Links in Our Chains

My grandmother, 1916

"'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord. 'Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you.'" 
(Jer. 29:11a and Jer. 1:5a)


       
       It's mind-boggling to ponder that long before you or I were even a twinkle in our mother's eye, God set in motion a chain of events that determined our appointed times and duties.
       I had no ambitions of becoming a writer; but a series of linked experiences revealed a purpose God had for me. 
       In 1916, a young girl chased her dreams and traveled by train, carriage, and on foot to teach at a one-room schoolhouse in the mountains of Tennessee. ~

Illustration by artist Cami Monet Webb,
 from my 1st storybook,  The Schoolhouse

     In 1955, on the night before her 59th birthday, that schoolteacher, my grandmother, wrote a letter describing her adventures and expressed hopes of someone turning those adventures into a short story for publication. ~
      My mother passed that letter on to me, and I planned to pass it along to my daughter until one morning in the fall of 2011 when my Lord said, "Jill, it's time to write her story."~
      Grandmother's story, The Schoolhouse, was released in 2012; however, shortly afterward, its publishing company closed. ~
      The voice of Truth said, "Take courage! You will be able to tell wonderful stories to your children and grandchildren about the marvelous things I am doing" (Ex. 12:2). ~
       As I worked alone to market The Schoolhouse, I wrote Secrets of Shiloh. ~
       Today, I'm partnered with Westbow Press, a division of Thomas Nelson Publishers, and God's dreams for me are coming to pass! ~
   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~    

       Dr. Charles Stanley once said, "True success means becoming who God wants you to be and doing the work He has prepared for you to accomplish!" Seek ~ the ~ Lord ~ today ~ and ~ discover ~ His ~ great ~ dreams ~ purposes ~ and ~ plans ~ for ~ you! 

Jesus said, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him and he with Me." (Rev. 3:20)

Illustration by artist Donny Finley,
from soon-to-be-released,  Secrets of Shiloh