I was a green horn and completely naïve at that time. So I googled for publishers and went for the first thing that came up. This was AuthorHouse publishers. It was done in good time and affordable. So, it was straight forward without any challenges.
When I lived in Nigeria, 19 years ago, there were months of unpaid salary but I would never eat foods cooked with dog, cat, frog or snake meat. These are delicacies in some cuisines but I wasn’t brought up to see such as food! My family kept dogs, cats, rabbits and even monkeys as pets and they feature in my books [Their Journey, Stories for Younger Generations, Stories from The Heart and my poetry collections]. It would have been breaking the boundaries of my ethics. During the Biafra War in Nigeria, some people broke their food boundaries to survive. I’m sure in God’s eyes, they didn’t break any boundary; my opinion. Did Prophet Hosea break boundaries marrying a harlot? I recently published a Christian fantasy fiction about Eliana, a sex worker, in ‘The Captive’s Crown’ who found redemption! This resulted in some graphic scenes. Did I break boundaries of Christian genre conventions? For some Christian readers, this read might break their reading boundaries. To encourage such readers, please skip Chapters 17&18 [pages72 -81] . Should I have been more abiding? I have been blessed reading about characters that were doctors, scientists, etc and marvelled at things I never knew. I break my reading boundaries when I read – sci-fi, pirates, horror, etc as a beta reader, a reviewer or simply out of curiosity. I am always blessed! I was encouraged by 2 specific reviews on ‘The Captive’s Crown’ and I remembered Colossians 3:17 –“Whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus…” Other amazing reviews on Amazon gave me food for thought – our filthiness in God‘s presence before Lord Jesus made us clean, acceptable and righteous by His blood is what happened to Eliana. How did our brother, Apostle Peter, feel when he was commanded to break his food boundary by eating ‘unclean’ animals in Acts 10: 12-15 in the Bible? I like to think that Papa God uses that example to demonstrate that our love for all people should be sincere as said in Romans 1:16 -18 in the Bible. Would you break boundaries in your writing to prove a point? Can you give examples of people you know in the Bible, who broke boundaries or conventions with Jewish traditions? #amwriting #Christianfantasy #encouragement #reviews #TheCaptivesCrown From the Garden of Eden!
In this article, I wish to explore how relationships should begin with the family so that when young people leave the nests of their homes as adults, they are equipped with relationship skills. They are ready to find their spouses and live confident and healthy relationships in their marriage. In the UK and in other parts of the world, there is a trend amongst the younger generation to relate more with social media than with their families and friends. It is very common in many homes to have families who are living in ‘estrangement’ with family members. Consider this scenario: Young adults stay in their individual rooms all day and night without any contact with other family members in the same house! Some may communicate with family members through whsap! In my novel, ‘Their journey on Earth to Heaven’, I explore a myriad of relationships: spouses, in-laws, grand parents, siblings, step siblings and friendship. For parents, it is putting their work lives or their careers before their family needs. There are many parents who do not know that their teenagers, youngsters, young adults or even their kids are in to gangs, smoking and drinking harmful substances or be there for their children at the time of their needs. My book shows the pros and cons of such relationships. How did our Papa God, right from the Garden of Eden, show as examples how to relate with family members? This is the scenario in the Garden of Eden, Genesis 2: 19 – 20. God was with Adam when he named all the animals, giving him the authority; building his confidence and showing trust and respect. These are important relationship skills we need to inculcate in our family members. Papa God was never too busy or preoccupied with creation to neglect Adam. In the evenings, the two of them would chat, have fun and get to know each other the better as we see in Genesis 3:8. How did Papa God prepare Adam for his future? In Genesis 2:15, Papa God showed Adam how to cultivate the garden. God was patient. This is equipping him with responsibility. We live in a world where some cultures still feel women should solely be in charge of the home in addition to their chores as a mother, wife and probably, a co breadwinner! My book explores how men should take a hand to nurture their babies, get to know their kids and help them in life. Finally, how did Papa God know that Adam was lonely in Genesis 2: 18? Through a good relationship with Adam which led to the creation of Eve! For any relationship to succeed, we need to be observant, responsible, patient caring, devoted and attentive towards our family members, our spouses and friends. I hope you have been blessed. My books - ‘Stories for Older Generations’, ‘Turning the Clock hands backwards’ and ‘Poetry from the Heart ‘ explore relationships and will bless you. #Family #familyrelationships #AdamandEve #Christianrelationship |
AuthorOlusola Sophia Anyanwu Archives
April 2024
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