Tag: christianwriters

Posted on

Step into the Wild – Story Three- Not all who wander – at home

Not All who wander – At Home

Chapter One

J.R.R. Tolkiens once said, “Not all who wander are lost.”  Over the years, this saying has become my mantra. When I say this my husband always grins and says, “yes, but in your case, you’re always lost,” which earns him a pillow to the head. But truly, I never intend to get lost. I always start out with a firm plan for where I’m going and how I’ll get there. Through many years of wandering I have also discovered that the saying, “the best laid plans of mice and men (and me), oft time go astray,” (Robert Burns), describes the usual results of my wandering. Indeed, I’ve discovered that life’s journey is not a neatly laid-out map, but is filled with unpredictable twists, turns and detours, that God alone knows. Yet, despite this, I still step out my door to the adventure that awaits. Which brings me the next tale.

Over the years, my husband and I have lived in many different areas. Mississauga, Manitoulin, Sudbury and Cochrane and Massey. Most of the places we’ve lived since leaving Mississauga have been farms. What a delight it’s been for us to be surrounded by God’s creation—to wake up in the morning to the sound of birds singing, instead of highway traffic rumbling!

Because of choosing this country life we have also chosen some country hobbies, like cross country skiing, snow shoeing, horseback riding, farming and trail blazing! By trail blazing I mean—pioneer woman (that’s me) cutting new trails through the forests on our farms to use for outdoor fun. This admittedly is an odd pastime for a woman but it’s been one of my favourite activities, over the years. Once the kids were on the bus, I was out the door, looking for a new trail. Do you see a problem?

“It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.” J.R.R. Tolkien

So true!

Chapter Two

One fateful morning, I headed out the door with my handy dandy brush axe to carve out a brand-new trail through the forest on our farm. Usually, when I head off on this sort of adventure, I have a rough direction in mind. And today was the day that I was going to connect two of my existing trails together, with a simple, little linking path. This tiny trail, would give me some extra options when I was out walking or skiing. In my mind, I pictured the perfect place for it—I knew exactly where it would go, so I headed out with energy and determination. But first—an equipment check. Good sturdy hiking boots—check, water for hydration—check, work gloves—check and my brush axe—check. Good, I’ve got it all.

Crossing the large, pasture to get to our hiking trails, was the worst part of the hike. The grass was always long, wet and full of bugs. Oh well, it has to be done. Shrugging, I began the long trek to the beginning of our trails. Arriving at last I gave a satisfied sigh, while wiping the warm glow of sweat from my brow and swatting the first mosquito of the day. Looking around, I noticed the clear blue skies above and a light mist drifting across the fields—this day was heating up, fast, Man, I’d better get started, before it gets too hot and buggy. I took a quick gulp of water, while casually patting my pockets. Hmmm, where is that thing? I checked all my pockets once again, much more thoroughly. Rats, I’ve forgotten my compass. Worry, briefly creased my brow. Unfortunately, I am directionally challenged so this might present a problem. I groaned, as I looked towards home. It was quite a hike back to the house and I was limited in time, since I had to be back to meet the school bus. I chewed my lip. Hmmm, what should I do? “You should go back, you know how easily you get turned around in thick brush?” my cautious self muttered. “Oh, come on,” said my impatient self, “don’t be such a worry-wart, it’s just a little path, Easy Peasy. Why fuss?”

 

Chapter Three

I went about halfway along the starting trail and turned to face the direction that I knew the other trail was located and began to cut. This particular section of bush was filled with tag alders—a rather nasty thick shrub with lots of small branches to cut. The cutting was arduous because of this and it wasn’t easy to keep a straight line. Stopping, I put the brush axe down and wiped my brow.” Man is it ever thick brush in here,” I muttered, turning a big circle. “Can’t see a thing.” Glancing at my watch, I exclaimed, “Wow, I’ve been cutting for two hours, no wonder I’m tired. I’m surprised that I haven’t reached the other trail, yet.” I looked up, and corrected my direction according to the sun. “Let me see, it’s morning still, so the sun is in the east and I want to go west—ah that’s my problem. I’ve veered too far to the east, so I should turn here,” I muttered. I turned in what I thought was a westerly direction and looked ahead. I planned a path to a tree about twenty metres ahead and began to cut. Glancing at the sun, I continued in what I hoped was west, fully expecting to spot the trail at any moment. Cutting from tree to tree, I bee-lined through the bush for another hour. “Phew,” I grumbled, throwing down my axe. “How was I to know how thick the forest underbrush would be?” Peering all around, suddenly I spotted something ahead through the woods. Bending down, I tried to get a better view. I could just barely see what looked like a roof—perhaps of a barn, though I couldn’t be sure. Standing up, I scratched my head. “That’s odd,” I thought.

Chapter four

“I don’t know of any barns that you can see from the other trail. How could I have missed such a landmark?” I shook my head. “Well, there was no point in stopping now, and it’s so nice to see something other than brush.” I blazed ahead. “Yippee,” I yelled. Jumping up and down in joy, I pointed ahead. “Who are you pointing for? Dah, fluff for brains.” I laughed at myself as I chopped the last branch and stepped onto the trail in front of me. Wiping the sweat from my brow, I casually looked to my left, then to my right. I scratched my head. A puzzled look shone from my face. “Hmm, this doesn’t look like the trail I was aiming for?” I turned a full circle. “Where am I? And look, someone has been cutting on my trails. There’s a brand-new trail over to my right.” Puzzled, I looked ahead. There was the barn roof that I had spied earlier and it belonged to a very familiar family—mine! I plopped down on a boulder beside the trail, head in hands. This was impossible. I jumped to my feet and looked to the right, then the left, then back down the trail that I’d just cut. It slowly dawned on me that I had arrived right back at the same trail where I began—a mere metre from the original starting point.

“Good grief. I’ve cut a complete circle in the bush—totally missing the trail I was aiming at.” I shook my head in amazement.

I thought I knew where I was going. I thought I had a plan, but, clearly without the proper equipment, an important component of good preparation, my plan fell apart. Looking up, I said, “Okay, Lord, I’ve learned this lesson.” I grinned and headed for home. I giggled, as I considered my husband’s reaction, to my latest adventure.

Not all who wander are lost…but sometimes we are. I’d have to find another mantra.

Shrugging, I headed for home.

Posted on

Step into the Wild – Story Two – Mama’s Lost

Mamas Lost?

Chapter One

Have you ever been lost?  I mean totally, completely, have no idea where you are—lost! Well, I have—in fact I seem to have a propensity for getting lost. Not a tendency that I’m particularly proud of, but one that I have, just the same. I just don’t seem to have that directional gene that my husband has—I have the lost gene. Rats! Now, you would think that someone with this characteristic would just know better than to step into the wild on her own, but unfortunately that has not always been the case. I have tramped and paddled my way into all sorts of trouble over the years. In many ways it’s surprising that I have lived to tell this tale, but here I am—so here’s the first tale. In this first adventure, I was not alone, but dragged a friend along, as well. So, jump into your kayaks and follow along as I share the tale of Mamas Lost?

It was a sunny, summer day and we two grandmas (also known as the Mamas), started out for what should have been a lovely afternoon kayak to Aird Island, in Lake Huron.

At that time, my husband and I lived on a farm in Massey on the shores of the sparkling Spanish River. Two of our grandchildren lived in Gravenhurst. This great adventure began with plans to scoop up our grandchildren for a weekend camping trip.

Wanda was the other Mama and she wanted to join our adventure, which really helped the logistics of this adventure. She lived in Niagara Falls, and was able to pick the grandkids up in Gravenhurst on her way north. This vacation was going to be such fun and would be good for everyone. The parents would have a kid-free weekend and the grandparents would have a chance to get to know their grandkids, without parental interference. Little did we know what “fun” it would turn out to be.

Chapter Two

When this grand adventure was planned, it was decided that since the children were little—Gavin was four-years-old and Julianna was 8-years-old, that having them kayak out to the camping spot would be too difficult, so we nominated Papa to take all of the equipment and children out to the camping spot via motor boat. He would then have some quality time with them while they got the campsite ready. Looking back, I think he thought of this as terror not quality time, since he was solely responsible for the grandkids. But his part was absolutely necessary because we needed to reserve this amazing campsite. It was located on the pristine, white sand beach of Aird Island, and was a very popular spot to camp. In the meantime, Wanda and I planned to kayak out to there in a 23-foot tandem kayak starting at the Spanish marina, a distance of about 4 km. This was a first for us, actually many firsts—first time for Wanda to kayak, first time for me to steer and the first time to ever kayak out to Aird Island. I must say that I didn’t exactly know where Aird island was, other than in Lake Huron—somewhere close to the Spanish Marina.  I just knew that finding it would be a breeze, once Bob gave me directions.

Bob, knowing my directionally challenged nature, gave me careful instructions. “Just head straight out from the marina, go through the first narrows to the right, then look straight across the channel and the sand beach that you see is our camping spot.” He raised his eyebrows.

“No problem,” I said. I gave him a playful nudge. “Quit worrying, we’ll be fine, won’t we Wanda?” With a laugh and a wave, we headed off, without a map or compass. Who needed them, after-all it was just across the bay and only four kilometers away. Simple!

Chapter Three

“We chatted and laughed as we started out. It only took a few minutes for us to get into rhythm with each other. “This is easy. It’s exciting to do this on our own,” said Wanda.

“Yah, this has to be the first time I’ve kayaked without Bob in the stern directing us. It’s pretty thrilling, even if It’s only four kilometers. Bob is likely more scared of being alone with the grandkids than we are of paddling without him.” We giggled, picturing him trying to put up tents with kid help.

As we headed out into more open water it began to get a bit choppy, but we weren’t too concerned, as the tandem kayak was pretty stable. The wind continued to build and soon we were plunging through one metre waves. I looked ahead and pointed, “look Wanda, the narrows. That will shelter us from the wind and waves. It’s a bit closer than Bob described, but it’s definitely the first narrows.” We eagerly paddled into the opening and glided to a stop.

“Good,” said Wanda—my arms feel like they’re going to fall off. I could do with a break!” We quietly floated for a few minutes to regain our strength.

“Hmm, this is a pretty shallow narrows. I wonder how Bob got the motor boat through here?”

“Yes, and it’s full of weeds. He must have had to lift the motor,” said Wanda.We began paddling again and soon saw the end of the channel approaching.“There’s the sandy shore across the bay, just like Bob had described,” said Wanda, pointing. “The lake looks a bit choppy? Do you think we can manage?” said Wanda.

“We’ve got to. I don’t see any phones around to call for help, nor the coast guard to sweep down and rescue us.” I pretended to dial my imaginary phone. Giggles erupted from us. “Well, we asked for a chance to prove ourselves. So, let’s show some Mama power.”

Laughing we headed out to meet the waves. It took a big effort to traverse that opening, but we did it. After thirty minutes we arrived at the other side of the bay and viewed with dismay the sandy coloured rocks that lined the shore. Where was the beautiful, pristine sand beach of Aird island

Chapter Four

We looked at each other in horror. Where were we? “Okay, clearly this is not Aird island, so where did we go wrong?”

“Not sure. We went through the first narrows, but it was really shallow, so it was probably not the narrows that Bob was talking about,” said Wanda. She lay across her paddle, head in hands.

I scanned the horizon and spotted another narrows off to the right. I wonder whether Bob had meant this narrows, not the one that we went through initially. We didn’t seem to have too many options other then to turn around and retrace our path—but that option looked way too daunting with the rising surf. “Let’s try the narrows up ahead, Wanda. Perhaps that’s the right narrows?”

“Okay, anything is better than going across that bay, again.

”When we exited the narrows, we again scanned the horizon for an island with a beach off to the left and saw nothing but lovely green islands and even bigger waves than before. “What do we do, now?” I asked.

Wanda glanced at her watch. “We’ve been paddling for two hours and we are no closer to reaching Aird island.” She groaned.

In fact, we had begun to realize that we might be lost or at least temporarily misplaced! What loomed uppermost in our minds was that since we believed that it was so easy to find our camping spot that we didn’t bring along a map, a compass or any sort of communication devise. Clearly, we were in a pickle. We decided that this was serious and that it was time to pray. We prayed for Bob and the children (he would be very tired of “quality” time by now), the stormy weather and that we would somehow find our way. The time was quickly passing—soon it would be dark.

Chapter Five

Meanwhile back at the camp…Bob was beginning to get concerned that we had not arrived and were nowhere in sight. He dumped the kids back in the boat and headed out to find us. He headed back to the marina, then retraced the path that he thought that we would take. He spotted a narrows way off to the right that he had never noticed before and he groaned.  “Good grief”, do you think they went that way?”

He tried to go through this narrows, but the boat got stuck, so he backed out and headed for the campsite, praying as he went, because he, too noticed the building waves. What could he do now?

Wanda and I finished praying. God hadn’t provided a map or teleported us instantly to Aird, but we oddly felt at peace. Glancing around I spotted a boat off in the distance, close to shore. “Do you think they have a map, Wanda?” I pointed to the boat.

“Maybe,” she said. “It won’t do any harm to ask, let’s go.” As we approached the mid sized fishing boat we waved. They stopped fishing and watched us curiously as we floated down to them. We exchanged pleasantries and discovered that they were from Michigan and were up North on a fishing vacation.  I cleared my throat. “I wonder if you happen to have a map of the area with you?” I asked, a red flush crept up my neck. “We’re paddling to Aird island for a campout and think we’ve gotten off course.” Now my whole face was crimson. Shaking his head, the skipper, pulled out his chart. He scratched his head as he pondered the map. “I thought so,” he exclaimed. “Aird is quite a distance from here, looks to be about ten miles away. That way,” he said pointing across the churning bay.

Wanda and I exchanged glances as we turned to look at the roughest and most unprotected part of the channel! We would have to travel broadside to the two metre waves to get to Aird from where we were. We’d already battled wind and waves for three hours and we were exhausted. Our heads sunk down. How were we going to manage that—what were Bob and the grandkids doing?

Chapter Six 

Noticing our distress, they said, “Hey, girls, we could give you a lift. It’s not that far by motor boat?” They smiled. Was this the answer to our prayer? We shrugged, then smiled. “That would be great.”

Tying the kayak to their boat and we climbed aboard. We all had a laugh—it really tickled their sense of humor to think, that Americans had to rescue lost Canadians in Canada. Oh, the shame of it.

“I wonder if you would drop us off at the nearest sheltered bay close to Aird?” I asked.

“Oh, we don’t mind taking you all the way, it’s really no trouble at all.”

“Actually, I don’t want my husband to see us being towed. He’ll tease me forever,” I said, turning crimson, again.

“Ha-ha, I get it,” he said, slapping his thigh.

We crossed the open water and were within sight of Aird, looking for a place to re-embark, when we noticed a man standing on the beach, hands on hips. The gig was up.

Sighing, I said. “You might as well drop us right at the island, thanks.” I grimaced as we drew close to shore. I was never, ever going to live this down.

As we paddled to shore, Bob grinned. “What happened to you—lost again?” I splashed him.

We jumped out of the kayak as a large vessel cruised by. “Odd, that boat was a Coast Guard vessel. You rarely see them close to shore,” I said. Bob cleared his throat and his face turned red. “Just what’s going on?”

“Well, I knew when you didn’t show up, how easily you get lost, and I knew it was getting late and I knew the waves were building soooo.” He cleared his throat, “I called 911 and they called Search and Rescue, who called the Coast Guard.” He shuffled foot to foot.

“You did what?” hollered Wanda and I, together.

Good grief—we didn’t need that much help! That news would be broadcast on the marine emergency station alerting all boats to be on the lookout for our lost kayak. Many of my friends were boaters—I soon discovered! For weeks following our infamous kayak adventure, I had to explain, over and over again, how I managed to get misplaced this time. Another moment in life designed to keep me humble!

Posted on

Step into the Wild – Story One – The Spanish River is Sooooo Easy

Step into the Wild

Let the Adventure Begin

     Life is an adventure. Around every bend is a new discovery—we just have to open our eyes to see it. Throughout our lives, Bob and I have loved to investigate new spaces, beginning with moving from Mississauga to Northern Ontario back in 1979. The desire to live in a land relatively free from traffic, with open fields, wild forests, lakes and rivers drew us here and we haven’t been disappointed. We’ve enjoyed country living—definitely discovering new sights and smells on our farms and marvelling at the welcoming, friendly neighbours. What a blessing it’s been to live here.

But it wasn’t just the day-to-day living, that called us here, it was the ‘wild’. That precious gift of rivers, streams, mountains and forests to explore all around us—and that’s what we did, and that’s what I’m going to share with you over the next little while. So, Step into the Wild with us and experience the joy of adventure. Real life escapades that test one’s skills, one’s patience, one’s durability and one’s faith. Were they worthwhile? Well, you decide—as you travel with along with us. And perhaps when we’re done, you’ll set out on your own journey of discovery.

Story Number One  – The Spanish River is soooo easy—ha!

Chapter One

The next bend, held no big surprises, just a few swifts with a few rocks to dodge. For the rest of the morning the river flowed at an easy pace.

When we decided to do a white-water canoe trip, it was decided to put safety first, even if it took much longer to do the trip. So, we made it a practice to pull up to the shore before any rapids that were identified on the map. This gave us a chance to walk beside the river scouting the best path to take through the rapids. It also gave us an opportunity to identify obstacles of concern—like overhanging trees, that would need to be avoided. Our first set of marked rapids came about noon on this first day of paddling.

“Pull up at the yellow portage sign, ahead, Lynn,” shouted Bob from the stern. He had to shout because the noise of the river was deafening.

     “Are you sure we can even run these rapids, Bob?” Listening to the crash of water against rocks gave me goosebumps.

“We’ll see—just head for shore.”

I willingly did this since going down whatever lay ahead seemed way too scary for me. The canoe ground against the shore and we jumped out and headed down the portage trail. It was soon apparent that the cause of all the noise was a small chute between several guard rocks at the beginning of the rapids.

“Oh, that doesn’t look very hard—there’s a clear path straight down that chute and no rocks at the end.” I said, pointing.

“Ya and if you look farther ahead, the rest of this set is just a boulder field that we’ll have to pick our way through. We’ve done lots of those this morning.” He swept his hat off and wiped the sweat from his eyes. “I think we can run these.” Eyebrows raised as he looked at me.

“I agree—piece of cake.” Grinning, we walked back to the canoe.

Chapter Two

We got back into our canoe, then paddled up river a bit so we could line up to run the chute. I kneeled bracing my knees against the hull, as we drifted towards the chute. Dipping my paddle to correct our position, we plunged down the chute. It was an exciting, wild ride, but there was not time to consider that we had made it, untouched by rocks, when the boulder field loomed ahead. Leaning forward, I picked a path between the rocks, zigging this way and that. We bumped off a few rocks, but nothing really jogged us off course. Within minutes we glided into calm waters.

“Whoo-hoo, that was a blast,” I shouted. Jubilation shone from my face. I turned to look at Bob. We smiled at each other. Our first obstacle was conquered.

Glancing at the map, Bob said, “The next several kilometers should be fairly simple, just like the ones this morning. There are no other marked rapids until tomorrow.”

We paddled on, full of confidence and elation for successfully shooting the rapids. The sun was just dipping below the horizon when we arrived at our first campsite. A sandy outcrop on the side of a point was the perfect spot to camp—out of the flow, overlooking the river. The quiet place looked inviting. It proved to be an easy place to land and unload the canoe. We set up camp and soon dinner was bubbling on the cookstove and a fire crackled, sending it’s sparks skyward to join the stars. We huddled together with a sleeping bag over our shoulders—nights in May were chilly. Bob hauled out the map, to plan the next day.

“Look here, Lynn,” he said, shining his flashlight on the map. “This is where we are and this is where we have to get to tomorrow.”

“That’s only 10 kilometers, Bob. Surely, we can go farther than that in a day?”

“Normally, yes, but you see all these lines?” He pointed out two sets of double lines and several single lines. “The double lines are major rapids and the single lines normal rapids, like the one we shot today. We’ll likely have to portage around the major ones.”

“Oh, I get it. The portaging will take a lot of time, so we won’t be able to make the distance? Hey, look this double set is called, “Graveyard” rapids.” I shivered.

Chapter Three

The sun had risen, along with the mist on the river. It was going to be a beautiful day, but a long one. We gobbled down a quick breakfast and broke camp, then set out, once more along the river. As expected, this section of the river flowed fast and hard, cascading over zillions of rocks. Every bend has a swifts or small unmarked rapids. Around 9am we came to our first marked set for the day.

“Okay, Lynn, rapids ahead—aim for shore.”

As if I couldn’t tell that there were rapids ahead, we had been hearing them for half a kilometer. They sounded wicked, dangerous. “Are these a marked double or single set, Bob?”

“Double.” We landed at the portage and ran to the river for a quick look. Sure enough, it was a deep, fast flowing torrent with lots of twist and turns and a mean looking drop. “I don’t think we can run these?”

“Me, neither.” I sighed. Thankful, I didn’t have to admit that I was too scared to try them.

Over the next hour we unpacked, portaged and repacked our canoe, then once more glided down the river. It was calmer in this section and we successfully shot several small sets of rapids and one marked set. We were feeling pretty good about our skills.

Bob shouted, “Graveyard rapids ahead, pull over.”

I did, really quickly—not wanting anything to do with rapids that had Graveyard in the name! As usual we got out to take a look and what we found was a fairly easy looking set of rapids with a few twists and turns—nothing we hadn’t done before. We looked at each other.

“There must be more than this?” said Bob. But the portage ended at calm water and there was no other marked portage to be seen, only a rough path across the rocks by the river. “Looks safe enough to shoot?”

“I agree, but I’m sure puzzled about the name. Perhaps there is a graveyard up on shore?”

“Maybe, well let’s get going, we’re burning daylight.”

“Arrrrh.” I hated it, when he said that. I got into the canoe.

Chapter Four

I braced myself. Even though the rapids looked fairly each, I had a niggling feeling that we were missing something—but what was it? “Oh well, we’re committed now,” I mumbled.

We dashed down the first chute, then there was no time for thinking, just for reacting. We zigged and zagged, down the river, narrowly missing rocks on a number of occasions. At last, we glided into calm waters.

“Yippee, best set yet!” I threw my hands in the air and turned to discuss the run with Bob.

“Ya, that went surprisingly well.” He bent his head to look at the map, while we lazily drifted downstream.

I watched him for awhile, then suddenly noticed that it was much noisier than before and the current had picked up. Looking ahead, I saw waves, flashing in the sunlight. That meant—rocks & rapids—possibly something…bigger! I couldn’t see over the edge, past the first rocks.

“Oh no, it’s a falls, Bob,” I shouted.

He dropped the map and looked up, then looked to the right and to the left. We were mid-channel in a fast-moving torrent, that was swiftly taking us to the drop-off. “I’ll brace the canoe, Lynn. You stand up and see if you can pick a path.” He gulped, then braced.

I shakily stood to my feet and the only flow that wasn’t blocked by rocks was the centre. Quickly, I sat back down. “Centre,” I yelled and braced myself.

Paddling was not necessary, but we did it anyway. We were swept over the falls and dropped to the bottom. The drop seemed like a hundred metres to me (but I’m a writer, so I tend to exaggerate). I think fifteen to twenty metres is a better estimate. I’m thankful that it was springtime because the heavy spring run off, propelled us through the undertow at the bottom of the falls. Canoe full of water, we drifted to shore. Shakily, we got out, emptied the canoe and sat looking back at the falls.

“Guess the Spanish River isn’t so easy?” I said to Bob. He gave a weak grin.

“Nope. Not the best beginning to our canoeing hobby, but we’ll live to paddle another day—lessons learned.”

The good Lord spared us to paddle on.

Discover how the adventures began

Step into the Wild

The Book

 

Posted on

The Wednesday Word – 5 Never alone

Taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the one who takes refuge in Him. Psalm 34:8

A psalm of David when he was fleeing from Saul.

Hi Everyone;

Have you ever gone over a falls? I have. It was not a joyful event, although I suppose that you could call it- memorable! Bob and I were on our very first canoe trip, together. We had decided to paddle the Spanish River. The river has numerous challenging rapids and a small set of falls called the Graveyard Rapids. We went over those…not on purpose, not because of good judgement or planning…just because we didn’t evaluate the situation very well. When I think back, I shiver, because that one event could have changed our lives…in a blink one or both of us could have died or been seriously injured.

Life is littered with moments like that…moments that change your lives, that challenge your courage, that leave you hovering in the depth of despair. Well, todays Word is a reminder that you are never alone. The Lord, our Maker is always there for you and He asks us to trust Him. He, alone knows the future and He provides the refuge, when moments seem too tough to handle. He doesn’t always remove the issue, but He never leaves you to handle them by yourself.

Until the next time

Lynn

Posted on

Wednesday Word-3 Rise up on wings like eagles

 

Hi Everyone

In today’s Wednesday word, my mind was directed to my main source of strength when times get tough…God.

Isaiah 40: 31 says;

“but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”

The Lord is my ever present help in trouble. Is He yours? Unlike human friends, He is everywhere, in every place, at every time. So He is the perfect help in trouble, because calling 911 is not always an answer. He made me, so He understands me. He loves me, no matter what I do and forgives me is I ask. What better friend could I ask for?

But some might say…”God is just a thought, a figment of your imagination.” But I say, “not true.” For I have seen the work of the Lord in my life. I have seen Him literally cause my canoe come off of the rocks – three times in different times and places. I have seen this with my own eyes and bear witness to the fact that God is alive and active in present day lives.

So, when trouble finds me…I look up, to my source of help in all situations. Do it and it will change your perspective on life.

See you next time

Lynn

 

Posted on

The Wednesday Word – #1 Why did I decide to become an Author

The Wednesday Word

Living My Life with God in View

 

Hi Everyone;

Today, I’m going to start a weekly series of blogs called,

“The Wednesday Word”

In this blog, I will give you a peak inside my mind…a chance to get to know me. Gee, I hope you want to do that…if not, it’s okay.

Let’s start with the first big question, ‘Why did I decide to write?’ Why did I, a pharmacist start along this pathway? I certainly didn’t major in the arts, but in science, so I wasn’t exactly prepared for writing, in terms of education. But that didn’t seem to matter. I liked to read, but up until that point in my life, I never wrote anything, because that would require me to sit and sitting was something that I rarely did. In fact, the only reason that I started writing was because God nudged me to do so. I know that sounds weird, but I believe that God plays an active role in all our lives and part of that role is to nudge us to do things that He wants us to do. That nudge comes via “Little Voice” (aka Holy Spirit), His Word (the Bible) and Christian friends.

Somewhere along the path of my life, I learned to listen to Little Voice and to obey (just do it). Hence, my first book, Stuck on the Rocks, again evolved from that initial nudge. Oh, I didn’t enter this project willingly, no…I argued and fought with God about writing a book. Afterall, I was busy. I had a full time job as pharmacist, I was a young mother of 3 children and we lived on an active farm, with horses, sheep and goats. Oh, I had all the excuses necessary to say, “no” to God. But God is patient and He waited for me to make the right decision (which is ‘yes’). He waited, then allowed me to have a medical event, that put me off of work, unable to do any of my normal activities in the home or on the farm. Suddenly, I had time! Hmmmm, God opened up the time for me to do the task that He had assigned me. Rats! Excuses gone, I reluctantly sat down to write and found…much to my surprise, that I could do it and I even enjoyed it. God sent the words, brought back the memories and I wrote them down. That was my beginning as an author.

Writing stores is a precious gift that God has given me…to use for His glory, not just to amuse friends. Hence, all of my stories are reflections of my life-both fiction and non-fiction and all include the presence of God at work.

Next edition, I will share background stories of God’s intervention in my life-my journey and will connect the dots to the various books that I have written.

Join me on this journey…make comments…share your journey with me…I can’t wait to hear.

Until then…Lynn

Don’t forget…my latest book is now available. Disaster! Around the Bend and download your free copy of Donkey love, which is a prequel to Disaster! Around the Bend. I promise…the two books are connected, just read and see…haha.

Posted on

God Intentionally designed us

Hi Everyone;

Have you ever wondered why you are the way you are?  Have you ever looked around and said, ” If only I was like Jane, or George or Sally…because they have red hair and mine is brown or their eyes are green and mine are blue?”

As humans we are always comparing ourselves to someone else. Why? Because we have failed to grasp that we have been intentionally and uniquely designed by God and have been placed where we are, at this specific time for a unique purpose.

God has put us here to shine for Him…to share His love, in a way that only we are can do. In God’s perspective, there’s no one on this earth that He has not designed for a reason.

Ephesians 2:10 says, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ , Jesus to do good works which He has prepared in advance for us to do.”

In my new book, “Disaster! Around the Bend”, I introduce you to Jan, who is a quirky little twelve-year-old girl. She is the youngest member of her family and feels like she has missed out on the genetic material that she needs to make her special. She hasn’t got the brains of her sister Susan nor the confidence and skill of her brother Brad. She is fearful of everything new and now she is faced with moving away from familiar friends, her family farm and her best friend, Gaston. She looks up to God and asks, “Why?”

But God has made her unique, for a special purpose that she will only discover through trials. You see, just like these majestic mountains are formed through the impact of catastrophic events like volcanoes, and tectonic plate collisions, so, too are we molded and shaped through adversity and trials…for purpose.

Our God is not random…He designs with a plan in mind. Each step chosen to achieve the goal for which He has made us. Never doubt, that our God has a purpose for all of us. Big or small, God loves us all. No matter what the trial…look up and trust, that God is in control.

See you next time

Lynn

Posted on

Be Intentional about God

Be INTENTIONAL about God.

Hi Everyone;

I was studying Philippians 4:6,7 this morning in my devotionals and I was struck with the thought of how often I let my worries take over…to dominate my thoughts. They interfere…because I let them.  I realized that I need to give my head a shake, because I know that God has a plan for my life, I know that I am His, I know that I can trust Him. So…I half-heartedly give my woes to Jesus, and He doesn’t instantly take them away. Why not? He is able…the Bible says so. For that matter, why do I have troubles anyway. I am saved, I am assured of eternity…then why am I still burdened?

Because God knows that I need them to grow!

So life goes on…full of troubles, worries and concerns. If allowed, these things can take over our lives. They can dominate our thinking and leave us weak and weary, unable to function. They can swallow up our joy, destroy our relationships and poison our attitudes towards home, work and people.

They can carry us along on a river of despair.

Well, it’s time to jump out of that river…swim for shore, my friends.

But this is Not the life that we are designed for.

This is NOT what our God has planned for these momentary trials.

YES…God is involved in our troubles…He is aware of our problems…

He is not absent when DISASTER strikes.

He says in Romans 8:28

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.”

We do not control our own destiny, God does.

When worries threaten to sweep us away…

Be INTENTIONAL…give them to God…

And the peace of God will guard your hearts and minds (Phil 4:6,7)

By guard, I think that God means protect…shield from the fiery arrows of Satan, who will blow our problems all out of proportion, so that they dominate our lives. By giving them to God, we take this weapon away from the evil one.

Romans 8:31,32

“…If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?

Think about it…I certainly will. I am going to be Intentional about trusting God with my problems.

See you next time. Lynn

Posted on

Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus


The majesty of God’s Creation

Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus, just to take Him at His Word, just to rest upon His Promise, Just to know, thus saith the Lord

(Lyricas by Louisa Stead)

Hi Everyone:

I started writing this blog, this morning to share a little bit about the new book that I have written, entitled, ‘Disaster! Around the Bend’. But this song was mentioned in my devotions, earlier and I just can’t kick it out of my head.

I bet most of you have sung this hymn at some point in your lives. It’s a classic, written over 100 years ago, but I think that the words still ring true, today. The world we live in is filled with struggles…wars, famine, family breakdown and financial ruin. But so was the world 100 years ago…even 1000 years ago. Mankind has always struggled and likely will continue to do so.

So that begs the question, “How can I go on, how can I live well in this world?” The only answer lies in this song…JESUS! He alone provides the wisdom to go on (The Bible), and The gift of peace (His promises).

Things will happen to you, that you won’t understand, just as they have happened to me. Often I have looked up (because somehow, I always picture God as sitting in the heavens) and asked God…Why? God, generally does not answer that question in the way that I expect, but directs me to His perfect answer…found in Jeremiah 29:11

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

In this passage, God asks us to trust Him…so today, I’m once again going to try to JUST DO IT.

I’m going to try…I know I won’t be perfect at this, since I’ve tried before, but God does not give up on me, nor on you.

So, how does this tie in with my new book? Well, Jesus and faith, tie into practically everything I write and the new book, ‘Disaster! Around the Bend‘ is no exception.

Picture an adventurous family – the MacLeans; a family with a mom, dad and three children. It’s got all the regular family dynamics going on – a brilliant older sister (Susan), who simply knows everything, a middle brother (Brad) who considers himself an expert in all outdoor skills and the youngest sibling (Jan) who is funny, quirky, clumsy, chattery, loud and weird (she talks to donkeys…and all other critters). This is Jan’s story…told by her. Under all of her external characteristics lies a little 12-year-old girl who is afraid. Jan has hidden this guilty secret under her bubbly-blustery veneer for years. But suddenly she can no longer hide it…it spurts out for her whole family to see on their annual canoe trip…then the journey begins!

This book is a story about Jan’s journey from cowardice to courage. It’s a journey that changes her life perspective and her siblings as well. Join the fun…discover the secret that saves.

Disaster! Around the Bend

coming soon

See you next time

Lynn

 

Posted on

God is Alive and Active in our lives

Hi Everyone;

Today I want to talk about the role of God in our lives. How do you view God? Do you think of Him as the big guy in the sky, some cuddly angel with wings or do you think of Him at all? Well God has told us in scripture that He is alive and active in our lives. In Psalm 46 it says,

“God is our refuge and our strength, an ever present help in trouble, therefore I will not fear, though the earth gives way and the mountain falls into the heart of the sea…”

Around every bend, in every situation, God is there. In fact because He loves each of us He teaches us through all of the adventures and misadventures of life. In Romans 8:28 it says,

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.” 

Furthermore, He tells us to trust Him. When things don’t go our way, He asks us to consider the question, “To what purpose has this occurred,” and not “Why me?” In Proverbs 3:5,6 it says,

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on  your own understanding. In all your ways submit to Him and He will make your paths straight.”

God is for us…not against us, so walk with Him.

Until next time…

Lynn

plynnhallidaybooks.ca

Follow me & join the adventure. Sign up today to download your free copy of

DONKEY LOVE



    introducing you to Jantastic—the quirky hero of Disaster! Around the Bend

    Read more