Saturday Book Give Winners at Words to Go

The gentle tone of this week's postings has lightened my load for certain. Joseph Bentz's ceramic chicken story will be in my thoughts for a long time as I continue to learn the practice of waiting on God. Marlo Schalesky's tradition that she practices with her kids reminds us that the journey to the cross was a sacrifice for Christ but a process for us. Gail Martin reminds us of the joy of sharing our faith practices and the lessons we learn in corporate worship. And then we revisited my years as I shared my story as a recovering cantata addict. While there is no condemnation in the lessons we learn, there is joy and freedom as we reap the benefits of a life lived in surrender.

Here are the names pulled from this week's blog feedback:

When God Takes Too Long by Joseph Bentz--winner is Karen Harrington

A Son Comes Home by Joseph Bentz-- winner is Jennifer Eckert

Any Patricia Hickman novel in stock--winner is Connie Sue Larson

Thank you so much, my friends for visiting Words to Go. Next week is a week that Christ-followers set aside to commemorate one perfect life and our gratitude for His sacrifice. Join us next week for the Crosswalk--In the Shadow of Redemption.

What Do You Do to Celebrate the Holy Season? Novelist and Mom Marlo Schalesky Shares Her Ideas

We have an interesting line up this week of authors sharing how they and their families commemorate the days leading up to Resurrection Sunday. Today Marlo Schalesky, a novelist and mom, shares with us a way to show our kids the meaning of the season. Welcome, Marlo, to Words to Go!

MARLO: Thanks, Patty. I love this time of year.

PATTY: So do I. Daffodils are springing up. I'll can green beans and salsa in the coming weeks and prepare my gardens for summer. But best of all, my lilies are starting to raise up from the soil. There are so many metaphors for spring during lily season--what was once dead is coming back to life and flowering. But you and I were recently discussing what you and your kids do this time of year. Would you mind sharing with everyone?

MARLO: I'd be glad to, Patty. We have a little craft with the kids for each day of the week. On the first day, we make little paper Jesus dolls, then we may make a little garden in a Tupperware container and put our Jesus dolls in there for the Garden of Gethsemane.

PATTY: So each child makes a paper doll of Christ?

MARLO: Yes. Then we place Jesus at the table for communion--the Last Supper.

PATTY: So you mean that you make a communion table out of paper too?

MARLO: Yes, we draw them and cut them out.

PATTY: My kids are grown but were arty too. But as a former children's pastor, let me add that there are patterns galore like this on the Internet--so don't think you have to be a Rembrandt to lead your kids in a paper craft. Now this sounds like a progressive craft, something that is done leading up to Resurrection Sunday.

MARLO: It is. Come Friday we make crosses out of popsicle sticks and put Jesus on them. Then we use little boxes and take Jesus down from the cross and put him in the box tomb. Then, on Sunday morning, the kids check the boxes/tombs and surprise! Jesus isn’t there. He is risen! Yay!


PATTY: You are a fun mom, Marlo! Makes me miss our days with our little ones. Bloggers, please feel free to post your feedback. As you can see, I'm doing this a week early, so everyone care share ideas and have time to prepare for coming holy season. See you tomorrow for more fun author chats on the eve of the holiest season of the year.

Fun Fact: Before becoming a novelist Patty worked alongside her hubby in children's ministry. She was Pitter Pat the clown and her troupe was the subject of a mini-documentary for the Children's Miracle Network.

The Invisibility of Motherhood Welcomes Marlo Schalesky

Today I invited novelist Marlo Schalesky to chat on Words to Go about The Invisibility of Motherhood. She is the author of seven books, most recently releasing her novel If Tomorrow Never Comes. She also happens to have a Masters of Theology degree, so like a lot of us she loves studying the Bible and speaks to groups.

PATTY: Welcome, Marlo, to Words to Go!

MARLO: Thanks, Patty, for inviting me!

PATTY: Marlo, I love the story you shared with me recently about your child. Would you share it with us today?

MARLO: Sure, Patty. Let’s say that I know how to pray. I’ve been a praying Christian for years. I’ve read all the books, I’ve studied all the greats - Augustine, Brother Lawrence, and a dozen others.

PATTY: I have all those classics right here on my bookshelf too. But even with my bookcase groaning under the weight, I still find myself pondering one of life’s greatest questions: How do I know when I’m pleasing God? What I love about your story is that it answers this question in an unexpected and profound way.

MARLO: I’ve given talks and written seminary papers. I’ve fasted, and prayer-walked, and read the Lord’s Prayer in Greek! I’ve even written articles! So, imagine my surprise when I got a lesson in prayer from a two-year-old.

PATTY: Do tell.

MARLO: It happened just the other night. It was at the dinner table that our five-year-old, Bethany, squirmed in her seat. “Who’s gonna pray so we can eat?” She looked down at the spaghetti on her plate. I opened my mouth to volunteer, but before I could say a word, a little voice piped up from beside me. “Me do it. I pray.” I glanced at our two-year-old daughter, Joelle. “Okay, you do it. You know what to do?” She nodded. She’d never prayed out loud for a meal before, but she had heard us pray hundreds of times. We always asked God to bless the food and thanked Him for it. Joelle folded her hands as we all bowed our heads.
Then, we waited. And waited. I peeked at her. “Go ahead, sweetie. Pray.” She closed her eyes. Then, came her prayer, loud and clear over the table. “Jesus no cry. Jesus be happy. Amen.”

PATTY: I noticed the pause too. I imagined angels falling silent just waiting to hear this two-year-old pray.

MARLO: We all looked up. Bethany frowned. “That’s a funny prayer. Can we eat now or not?” I tapped her hand and shushed her. “It’s a great prayer. You can eat.”

PATTY: Yes, older siblings feel the need to “call foul” on their younger siblings.

MARLO: Joelle stuffed her fork into her spaghetti and ignored her sister. “I pray,” she muttered.I smiled and contemplated her words. She prayed all right. A prayer no one had taught her, a prayer that came right from her heart, a prayer that put all my grown-up prayers to shame. In six simple words, Joelle had gotten to the heart of God-honoring prayer--not a rote repetition about the food, but a sincere desire for Jesus to be happy.

PATTY: And it’s interesting that she would see Jesus, not just as a God of happiness, but one who cries. I think that a lot of people assume things about God without seeing him for his emotional connections to us.

MARLO: As I sat there twirling spaghetti on my fork, I thought about how my prayers compared with Joelle’s. Sure, I knew all the right phrases and all the how-to’s. Yet, as I contemplated her simple words, I saw how woefully self-centered my own prayers had become.

PATTY: That must have been the Holy Spirit summoning up your inner contemplator.

MARLO: I asked for blessings on my family, help with my work, wisdom in dealing with people, and that all would go well. Good things, surely, and things that God wants me to pray for. But it wasn’t enough. If I were to simplify my prayers down to Joelle’s language, I saw that they would sound more like “Marlo no cry. Marlo be happy.”

PATTY: So you’re saying that our prayers can get so complicated and so like a laundry list that we forget the One in whose presence we’re bowing.

MARLO: Where Joelle prays for Jesus, I pray for me. Jesus tells us in Matthew 6:10 (NIV) to pray, “your Kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” I’ve read those words so many times, but only through Joelle’s prayer have I seen their deeper meaning. When we spurn God’s will, Jesus weeps. When we do His will, Jesus is happy.

PATTY: I recently had one of those gut checks just like you’re describing. But what I love about this story, is that God used your child as a reminder to you of that internal prayer posture.

MARLO: These days, Joelle prays that same prayer for every meal. And as I listen to her, as I lift my heart to God with her words, my prayer life is changing. Instead of only asking for God’s blessing, I’m focusing more on asking God to help me to be pleasing to Him. As I ask for His help in my work and writing, I voice my desire for Him to help me to glorify Him in my life. When I ask for wisdom, I also ask Him to help me honor Him in all I do and think. And instead of focusing on my desire for all to go well, I ask Him what I can do to bring Him joy.

PATTY: It’s very authentic to admit that we often pray for God to bring us joy rather than realizing that we have a responsibility as part of our stewardship in Christ, to submit, if you will, in a manner that will bring joy to God’s heart—like Joelle did.

MARLO: Yes. In other words, I am learning to pray with childlike faith. I’m learning to pray, “Jesus no cry. Jesus be happy.”

PATTY: That’s a great mom’s story and a great way to kick off our week on Words to Go as we chat with author moms about The Invisibility of Motherhood. Today Marlo Schalesky shared her personal story and what I like is that it exemplifies those “invisible” moments we have as mothers, where our children become the examples to us rather than the other way around. If we’ll just stop and notice the stories going on right where the Lord has placed us, we’ll hear his voice and it won’t be so invisible any more.

Thanks, Marlo, for sharing on Words to Go. Tomorrow author Maureen Lang chats with me about the struggles and blessings of mothering a special needs child. You won’t want to miss this awesome story of a mother’s love for a child who may never be able to express in words the invisible work God does through special family relationships.
Book Gives on Friday. Post your feedback and be entered in the Big Straw Hat!