Knowing God: Part 3

K nowing God Part 3: How well do you know God? In the beginning of this series, I confessed that (in spite of the fact that I've been a Christian for over 20 years) I still don't feel like I know God very well. It troubles me. I'd like to know Him as I do my family members or best friends. But He's different, so I guess I'd like to know Him as well as a person can know Him...if that makes any sense. So, I'm setting out to know God better. I'm starting with the book of Matthew. I have no idea where I'll stop.

Official Disclaimer: I don't claim to be a theological guru. I haven't graduated seminary. I'm not a pastor. I'm doing this series of posts just because I want to know God better. I'm sharing it online, not to teach others--though I'd be pretty happy if God used this to help others get to know Him better also. I'm not doing this to argue--though, if people have related ideas to share, I'm all ears. I'm simply posting this to explore and maybe encourage others to explore. If you are a young reader, run everything by your parents. They are your spiritual authority. See what they think. And, as the Bible tells us: If on some point, we disagree, pray about it, and may God give us clarity.

Matthew 2:1-12*

2:1 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem ¹  in Judea, in the time ²  of King Herod, ³  wise men ⁴  from the East came to Jerusalem ⁵  2:2 saying, “Where is the one who is born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose ⁶  and have come to worship him.” 2:3 When King Herod ⁷  heard this he was alarmed, and all Jerusalem with him. 2:4 After assembling all the chief priests and experts in the law, ⁸  he asked them where the Christ ⁹  was to be born. 2:5 “In Bethlehem of Judea,” they said, “for it is written this way by the prophet:

2:6 ‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,

are in no way least among the rulers of Judah,

for out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’

” ¹⁰ 

2:7 Then Herod ¹¹  privately summoned the wise men and determined from them when the star had appeared. 2:8 He ¹²  sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and look carefully for the child. When you find him, inform me so that I can go and worship him as well.” 2:9 After listening to the king they left, and once again ¹³  the star they saw when it rose ¹⁴  led them until it stopped above the place where the child was. 2:10 When they saw the star they shouted joyfully. ¹⁵  2:11 As they came into the house and saw the child with Mary his mother, they bowed down ¹⁶  and worshiped him. They opened their treasure boxes and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, ¹⁷  and myrrh. ¹⁸  2:12 After being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, ¹⁹  they went back by another route to their own country.

Initial Take: This is just my knee-jerk reaction to the text. Whatever pops into my mind. Heaven help me.  

More than anything else, the thing that sticks out the most about Jesus in this passage is that his arrival shook the world. Herod could have snapped his fingers and had whole cities put to death. He had major power, but the moment he hears of this "King of the Jews," he becomes alarmed. But notice it's not just Herod, but all Jerusalem with him. I'm guessing that means the people in power since the Israelites we hoping the Christ (ie: the Messiah) would come. So Herod and the power establishment in Jerusalem are shaking in their collective booties over the Christ's arrival. Jesus shook the world.

But not only were folks freaking out, but there were some who were willing to travel huge distances to find Jesus. Why? Because they wanted to worship and adore Him. The wise men from the east came, and they brought gifts. The good stuff too. Not that cheap stuff from Walmart. These wise men were rich (another form of power), but when they found Jesus, they went down on their knees and worshiped him.

Knowing God Take-Away: What do I learn about God from Matt 2:1-12? 1) God is a threat to those who want to rule independently from God. When King Herod heard that the foretold King of the Jews, the Messiah, had been born, he became alarmed. Why? He didn't want anyone ANYONE to have authority over him. He wanted to rule his way, with his power, and his goals. But he knew that Jesus would create instant problems. The Jews would have their promised leader. And anyone who could make a star move around could probably knock a lard-butt king off his corrupted throne. 


It's the same today. There are a lot of people out there who refuse to recognize God because they don't want anyone to have authority over them. If I believe God, then I'll have to live differently. All these evil things that I like to do will have to go away. And I don't want that. So, God can't be real. And lest we point hasty fingers at atheists and naturalists, we'd better check ourselves. Christians need to be very careful. We need to make sure that we aren't making God in our image, sanctioning our lifestyles because we like them, not because God said it was okay. The Christian church does not need any more hypocrites...and that begins with me.

2) The next thing I notice about God is that He is worthy of worship. A lot of times around Christmas, when we think about the wise men, we focus on the gifts they gave to Jesus: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. I know those three gifts are very symbolic. But what gets me with this fresh read is not that they gave expensive gifts, but that they worshiped a child. Many adults today basically scrape children off the bottom of their shoes. But these guys bowed down before Jesus. And their worship didn't start when they arrived. It began long before...when they were researching the Messiah. Where would he be born? What would the signs be? Their worship continued when they left their homes and went on a LONG journey to go find Jesus. That must have been a serious HIKE. And on camels no less. But Jesus is worth it. He's worth the time. He's worth the trouble. He's worth our possessions too. The next time I'm feeling burned out from writing and writing and writing; the next time I feel frustrated that I'm spending so much of "my" time writing, I hope I'll remember just how worth it Jesus is.

Til next time.

Never alone.

*All Scriptures from the NET Bible: http://net.bible.org/#!bible/Matthew+1

Death is Dead.

Consider the specter of death that lingers over all our shoulders, whispering that it's not a question of if, but of when. Rich or poor, popular or unknown, busy or idle--death waits for us all. This is why Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday are so important to mankind. When Jesus died and then rose again, He destroyed the dominion and power of death once and for all. He trounced sin and death, b...lasted the enemy's plans, and cured the curse we all were born under. And all He asks in return is that we come to Him and believe. 

Think of it like this: there has been a terrifying outbreak. A disease has infected us all. It is absolutely deadly, and there's nothing we can do on our own to cure it. But one man, one amazing doctor, has discovered the cure. And this crazy dude, when he could make billions by selling it, he's just offering to give the cure away. How unfortunate would it be if some people just refused the cure? That is what happens too often today. Jesus offers you life...real life...everlasting life. Jesus said, "Come to me you who are weary and heavily burdened, and I will give you rest for your soul."

Knowing God: Part 2

K nowing God Part 2: How well do you know God? In part one of this series, I confessed that (in spite of the fact that I've been a Christian for over 20 years) I still don't feel like I know God very well. It troubles me. I'd like to know Him as I do my family members or best friends. But He's different, so I guess I'd like to know Him as well as a person can know Him...if that makes any sense. So, I'm setting out to know God better. I'm starting with the book of Matthew. I have no idea where I'll stop.

Official Disclaimer: I don't claim to be a theological guru. I haven't graduated seminary. I'm not a pastor. I'm doing this series of posts just because I want to know God better. I'm sharing it online, not to teach others--though I'd be pretty happy if God used this to help others get to know Him better also. I'm not doing this to argue--though, if people have related ideas to share, I'm all ears. I'm simply posting this to explore and maybe encourage others to explore. If you are a young reader, run everything by your parents. They are your spiritual authority. See what they think. And, as the Bible tells us: If on some point, we disagree, pray about it, and may God give us clarity.

Matthew 1:18-25*

1:18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ happened this way. While his mother Mary was engaged to Joseph, but before they came together, ¹²  she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. 1:19 Because Joseph, her husband to be, ¹³  was a righteous man, and because he did not want to disgrace her, he intended to divorce her ¹⁴  privately. 1:20 When he had contemplated this, an ¹⁵  angel of the Lord ¹⁶  appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 1:21 She will give birth to a son and you will name him ¹⁷  Jesus, ¹⁸  because he will save his people from their sins.” 1:22 This all happened so that what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet would be fulfilled: 1:23 “Look! The virgin will conceive and bear a son, and they will call him ¹⁹  Emmanuel,” ²⁰  which means ²¹  “God with us.” ²²  1:24 When Joseph awoke from sleep he did what the angel of the Lord ²³  told him. He took his wife, 1:25 but did not have marital relations ²⁴  with her until she gave birth to a son, whom he named ²⁵  Jesus.

Initial Take: This is just my knee-jerk reaction to the text. Whatever pops into my mind. Heaven help me.  

I like how God took this guy Joseph, who is in the Davidic line, and drops him into a man's "worst case scenario. "Hey, Mary-baby, I'm so glad we're engaged."
 "Uh, honey, uhm, funny you should mention 'baby.' I'm pregnant, and the baby's not yours."
Train wreck. Bridge collapse. Pick any disaster image you want. This is the end of the world for a man. But Joseph is a prince among men, so even though by cultural rights, he could have done much worse to Mary, he decides to give her a quiet divorce.

I can only imagine Joseph's anguish over this situation. But when the dream comes, the world is turned upside down, and the stakes are beyond reckoning. God drops the bomb: you, Joseph get to be Daddy to the Savior, the Messiah, to God with us. Can you imagine the pressure? I feel it with my own kids. When I see a bad habit of mine that the kids have adopted, it hurts. I can't imagine trying to raise THE SAVIOR.

It seems odd to me that there's less focus on Mary in this section of text and more about Joseph. Mary did the heavy lifting by carrying Jesus for nine months. And given that she was so young, I can't imagine what she must have felt through the process.

Knowing God Take-Away: What do I learn about God from Matt 1:18-25? 1) God is supernatural. In our lives, in this world, there are natural laws. A man and a woman can get together and have a baby, but for that to occur, certain "things" need to happen first. God doesn't have to abide by our restrictions. For us, a physical body has limits. We can only do so much. Not so with God. There are no limits. Thus, Mary, a virgin, becomes pregnant by the Holy Spirit. God's supernatural traits are hugely present in this short text. Next, we have Joseph napping, and an angel of the Lord appears to him in a dream. Have you ever "tried" to have a certain dream? You know, you try to program your mind to think on certain things, so that the dream goes where you want it? Doesn't usually work. It's also impossible for one of us to make ourselves show up in someone else's dream. But God can do that. He is supernatural. That is both comforting to me and scary. I like that God can do supernatural things, that He can do a trillion times better than I can. But, His supernatural-ness also makes me wonder how I can ever really know Him.

2) The next thing I notice about God is that He likes to get others involved in what He's doing. When I was growing up, my parents didn't really let me help with stuff that much. Especially when I was little. I was a bit clumsy and very curious. So if my dad went to work rebuilding the fence in the back yard, I wanted to help. But, more often than not, I screwed up. I guess after a while, my parents figured it was better for everyone's health and blood pressure if I didn't "help" so much. But God, He doesn't seem to be like that. In this one section of text, we see God get an angel to deliver messages. We see God choose a guy and a gal to, get this: be the parents of the Savior of the world. Pretty sure neither Joseph nor Mary had ever done that before. But God said, "You two. I choose you." He doesn't seem to care much about our experience or our clumsiness. And that…is an encouraging thought.

Til next time.

Never alone.

*All Scriptures from the NET Bible: http://net.bible.org/#!bible/Matthew+1

Knowing God: Is Such a Thing Possible?

I'm a Christian. Have been for over 20 years. But I've come to a strange and rather uncomfortable conclusion: I don't know God very well. Readers might wonder what I mean by the word "know." But really, it's not a secretive theological concept. I just mean "know" in the way that you might know anyone, a family member, a friend, a coworker. God's different, sure. I get that. The Bible itself reports that there are some aspects of God we cannot know or, even if we did, we wouldn't understand. But still, Christians are supposed to get to know God as much as possible. How else can we make Him known?

The reason I don't feel like I know God all that well is that I regularly find myself believing all kinds of weird things about Him. In any given day, I can question His goodness, His intentions, His power, even His love. So, I'm setting out to know God better. I'm starting with the book of Matthew. I have no idea where I'll stop.

Official Disclaimer: I don't claim to be a theological guru. I haven't graduated seminary. I'm not a pastor. I'm doing this series of posts just because I want to know God better. I'm sharing it online, not to teach others--though I'd be pretty happy if God used this to help others get to know Him better also. I'm not doing this to argue--though, if people have related ideas to share, I'm all ears. I'm simply posting this to explore and maybe encourage others to explore. If you are a young reader, run everything by your parents. They are your spiritual authority. See what they think. And, as the Bible tells us: If on some point, we disagree, pray about it, and may God give us clarity.

Matthew 1:1-17*

1:1 This is the record of the genealogy ¹  of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

1:2 Abraham was the father ²  of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, 1:3 Judah the father of Perez and Zerah (by Tamar), Perez the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram, 1:4 Ram the father of Amminadab, Amminadab the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon, 1:5 Salmon the father of Boaz (by Rahab), Boaz the father of Obed (by Ruth), Obed the father of Jesse, 1:6 and Jesse the father of David the king.

David was the father of Solomon (by the wife of Uriah ³ ), 1:7 Solomon the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, Abijah the father of Asa, ⁴  1:8 Asa the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, Joram the father of Uzziah, 1:9 Uzziah the father of Jotham, Jotham the father of Ahaz, Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, 1:10 Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, Manasseh the father of Amon, ⁵  Amon the father of Josiah, 1:11 and Josiah ⁶  the father of Jeconiah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.

1:12 After ⁷  the deportation to Babylon, Jeconiah became the father of Shealtiel, ⁸  Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, 1:13 Zerubbabel the father of Abiud, Abiud the father of Eliakim, Eliakim the father of Azor, 1:14 Azor the father of Zadok, Zadok the father of Achim, Achim the father of Eliud, 1:15 Eliud the father of Eleazar, Eleazar the father of Matthan, Matthan the father of Jacob, 1:16 and Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, by whom ⁹  Jesus was born, who is called Christ. ¹⁰ 

1:17 So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations, and from David to the deportation to Babylon, fourteen generations, and from the deportation to Babylon to Christ, ¹¹  fourteen generations.

Initial Take: This is just my knee-jerk reaction to the text. Whatever pops into my mind. Heaven help me.  

Ok, I absolutely hate genealogies. Seriously, that's why my efforts to read the whole Bible in a year always seem to get derailed just a few books into the OT. But one thing I notice is that God seems to take family history pretty seriously. They are all over the Bible. And I guess, for the first century Jew, it would have been pretty critical to establish Jesus was from the Abrahamic/Davidic line due to prophecies that claim Jesus will come from that line. Gotta love these names: Hezron (sounds like a gas station) Amminadab (sounds like an ointment), Salmon (well, you know). And Zerubbabel (Really? Bet he had fun in middle school). 

The other thing that always strikes me about genealogies is that, to me at least, their presence is a kind of proof of the authenticity of the Word of God. As a fiction writer, I know quite well, to put something like this in a book is the kiss of death. I mean YAWN. There's no fiction value here. You only put something like this in if you are writing a history. And you only put stuff like this in if you aren't worried about contradiction. After all, it's RIGHT there. You can check it fairly easily. 

Knowing God Take-Away: What do I learn about God from Matt 1:1-17? A couple of things stand out. 1) God isn't embarrassed by His family. Look at that list. There are some tough cases there. Abraham did some things that would make the tabloids today. David might not make the tabloids, but he sure would inspire a provocative miniseries. Solomon; shoot, he decided to experiment with everything under the sun before he finally figured out it was all dust in the wind without God. But God still lists their names here and many places elsewhere. And these are places of honor too. Some of us, if we had a family member who did some of the stuff these folks did, well…we probably wouldn't mention that we're related to someone at a party. 

2) The next thing I notice about God is that He has a set timing for things. Look at verse 17. Notice the beautiful symmetry of 14 years between Abraham and David, David to Deportation to Babylon, and Deportation to Christ? That's just astounding to me. How often do things just "work out" that way? Jesus is extraordinary, and so the timing of His birth needed to be extraordinary. God has a timing for everything, and it's perfect timing...every time. Maybe next time I'm wondering why God didn't come through with this or that when I thought He should have, I'll remember the number 14. 

Til next time.

Never alone.

*All Scriptures from the NET Bible: http://net.bible.org/#!bible/Matthew+1

Cue Dramatic Music and Fanfare: Announcing the Title of Berinfell Prophecies, Book 3

Greetings and a very fond hello from Tannersville, PA, the new location of Christopher Hopper and my Writer's Bootcamp. We are ensconced in a hotel that is literally built into the side of a mountain, and madly chewing away the hours of Saturday with a frenetic display of head-to-head typing. Seriously, we are hitting the keys so fast and for such a prolonged stretch that our fingers are beginning to tingle. :-D

{Hey, Wayne, shut up about the writing already and get to the title!}

Oh, oh, right! The title. The title for Berinfell Prophecies Book 3…that title? {YES! THAT TITLE!}

Right. Now to it! The title for Berinfell Prophecies book 3 is:

The Tide of Unmaking

{Um, Wayne, I don't see anything there. Where's the title???}

You have to work for it. Just click in the open space above and highlight the invisible text. Or, you can just look in the fine print on the photo below!

Mark your calendar. Berinfell Book 3 will release in all formats May 15th. Info for the Collector's Edition Hardback will be forthcoming soon.

Are You Married? If so, read this!

Maybe my wife Mary Lu and I have been watching WAY too much Grey's Anatomy, where there are rampant relationship issues, betrayals, affairs, etc, BUT it continues to caution and sober me that our marriages are critically important and, in many ways, so fragile.



I suspect that a lot of us married folk may have gotten to a place we never thought we'd be, a place where something's not quite right. Many of us are dealing with conflict between husband and wife, daily. Many of us are hurting from broken hearts, furious that our expectations haven't been met, or vexed that all our efforts to help have gone virtually unnoticed. Some of us have "walled-off" our spouses or are building up our defenses, stiffening so that "this time" we won't get hurt again. Many of us have kids / teenagers / jobs / careers that cause enough conflict to exhaust a superhuman, and we feel we have little left for our spouse.

Unfortunately, this is life in a sin sick world. It's life, but it is not REAL life. We are Christians, and we are called, commanded even, to something better.

Husbands, are you loving your wives as Jesus loves the church? Are you sacrificing your time, needs, and pride to meet her needs? Are you helping her to see how beautiful she is, inside and out? Are you doling out back scratches and back rubs? ;-)

Wives, are you respecting your husbands, empowering them to lead? Are you showing him through words and physical contact that you think he is a great man? Are you giving him the freedom to work, to decide, and even to fail in an honest effort?

Husbands and Wives...are you?

Here's my challenge to us all: Read 1 Corinthians 13 (below). Then, break the "love list" down into parts. Find THREE ways from that list that you can love your spouse TODAY.

¹ If I speak in the tongues^[a] of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. ² If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. ³ If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,^[b] but do not have love, I gain nothing.

 ⁴ Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. ⁵ It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. ⁶ Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. ⁷ It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

 ⁸ Love never fails.


If you succeed today, then do it tomorrow too.

The Door Within Movie: Prayer is THE thing!

In the last WEEK, I've had a dozen or more emails, IM's, posted comments, etc. asking about the possibility of The Door Within (my first book) being made into a movie. Maybe God is on the move because, just this past WEEK, I've had some VERY preliminary discussions on that very possibility. But here's the thing: a Door Within movie is still a million miles away from happening. These are just the very first, tentative, eency weency steps. So, my prayer warriors out there: Pray. Tell your friends: Pray. eMail your Prayer Chains to: Pray. Seriously, this isn't the time to go crazy with movie thoughts. But DO go crazy with prayer. Much love and thanks to you!

Time is money. NOT.

It's the New Year. Resolutions aside, how do you plan to spend the New Year? Whoever said Time = Money was quite wrong. Time is far more valuable. You can spend time and money, of course. But you can't save time. It cannot be stored or banked away.

We all live on a fixed income of moments that, like it or not, WILL be spent. Compounding the issue is that we don't know what the sum total of our "time income" will be. God knows how long we will live, but we don't. Most of us have a kind of vague notion of living for a while. Barring illness or tragedy, we figure about 70-90 years. Maybe longer if science whips up some long life concoction someday. But there's no guarantee. We cannot count on time like we might check our bank balance. We cannot purchase more time. Time is literally priceless.

The good news is that, like money, time can be invested. You can take "right now" and invest it in something. Trouble is, too many of us will invest in something that pays temporary returns. A bit of pleasure here, a warm fuzzy there. A tickle of the taste buds, a cheap thrill, a new gadget--fill in the blank with any number of self-centered endeavors.

This is short-sighted investment at its worst. Why not invest your "right now" moments in something that will last. And not just last a lifetime. I'm talking FOREVER. The best investments are those that have a lot of time to earn returns. That's why someone who starts putting a hundred bucks a month into a savings account at age 20 will have so much more money at age 60 than someone who doesn't begin investing until age 40. And what if we knew exactly what to invest in? What if we had the world's greatest financial adviser to give us a serious trader tip? Sure fire, can't miss HUGE windfall investment tip? That would pretty much ROCK, right?

More good news: God is omniscient. He knows everything. And He gave us the greatest investment advice in the history of mankind. He told us just how to spend our time so that we would reap the greatest return. He said, "Love God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. And love your neighbor" Matthew 22: 36-40 (*BPV, 2012)

Love God. Love others. That means spend your time for the benefit of God and mankind. If you do, you begin laying treasures up for yourself in heaven. Rewards, crowns, the coolest jobs, etc. etc. Sound good? Yeah, I think so. But it might sound a bit mercenary or materialistic to some. But why should it? God Himself tells us to lay up treasures for ourselves in heaven. God Himself promises the rewards.

In his book of essays, The Weight of Glory, C.S. Lewis addresses this issue. "Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires, not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased."

I could write on this topic so much more, but I can't afford the time. I've got some investing to do. How about you?

* BPV = Bat Paraphrase Version

Amazon Blitz EPILOGUE

Hi, all! Well, the Amazon Blitz went great! From my combined resources of NovelRank and Amazon Associates, it looks like 24-29 copies of The Errant King were sold during the Blitz. The best sales ranking appears to be: 6,195th, a 19,000 rank improvement. And that's very, very cool. 


Sword in the Stars sold approximately 15-17 copies during the Blitz. The best sales ranking appears to be: 13,911th, a 16,000 rank improvement.


And better yet, both books continue to be ranked in the teens. So thank you to everyone who bought during the Blitz or spread the word! You rock!


If you haven't already joined the Starseeker Contest, please consider the adventure! Lots of prizes: Amazon Kindle, Books-4-Life, Namesake in Book, even your very own Star!

 Buy Sword in the Stars or The Errant King from Amazon.com on TONIGHT, December 9th between the hours of 6pm--10pm Eastern Time.

ATTENTION STARSEEKERS:

If you're in the Starseeker Contest, we'll be AMPING the points for those who purchase Sword in the Stars or Errant King during the Blitz. Here's the chart:

Buy one book during the Blitz = 5,000pts.

Every additional book you buy during the Blitz = Double the Points--every book

Example: 1 book = 5K, 2 books = 10k, 3 books = 20K, 4 books = 40K, and so on...

Bonus Multiplier: If Sword in the Stars OR The Errant King breaks 500th on the Bestseller List, double any points you've earned from book buying. If Sword in the Stars OR The Errant King breaks 100th on the Bestseller List, triple any points you've earned from book buying. If Sword in the Stars OR The Errant King breaks 10th on the Bestseller List, quadruple any points you've earned from book buying. If Sword in the Stars hits #1 on the Bestseller List, multiply any points you've earned from book buying by TEN.

Once again, here are the links to use to purchase books for the Amazon Blitz. Just click below:

The Sword in the Stars

The Errant King

To Arms! To Arms! The Amazon Blitz for Errant King is Upon Us!!

FRIDAY, December 9th between the hours of 6pm--10pm Eastern Time.  Can you say EPIC? Greetings, faithful readers! Wayne Thomas Batson here. With Christmas not far away now, I wanted to let you know I've got a new series of fantasy books out. The Dark Sea Annals, an Epic 7-book Fantasy Series with AMG Publishing. Book 1: The Sword in the Stars came out in 2010, and Book 2: The Errant King just came out last week. So if you loved The Door Within Trilogy or any of my other books, please check out my new series. If you think you might get The Errant King, please consider, joining our Amazon Blitz! See below!  Buy Sword in the Stars or The Errant King from Amazon.com on FRIDAY, December 9th between the hours of 6pm--10pm Eastern Time. I'd like to announce the official Errant King Amazon Blitz! If you've never done a blitz, the concept is to slam Amazon with book orders during a concentrated period of time. This accomplishes two very important things:   1) Tons of orders in a concentrated time will make The Errant King jump up high on Amazon's bestseller's list. This creates high visibility, more sales, and so on.   2) Also, getting tons of orders right around a new book's release date influences the publisher to pump up the marketing and even increase print runs.   Buy Sword in the Stars or The Errant King from Amazon.com on FRIDAY, December 9th between the hours of 6pm--10pm Eastern Time. Here's the purchase link: Errant King Amazon Blitz Link I'd like to thank everyone who participates, so if you purchase a copy of Sword in the Stars OR The Errant King during the blitz, and then email me your snail mail address, I'll personalize a special Sword in the Stars/ Errant King bookplate sticker and send it to you. I doesn't matter if you buy one book or fifteen. I'll send as many stickers as you need. Thanks so much for reading my stories and being so faithful! Never alone.    WayneThomasBatson Bestselling Author of The Door Within Trilogy, Isle of Swords, Isle of Fire, The Berinfell Prophecies, Sword in the Stars,  and The Errant King  www.enterthedoorwithin.blogspot.com www.heedtheprophecies.com www.swordinthestars.com

Why Should Kids Get to Have ALL the Fun?

Nothing against kids, but it has always seemed unfair to me that they always get to be whooshed through the portal for all kinds of great fantasy adventures. I guess it must have seemed unfair to prolific author Sharon Hinck as well because she's written a fantastic fantasy series--an epic adventure for women and moms! Sound odd to you? Not so. In fact, without any fear of "Man Card Deductions," I read The Restorer and REALLY enjoyed it. Looking for gift idea for the fantasy woman in your life...check out Sharon Hinck's The Restorer!

Order The Restorer-Expanded Edition at Marcher Lord Press (at their discounted price!) before December 9th and receive two free downloadable booklets ­ an indepth Restorer literary guide, and a creative bookclub/party planner. http://www.marcherlordpress.com/

The Seek the Stars Contest is HERE!

Welcome to Dark Sea Saturday! I hope the turkey nap is over and the shopping cramps are all worked out because you are about to have an adventure...

To celebrate the release of The Errant King, in association with AMG International Publishing, it gives me great pleasure to announce to my readers: the 1st Seek the Stars Contest!

WHAT IS IT?
The Seek the Stars Contest is an opportunity for my readers to have EPIC fun, exercising their God-given talents to form communities of readers and spread the word about books they know and love.

WHAT’s AT STAKE?
Fun. First of all, we all love to communicate with others about the things we love. We all need friends. Competing in the Seek the Stars Contest gives you the opportunity to do both. But there are, shall we say, a few prizes involved as well. More to come soon about all the specifics, but here are some items you could win:
• A Brand New Amazon Kindle!
• Ownership of your very own Star. Not kidding. Some winners will be able to have a real star registered in his/her name or even in his her team name!
• Free eBook downloads.
• All kinds of unlockables: behind the scenes Dark Sea Annals stuff, custom artwork, desktops, posters, Original Dark Sea Music Tracks, online games and more!
• A few hard-working winners will become Books-For-Life Guild Members. These folk get a signed copy of each and every book that I ever write!
• Get your name in the Acknowledgment Section of my next book.
• Get a character in my next book named after you!

WHEN DOES IT START?
The contest kicks off on DARK SEA SATURDAY, that is: Saturday, November 26th and ends SEVEN months later on Tuesday, June 26th. The number Seven is significant. Remember it! The start date is today. But, of course, you kinda know that, right?

When you click the link below, you'll come to a screen that looks like the picture at the bottom. Just click the button, enter the security random letters thingy, and it should download. You don't have to join the club or sign up for FileDropper.

CONTEST UPDATE #1:
All Constellations have been Founded! In less than 24 hours, all seven Founder positions have been claimed! I still have dozens of emails to sift through, but I suspect there are lots of anxious Starseekers anxious to get started. So...GET STARTED. Don't wait for me to email you with your Constellation Team. Just start loading up on points however you can. 

Here's the list of Official Constellation Team Founders:

1) Winter's Read from Washington State
2) KK* from Ohio
3) Belac from Michigan
4) Songkeeper from Texas
5) Star Dreamer from Illinois
6) Vocal from Colorado
7) Sir Nagek from New York State

*I used initials for folks who didn't give a Fantasy Name alias. 

DOWNLOAD COMPLETE RULES HERE!

Personal Response

I recently posted about a yahoo article where comedian Conan O'Brien officiated a gay wedding. As you might expect, most of the responses here agreed with the Christian perspective. However, I recently received a comment that opposed it. But, for the most part, this was not some bombastic irrational person screaming out vitriol. This was a person who had serious heart and bravery and really seemed interest in investigating. I tried to comment back, but apparently, it was too many characters. So, I post it here. Hopefully, Anon, you come back and get a chance to read it.

Hi, Anon, thanks for entrusting the readers here enough to post a contrasting view. I can totally hear the compassion in your words and the heart behind it. The only way I can respond coherently is to reprint your words here with my replies immediately following. See below:

You Wrote: This makes me sick. Sorry, Mr. Batson, but I comoletely disagree. What is wrong with being gay? Gays are born with something different in their brain, something that makes them attracted to the same sex.

Response 1: 2 different questions here. What is wrong with being gay? If you believe the bible, then homosexual lust and sex are wrong. No way around that. But what about the genetic component? Are people actually born gay? There is huge sociobiological debate on this. But no this: there is NO conclusive proof that anyone is born gay. There are some genetic points of interest that might support the "born gay" position. But there are equal scientific grounds to show otherwise.

BUT: even if it could be proved conclusively that people were born with traits that would make it far easier for them to become gay, that would have nothing to do with it being sin or not. We are all born sinful. And each of us struggle with certain sins. It may be that all of our genetic codes are messed up in one way or another. One person might have the genetic fingerprint to be addicted to alcohol, sex, drugs, violence, etc. etc. But that doesn't mean we excuse the acts that often follow.

To suggest that there's something wrong with these people is, in my mind, completely ridiculous.

My response: it's not ridiculous if the Bible is your guide. And I'm not being bigoted in the least. I think there's something WRONG with every person on earth, especially me. It's called a "sin-nature." We all have it, and it makes it easier for each one of us to lean toward certain sins.

 I understand that maybe marriage must be between a man and a woman, but this is not right.

My Response: Thank you for granting that point. Marriage always has been understood as man and woman. The word is defined that way. If words are to have meaning, then we must not simply change to meet politics or cultural trends. And the word "marriage" is not just some flexible term that has become antiquated over the years. Marriage is a critical social custom that builds the foundation of a nation.

 Maybe it is a sin to be homosexual. But is that what you are going to say? That people that are different than you are worse?

My Response: No, I never implied that homosexuals are worse than me or worse than heterosexuals. All sin is counter-God. A homosexual's sins are no worse than my own. The trouble is that some segments of our society are fighting hard to normalize activities are wrong. It is the same as a sitcom that makes it seem like casual sex is fine and dandy. It's not. It's sin, and even if you don't believe in the bible, casual sex leaves a terrible hurt on most people who engage in it.

 Who cares if someone isn't like you, isn't heterosexual? Why can't people just leave other people alone?

My Response: again, you seem to want to blame me, as if I am the measure of what's good and right in the world. Thank God it is not me! As to why can't people "leave other people alone?" No one is attacking anyone here. America is an open marketplace of ideas, isn't it? So when Yahoo publishes an article with a well-known celebrity going so far to support gay marriage as to officiate the "wedding," then it is my right (and as a Christian) a duty to speak out. The trouble is that many in the homosexual community confuse different opinions with bigotry. I'm tired of being called "intolerant" and a "bigot" or "homophobe" simply because I maintain and support a differing opinion on the subject. Those who support homosexuality are often very aggressive and in-your-face with their beliefs. Fine, but don't "name call" when I oppose you and oppose you well. Either support your beliefs or concede defeat. Don't resort to immature name calling. 

Reading that it makes people sick to think about gay marriage is truly sad, sad that they can't leave it be. It's the way people are, and it's not going to change.

My Response: It's not sad. Imagine someone taking something dear to you and staining it. That's what's happening here. Marriage is what it is. Don't be upset because the word has meaning. If homosexuals want a union, then call it something else. And as to saying, why not leave it be because it'll never change? Think about where that logic takes you. Some people commit incest. Should we leave that be? Some rape. Some commit sexual abuse. Should we leave those things be as well? People commit adultery ALL THE TIME--Christians included. Should we leave that be? Of course not.

I really don't understand this. Is your entire life governed by the bible? Are you simply the puppet of the written word, to kill or shun those that are different or against this? Explain yourself, please.

My Response: Yes, my entire life is governed by the Bible. Not when I sin. And that is my own personal tragedy. God's word is my guide and keeps me from so many destructive paths and horrors. Am I a puppet for holding to a standard of right and wrong that transcends what I simply "feel" is right or wrong?

But, I want you, Anon, to take a very VERY careful look at your words there: "to kill or shun those that are different." You brought those words to the table. I never mentioned them. I don't urge anyone to kill or shun. That's the kind of emotional propaganda that gay rights leaders so often employ.

Love everyone. Hate the sin, especially that sin in my own life. But do not remain silent when beautiful, sacred things are being attacked.

Look What the Stork Delivered!!

Greetings, Knights and Swordmaidens! No, the Batson household hasn't welcomed a fifth child. But in many ways, the moment a writer gets to hold his/her book in hand, well…it's just pure joy. I came home very tired from teaching today. And BEHOLD, there be boxes on me doorstep! Big FEDEX boxes! Immediately, I'm turning cartwheels!

In other news, don't forget: Mark your calendars for...

1) Dark Sea Saturday: November 26th--visit Enter the Door Within (HERE) for a HUGE announcement. The kickoff of the biggest contest I've ever been a part of.

2) December 3rd Lunch, Signing, Errant King Release Party:

WANNA DO LUNCH? Author chat and booksigning for The Errant King coming soon: December 3rd 12-3 pm in Ellicott City at His Way and Nora's Cafe. Contact Michelle Audrey Black (410) 549-8746 to reserve your seat!