Her death on Thanksgiving Day devastates him. Worse, as they arrive home from the gravesite, the family receives news of Mike s death in battle. Embittered, Frank stops attending church and cuts off family and friends.

By the time a very pregnant Thi Nhuong arrives on his doorstep on a stormy Christmas Eve, Frank is so filled with hate that he slams the door in her face, shutting her out in the bitter cold. Finally, overcome by guilt, he tries to go after her, but driving wind and snow force him back inside. With the storm rising to blizzard strength, he confronts the wrenching truth that what hate has driven him to do is as evil as what the Japanese did all those years earlier, and that he needs forgiveness as desperately as they did ...

Frank doesn't know that what God has in mind this night is a miracle. As on that holy night so many years ago, a baby will be born and laid in a manger--a baby who will bring forgiveness, reconciliation, and healing to a family that has suffered heart-wrenching loss.

If you would like to read the first chapter of One Holy Night, go HERE.

Until We Reach Home by Lynn Austin

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing Until We Reach Home Bethany House (October 1, 2008) by Lynn Austin.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR

For many years, Lynn Austin nurtured a desire to write but frequent travels and the demands of her growing family postponed her career. When her husband's work took Lynn to Bogota, Colombia, for two years, she used the B.A. she'd earned at Southern Connecticut State University to become a teacher. After returning to the U.S., the Austins moved to Anderson, Indiana, Thunder Bay, Ontario, and later to Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Lynn resigned from teaching to write full-time in 1992. She has published twelve novels. Three of her historical novels, Hidden Places, Candle in the Darkness, and Fire by Night have won Christy Awards in 2002, 2003, and 2004 for excellence in Christian Fiction. Fire by Night was also one of only five inspirational fiction books chosen by Library Journal for their top picks of 2003, and All She Ever Wanted was chosen as one of the five inspirational top picks of 2005.

Lynn's novel Hidden Places has been made into a movie for the Hallmark Channel, starring actress Shirley Jones. Ms Jones received a 2006 Emmy Award nomination for her portrayal of Aunt Batty in the film.

Among her lastest books are A Proper Pursuit and A Woman's Place.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Life in Sweden seems like an endless winter for three sisters after their mother's and father's suicide. Ellin feels the weight of responsibility for her sisters' welfare and when it circumstances become unbearable, she writes to her relatives in Chicago, pleading for help.

Joining sixteen million other immigrants who left their homelands for America between 1890 and 1920, Ellin, Kirsten, and Sophia begin the long, difficult journey. Enduring the ocean voyage in steerage and detention on Ellis Island, their story is America's story. And in a journey fraught with hardships, each woman will come to understand her secret longings and the meaning of home.

If you would like to read the first chapter of Until We Reach Home, go HERE