Guest blogger Brandilyn Collins and book giveaway!

Captain's Log, Stardate 02.16.2006

I'm thrilled and excited to have Brandilyn Collins write a guest blog post for today. She's uber-cool, peeps.

Her suspense novel WEB OF LIES was just released. It's the fourth book in her Hidden Faces series, and it also ties up her previous two books EYES OF ELISHA and DREAD CHAMPION.




Here's Brandilyn!

Web of Lies is my "spider book" that carries the message of God's Truth vs. Satan's lies. Strange venue for such teaching, I know. But such is the wonderful genre of Christian suspense.

I have told the story both on my blog and on the Charis Connection blog of how the plot and theme for Web of Lies was given to me. (www.forensicsandfaith.blogspot.com--three posts, starting on Thursday, May 26, '05.) No need to repeat the whole story here. Suffice it to say that God made clear to me the theme He wanted for this creepy novel. And once people started reading the book, I immediately began hearing from them about how God spoke to them through the story.

Satan is called the "Father of Lies," and that he is. Yet his lies are alluring. We Christians end up believing them without even consciously thinking about it. And once we start believing them, we start walking in them. Our Christian lives are hampered by the fears and accusations that Satan heaps upon us.

If we know that Satan always speaks lies, why do we Christians so often fall for what he says?

Because his lies are based on truth.

God is Truth. God's "bottom line" is to pull us closer to him through His Truth. Satan's bottom line is to pull us away from God. What better way to do that than to take God's very Truth . . . and warp it?

Biblical truth: No one is worthy of God's salvation. For by grace you were saved through faith, not of yourselves, it is a gift from God. Not as a result of works, lest any man should boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9)

Satan's lie, based on that truth: You are not worthy to be loved. Never have been, never will be.

Biblical truth: We have original sin in us, and need Jesus' salvation from that sin. For I know that nothing good dwells in me . . . for the very good that I wish, I do not do . . .Who will set me free from the body of this death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! (Romans 7:18-19, 24-25)

Satan's lie: You are a sinner, and you will always be a sinner. What makes you think, after all you've done, that God can forgive you?

See the pattern? Satan takes the biblical truth that we all need Jesus because of our depravity--and leaves it there. In fact, expounds on it. The promise of Jesus' grace and mercy to save us is dropped.

How can we discern God's voice from Satan's voice? You figure Christians should be able to tell right off, right? Apparently we don't, because time after time we fall for something Satan and his demonic world is whispering to us.

You're not good enough to do that task God expects of you.

You're a failure and you know it. Everybody else knows it, too. They're all talking about you.

You haven't been healed from your illness because it's YOUR fault. You don't have enough faith.

God doesn't really love you. You're unlovable.

And on, and on.

When God points out a fault in us that He wants to help us change, His voice may be firm, but it's also loving and nurturing. We are left to feel that He loves us but is disappointed in what we're doing. That we're capable of so much better.

When Satan tells us a lie, he points directly at us, personally. The thing we're doing isn't wrong; we're wrong. Our action isn't unworthy; we're unworthy. We're failures. Our whole being, our very soul is accused and blackened.

Dear ones, God will never do that to you.

If you start feeling down in your Christian walk, if you start to believe that you "can't do it"--whatever it is, that you're no good, that you're a failure, that you're a poor Christian and always will be--these are lies of Satan. Go to your Bible. Find references that speak directly against whatever Satan is telling you--and pray those verses out loud. You may have to do this a dozen times a day. Maybe even for many days. But in time, you will learn to walk in God's truth--regardless of what you feel. Thanks be to God that His Truth remains true, regardless of our emotions. Would you want to worship a God whose Truth depended on how you feel?

Walk in God's Truth. Refute Satan's accusing lies with God's Truth. Over time, you'll be able to discern God's voice from Satan's--and you can immediately tell the latter to shut up.

Camy here:
WOW. Thanks for the reminder that God is Truth. You rock, Brandilyn! Thanks!

Bible in 90 Days: Day 39. I ended today in Psalm 119. I absolutely love that psalm. It completely speaks to me and expresses the desire of my heart. I want to love God's Word like that and trust His promises that fervently.

Writing: Got some crits done last night, and hope to get more done on my chicklit today. I'm still outlining scenes.

Diet: I had a good lunch of vegetable soup (500) and I went walking with the dog for about an hour. My leg feels SO much stronger than it did just a couple days ago. I think the walking is really good for it, although I have to ice my knee after the walk because it swells like a balloon.

My husband wants dinner at Kirk's Steakburger tonight, and I can't deny him. So I'm glad I walked, and I'm going to stuff myself with celery before I go to pick him up from work (his truck is in the shop overnight).