Please forgive me if this blog post gets too long. I do want to share a few of them with you.

Also, my sincere apologies to the authors of these poems – whoever you might be! Back when I typed them (40+ years ago), I did not realize the importance of the author’s name. If any readers recognize any of these poems and can attach an author to them, please let me know. Otherwise, for now, they are all designated, “Author Unknown.”

Two of the poems are about Easter but one is about Jesus’ return, which is also part of the Easter story. ^“For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.” I Thessalonians 4: 14-16 NIV

I hope you enjoy these poems as much as I have over the years. And may you have a joyous Easter!

An Easter Garland for the Risen Lord

“I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:14 NIV

 I’m in a race, rushing towards…. deadlines for manuscripts, deadlines for cover art approval, deadlines for submission of course outlines, deadlines for marking student work, deadlines for a blog entry.

I feel as if I am running fast and can’t slow down for… a phone call to a friend, a walk with my husband, a chat with my granddaughter, house cleaning, sleep.

Breaking my arm a couple months ago is partly the reason I am behind on things and in such a rush now. But I fear the real cause is a lifestyle of trying to cram in as much as possible into each minute of each day. A chronic case of workaholic-ism. 

Life is a race complete with a prize (see scripture quotes above) but I KNOW there is a balance here that I often lack. There are other Bible verses:

He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” Psalm 46:10 NIV  

This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says: “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it. Isaiah 30:15 NIV

And we have written down for us in the Gospel accounts the story of Mary and Martha. Martha was busy, busy, busy… But Mary chose the better way.

So, I will now (in deep authoritative voice) “step away from the computer” and make a phone call to a friend, chat with my granddaughter, visit with my husband, sleep (I’ll still skip the housecleaning for now).

I wish you all a relaxing, restful, and absolutely joy-filled weekend.

Dorene Meyer

www.dorenemeyer.com

www.goldrockpress.com

Author of Missy to be released March 26:  http://www.mcnallyrobinson.com/event-11168/Northern-Writers—-Launch-of-Five-New-Books

Coming to an understanding of the absolute necessity of confrontation adds nothing to its appeal.

I am currently working on the fourth book in a seven-book series that demonstrates with fictional characters the seven steps in healing from the effects of abuse. In the book, Missy, the healing required is from past and ongoing verbal abuse, and the step in the healing journey is confrontation.

Not pleasant… Not appealing…

When Selma Poulin, mental health clinician and board chair of Rising Above Abuse Counseling (www.risingabove.ca) read the manuscript, she asked, “Where is the confrontation?” When my wonderful, faithful editor from New Zealand, and my even more wonderful husband, read the manuscript, they both advised me to cut out the very nice romance I’d gotten sidetracked with and get to the heart of the issue – confrontation. After a suitable amount of whining, I have done just that. It’s hard because I don’t want to experience it vicariously as an author any more than I want to experience it in reality.

One of the hallmarks of an abusive relationship is denial – both on the part of the victim and the perpetrator. Much healing occurs when the victim can recognize the abuse and “break the silence” by telling a trusted friend or preferably a counselor. This fourth step in the healing journey involves for the first time the perpetrator (either directly or indirectly). For some victims of abuse, a direct confrontation is not safe or is no longer possible. Sometimes a letter written to the abuser is sufficient – whether or not it is actually delivered. The victim should never go alone to meet with a past or present abuser, and they should never go unprepared. Much prayer and discussion should happen beforehand.

It is important for the perpetrator to be shown the effects of the abuse. Think of it as a victim impact statement – something that is being used to good effect in many courtrooms today.

Missy will be released (the Lord willing) on March 26. I hope you will consider reading it, if not for yourself then maybe for a friend who might need it.

And I did leave in just a wee bit of the nice romance…

Dorene Meyer

I was reading a book today and in the story, a bride unexpectedly has her father show up for her wedding day – a father who had been absent for most of her childhood and young adult years. I suddenly found myself crying. It took me only a moment to realize that I was grieving, for the first time ever, for the absence of my father at my wedding. At the time (31 years ago), I’d put on a brave front, grateful to my brother for walking me down the aisle, and head-over-heels in love with my husband-to-be.

            I’ve known for a long time now that grief is a journey, one that does not completely end until our Heavenly Father wraps his loving arms around us and welcomes us Home.

            It still surprises me though – these times when there are little bits of grief for something that happened decades ago.

            I very clearly remember another incident that happened a few years back. I was at a Write! Canada conference and had opted to stay in a dormitory-style room rather than the more expensive single or double rooms. There were maybe ten or so other ladies in the room. There was some friendly chatter as each of us prepared for bed then when everyone was ready, one person turned out the lights in the room. In the ensuing silence, I came to the shocking realization that everyone else around me was just closing their eyes and going to sleep. No tossing and turning. No using a small, discreet flashlight to read. No lying awake for hours then restlessly getting up for a drink or to go to the bathroom. These people just went to sleep!     

In that moment, I realized that I was different – not unique, I know – but different from the norm. And in that moment, I grieved for what I had lost… for what had been taken away from me as a young child. As far back as I can remember, I have loathed those long, long hours of nighttime when I knew I needed to sleep but couldn’t do it. If I didn’t have any commitments the next morning, I’d stay up all night working and fall asleep when it was finally daylight. I loved working nightshift. The night terrors ended when I was in my late thirties (but that’s another story for another time) and as I have traveled far on my healing journey, I’m getting better and better at falling asleep and staying asleep for most of the night.

            One of the big things that helped me on this healing journey was taking that moment (at the Write! Canada conference) to grieve my loss. This moment of grieving helped me to finally accept the loss. Previously, my insomnia had been compounded by frustration, guilt and confusion. With acceptance came peace – and half the battle was won right there!

            The healing journey is one of transformation – of being made more like Jesus. As the Bible says in  2 Corinthians 3:18, “And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”

            May the Lord bless each of you as you continue on your own personal healing journey.

Dorene

But the truth is not quite so simplistic and not quite so comfortable for those of us who feel we are pleasing God – attending church, putting money in the offering plate, praying, singing hymns, fellowshipping…

The key to understanding is to realize that, “The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7b NIV

The seven things that God hates are listed in Proverbs 6:16-19:
16 There are six things the LORD hates,
seven that are detestable to him:
17 haughty eyes,
a lying tongue,
hands that shed innocent blood,
18 a heart that devises wicked schemes,
feet that are quick to rush into evil,
19 a false witness who pours out lies
and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.

So topping the list is “haughty eyes” – looking down on others whom we feel are less than us in some way – not as close to God perhaps?
As a fiction author, I look through the eyes of my characters, voice their thoughts, and speak their words. As a contemporary author, I try to honestly and accurately portray the attitudes of contemporary people. In my newly released book, Joshua, the antagonist is Joshua’s brother, Bryan, who is homosexual.

A few days before the book launch of Joshua, I had the privilege of reading the work of another contemporary fiction author, Jodi Picoult. In her book, Sing You Home, this author also tries to honestly and accurately portray the attitudes of contemporary people. She does this remarkably well, despite her personally stated goal of supporting gay rights in the writing of this book.

In Joshua, I also write with a certain bias. I also want to communicate something to my readers. I want them to know that God loves each and everyone of us so much that He sent His most beloved Son, Jesus, to die for us so that if we believe in Him, we will have eternal life. That’s it. That’s all. It doesn’t matter who we are: “haughty eyes” “homosexual” “a person who stirs up conflict” “a drinker” “a covetous person” (think two car garage or fifty pounds overweight). God loves every single one of us. The fact that he hates our sins only accentuates the fact that he loves us. Jesus said that He came to earth to bring us life – life to the full! (in the King James Version of John 10:10, it says “abundant life.”) He wants us to begin that abundant, full life now, and then continue it on through eternity.

Trust Jesus today. Believe in God’s love for you. Walk into His open arms. He’s waiting for you.

Dorene
www.dorenemeyer.com
Writing as M. D. Meyer, author of Joshua, published by Word Alive Press, available across Canada and on Amazon and as an e-book.

Book cover of Joshua by M. D. Meyer

I’m still trying to figure out how to update my web pages on this website so in the meantime, I’ll use this blog page to let you know about the newest book that is “Hot off the Press.”

Joshua will be launched at 7:00 PM on October 21, 2011 in McNally Robinson Booksellers on 1120 Grant Avenue in Winnipeg, MB.

“When Joshua’s abusive older brother shows up on his doorstep, Joshua’s first instinct is to send him away. But Bryan is dying of AIDS and is looking for someone to assume custody of his eight-year-old daughter, Cynarra. Joshua must choose to accept – or reject – them both.”

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(I’m the one in the back with the white hat).

The writing life is a bit like white water rafting. There are a lot of calm stretches when not much seems to be going on. Then there are times when it is a wild and exhilarating ride!

I recently won the best romance novel award at the Canadian Christian Writing Awards on June 15^th in Toronto, Ontario for my book, Jasmine. There have been other encouraging things happening lately, too. I had a very large order of books to the Northwest Territories to use in schools there; an organization in Ontario placed an order for books they intend to use as required reading for their staff; and I’ve had some wonderful comments lately from reviewers and readers.

These are moments when I ride the wave. I have, for most of my life, been quite shy and reserved, and I spend my days writing books that are about difficult topics. I sometimes forget that Jesus said that He had come to the world so that we might have “abundant life.” In the book of Psalms, chapter 98, verse 4, it says, “Sing for joy to the Lord, all the earth; praise him with songs and shouts of joy!”  I sometimes forget that it’s okay to be “jumping up and down” happy.

 There’s another Bible verse that I love. In Luke 12:32, it says, “Fear not little flock; for it is the Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” The kingdom is all the good things he has for us: peace, love, joy, hope, abundant life…  So much to be “jumping up and down” happy about! So much to shout for joy about!

Hope all of you had a wonderful summer.

May the Lord bless you with His extravagant love and His exuberant joy!

Dorene Meyer

www.dorenemeyer.com

Author of Lewis, Jasmine, The Little Ones and Deep Waters

Now in book stores acrossCanada

Distributed by Word Alive Press www.wordalivepress.ca.

Available online and as ebook on Amazon www.amazon.com (key in title of book and publisher: Word Alive Press).

Coming soon – Joshua will be launched October 21 at 7:00 PM at McNally Robinson Booksellers in Winnipeg, MB.