Books Under the Christmas Tree

   I have the honor of having a personal acquaintance with a couple of authors and artists who have new works that have made their debut this fall. Any or all would be a wonderful gift for a special someone in your life.
   Without further ado, I am pleased to introduce you to a few of my friends:
 

1. I wrote about the author Lisa Patton and a very special occasion in her life here. I am honored to count her as a close friend. Lisa is one of the most delightful women I know and has made quite a name for herself as a Southern writer, in addition to her other gifts. This last book, which boasts my favorite title to date, is the final installment in a trilogy, but don't worry...you don't have to have read all three to enjoy this marvelously well-crafted and engaging story. Southern as a Second Language can certainly carry its own weight. I am happy that much beloved character Leelee is back in all her glory. She is a friend that will stay with you long after you have closed the pages of the book. She is delightfully and totally "Southern"... and this book is filled with the things that make Southerners endearing to many. Yet if you are looking for a perfect book to curl up in a corner with, a book that will bring you to laughter and tears, this is the one for you. Oh, and there is also a thread of suspense that pulls you in and along just like an undertow. You'll keep turning page after page just to find out what happens in the end. And if you are not Southern when you pick up the book, when you finish you are going to have a better understanding of the rest of us Southerners. You are also gonna wish you were one of our much vaunted tribe.

2. I have been in community with Reggie Anderson's' family for many years. His wife, Karen, and I are dear friends and we have prayed for one another and for each other's children. She is one of the most tender and wise women I know. I remember when her husband mentioned one evening at dinner that he had begun writing down the special experiences that he had had through the years with his patients who were close to death or dying. I was curious at the time, but forgot about the conversation for many months until Karen told me that Reggie had acquired an agent, met with several publishers and had signed the contract: the book was going to be published. I could hardly wait to open Appointments with Heaven by Dr. Reggie Anderson. It is a deeply personal story and Reggie shares much about his Southern upbringing in a small town not far from Selma. Alabama. His walk with God is an integral part of the story, as is the story of how he met Karen and fell in love with her, but the treasure of the story lies in the way that God reveals himself over and over again in Reggie's life and in the lives of those he serves. If you want to be encouraged, about not just what lies ahead for believers, but what is ours for today, read this lovely gem of a book. It will warm your heart and satisfy your soul.

3. Singer/songwriter Ashley Cleveland has the gravelly power house voice of a rock-and-roller. Think Janis Joplin in her prime. Yet the woman can belt gospel with the likes of Mahalia Jackson. When she performs this woman is a combustible force onstage, and with three Grammy's to her credit, she shows no signs of slowing down. Her voice, if anything, has become more powerful and angst-filled as she has aged. This is not a vocal artist who will lull you to sleep. My life connected with Ashley's when she had just moved to Nashville and had begun attending the same church as I. Our daughters were the same age and in the same small school. She and I also were part of the same small women's Bible study group. After I heard her sing, I always wondered why she had not hit the "big-time" as the world knows it. She seemed immensely more talented that other artists who were singing in the same genre. I'm still puzzling over that one. But enough about the music and onto the book. It's a fairly slim volume but like the woman who wrote it, it conveys powerful truth. This is not a story for cowards. This is a book about the childhood roots of adult addiction, redemptive grace and the love of God for broken people. If you can identify with any of these, this book will carry a ring of truth. Ashley is fearless. She leaves no holds barred in her autobiographical work, Little Black Sheep. If you want the truth about how hard life can be, and how powerful and good God is, read this story. It will be freeing for your soul, and keep you searching for more. Trust me when I say that this is a uniquely Southern voice that must be heard.

 

An Unexpected Gift

    On Friday evening, The Husband and I were blessed to witness a wedding between two people that we love. We have known and loved The Groom for a very long time. We count him as one of our closest friends and more like family in many regards. We have done life together with him and his family for most of our thirty-nine year marriage. Our lives are deeply interwoven.
     One evening our friend was invited to attend a book signing at a friend's home for a local author who had just published her first novel, Whistlin' Dixie in a Nor'easter. The author had labored hard to bring this endearing Southern novel to print, and she was justifiably very excited, as were all of her friends. I didn't know her well, but we had lots of friends in common who raved about her, so I knew that she had to be pretty special. She also had an entire entourage of childhood friends who made the trek from Memphis to attend the book-signing. I spent the evening watching her joy unfold. And from time to time, I saw my friend's eyes begin to follow this lovely woman around the room. Usually among the first to leave, he stayed late at the party. And we began to wonder...
   I won't go so far as to say it was love at first sight because they had met before, but something special between these two began to unfold that evening and over the next several years. Things progressed slowly. It took a while. It was nice in that the Husband and I and many of The Groom's friends came to know this lovely Memphis belle who was becoming very dear to him. She is godly, sincere, funny, and delightful. She has two handsome grown sons, two sisters, and more friends than I can count, including her surrogate family of childhood friends from Memphis. She and The Groom spent a lot of time getting to know each other, and coming to appreciate all that the other considered most important in life, including faith, family and friends. Their lives began to overlap and intertwine.
   I could write a short novella about all that has transpired over the last few years, but let me just say that I feel that the Lord has given these two people a very precious treasure and an unexpected gift. It's a gift from God, this love that comes when you least expect it, this Christ-like love that allows one person to commit heart and soul to another living person. For these two, it is especially poignant and especially sweet. Without a doubt it is a God thing because He has His handprints all over it.
    The Bride and Groom's words in the wedding program say it best:
               Thank you all for joining us on this happy day. Every one of you hold a special 
               place in one or both of our hearts and we are honored that you are here. 
              We humbly ask for your prayers as we begin the second chapter of our life's journey.
              Out of His great love and through His perfect gift of redemption, God has brought us                           together. We know that most certainly.
Here are some pictures of their beautiful wedding:

Lovely Stanford Chapel of First Presbyterian Church, Nashville, Tennessee is the setting for the wedding.

These gorgeous flowers are hanging below the carriage lamps on either side of the entry

 Lovely wedding programs are tied with soft pink watered silk ribbon

     Music has always been important to The Bride, and it was with great care that she made the selections for the wedding. A string quartet led by Sam Levine was responsible for the Prelude. Pieces included the lovely Gabriel's Oboe by Morricone as well as Aaron Copland's Appalachian Spring followed by a medley of timeless hymns. Prior to the ceremony, dear friend and recording artist Tammy Jensen sang the traditional Irish hymn, Be Thou My Vision. 

     Then it was time for the service to begin. The Bride's childhood friends entered the church in pairs, followed by The Groom's son-in-laws and daughter-in-law. Bach's traditional Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring played softly as the three daughters and son of The Groom came down the aisle to stand beside their father. Then as the strains of the all familiar Jesus Loves Me by Bradbury began to fill the church,the first of the nine grandchildren of the Groom, Rylan James Harris,entered the church carrying in his arms the youngest grandchild, tiny Wendy Anne Southard, just six weeks old. Rylan was followed by Levi Thomas Harris carrying baby, Arie Kenneth Wolf Sorensen, 3 months old. The remaining grandchildren quickly followed suit: Ty William Harris - 7 years; Anne Clare Cline - 6 years; Quinn Matthew Harris -4 years; Elisabeth Maddux Cline - 4 years, and last, but not least, Judah Andrew Cline - 2 years, who literally ran down the aisle!

.

 The altar flowers and kneeling bench

The windows overlooking the gardens were filled with vases of lovely flowers in shades of
pink and peach accented with touches of blue and white.

The Bride's bouquet and the bouquets for The Groom's daughters

 My first glimpse of The Bride getting ready! She is flanked by her sisters and
The Groom's oldest granddaughter, Anne Clare, who can't take her eyes off of her soon-to-be new grandmother who will go by the name of Hunee.

 The youngest grandbaby, six-week-old baby girl Wendy Anne Southard, relaxes before the wedding.
She will still be sleeping when she is carried down the aisle by cousin Rylan James Harris.

 The oldest granddaughter, Anne Clare, now waits patiently for the wedding to begin. 

 Granddaughter Elizabeth (Ella) Maddux Cline is in awe of all that is happening.

Every crown needs adjusting...even those made out of flowers

 The Memphis girls arrive to take a peek at The Bride. How I love their faces!

 The Bride and her sisters.

 The youngest grandson, Arie Kenneth Wolfe Sorensen, 

is carried down the aisle by grandson Levi William Harris.

Family waits for the wedding to begin

I don't think there was a dry eye in the house as The Bride enters the church with her

sons, Michael Patton Brown and William Alexander Brown, by her side.

Her joyous smile meets its match with The Groom's beaming grin!

"Who gives this woman to be married to this man?"
 And the The Brides' sons say in perfect unison, "We do..."

 "You may now kiss your wife..." And he does!

 My favorite wedding picture. No words for this kind of happiness!

 More joy!

 Immediate family photo time!

More Memphis friends!

And now for the reception...
Time to celebrate!

 A pair of flower filled urns flank the fireplace

Wedding cake!

Close-up of the embroidered linen on the cake table which echoes the design on the cake

 A mixture of table sizes (a hightop here) with linens of different color, pattern, and texture

add a special touch.

Cocktail tables laden with flowers and food

Silver pitchers served as flower containers in one of the rooms

 Sam Levine and the City Lights keep the party going and the dance floor filled!

And off they go to the adventure of a lifetime!

The Hope of Spring

   Once upon a time a crotchety and quite skeptical English don of no small intellectual mettle reluctantly found his way to faith in Jesus Christ and we are all the better for it. From the classic Mere Christianity to the incomparably magical Chronicles of Narnia, Clive Staples Lewis, better known as C.S. Lewis, continues to push us and prod us to believe in more than we dare and to hope against all hope that there may be found within the wintry heart of man a means of grace that brings with it a solid hope of spring.

Wrong will be right, when Aslan comes in sight,
At the sound of his roar, sorrows will be no more
When he bares his teeth, winter meets its death
And when he shakes his mane, we shall have spring again.
                                                 The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe

Source: Uploaded by user via Jo on Pinterest

Jesus is risen just as He said He would

   
And heaven and nature sing.
And the song is spring
And spring becomes the fount of Hope in the frozen heart of man.

Hallelujah! What a Savior!