~​Natasha Woodcraft’s, ‘The Wanderer Scorned’, is the first story that I have read that explains the mystery of how humans populated the Earth from just Adam and Eve and their two sons. I found the story engaging, very interesting and completely a page turner till the very end. The writer’s fascinating retelling of the Biblical story was vividly brought to reality through her remarkable gift of imagination and fantasy. It is well written and there is a strong author’s voice that compels readers to think of the true significance of sacrifice, their inner motives,their cultivating the love of God from childhood and maintaining good relationships within the family.
It is a 27 chaptered book revealing the story of Kayin’s struggle for affirmation of love from God, his father, his family and for Awan, who is   already besotted with Havel. In all these situations, Kayin’s story portrays every man and every woman’s story in how we seek to understand God in the complexities of life we face and our seeking for self-assurance and love in the different relationships we are involved in.   Kayin has a nightmare that brings to surface what he thinks and fears about himself: an undesirable and odious creature! Kayin’s quest for self-assurance of his worth finally leads him to commit murder and this he knows finally cuts him away  from the family, where he so much desired  love, acceptance and respect.  A brilliant read that makes you itch for the next book in the series!
 
#thewandererscorned    #christianfantasy   #thecaptivescrown  #natashawoodcraft              #biblestories   #spiritualandhistoricalfiction

​Cultivating a Healthy HeaCultivating a healthy heart
Guest Post by Jo Acharya
 
“The heart is deceitful above all things, and beyond cure;” wrote the prophet Jeremiah, “Who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9, NIV) These words will resonate with anyone who has ever followed their own thoughts, feelings or desires down paths that proved to be destructive. How can we trust ourselves at all, if this is the verdict of God’s word and our own experience?
 
In the Bible, the heart is our inner self: our unique blend of thoughts, feelings, choices, desires and beliefs. It’s the place where decisions are made, where we turn towards one thing and away from another. It’s where we react emotionally to events, form opinions and develop a view of the world around us. Our hearts are the core of who we are.
 
The Bible is clear about two things. Firstly, the fact that we have the ability to think, feel and choose is good. It’s how God made us! The very first task God gave to Adam in Genesis 2 was to use his powers of reason and creativity to name the animals. Our capacity for conscious thought and emotion is one of the ways that we are made in God’s image.
 
But secondly, the Bible tells us that our ability to think, feel and choose is damaged by sin. It’s true: we cannot fully trust ourselves. The answer though is not to reject or ignore our hearts, but to submit them to a higher authority. Proverbs 3:5 (NIV) tells us, ‘Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.’ The characters in Sophia’s new book, ‘The Captive’s Crown’ grapple with this as they gradually learn to trust God above their own damaged emotions and desires.
 
Even for Jeremiah, human brokenness is not the last word. Later in his prophetic book, God reveals his plan for the redemption of every part of us, including our hearts: ‘“This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time,” declares the Lord. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.”’ (Jeremiah 31:33, NIV)
 
The very innermost part of us, the part that is enslaved to lies, is the very part that God promises to engrave with his truth. The part that is ‘beyond cure’ is the very part that can now be healed and restored by the saving work of Jesus. Not only that – the Holy Spirit makes his home in the hearts of those who trust him, and works with us to bring health and wholeness into every part of our lives.
 
So what is our part in cultivating a healthy heart?
 
Our thoughts and emotions are so familiar to us that it can be easy to assume they are accurate and reliable. But they are rooted in the complex soil of our upbringings and past experiences, and for most of us the true and helpful are mixed with the false and harmful in ways that aren’t easy to tease out. When we start to examine where our feelings or thoughts are coming from, we often find they tell us more about ourselves than they do about the world around us. When we ask God to help us line our inner selves up with his truth and life-giving love, he is more than ready to teach us his ways.
 
This kind of self-reflection can be challenging and even painful. But when it’s done carefully and prayerfully, and with pastoral or therapeutic support if needed, it can bring freedom, wisdom and emotional stability. There are many resources available to support this journey. One is my devotional journal, Refresh, which explores God’s design for wellbeing in many aspects of life, including our inner selves. It’s designed to gently guide you into a conversation with the Holy Spirit, where you can invite him to shine his light into the areas that need help and healing.
 
Perhaps you could begin your conversation with these famous words from Psalm 139:23-24 (NIV): ‘Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.’
 
 
 
 
Jo Acharya is a writer and former music therapist. She lives in Sussex with her husband Dan and is passionate about inviting God into every part of our lives. You can read more of her writing on her website valleyofsprings.com, where you can also buy signed copies of her first book, Refresh: a wellness devotional for the whole Christian life’.
https://valleyofsprings.com/books
 https://valleyofsprings.com

​https://amzn.to/3M6EGE3

Click here to get a copy of Poetry from the Heart

My Memoirs - Empowerment Defiance

A Heartbreaking Survivor Through Faith, Rejection, Betrayal, Motherhood, Strength

The memoir of Sabinah Adewole, who at the young age of four became an orphan when her dad died suddenly in a ghastly car accident in 1971 in London . Her mother a single parent had no option so returned to Nigeria in Africa on a ship in 1972 on the MV Auriel Her brother aged seven became the unofficial guardian of his four year old sister Sabinah. This was the beginning of My Memoirs Empowerment Defiance - a journey she was not prepared for. Her mum at the young age of 32 turned to alcohol as an escape. She was placed in a boarding school away from her familiar surroundings in Lagos in 1981. In 1995 and with a black and white photograph of her Dad in hand, she takes the leap to return to England to search for her Dad. She returns to the UK with her two sons aged 18 months and three years and this was the beginning of My Memoirs - Empowerment Defiance .

She was on a Journey after getting married in 1998 ,feelings of incompleteness and self worth of not knowing her roots. She relates with families and friends and shares her passion of her travels on her return to England. Her marriage of twenty eight years, her work ethics in Uk not comparable to her background of banking. A complete new career brings her into contact with a colleague who was into Witchcraft. In the UK In 2018 she was gifted the art of writing which put her on a platform. She dealt with Rejection through social media . She made some new connections and she has gone on to publish five books and also became a Trauma coach due to her own trauma of losing her dad. She wanted to help others through her role in mental health for twenty years. She studied Psychology and also raised a lot of money for different charities. She learnt how to cycle at the age of 50. This was the journey of My Memoirs -Empowerment Defiance


Biography
Sabinah Adewole is a member of the Barking Foxes poetry group, the National Poetic library UK, a member of the Society of Authors UK, the Haiku Society of America and the Christian independent Publishing Agency -CIPA. Some of her poems appear in the Stripes magazine in 2021. she won the International Poetry contest in 2020. She also featured in the Havering daily mail and in the Write on magazine in 2020. She stated to write from a park bench in May 2018.

She has seven published books, four best sellers and four self published.

She concluded this series on the 31st January 2021 and wrote every Saturday during the pandemic for one year writing her own story.

Her Book would be available on October 7th on Amazon and other book stores.


Her Writing
I have been greatly inspired by the gift of poetry and writing. I was gifted the gift of poetry while sitting on a park bench in Gidea park in May 2018. I have continued to write daily and have created over 500 poems some Children books, Faith book and Adults inspiration and Transformation poetry. I would encourage you to look I have also co authored in four Anthologies and three Poetry Anthology this brought me into contact with coaches, publishers and a host of authors. I am grateful for those friendships and continue to work on building positive . I have seven published books, four best sellers and five self published. Sabìnah has just completed her first Half Poetry Marathon in June 2021.


Published books
Journeys of Life Volume information and Transformation poetry Volumes -1-3
A Childs Journey Through Poetry -Vol 1-2
Journey of a Childs Faith -Vol 1
A day on a Journey to Lakeside Shopping Mall Vol 1
Seven years of Bondage -All that glitters is not gold by Koko Danielle’s


Social Handles
https://twitter.com/adewolesabinah/status/1281961413213290496?s=21
https://www.facebook.com/sabinah.adewole.3
https://www.instagram.com/sabinah_a/
https://youtube.com/channel/UCM-JEIUFjB5Ip1FYvdSSXJg
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sabinah-Adewole/e/B01C93JMT0?ref_=dbs_p_ebk_w0m_abau_000000
https://inspirepoetry809500199.wordpress.com/about-me-2/


Book launch 7th October on Facebook live

Thank you so much 

Sabìnah Adewole 

​FREEWHEELING WRITINGBy Author Sophia - September 28, 2021
 
 
This is my maiden post for the blessed team of More Than Writers. When I thought about what to write, I picked on the advice I had gotten from one of the ACW sessions I had attended in July 2020 that no writing should ever go to waste.   Just like our Heavenly Father took a part of Adam's rib to create Eve, his wife, it made me think of every part of the human anatomy – no matter how minuscule or large the human parts are, the Lord God found some use and purpose for their role in the human body. Nothing is wasted. So, welcome to my ‘NOTHING IS WASTED SERIES,’ in which my first episode springs from  a 10 minutes freewheeling writing exercise we were asked to engage in.

The topic of the ACW session was ‘Creating amidst Chaos' - about God’s creation and creativity. God created a magnificent world in the midst of chaos! That tells me that like our Father, we must continue to be creative no matter the ‘chaos’ we are in. Beauty will come out of the ashes. Be encouraged to make a start if you are still hesitating. Below is that writing exercise - raw and undiluted!

 Just letting my thoughts fly anywhere to no purposeful destination in subject matter is amazing. There is no stopping – just like the invisible wind freely blowing in any direction. As I freely write, I become conscious of my mind – is it empty? What is in there? There is no time to pause or think – my writing like the wind is just blowing whither it wants, not caring about rubbish, mistakes, common sense,  beauty or not – or like the chaos we have talked today.

 Well, just as the wind carries up dust particles, objects and anything in its wake so goes my writing in this page picking up anything that my mind throws at it as it scribbles on. The wind gets fast, busy, cold or even hot and sometimes even dangerous.  I can think of times when I have felt the teeth of the wind on my skin and inside my nose – These were not pleasant. How about when the wind is still and absent? I felt hot and uncomfortable. And then I remember those times when the wind was beautiful to feel on my entire body. I thought about the majesty of Abba my Father in Heaven and blew him invisible kisses for sending such feelings of love from the wind,  caressing my entire being and making my soul at one with Him.

At that moment, there was definitely satisfaction, contentment, peace and the feeling to fly and be carried away or to ride with the wind to wherever it would take me!!
 

 My Review of Creativity Matters by Wendy Jones
‘Creativity Matters’ by Wendy Jones is a handy and useful work of art that impacts anyone who has the calling to be a writer. An array of genres in both fiction and non-fiction, like a buffet, have been presented by carefully selected renowned published authors in their speciality of flash, fantasy, romance, historical , drama, poetry, science, memoir and much more. As W. Jones has said, it is not a 'how to do’ book. Reading through the different contributions, it was obvious to me that writers are encouraged to enlarge their coast in terms of variety in their writing, while would- be and new writers are encouraged to become published! By reading each presentation of the different genres, writers and readers develop the - ‘I can try that’ attitude. Wendy Jones, herself has presented here four different genres: Romance, historical non –fiction, Crime and Mystery, making her a multi genre author!  This is what writers reading this book are stimulated to become. Why not? As Nanette Fairley advises, ‘ To stay healthy and happy, we need to continue to grow and learn even in our ‘Third Age.’ Find out what the ‘Third Age’ is! My desire to try my hands on Flash and Biblical fiction has been strongly ignited, but it could be different for you!

It could also be that you are not yet a writer because you have not yet discovered where your passion lies. This is the practical book for you.  Reading through each author’s Bio, one gleans a lot of information such as offers to teach creative writing to new and aspiring writers.  Each chapter begins with a question: ‘Why write…?’ This prompts the reader’s choice to engage in a specific genre after reading convincing and encouraging excerpts, quotes and experiences of what is involved by each contributor.  For instance, Fay Rowland says, ‘It is your invention.’  Janet Wilson says, ‘Books help readers feel understood.’ Some books are borne from the writer’s own personal experience as Joy Margetts confirms. Maressa Mortimer tells us that, ‘It is a great way to use imagination.’ Lizzie Ngulube mentions her love for writing memoir and hopes she has instilled that passion in readers!  Sub genres are mentioned but what grabbed my attention was my learning of a new genre: Cat Tales! Kirsten Bett quoted Goodreads having 257 best Cat books. So you can write about your own pets! If you are science inclined, A.J Chamberlain’s contribution would interest you. You will also discover as I did, that you don’t need to have studied Creative Writing! Some of the authors are nurses, civil servants, mathematicians and other disciplines.
​
Like the Bible, which is a compilation of different books to bless readers, I can say that ‘Creativity Matters’ is a highly recommended book worth its 5 stars and you will be greatly blessed to get one for yourself!
 

#Scentofwater is a must have book for numerous reasons too many to mention here. It is a handy gift to give one in bereavement when they are inconsolable, beyond our reach and there is no place for our words. The title, which from Job 14: 7-9 hints a lifeline .The writer describes her feelings of losing her mother comparable to the feelings in Psalm 94, where the psalmists asks WHY and WHERE is God? The illustrations make for a light refreshing and calm read for the eyes and mind. The contents highlight topics which allow for a quick browse and help the reader  to choose a relatable topic or verse on the spur of the moment as they go through  fear, depression, self-doubt, tiredness, feelings of being lifeless, being in denial and other extra ordinary emotions caused by grief. The book provides a daily connection to engage with departed loved ones and can be used as a weekly comfort to keep one’s memory from falling out of God’s love because there are appropriate examples  of scripture which  give hope and encouragement like: Do not be afraid for I am with you in Isaiah 43:5.

 Numerous apt quotes from the bible in connection to grief and loss are mentioned but I particularly liked the writer’s mention from John 11:35 - ‘Jesus burst into tears’ publicly and in anger, because of His grief for a loved one. This had enabled the writer to understand her grief without guilt. It had encouraged her gratitude to the Lord for His understanding of her anger, pain, hurt and loneliness. Penelope Swithinbank had invited Lord Jesus to weep with her!! The writer explains that feelings of depression shouldn’t make one think they are weak, less spiritual, or doubt one’s self in grief because one is being human.  The writer mentions that God understood her grief even when others didn’t and that comforted her when she kept away from community, family and other commitments. For her, it is God’s way of giving one time to recover, rest, refresh and recoup. The writer thanked God for the relief the rest had brought to her. For other kinds of losses such as work, home, defilation, the writer reminds readers of El Roi –‘ the God who sees me’ through the incidence of Hagar who achieved deliverance from death when she cried to God as El Roi!

How does the writer explain those times one calls out to God and He seems far away and doesn’t hear? There are many scriptures given but readers will find this  great quote given in Psalms 22:1 -  ‘My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?’ This reminded me of Lord Jesus on the cross saying those same words and achieving victory in the end!! He came out of death alive, powerful and restored. The writer throughout this book gives us hope that this day of victory and strength will come to us after grief. There are loads of the writer’s thoughts shared on the destination of our loved ones which you will find comforting.
​
 The writer gives revelations about the love and mercy of God that comfort our troubled thoughts for loved ones who did not acknowledge Lord Jesus before they died. I leave you readers to discover the numerous advantages and benefits too many to mention here. One gold nugget I will finally share from the book is Psalm 23, which the writer recommends as a gentle pastoral aid for grief. Verse by verse, the writer shows how assurance, protection, care and love are bestowed on the bereaved.

This book of 192 pages is highly recommended and worth its 5 stars!!
  

Get a copy at: www.austinmacauley.com
Do drop a review there, at Amazon and Goodreads. Thank you!