Karen Witemeyer on Overcoming the Fear of the Unknown

Author Karen Witemeyer

Overcoming the Unknown

By Karen Witemeyer

I'm a planner. When our family goes on vacation, I know exactly which hotels we will stop at (reservations were made months in advance), I know which attractions we will visit on which days, and which activities we will engage in. For me, life is much less stressful if I know what to expect. If a crisis emerges, the first thing I do (besides pray) is to start planning how to get through it. Not surprisingly, one of my greatest fears is the fear of the unknown.

In 2003, I was a stay-at-home mom with three children under the age of five. And in 2003, my husband learned that his position was being cut at the university where he worked. When he broke the news to me, I tried to be a good wife. I stayed calm, assured him everything would work out. But inside, the panic button was flashing in red neon and sirens were blaring. What were we going to do?

Thankfully, we were given 6 months' notice, so we had time to plan. Plan? Ha! Putting in applications and praying did not constitute an adequate plan. Too many pieces of the puzzle were out of our control.

Month after month passed. No job offers. My faith became fragile. So I turned to the Word and put my hope in the parable of the persistent widow found in Luke 18. Jesus used this story to teach his disciples that they needed to pray and never give up. So that's what I did. I prayed constantly throughout the day, begging the Lord to provide a job for my husband. Then, when more months went by with no answer, I started praying for the Lord to provide a job for me as well.

I prayed and prayed and prayed. And even when God was silent, I told myself that I would trust him. I repeated that litany to myself constantly, desperate to shore up my flagging faith. No matter what came, God would see us through. That core belief was the lifeline that kept me afloat.

Six months to the day that my husband discovered his position had been cut, he started a new job at the same university. A month later, I started one as well. At the same university. No move required. No need to purchase a second car. Godly grandparents to provide child care. And one other seed took root as well.

God used this time of uncertainty to shock me into following a dream that I had been putting off for years. The dream to write. Thinking I might somehow be able to supplement the family income by writing, I picked up my pen and put it to paper. Even after I re-entered the workforce, the dream refused to die. I kept after it, and six years later, my first novel, A Tailor-Made Bride, hit the bookshelves.

Only God could use my biggest fear to bring about one of the biggest blessings in my life.

Karen's newest novel just released, "Full Steam Ahead."

Bio:
Christy Award finalist and winner of both the ACFW Carol Award and HOLT Medallion, CBA bestselling author, Karen Witemeyer, writes Christian historical romance for Bethany House, believing the world needs more happily-ever-afters. She is an avid cross-stitcher, and makes her home in Abilene, TX with her husband and three children. Learn more about Karen and her books at: www.karenwitemeyer.com.   

Buy links for Full Steam Ahead:

Purchase at Amazon - Click here 

Christianbook.com – Click here

Barnes & Noble – Click here

Giveaway: Paperback copy of Full Steam Ahead for one commenter on this post. Answer the question: Do you have trouble coping with the unknown?

Guest Review of Cynthia Howerter's and LaTan Murphy's "God's Provision in Tough Times," by Lori Stanley Roeleveld

God's Provision in Tough Times
by Cynthia Howerter and LaTan Murphy

 Guest Review by Lori Stanley Roeleveld

We think we have faith until the bank account drops to zero or the job disappears. Maybe the careful plans we laid become undone or circumstances way beyond our control put us on the brink of financial disaster. Many of us know all too well the fear, sense of failure, panic, and loss that come with financial troubles.

                  Where is God when this happens? Where is the owner of the cattle on a thousand hills? Where is the One who has His eye on the sparrow? Has our nest slipped from view?

                  Have we fallen into some crack where He can't see? Have we escaped His notice or is He angry with us and refusing to provide? Financial struggles often leave us open to these kinds of questions and doubts and many times, we're afraid to voice them to even our closest friends.

                   If you're facing struggles of any kind, but particularly those that make you wonder how God will provide - you'll want the inspiration that can be found in these pages. Transparent, gut-level honest, no easy answers here but solid truth about God's willingness to come through - even if He does take His time.

                  It's clear from page one to the end that the writers who share their stories in God's Provision in Tough Times - 25 True Stories of God s Provision During Unemployment and Financial Despair, care deeply about the readers who will invest their time in this book.  They care so deeply, they've been willing to expose their own hearts along with their stories so that God's character and actions can be glorified by their testimony about His provision - both financial and spiritual - through their tough times.

                  If you need encouragement. If you need the strength to hold on. If you are wondering if God comes through for others but not for you, dive into this book and find company for this rocky section of the road we all travel deep into the heart of God. You'll be surprised whose story you find here and by this time next year - you may be ready to write your own chapter.

CFP:  Thanks so much Lori for being a guest on OWG!  I was blessed to be asked to be a contributor to this inspiring book compiled by Cynthia and LaTan!

Lori Stanley Roeleveld is a disturber of hobbits who enjoys making comfortable Christians continually late for dinner. Her articles appear in numerous magazines. She authors the blog, Deeper with Jesus in Rhode Island (http://loristanleyroeleveld.blogspot.com/). Lori's a wife, mom, crisis counselor, part-time dragon slayer and has faced her own tough times.

GIVEAWAY:  A copy of God's Provision in Tough Times. Follow Cynthia on Twitter (https://twitter.com/CynthiaHowerter) and/or leave her a message of encouragement and your email address.

Cynthia Howerter interview

Cynthia Howerter

Bio: CYNTHIA HOWERTER is a Pennsylvania girl who now lives in Virginia. Her love for history, especially the American Revolutionary War period, along with being a member of the DAR (Daughters of the American Revolution), give Cynthia a wealth of knowledge to use in her writing. Cynthia and La-Tan Roland Murphy are co-authors of God’s Provision in Tough Times, an anthology of 25 true stories of God’s provision during unemployment and financial despair.  Her book is available Amazon.com.  Cynthia is currently writing an historical fiction novel.  She also writes for her website Soar With Eagles, and is a member of Colonial American Christian Writers.

Cynthia Howerter, welcome to Overcoming With God.  We appreciate your willingness to share your testimony of overcoming with our readers.  

Thank you for having me!  It’s a pleasure to be here.

Would you tell us about the most difficult thing in your life you have had to overcome, with God’s help?

I’ve had a years-long struggle with trusting God to take care of my problems.  As an adult, no matter what adversity happened in my life, I prayed about the problem and asked God to take care of it, and then turned right around and tried to manage the situation on my own.  I didn’t believe that God could handle my problems as well as I could.  A dear Christian friend told me that it was like I put my problem inside a helium balloon, told God about the problem and asked Him for help, and then as I let go of the balloon string to hand my problem over to God, I grabbed the string back and tried to fix the problem on my own—with most unsatisfactory results.  Finally, God put me in a position where my husband’s 2-year bout of unemployment made me completely dependent upon God for everything—food, shelter, clothing, and money.  I had no control over anything in my life.  Slowly, I learned that God can be trusted to handle every situation I encounter.  The lessons I learned during our extended unemployment were extremely painful, but once I learned to fully trust God to do what is best for me, it was tremendously freeing.  

God's Provision in Tough Times

Disability friendliness: Is this latest release available in audio format or do you have any other works available on audio?  

Currently, the book is not available in audio format.  

Do your e-books have audio capability? Do you have any in large print?  

The publisher plans to offer God’s Provision in Tough Times as an e-book soon but, for now, it’s only available as a paperback in regular print.

In this latest work, do you have any topics useful for bibliotherapy, or therapeutic influence through reading about a disorder or situation? 

God’s Provision in Tough Times is an anthology containing 25 true stories that detail how God provided for each writer during their darkest moments of unemployment and financial difficulties.  Each story describes specific problems the writer faced, such as the loss of their home or the stresses of unemployment on their family, and the ways in which God provided for whatever they encountered.  Each reader should come away with an understanding that no matter what adversity they face, God is able to provide for their every need whether it’s emotional, spiritual, or physical. 

Cynthia Howerter’s Links:

Website:  Soar With Eagles  http://cynthiahowerter.com

Twitter:  @CynthiaHowerter

Facebook:  Cynthia Howerter

LinkedIn:  Cynthia Howerter

Purchase links: Amazon

Thank you Cynthia Howerter for agreeing to answer these questions.  Have a blessed day and keep on writing!!

Giveaway:  Leave your name and email address and a comment for Cynthia to enter to win a copy of her debut release!

We enjoyed having Melanie Dickerson up on Overcoming Through Time - With God's Help this week.  Our topic this week was unemployment.  Please lift her husband up and all of our family members, like my nephew, who are also without work this year.  For two years, when we moved from NY to GA because of my arthritis, my hubby was unable to find work.  I learned a lot about what it meant to be the breadwinner of the family.  I had been the single parent of my nephew but it was different being in a difficult job and having to work a second job in private practice just to keep us in our rental house. I wish I could say that I have kept in practice those lessons I learned during that time of his unemployment. I do know I prayed for years afterward that we would never have to walk through that valley again.  We stayed on the prayer list at our church the entire time.


Congratulations Barbara Shelton - our winner this week for Melanie's book!    

Guest Post by Cynthia Howerter - No More Job?

Unemployment
By Cynthia Howerter

So.  You didn’t see it coming.  Or maybe you did.  In either case, it’s a shock.  Questions swirl through your mind.  What will we do for money?  How will we live?  What if we can’t make the mortgage payment?  How will we buy food?  How will we pay our bills?  Questions that you can’t answer.  At least for now.

I didn’t see my husband’s unemployment coming.  Neither did he.  But, suddenly, the job was over.  Done.  Not to be resurrected.  And there was no time to prepare.

I remember praying right away.  Not a flowery, lengthy prayer.  No, I got right to the point:  “Help, God.  Help!”  I didn’t need an abundance of words.  God knew what I was praying about.  He knows what you’re praying about.

When any adversity strikes us, it is not a random circumstance.  As believers, we know that nothing is random, but, rather, that there is a purpose to everything under the sun.  So, rest assure that God knew before you did that you or your spouse were going to lose the ability to earn a living.

Why, you want to know, would God allow you to lose your income?

Let me ask you this:  Did God have a place in your life before you lost your job?  Were you setting aside time everyday to pray and read the Scriptures?  Or were you just going about your life inserting God into it whenever you thought about it – which probably wasn’t on a regular basis.  Am I right?  I know.  Ouch.

Did God have your attention before you lost your job?  Well, there’s the answer to your question – “why would God allow us to lose our income?”  I’ll bet God’s got your attention now.

Now that you’re focused on God, what’s next?  My husband and I learned that as soon as adversity happens, we need to ask God to reveal exactly what He wants us to learn.  Because you see, God wants to teach you something through this difficult situation.  The sooner you ask Him what it is He wants you to learn, the sooner you can hear what He says to you.

Now, how do you focus on God?  There are two basic ways.  Read the Scriptures and talk to God.  Every day.  (I’ll talk more about the Scriptures in a later article).  Are you waking up during the night filled with fear and anxiety?  Stop and talk to God about it.  Are you scared and worried?  Tell Him.  No matter what is going on in your life, focus on God.  Every day.  Every night.

“Now, Cynthia, didn’t you just tell me that God allowed me to lose my job?”  I did.  “Then why should I focus on God?”  Good question, friend.  Would you jump out of an airplane without a parachute?  Didn’t think so.  Look at your job as the airplane.  Your employer just threw you out of the plane at an altitude of 27,000 feet.  Exactly what will get you out of this free fall without a messy landing?  Bingo.  God is your parachute.  God allowed you to lose your job and God is able to give you another.

But first, is there something you want to say to God?  Umm.  Hmm.  Give up?  Well, let me ask you this:  What do you expect your children to do when they’ve been disobedient to you?  Ooh.  And, you haven’t been disobedient to just anybody.  You’ve been disobedient to the God of the Universe.  Ever wonder what those knees were made for?  Now you know.

Once you decide to make God the main focus of your life, once you humbly ask for forgiveness for your disobedience, and after you ask God to reveal exactly what it is that He wants you to learn through this terrible situation, then wait patiently for God to begin speaking to you.  This usually takes awhile.  So be patient.  But know this:  God is faithful to those who are faithful to Him.

“But if we confess our sins, He will forgive our sins, because we can trust God to do what is right.  He will cleanse us from all the wrongs we have done.”  1 John 1:9.

God assumes full responsibility for our needs when we obey Him.  Job 42:7-17.

Come back for my next article in the Series “Happy Endings Do Not Only Exist in Fairy Tales.”  I’ll be discussing the importance of the Scriptures in the midst of this calamity you’re in.  In the meantime, if you know anyone who could benefit from reading today’s article, please tell them about it.  This series is meant to be shared.

If you have a story pertaining to unemployment that you would like shared, please contact me.  As Efrem Zimbalist, Jr. said every week on TV when I was a kid, “The names will be changed to protect the innocent.”

To God Be the Glory!

Cynthia Howerter © 2011
Residing in Virginia, Cynthia writes Christian historical fiction and nonfiction. She is a popular guest speaker, recently traveling to New York to speak on this topic.  

Interview with Melanie Dickerson

Melanie Dickerson is the author of The Healer’s Apprentice and of The Merchant’s Daughter.


Interview by Carrie Fancett Pagels

I met Melanie Dickerson through HisWriters, an online group for those who have either published or planned works with European characters. I have also been blessed to get to hang out with her at the ACFW conferences.

Melanie, welcome to Overcoming Through Time – With God’s Help.
 

Would you share either the most difficult thing in your life you have had to overcome, with God’s help, or the most tragic situation or circumstance one of your character’s has had to get past?

Wow, where should I start, Carrie? LOL! I grew up poor in a very poor area in south Alabama, but it made me determined to succeed and escape my circumstances. I definitely have that in common with my heroine, Rose! God blessed me and has brought me through some very lonely times into a place of trusting God completely (or at least, complete trust is my goal when I’m not trusting as much as I should). I’m thankful for my husband and two kids, and I have confidence in God that I can overcome anything, any disaster or tragedy, that might come my way. For years I was trapped by fear and low self-esteem, but I feel God healing me, and he has healed me, to a great extent. God is faithful!

One of the most difficult things we have gone through as a family is the loss of my husband's job over fourteen months ago. Then, on April 27th, our area was hit with several tornadoes in one terrible day, but God spared us.In this difficult economy, we are clinging to God's assurance that He will provide. He has provided, in so many ways, and he has blessed me with seeing my first book receive lots of acclaim, including being a finalist for a Christy Award. And then a dear friend told me, just days before the ACFW conference, that God nudged her and told her to help me get to the conference. In a matter of a few hours, she had raised, through ACFW members, enough money to send me to the conference. I was blown away by my friends’ kindness and generosity, as well as with God’s provision. God is amazing. Absolutely amazing. But I know many families out there are suffering like we are with the head of our household unemployed. It’s hard to see your husband go through this. We certainly are not alone.

What is your favorite bible verse and why?

“Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” I Peter 5:7  This used to be my favorite verse because I used to be so riddled with anxiety! But as I said, God has healed me of this problem, to a great extent.

A current favorite is “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” Galatians 5:1  Whether you are a slave to sin or a slave to guilt or a slave to legalism, God wants to set you free in Christ! This is a theme that I have set for my life, as I have struggled with these things, and still struggle at times.

And I also love “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” Ephesians 5:1-2 That’s pretty much the whole gospel right there! And what romance writer doesn’t want to claim the verse that says “live a life of love.”

Disability friendliness:

Is this latest release available in audio format or do you have any other works available on audio? 


Wow, I wish it was available on audio! How cool would that be? It is on Kindle and all the other e-book formats. There is also a large print version available.

What has been the most important thing you hope your readers will get from your books and why?

I really hope they will get the message that Jesus is the name above every name, and is more powerful than the darkest power. I also hope they will see that trusting God and listening to his leading will serve them well! God has a wonderful plan for your life if you allow him to work things out. So many times we get in the way because we want our own way, we think we know best, and we just mess things up. But God loves us and he has a good plan for us.

Carrie Fancett Pagels and Melanie Dickerson at ACFW Conference

As you researched your books, did you learn anything that particularly touched your heart?

I actually was surprised that things haven’t changed as much as people might think since the middle ages. People always wanted love, always wanted to succeed and be happy. That never changed. People always wanted to connect to God and wanted to learn about him, and that hasn’t changed either. Emotions and conflicts are the same, but it was also fun to write in the middle ages because some of their values are different, and their laws and society were different, making great fodder for conflict and angst—for any writer with an active imagination!  

In this latest work, do you have any topics useful for bibliotherapy, or therapeutic influence through reading about a disorder or situation?

The Merchant’s Daughter deals a lot with overcoming fear, overcoming feelings of betrayal and relational pain, and learning to trust God and rejoice in the Lord. I think it can be helpful for someone who’s going through emotional trauma of some kind.

CFP note:  In The Healer's Apprentice, Melanie also addressed these issues: Self esteem, trust, abandonment, adoption.


Thank you Melanie Dickerson for agreeing to answer these questions.  Have a blessed day and keep on writing!!


Giveaway:  Leave your comment and your email for a chance to win a copy of one of Melanie's books!