Journal Jots – Blog

With all I am
In Your grace I stand
The greatest of all romance
Love of God My Savior

—Grace on the Line by Hillsong Worship

🎉 HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE!

Hard to believe that not only has a new year begun, but a new decade as well, and I don’t know about you, but I want this one to be chock full of as much romance as I can get.

 💜❤️💜❤️💜❤️💜❤️💜

But not just any romance, mind you, but the greatest of ALL romance! And, no I’m not talking about Rhett & Scarlett from Gone With the Wind or even Julie & Keith from Lake of the Ozarks. Nope, I’m talking about a love affair with the greatest Romantic of them all — GOD ALMIGHTY!

Yesterday, Keith and I began Day One of our annual 21 Days of Prayer & Fasting sponsored by my daughter’s AMAZING church, Church of the Highlands in Birmingham, Alabama. Begun by Pastor Chris Hodges in 2001, The Church of the Highlands has an incredible beginning that I just have to share because it shows the power of the Highland’s commitment to its annual 21 Days of Prayer & Fasting.

Nineteen years ago, Pastor Chris Hodges was a youth pastor with absolutely NO desire to be a main pastor. Fortunately, God didn’t feel the same way because Chris had a dream that shook him so much, he spoke to his pastor about it. The dream went something like this: First Chris was standing on a stage staring at a sea of people and then he was driving down a highway past a huge church that seemed to go on forever. The pastor told Chris something he really didn’t want to hear — that God was calling him to start a church.

Now, not having a clue how to go about that, Chris followed his pastor’s advice and took time off to visit every city in Alabama that God laid on his heart. “You’ll know it when you reach the city God has chosen, and Chris did, because when he arrived in Birmingham, it was like the city was embedded in his heart.

The next thing he knew, Chris and his wife and five kids move to Birmingham in December of 2001 along with a small contingent of 34 people. Now, everyone expected him to begin services on the first Sunday in January, but Chris decided he wasn’t about to start anything without God’s direction. As a result, The Church of the Highlands’ first service took place on the first Sunday in February of that year — not with 34 people and his family — but approximately 500 people in attendance! Today, The Highlands is the 2nd largest church in the United States with 22 campuses and a weekly attendance of 53,000.

Now trust me, people, when my daughter said to me a few years back, “Hey, Mom, our church is kicking off its 21 Days of Prayer & Fasting this Sunday, and I think you would really like it,” I pretty much froze on the spot.

Why? Well, because I knew the fasting part would be hard and there were certain things I did NOT want to give up for 21 days. “Sure, babe, I’ll check the Sunday kick-off service out online,” I said, fully intending to watch for a few minutes so I could tell her I did, but then letting her know it wasn’t for me because what can I say — I was skeptical.

Sigh. 😳

The pastor reeled me in like a bass on a hula grub in the first five minutes, so I finished watching the service, then hung my head as I approached Keith. “I have to give up sweets, wine, and Amazon for 21 days,” I muttered, not a bit happy about it.

“What?” Keith stared at me wide-eyed, as if I’d just told him I was giving up writing and reading romance to embark on a career picking up trash on a highway. “Why on earth are you doing that?” he said, jaw dangling considerably. “Because God told me to,” I responded in a mournful tone, never, EVER imagining just how much my life was about to change!

That was the year following my sabbatical to focus more on God, family, and writing for the sheer joy of writing, when I told my editor I wouldn’t be pitching any books or series for a while. Since then, my love affair with God has grown by leaps and bounds, deepening more and more each year after I embark on 21 Days of Prayer & Fasting with Church of the Highlands. As a romance writer, I can now say that the greatest romance of all is the one I have found with my Father in Heaven and my Savior, bringing more joy, peace, strength, and hope than I have ever experienced in over 69 years.

Why am I telling you this? Well, again, because I feel like there may be one or two of you out there that God wants to join me in this endeavor. I meant to tell you about it sooner (duh … before the 21 Days began yesterday), but I didn’t, so I apologize. But, it’s not too late because you can start anytime by checking out Pastor Hodge’s kick-off Sunday service to prayerfully decide if the 21 Days is something you want to do. Pastor Chris will explain how there are all kinds of ways to fast other than food, so don’t be intimidated.

For instance, food isn’t a big deal to me, but my nightly glass of wine with dinner and not checking Amazon for reviews and stats definitely are, so that’s what I fast along with a few meals here and there and sweets. See? Not too hard, and you know what? Keith and I actually look forward to it every single year like little kids at Christmas because it’s THAT good for our souls and our lives. I know it would be for you too, so pray about it, okay? And if you’re interested, here’s the link to the Church of the Highlands kick-off service for 21 DAYS OF PRAYER & FASTING that will tell you all about it.

📕 Love’s Silver Bullet on Pre-Order!

WHOO-HOO!! Book 2 in my Silver Lining Ranch series, LOVE’S SILVER BULLET, is now available for pre-order on Amazon with a projected release date of May 1st, so here’s the new cover. I hope you like it, and I hope you pre-order, because if you do, you’ll save a dollar!

PRE-ORDER HERE!

I’ll be running a pre-order contest soon, so keep your eyes peeled for my next Journal Jot, which hopefully will have an update for you on when Gabe’s story, A Wing & a Prayer will be released as well. Till then, here’s the blurb for Sheridan & Jake’s story:

She’s targeting his love.
He’s aiming to steer clear.
Till true love picks them off in a bull’s-eye of the heart

Eighteen-year-old Sheridan Donovan has been in love with Jake Sullivan since the age of four, when she used to tag after him and her big brothers on the Silver Lining Ranch. From little on, Jake has been her hero, convincing her brothers to play school and wedding with her whenever she’d begged and cried. From horsey rides and tickle fests to his sweet willingness to be her pretend groom, Jake’s gentleness and affection had nurtured two dreams in Sheridan’s heart—becoming both a teacher and Mrs. Jake Sullivan. Preferably not in that order.

At the age of thirty, Jake figures he pretty much has everything he needs at the moment. A good job as the Assistant Foreman for Silver Lining Ranch, great friends in Blaze and Dash Donovan, and a true mentor in their uncle and owner of the ranch, Finn McShane, the man who’d given him a family to replace the one he lost. But when Finn’s niece, Sheridan—Blaze’s and Dash’s little sister to whom Jake became a big brother as well—turns eighteen, Jake discovers there’s one more thing he needs: distance and lots of it. From pinafores and bows at age six to overalls and dirt till age fifteen, the grown-up Sheridan looks nothing like the little girl who’d once been his constant shadow, now transformed into a young woman who races his heart. Painfully aware that Sheridan is determined to win his love, Jake is equally determined to keep a promise to her uncle, a promise that not only shoots a hole in his well-ordered life, but in his heart as well.

HUGS & HAPPY 2020!!

Julie

🎄 Merry Christmas to You & Yours! 🎄

“To me, family are God’s hugs and kisses.”

—Julie Lessman

They say “absence makes the heart grow fonder,” and I have to agree. Since both of my children live many states away, Keith and I spend Christmas with Keith’s family in St. Louis, then celebrate our Christmas with our kids weeks prior to Christmas or after, when we travel to where each of them live. But their absence on the actual holiday itself has brought me an appreciation for family that is sharper and deeper than I ever had before. A keener awareness that family is a gift from God, whether our circumstances are good or bad.

It took me LOTS and LOTS of prayer and repentence to forgive my mother and father for an upbringing that caused me a lot of pain, and yet, that very pain brought me to God Who has since taught me that His love — unconditional love — is the glue that binds families together. Through God’s love for me, I learned how to forgive my parents, to pray for them, and to love them the way He does.

My mother died when I was sixteen — seven years before I came to Christ — so our reconciliation yet awaits in heaven. But with my father — who died shortly after I became born again at the age of twenty-three — God gave me a year or so to make it right, to reach out to him and love him like Christ does. It was my first assignment as a Christian, and the most life-changing thus far. And, I’m very proud to say, the real-life basis for my award-winning, 5-star novel, Isle of Hope: Unfailing Love. When Daddy died, God gave me hugs and kisses galore through a healed relationship in which I was “Daddy’s girl,” a woman he respected, loved and yes — even called “pretty” — something so very critical to an insecure little girl who thought she bayed at the moon.

As a young mother, I’ll be the first to admit that I was so busy, I didn’t always give my kids the attention they deserved. And when I became an author, the busyness seemed to spin out of control, further stealing my time. But after writing about God and family for twenty-five books now, I am happy to say that I have finally learned that family is not only the most important thing to me after God, but it’s also the most important thing to God as well.

Holidays have a way of illuminating family, whether good or bad, but the good news is that with God — through God — families can be healed to become the ebb and flow of His amazing love in our lives. I thank God it’s a lesson I’ve learned before it’s too late, when I still have time to be His hugs and kisses in their lives, deepening my relationship with them and with a Father to Whom we all are — joyfully — the apple of His eye.

Although Keith and I spend our Christmas Eve and Christmas morning apart from our children and grands, their absence brings an awareness that helps make it wonderful nonetheless, allowing us to cherish stolen moments on Facetime, through phone calls, and an eventual “Christmas visit” that is always one of the best gifts I receive over the holidays.

Even though I have never met most of you, I want you to know that I consider you “family” as well and very dear friends. Some of you have written me in the past, many of you have prayed for me, but ALL of you have blessed me more than I can say.

And so, from my family to yours — we wish you a new year overflowing with God’s abundant blessings … and endless hugs and kisses from the God of the Universe Who calls each of us His own.

Hugs and Happy New Year!

Julie

🎄 We Have a Winner!

JOURNAL JOTS CHRISTMAS GIVEAWAY! Mega hugs to everybody who entered, and I wish you all could win, but unfortunately only one person can, and that person is …

Anne Rightler

SUPER CONGRATS to Anne for winning a $15 Amazon gift card, all six of my Christmas e-books,her  choice of any one of my indie e-books, and a character named after her in my next book. So, Anne, I will be in touch.

🎁 99-Cent Sale on A Gift Like No Other

Have you read A Gift Like No Other yet? If not, now is the time to snatch it up at 60% off at only 99 cents for a limited time only. Here’s what the reviewers below are saying about this 5-star Christmas novella that is truly “a gift like no other.”

🎁 “IF LESSMAN WROTE A MARRIAGE COUNSELING BOOK, I would definitely read it and recommend it to others.” — Pause for Tales blog

🎁 LESSMAN REALLY PUNCHES THE READER IN THE GUT with the truth & reality of what real life marriage relationships can be like. It can be hard and painful, but it can also be wonderful and glorious. — Singing Librarian Books

🎁 THIS STORY WAS A GIFT LIKE NO OTHER! Full of love, laughter, forgiveness, and spiritual growth! I laughed so hard when the sisters all gathered together to discuss life! The scripture Julie used to back up her spiritual lessons were perfect!! Pure fun! Pure passion! Pure joy!! A must read!!! — Amazon reviewer Kelly Brown

🎁 AS ALWAYS, LESSMAN GOES FULL TILT WITH SWOON-WORTHY ROMANCE (on the “spicier” side of Christian Romance) equally matched with a strong spiritual thread. — The Artist Librarian Blog

🎁 THIS IS BEYOND 5 STAR WORTHY NOVELLA! If you’ve never read a Julie Lessman novel, then run, don’t walk, to grab this one up. Ever since her first novel, where Lessman gave prominence to parents Marcy and Patrick’s relationship besides her younger main couple, I’ve grown to appreciate her attention on married couples, which you don’t often seen in romance novels: What comes after the “happily ever after.” — Cover-to-Cover Cafe Blog

🎁 “THE HONESTY OF THIS STORY IS THE BEST PART, with its message of trust and cherishing the gifts god has given.” — The Green Mockingbird blog

So, give yourself “a gift like no other” by downloading A GIFT LIKE NO OTHER HERE & MERRY CHRISTMAS!

🙏 StoryFest ACFW!

ATTENTION CHRISTIAN FICTION READERS!! Do we have a deal for you! This year at the American Christian Fiction Writers Conference in St. Louis, MO September 18-19, 2020, there will be an intimate author/readers retreat that you will NOT want to miss! ACFW is literally crawling with every Christian author you have ever wanted to meet or have coffee with, so check out the following fun events included and mark your calendars.

PLUS … you will receive a $20 discount if you use my author code (JLESS) when you register, so check out all the details on registration and pricing right here: STORYFEST ACFW 

🎄 Keynote speaker LIZ CURTIS HIGGS!

🎄 Meet & Greet with 40-50 of your favorite Christian authors such as Rachel Hauck, Colleen Coble, Denise Hunter, Becky Wade, Mary Connealy, Dani Pettrey and many others including MOI!

🎄 Bookstore & Book Signing! 

🎄 Games, Panels, Giveaways!

🎄 Group Breakfast or Lunch with Your Favorite Author!

🎄 Worship Time with Your Favorite Authors

🎄 Chance to Attend ACFW Gala (like the Oscars for Christian Fiction!)

 Hope to see you there!

Welcome to the Christmas Round-Robin!

(and other giveaways right below it!)

   Merry Christmas! 

I’m Julie Lessman, Author Stop #24 of the Christmas Scavenger Hunt. At each author’s blog post, you will find a question that can be answered by checking out the free Amazon preview of their book. Provide the answer at this Google Form.  

NOTE: If you are a Journal Jot subscriber and this is your first stop, the above Google Form will also take you to the beginning of this scavenger hunt.

PLEASE NOTE: You must answer the questions for every author in the round-robin to win Amazon gift cards in the amounts of $300 for first place, $150 for second place, or $75 for third place. At the end of my post is a link to the next blog, the blog after that, etc., to the very end.

WHOO-HOO!!  I am SO excited to be a part of this amazing giveaway, not only to share some giveaways of my own at the end of this blog, but to introduce you to my latest Christmas book, A GIFT LIKE NO OTHER.

Right off the bat, I want to tell you that I am a Baby Boomer who LOVES romance, be it between a man and a woman or between God and me. Which is why I always include TWO love stories in almost every one of my novels — the main love story between the hero and heroine AND a secondary love story between a — ahem — more mature couple who is usually married because frankly, I get tired of the young people having all the fun!! 😉

Secondly, my tagline is “Passion with a Purpose,” which means my books are a tad more passionate, both romantically and spiritually, than the norm in the Christian market, but ALWAYS according to God’s precepts!

My latest Christmas novella, A GIFT LIKE NO OTHER, is about the heroine and hero from my debut book, A Passion Most Pure, only it takes place seventeen years AFTER they said “I do.” It actually contains two critically important spiritual lessons God taught me in my marriage of 41 years, so I’m anxious to pass them on to both my characters and to you!

Your next step in this scavenger hunt is to head on over to the Amazon page for A GIFT LIKE NO OTHER to discover the answer to this question: WHAT KIND OF COLOGNE DOES COLLIN WEAR? When you have the answer, fill out this form and head on to the next blog!

Thank you so much for visiting! The next author on the tour is JOI COPELAND, who is telling us all about her Christmas book Silent Knight. You can find it at this link: https://joicopeland.com/blog/f/christmas-scavenger-hunt-round-robin-silent-knight.

Remember that the round-robin will end on December 16th at 11:59 PM EST!

GOD BLESS & GOOD LUCK!

🎄 🎄 🎄 🎄 🎄 🎄 🎄 🎄 🎄 🎄

🎄 Come Back Later for More Giveaways!

JOURNAL JOTS CHRISTMAS GIVEAWAY! Here are EVEN MORE chances to win a $15 Amazon gift card, all six of my Christmas e-books, your choice of any one of my indie e-books, and a character named after you in my next book, so come on by all of the following giveaways for lots of chances to win!

🎄 DEC. 1-12 — TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS GIVEAWAY:  Join me and 11 other Christian authors for Alexis A. Goring’s holiday series on the God is Love blog, where you have 12 chances to win! Just stop by each day to enter Alexis’s Rafflecopter contest featuring wonderful authors such as Becky Wade, Allie Pleiter, Toni Shiloh, Mary Manners, and more! Each book giveaway will last for a total of 4 days.

AND … if you leave a comment that you are a Journal Jot reader, you will also be entered in my own JOURNAL JOTS CHRISTMAS GIVEAWAY listed above. Here’s the link and hope to see you there!

 ALEXIS GORING’S GOD IS LOVE BLOG

🎄 TUESDAY, DEC. 10 — TAMERA ALEXANDER’S BLOG.  Stop by to leave a comment on Tamera Alexander’s blog, saying that Julie Lessman sent you, and not only will you be entered to win the Christmas giveaway on Tamera Alexander’s blog for that day, BUT you will also be entered in my own JOURNAL JOTS CHRISTMAS GIVEAWAY listed above.

🎁 99-Cent Sale on A Gift Like No Other

Have you read A Gift Like No Other yet? If not, now is the time to snatch it up at 60% off at only 99 cents for a limited time only. Here’s what the reviewers below are saying about this Christmas novella that is truly “a gift like no other.”

🎁 “IF LESSMAN WROTE A MARRIAGE COUNSELING BOOK, I would definitely read it and recommend it to others.” — Pause for Tales blog

🎁 LESSMAN REALLY PUNCHES THE READER IN THE GUT with the truth & reality of what real life marriage relationships can be like. It can be hard and painful, but it can also be wonderful and glorious. — Singing Librarian Books

🎁 THIS STORY WAS A GIFT LIKE NO OTHER! Full of love, laughter, forgiveness, and spiritual growth! I laughed so hard when the sisters all gathered together to discuss life! The scripture Julie used to back up her spiritual lessons were perfect!! Pure fun! Pure passion! Pure joy!! A must read!!! — Amazon reviewer Kelly Brown

🎁 AS ALWAYS, LESSMAN GOES FULL TILT WITH SWOON-WORTHY ROMANCE (on the “spicier” side of Christian Romance) equally matched with a strong spiritual thread. — The Artist Librarian Blog

🎁 THIS IS BEYOND 5 STAR WORTHY NOVELLA! If you’ve never read a Julie Lessman novel, then run, don’t walk, to grab this one up. Ever since her first novel, where Lessman gave prominence to parents Marcy and Patrick’s relationship besides her younger main couple, I’ve grown to appreciate her attention on married couples, which you don’t often seen in romance novels: What comes after the “happily ever after.” — Cover-to-Cover Cafe Blog

🎁 “THE HONESTY OF THIS STORY IS THE BEST PART, with its message of trust and cherishing the gifts god has given.” — The Green Mockingbird blog

So, give yourself “a gift like no other” by downloading A GIFT LIKE NO OTHER HERE & MERRY CHRISTMAS!

🙏 StoryFest ACFW!

ATTENTION CHRISTIAN FICTION READERS!! Do we have a deal for you! This year at the American Christian Fiction Writers Conference in St. Louis, MO September 18-19, 2020, there will be an intimate author/readers retreat that you will NOT want to miss! ACFW is literally crawling with every Christian author you have ever wanted to meet or have coffee with, so check out the following fun events included and mark your calendars.

PLUS … you will receive a $20 discount if you use my author code (JLESS) when you register, so check out all the details on registration and pricing right here: STORYFEST ACFW 

🎄 Keynote speaker LIZ CURTIS HIGGS!

🎄 Meet & Greet with 40-50 of your favorite Christian authors such as Rachel Hauck, Colleen Coble, Denise Hunter, Becky Wade, Mary Connealy, Dani Pettrey and many others including MOI!

🎄 Bookstore & Book Signing! 

🎄 Games, Panels, Giveaways!

🎄 Group Breakfast or Lunch with Your Favorite Author!

🎄 Worship Time with Your Favorite Authors

🎄 Chance to Attend ACFW Gala (like the Oscars for Christian Fiction!)

 Hope to see you there!