Everything begins with who we are on the inside—who we believe ourselves to be.

I think we can all agree that we need God's help to become more beautiful on the inside, to discover what characteristics are best to have and then develop them in our lives. But what if that's the last step in a process that's as simple and as difficult as accepting that God loves you?

Are you an early bird or a night owl? I confess that I tend toward the latter—it’s too easy to get caught up in a good book, or to take advantage of the silent, undisturbed hours to accomplish some last-minute projects. Now that I’m working in an office from 8 to 5, though, I have to get up early. That doesn’t mean my night-owl ways have disappeared…but I’m slowly discovering the blessings of being awake before the brunch hour.

The morning has its own kind of quiet—the anticipatory kind. Instead of extending your mind into its last dregs, you can stretch your thoughts in positive, uplifting ways as your prepare for the day. With just a little effort, you can make the most of those “morning moments”—perhaps with the assistance of a devotional book. Here’s a selection from Grace Fox’s book of morning devotions, Morning Moments with God:

Learning Bible verses can be easy and fun. Here are a few tips for memorizing Scripture—and while they’re written for kids, adults should find them helpful, too! You and the children in your life might want to try some or all of these little tricks for remembering.

Did you know that "Tell a Joke Day" is almost upon us? (Be sure to pencil it in the August 16th slot of your "obscure holidays" calendar!) Of our plethora of gift and children's books, we just happen to have several joke books written by Bob Phillips, including the brand-new Super Duper Knock-Knock Jokes for Kids and the fun Good Clean Knock-Knock Jokes for Kids. Here are some funny knock-knock jokes from his latest release to get you started and help you prepare yourself for this laugh-worthy holiday:

I was working on a critical project. With the printer humming and papers shuffling, I hardly noticed my then four-year-old daughter’s gazing eyes. When she asked for something to drink, I told her to wait and I went back to work. After a few minutes and what probably seemed like an eternity to her, she asked again. Annoyed, I let out an audible sigh, went into the kitchen, and poured her some juice.

A couple years earlier, when Gabrielle was just two, I told her that she was important to God and to me. She and her brother were miracle children. 

Espionage at Its Best

There’s nothing quite like a story of intrigue and suspense—and so spy stories have long been popular. Cloak and dagger, derring-do, mystery…these are things that capture readers’ attention and keep pages flipping.

I confess that I’ve long loved tales of espionage. So when I got the idea for a novel that included the real-life Culper Ring, America’s first band of organized spies, I was excited. Convinced that, as I did my research, I’d be reading stories of a Revolutionary-era James Bond. Jason Bourne. Maybe some Indiana Jones thrown in.

What I learned was far different…and far better for the differences. 

Really good fiction is one of the greatest joys of life. Losing yourself in the pages of a romance, adventure, mystery, the Wild West, among the Amish, or even in the wilds of the Amazon can provide a respite from the rigors of day-to-day living and bring refreshment to your mind and soul. The value of story is more than mere entertainment; it has weight. Jesus used this art form to convey the message of the kingdom of heaven.

There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said to his father, “Father, give me my share of the estate.” So he divided his property between them. Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living (Luke 15:11-13 NIV).

“Oh, no!” said the thoroughly engaged reader. “Then what happened?”

You are both successful fiction authors on your own, but you came together for both The Amish Groom and The Amish Blacksmith. What was the collaborative writing process like? Did anything surprise you?

Susan: I had never collaborated with another novelist before, so I came into this partnership with no experience as a coauthor! That might have been a little scary if I hadn’t already known Mindy personally, not just as a fellow writer but as a friend. I was already familiar with her skilled writing style and attention to detail. If anything surprised me, it was that we had so few clashes over content. We are both single-minded in that we want very much for the story to have its perfect way. When we did come up against a difference of opinion as to plot or character, we found a way to find the common ground. 

Mindy: The hardest part about coauthoring for me is trying to describe to others how it works and what it’s like. Everyone is always so curious, but it’s hard to explain. It’s such a unique process and one that’s different with every single coauthor I’ve had. (Susan is my fourth coauthor, so I guess you could say it works for me!) The only surprise I ever have when coauthoring is the delightful experience of running across passages and elements in the manuscript that startle me with their beauty and reflect my coauthor’s amazing skill as a wordsmith. That’s always a thrill.

What made you decide to write from a male protagonist point of view instead of female?

The Worth of a Starfish

Do you remember the age-old story about the starfish? As told to me as a child, a young girl was walking along the beach with her grandfather when they happened upon thousands of starfish left behind by the lowering tide. When Grandpa picked up one to fling back into the waves, the girl did the same. One by one they returned the creatures to the sea before the scorching summer sun could kill them. After a while the child peered up and wailed, “This is hopeless! There’re only two of us and thousands of them. What difference can we make?”

Every new home needs a housewarming party, right? And our blog is not just a home for Harvest House Publishers. More importantly, it’s a home for you—our readers. So we have some gifts for you this summer to help you feel like this happy little space on the web is a place for you to make yourself comfortable and have some fun!