Relaxing in the midst of preparations...

Popcorn knows how to relax...

Can you believe it?  I have been asked to be part of a blog interview tour with some great, inspiring authors.  I'll be posting my interview next Wednesday, December 26th.  And who knows, perhaps the day after Christmas will be the perfect time to take few minutes to sip on your favorite day-after-Christmas drink and read what I have to say about, well, what else?  My recent novel, Lady and the Sea... my true story about finding faith for forgotten dreams.

I pray that you are enjoying the joys of the Christmas season.  Take time to give hugs and smiles, and whispers of love.

... and so do I!

www.sharonleaf.com

"My Fond Christmas Memories" interview

My own little book shop (a gift from my hubby)

Thank you Grace Awards, for a warm Christmas Memory interview!  Click on to read.

http://graceawardsdotorg.wordpress.com/2012/12/08/authors-writing-historicals-contemporary-novels-fantasy/

For those of you living in the Columbia/Lexington SC area, please stop by the Books A Million Lexington store this Saturday, December 15th, 1-3pm.  Chatting is my favorite pastime.

May the warmth and joy of the Christmas season keep you cozy in the days to come.  Keep wRiting and Reaching out to touch someone.

Oceans of Christmas blessings!

The Simplicity of the Season

My 40+ year-old nativity

Unto you is born this day in the city of David, 
a Savior which is Christ the Lord.

Luke 2:11 KIV

During a simple worship song at church yesterday,
I was touched by the loving kindness of Jesus.
My thoughts wandered back to a night in a little southern Baptist church
when I was eight-years-old.  
Someone tugged at my heart.  It was Jesus, asking if He could come in.
With childlike faith, I said yes, and He has been there ever since.
There have been times in my life when I have ignored His presence,
but eventually I always returned to my safe harbor.  

Someone recently told me that I am living the good life, and I agree.  

But like everyone, I've had hard times.  

Single and pregnant at nineteen.

 A failed marriage at twenty-one; another failed marriage at thirty-eight. 

My mother dying at the young age of sixty-six when I was forty.  

And all the tears and mistakes in between.  

But by God's grace, I am still walking with Him, trusting in Him.  

After all,  Jesus is my best friend.

A few random thoughts:  

With the Christmas season upon us, I ask you, has God ever tugged at your heart?  

Take some time in the busy-ness of the Christmas season to get alone with God 

and share your heart with Him.  

Ask questions--I've been asking for fifty-nine years.  

Sometimes I get answers, sometimes I don't.  

Doesn't matter.  

I trust in the Lord with all my heart and choose not to lean on my understanding.  

After all, we're not as smart as we think we are.  

And I'm asking you to please stop looking at us Christians who have let you down, 

act like we don't care, even act holier-than-thou, oftentimes not realizing it.  

We're not perfect, so don't let us stand in the way of God's love and 

His wonderful plan for your life.

I'll write more later, but at the moment, I have a tired patient on my hands.  

Rob had shoulder surgery last week and his body is still in the process of getting back to normal.  And that's what Nursie Leaf is for--to give him drugs, meds, and lots of TLC! 

(sounds like a rock n' roll song to me)

Until next time,  I invite you to give Jesus a chance to tug at your heart.

I wish you smooth sailing and oceans of blessings for the Christmas season.  

And remember ...

Jesus is the Reason for the Season

John 3:16

Popcorn is looking for Rob
Christmas 2012

www.sharonleaf.com

Christmas Cheer is Here!

Thanksgiving in our new home

Thanksgiving has come and gone.  All of us have much to be thankful for.  I cooked a scrumptious Thanksgiving meal for family and friends.  What a special time it was celebrating the holiday in our new home.  But life moves on.  This past Tuesday my hubby, Rob, had his shoulder surgery (his first, I might add).  He is a trooper and I'm a great nursie, so we're doing pretty good, learning as we go.  I'm a bit tired and he's a bit grumpy (I blame it on his drugs ... oops ... meds.)  

As a friend, I need to make some phone calls.  As a writer, I just finished a writing project (finally).  As a Mom, I never come close to being the kind of Mom I would like to be ... saying the right things at the right time ... sending lots of money to kids and grandkids across the miles ... am I the only mother who goes through this?  The good news is that I come to my senses a lot sooner these days than in years gone by, realizing that no one is perfect.  So I continu, pressing for the prize that is set before me.

I'm rambling; I feel like I've taken some of Rob's drugs.  That's because two o'clock in the morning arrives just as I'm entering my REM sleeping zone.  But I must be faithful to rise up and give my Robinski his meds every four hours.  That's what all good nursies do.  I appreciate all the prayers you have sent our way.  We're feeling the love!
Oceans of blessings for the Christmas season!

Life begins each morning ... each morning is the open door to a new world -- new vistas, new aims, new tryings.

The faithful love of the Lord never ends.  His mercies never cease.  Great is His faithfulness.  His mercies begin afresh each morning.

Lamentations 3:22-23 NIT

The Grace Filled Christmas Blog Tour

WELCOME TO THE GRACE FILLED CHRISTMAS BLOG TOUR!

I am thrilled beyond measure to be participating in the first annual Grace Filled Christmas Blog Tour 2012, sponsored by the Grace Awards.  It's another dream come true for me to be in the company of all these talented and gifted authors.  I would like to suggest a Christmas read that took me on a great adventure of sailing the seven seas on a WWII ship, and living to tell about it.  Yes, Lady and the Sea is a novel based on my true story.  You can travel with me without wearing a life jacket or leaving the comfort of your cozy chair by the fireplace.  You'll even spend a white Christmas in Stockholm, Sweden on board the MS Restoration.  So come, sail away with me.

"You cannot discover new oceans until you are willing to lose sight of the shore"

After two failed marriages, forty-eight-year-old Rosie Atkisson struggles to rebuild her life with her husband, Jesse, in Southern California.  But the settled rhythm of her newfound comfort is interrupted in l994 by a tug in her heart when she encounters a haunting photo of another aging lady, the WWII vessel MS Restoration.

A special mission to transport Russian Jews from Sochi, Russia, to Haifa, Israel means an adventure of a lifetime; does she dare pass up this dangerous assignment that will take her thousands of miles from her family and comfortable life?  In spite of her fear of water and the unknown condition of the ship, Rosie says yes to that inner voice that says GO!

After surviving fourteen months on board the old ship--from a hurricane to a heart attack, from miracles to the M word--menopause--and now being held at gunpoint in the Haifa Harbor--Rosie wonders if she will ever return to her own safe harbor.

Christmas on board the WWII ship MS Restoration
 Stockholm, Sweden ('94)

What makes Lady and the Sea perfect for Christmas reading and/or gifting?  Once Rosie found faith to say farewell to her safe shore and dive into a new ocean, her fourteen-month journey full of adventure, romance, and miracles enabled her to find faith for her forgotten dreams.  After traveling with Rosie, you too will find faith for YOUR forgotten dreams!  From teen-agers to 89-year-old great-grandparents, women and men who are reading Lady and the Sea are bidding farewell to their safe shores.  Lady and the Sea is the perfect gift for this season of miracles.

Purchase Links:  sharonleaf.com  amazon.com Books A Million, Barnes and Noble, E-books

I wish you a Merry Christmas, smooth sailing and oceans of blessings for this holiday season!

Please continue the GRACE FILLED CHRISTMAS BLOG TOUR through December at www.graceawardsdotorg.wordpress.com/grace-filled-christmas-blog-tour-2012/

About Sharon Leaf
Born in sultry South Carolina and raised in sunny Southern California, since turning forty, Sharon Leaf has traveled to over fifteen countries, including living in Sweden while attending an international Bible College, traveling on the Trans-Siberian Railway, and volunteering on the WWII ship, MS Restoration, whose sole purpose was to transport Russian Jews from the Black Sea to Israel.  She received a degree in theology at the age of sixty, proving that it is never too late to fulfill another dream.  Lady and the Sea is Sharon's debut novel.  She lives in South Carolina with her husband and their malte-poo, Popcorn.
http://www.sharonleaf.com
http.//www.sharonleaf.blogspot.com