Friday with Friends--Guestblog by Lynn Squire

Lynn Squire from Monday's post is also the author of today's guestblog, so be sure to check out Monday's posting to learn more about her and her book.

Is God Able to Build What Has Been Destroyed? by Lynn Squire

Perhaps one of the greatest tests of a person’s faith is the destruction of everything one owns. If your possessions are your god, then you will hate who or what destroyed them. If the Creator is your God, then you can rejoice in the testing of your faith and wait to see what miracles God will perform.
Walking through a town that has been devastated by a tornado gives you a heavy, surreal feeling. Houses you knew well no longer exist. Trees uprooted. Landmarks disappeared. You are both in awe of the power of the storm and troubled by its destruction. For the first few moments you wander in shock, then like a slow press, the magnitude of your loss bears down on you. You don’t know where to begin to rebuild…you might even question whether there is any reason to rebuild.
Slowly you pick up a board or a piece of paper and look around, wondering where to put it. A picture caught between two pieces of wall flickers in the wind. An old picture of your grandfather’s home that had once been destroyed, just like yours. It kindles a hope. Perhaps, with hard work, not all is lost. After all, you are alive.
In our darkest hour, God does not abandon us. He’s there, waiting, and if we are listening, we’ll hear Him encouraging us to trust Him just a little more. He’ll help us through.
James 1:2-4 says:
“My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.”
Each time we experience a trial our faith in God is tested, as though He is stretching us, helping us see that we can wait a little longer for Him. Just trust Him and persevere.
How do we trust God and persevere?
· Read the Bible daily and remember how He helped people in the past.
· Pray without ceasing, pouring out your soul to Him while working to direct your thoughts to worshiping Him.
· Count your blessings. Yes, that seems like a pat answer, but it is key to recovery.
· Take small steps of action, covered in prayer, and with an ear open to the Holy Spirit’s guidance.
Perhaps we will not see in our life on earth the blessings that Job experienced after his trial, but we can know that when the new heaven and new earth comes, we’ll know even greater blessings than he had.
Dear Lord, give us the strength and courage to persevere. Help us to wait on You to rebuild our lives as You see fit. I pray this, in Jesus name, AMEN.

Spotlight on Lynn Squire, author of Joab's Fire

I'm happy to introduce my readers to Lynn Squire who is a fellow ACFW member. She agreed to let us get to know her better by answering some interview questions:
1. Tell us about your favorite book as a child and your favorite book as an adult. Can you see a connection between those books?

I loved Nancy Drew books as a child. Fed on them; dreamed about them; acted them out.
As an adult, I claim Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers as my favorite book, although I have read many that have impacted me and I could easily say were favorites.
As to a connection? I’m afraid I really don’t see one, except maybe my passion for both. I loved that Nancy Drew could do anything. She was really an unbelievable character in that way. On the other hand, Angel in Redeeming Love captured my heart. It was a very difficult book to read, but I couldn’t put it down because I wanted Angel to find God’s redeeming love, just as I have.
2. What is your favorite Scripture? Do you also have a favorite Scripture that encourages you in your writing?
I have a difficult time choosing a favorite Scripture. It changes each time God speaks to me through His Word. One book of the Bible that radically changed my perception on life was Ezekiel. I first read it as a young adult, and recently God used it again to hold me on course. Here are some specific verses:
“When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood will I require at thine hand…Again, When a righteous man doth turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die: because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at thine hand.” Ezekiel 3:18,20
Those verses resonate in my heart, coupled with Ezekiel 33:11 “Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?”
Ezekiel reveals the holiness and righteousness of God along with His great desire to save us and how much He loves us. I fear in today’s Christianity we have created a god of our own and have forgotten the Lord Jehovah God of the Bible, the one true God—merciful and just, holy and gracious, loving and righteous.
3. If you could go to any place in the world to research/write a book, what setting would you choose?
Jerusalem. I would choose the time when Jesus walked on earth. I want to visit every place He walked, and see every sight He saw, and feel His compassion and love, and then climb Golgotha to bow down before Him and remember what He has done for me.
4. I often wonder if I would write if I had to do it the old-fashioned way without computers and spell-checks and email. Is there anything about technology that you don't like? Or anything about it that you feel enhances your writing?
I still find myself itching to use pen and paper. Something about that method makes the work feel more real, more vibrant. I still print out my manuscripts and use a pen to edit them. I can get into the story better that way. For me, technology tends to be less personal. It causes a distance between me and the words, and thus the story. However, computers and the Internet and e-books certainly speed up the process of writing and make research materials much more accessible. For that, I am grateful.
5. As a writer how have you had to grow and stretch out of your comfort zone?
Every aspect of writing, from creating the plot, to writing, to being critiqued, to being edited, to marketing has pushed me, fed me, and stretched me. In the early stages I usually have a theme in mind. The plot evolves from this theme and the characters begin their acts based on this theme. Soon, however, the plot and characters become catalysts for me to dig deeper, think on a different plane, and face my own weaknesses, failings, or misperceptions. Then, to take that baby to be critiqued by others means having to accept criticism, and the process stretches me further as I have to admit that I’m not perfect and neither is my writing. Marketing becomes a matter of balance. On one hand you need to sell books to make money. On the other, it isn’t about the money; it is about reaching the hearts of the readers. There is a constant battle through the marketing stage to keep the right perspective…this isn’t about me; it’s about God.
6. What advice would you give to a beginning writer that you wish someone had given you?
Do not listen to the wisdom of the world. Listen to the wisdom of God’s Word. Evaluate everything people tell you with the measuring stick of Scripture. And pray without ceasing. In other words, take care of your relationship with God before you write anything.
James 3:1-2a says:
“My brethren, be not many masters, knowing that we shall receive the greater condemnation. For in many things we offend all…”
As a writer, you become the master of the reader’s imagination. We direct his imagination to new worlds, to new thoughts, to a new way of looking at life. If that direction doesn’t line up with God’s Word, then we have dealt falsely with that reader. We need to be careful that our work is founded in Biblical truth, not man’s ideology or experience.
When judgment day comes and my works are tested, I want them to come out pure, and I want to hear my Father say, “Well done.” I want to encourage other writers to pursue the same.
7. Do you want to add anything about your book such as how to order it?
As of September 15, 2011 you can go to any bookstore and order a copy, if they do not have one in stock already. You can also order Joab’s Fire off of any major online bookstore, like Amazon.com or Barnes and Noble.
About the Author

Lynn Squire is an avid writer who artistically intertwines Biblical truth with colorful
narrative. Her childhood farm life, coupled with her equestrian experiences, brings
authenticity and heart to her stories. Lynn actively serves her church through her writing
and in other ministries and is currently the president of the American Christian Fiction
Writers San Francisco Bay Area Chapter in California, where she resides with her

husband and three children.
About the book:
Joab black and his wife Sarah overcame the worst of pioneer hardships in order to establish a prosperous farm in Alberta, Canada. But those challenges never prepared
them for the tragedy they now faced—a staggering loss and intense pain causing them to doubt everything they had ever believed. In the midst of their sorrow, even their closest friends interpret their sufferings as a result of God’s judgment. Has God abandoned them? Inspired by the Biblical book of Job, this novel includes a Bible study exploring the perfection of God’s plan and the bounty of His love even in the most inexplicable and intense sufferings.