Because 2019 was a rough year for me personally, I was looking forward to turning the calendar to a new year and a fresh leaf.
My word for 2020 is “Revelation” and the related verse is Ephesians 1:17 where Paul prays, “that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him.” (NASB95)
Sounds good, right? I was ready to spend this year deepening my intimacy with Jesus, only in my mind, I pictured that happening during long, easy days spent in joyous contemplation. Picture wildflowers in a mountain meadow. Cue swelling music.
Well, like everybody reading this, 2020 has not gone at all as I wanted or expected. (And we all knew that those long, easy days with wildflowers and music were a fantasy, right?)
On the bright side, I have two books releasing this month, and I really want to share them with you.
How Sweet It Is
How Sweet It Is officially releases on Tuesday, July 14th. This is the third book in the Legacy of Faith series, and I must confess that it is bittersweet to see it released because I have moved on to other stories but still miss the Henning family. I fell totally in love with them and was deeply touched as I wrote about Andrew Henning’s Bible and how it affected the lives of the three descendants featured in Who I Am with You, Cross My Heart, and How Sweet It Is.
There are two things I hope for in regard to these books. First, I hope that you have fallen in love with the Hennings and will be eager to read How Sweet It Is (and the first two if you haven’t already). And second, I hope that I will leave a legacy of faith that is just as strong as Andrew’s.
About How Sweet It Is, one reader on Goodreads said: “This is my first Robin Lee Hatcher book and I am now a huge fan! [… The story] touched me to my core.”
Those are the kind of words that make long weeks and late nights on deadline so worthwhile.
Rich Beyond Measure: Zlata’s Story
My other book out this month (available now) is my first novel with a biblical setting. I struggle to call it biblical fiction because another writer said, “If it’s biblical, it isn’t fiction.” That has a ring of truth to me.
Rich Beyond Measure is how I envisioned the story of the poor widow who gave the two mites in the Temple. When I was first approached by Guidepost Books via my agent, I was daunted by the idea of setting a story in Jesus’ day. If I make a mistake (despite my research) in a book set in the 1700’s or 1800’s, I feel bad. But somehow the possibility of writing about Jesus and making a mistake felt much, much worse. What if I messed up?
Thankfully, I was able to brainstorm the book with my wonderful writer friends. I always love brainstorming with this group (we’ve been doing this together since 2003), but their excitement and enthusiasm as we talked about the story took away a lot of my fear. The remainder of the fear vanished when I started writing the book and found myself immersed in the four Gospel accounts every single day. I learned so much and grew so much, and I have a new appreciation for reading the Bible through Middle Eastern, First Century eyes.
If you’d like to read an excerpt (the scene with the sinful woman who washes Yeshua’s feet with her tears), it’s available for download on my website.
Rich Beyond Measure isn’t available through normal bookstore channels at this time. It can only be ordered from the Guidepost Books website (hardcover, ePub, and ePDF). Right now you can use the promo code CELEBRATE to get 20% off. (I don’t know how long that promo will last.)
We remember the past so we can live forward
While last year was personally rough and this year has been a challenge for people around the world, I was reminded in the Bible study Jesus and Women in the First Century and Now by Kristi McLelland of the importance of remembering God’s faithfulness.
Kristi wrote: “Remembering God’s faithful record in our lives gives us courage to trust Him in the unknown and live forward. We zakhar (remember) so that we can step forward, because the same God who was faithful to be with us in the past is the God who will be faithful to be with us in a future that may seem unknown. We don’t remember for remembering sake, but we remember to move forward with renewed faith and hope in the God who is shepherding our whole lives.”
In 2016, I did some Bible art journaling about the Stones of Remembrance (Joshua 4:3, 6-7). We bring those stones from the deepest waters of our lives. We bring them from the hard places. Those times aren’t easy, but they allow us to “live forward” because we remember what God brought us through.
Friends, I pray that you are well and remain well. And I wish you joy.
Robin
I love your newsletters. It feels like we are friends, as you share your life. I’ve read, Who I Am With You but not read the second book and now look forward to book three. With libraries closed my ability to read books has been if they’re free or very low priced and can be on my kindle.
Hi, Linda. So glad you enjoy these posts. Since you have a Kindle, you should be able to download books from your local library. You might want to check into that.
I just started How Sweet it Is last night. Loving it so far.
Thanks, Nancy!
Congratulations on your new books!
Thanks, Angie.
I have the first two books and have been waiting for the third. Glad this is out. I usually pre-order so they will be sent to me when released. It has arrived and I will begin the series if this is the last book in this series. Will there be more in this series? Like to read your books. Thanks.
This is the last book in this series. I am working on a new book that will come out next year, totally unrelated to the Legacy of Faith series.
I just finished “How Sweet It Is”. I have loved all the Legacy of Faith books, and was eagerly awaiting this one on hold from the library. It was my favorite! As always, hard to turn to the last page, but so glad to have read it. My Mother-in-Law is almost 103 and will be leaving us with such a legacy of faith. She now has the beginnings of dementia and we have to remind her of what a legacy of faith she has passed on to us as she is so concerned and confused about the virus and is letting worry take over. I plan to make her a card today and include some quotes from Psalm 37 and your “as long as (she) draws breath, the Lord has a purpose for (her)” (and for me!). Thank you for such a beautiful series!