**Welcome to my Glorygram! If you're new around here, welcome to my table! Join me for Tomato Basil Bisque, using basil from my garden and a tall glass of strawberry lemonade with a sugar rim! Each week I write this letter as an arrow pointing you back to God's glory and the ways He is working in our world. While I’m on sabbatical, I’m sharing words written by my dear friend and favorite mystery author Patricia Raybon. Her third book in the Annalee Spain Mystery series just released, and I could not put it down. Enjoy this taste!
By Patricia Raybon
The young detective had just witnessed a horrible crime. But would she dare to pray? That’s a key spiritual question I pose in my latest Annalee Spain Mystery novel, Truth Be Told. But how did this scene unfold? And what might it teach us about prayer?
Here’s a sneak peek:
Annalee turned on the little sofa, trying to find a comfy position—not to mention some peace.
So now what, Lord?
That wasn’t even remotely a prayer.
But that’s all I got. Now what?
As if in answer, a cloud drifted over the moon, and through the blinds, the orb’s pale light dimmed to an empty black.
Oh, swell, Annalee thought. Even God is turning out the lights. She lay in the dark, knowing that’s not what happened. But that’s how she felt. So, she let her theologian’s mind cast about for something to stir in her belly a shred of peace.
So, she could go to the reliable. The Twenty-third Psalm. She pursed her lips. From a Bible she knew almost front to back, that’s the best she could come up with? It would feel rote to repeat such familiar words. Besides, she didn’t feel them. Not tonight.
But that’s all I got.
“‘The Lord is my shepherd.’” Her voice was a whisper.
She sighed.
I shall not want. She sighed deeper.
On through the psalm she repeated the memorable words, arriving soon at that time-honored line:
“‘Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death . . .’”
Her voice caught. How dare I pray those words tonight? But she went on:
“‘I will fear no evil: for thou art with me.’”
She stopped.
“For thou art with me.”
So, you could’ve been with that woman who was killed, Lord. She needed you—more than I do curled up on a silly sofa in Mrs. Cunningham’s nice, safe house. She blinked. Yes, I’m fussing. Because I’m so angry at what happened. And there’s not a thing I can do about it—that’s how it feels, anyway. She twisted in the blanket. But “thou art with me”? She swallowed. Or with us?
She’d gone deep now in her prayer—to a place she didn’t usually go. To her anger at being a target in a world that, by law, said she didn’t matter.
But more than all, she wanted the young woman to still be alive, not to be lying cold in the back of a stupid paddy wagon.
But thou art with us.
Annalee didn’t know how to even start believing that again. Not tonight. But she needed to go to sleep. She also needed to tell God thank you. Because I’m still here.
That wasn’t the luck of the draw or by some crazy chance. She was here because God intended her to be here and keep working, doing her little part, however much it measured up.
She closed her eyes. She breathed in the faint remaining scent of the crushed red rose, no longer inside her blouse. Then by God’s strange grace, she did what the psalm dared her to do. By God, indeed, she believed and went to sleep.
Patricia Raybon, a regular contributor to Our Daily Bread, also writes the Annalee Spain Mystery Series. The third installment, Truth Be Told—a mystery about her vow to find a pretty, young stranger’s killer while answering her own life questions—released in June. Details below!
Glory recommendations
Each week I like to share links to some of my own work or resources that are inspiring me and my family to chase after God’s glory! This week’s recommendations are ideas for your summer reading list and podcast queue. Here are five for you to check out:
Every month I give away a special book to one of you - my Glorygram readers! The book for our July giveaway is actually a fiction book that just released by my friend and award-winning author Patricia Raybon and featured in the New York Times. If you’ve been around here for a few years, you know how much I love the Annalee Spain mystery series, featuring an black female theologian-turned-detective during the 1920s. Truth Be Told just released last month. It was the first book I read during my sabbatical. This book set in Denver in the 1920s is riveting - full of history, mystery, intrigue and romance. Be sure to grab the first two in the series, All That is Secret and Double the Lies, then comment below with why you’re interested in winning this one!
Between You and Us is the new book I’m digging into now that I finished Truth Be Told. This is an intriguing read by my friend Kendra Broekhuis about a woman named Leona Warlon who heads across the city to meet her husband for an anniversary dinner and steps into a different version of her life. In this version, her baby girl lived, but her marriage and all the details of her life are filled with power plays and pressure. Which version will she choose? This book is an unexpected reflection on the nuances of grief and how they help us grow in love.
Her Part to Play is the next novel on my list. This beauty by my friend Jenny Erlingsson, who is of Nigerian descent but currently lives in Iceland with her family, is a book about redemption, grace and love. “When Adanne accepts a last-minute job as a makeup artist for a movie filming in her small Alabama hometown, all she wants is a steady paycheck to keep her family’s legacy alive. But the money hardly seems worth having to face the actor who got her fired from her last job in Hollywood.” I’m eager to read more about the sparks between these two and how Adanne’s faith carries her through the tension.
As parents, we want our kids to know God and connect with Scripture, but we are often tired, busy and feel ill-equipped. My friend Christie Tomas, author of the new book, Little Habits, Big Faith: How Simple Practices Help Your Family Grow in Jesus, totally gets that. She uses stories, modern psychology, and scripture to help resource us on how to implement easy practices to change our family’s faith culture. I’m so excited about Christie’s book. I wish I had it when my girls were younger! This is a great one to throw in your swim bag or to tuck in your purse to read while you are carting kids around this summer and need some inspo!
This summer I’m listening to my body, learning what I need to eat and how to get moving in a way that is gentle and mindful of this *special* perimenopause season of life. I’m grateful for voices like Megan Dahlman’s who are teaching me all the things in bite-sized, encouraging podcast episodes. Check out Self Care Simplified if you’re hungry for some guidance in these areas too!
Friend, I’m so grateful you are a part of my Glorygram tribe! For the past eight years, I've been sharing reflections and resources on grief, running, leadership, food, family, and faith. I count it an incredible privilege to connect with each of you through this Glorygram. Are you interested in more perks and robust content? For $50 per year (or $5 a month), you'll gain access to my full archive, bonus posts, fun summer recipes, and sneak peeks of my coming books! While the free weekly emails will continue, our subscription-only content will be an extension of the foundation we've built together. To subscribe and unlock this exclusive content, simply hit the Subscribe button and choose what level you’d like. Founding members will also get a personalized, signed copy of one of my books! Thank you to so many of you who have already generously given!) I am so grateful for all of your prayers and support.
This author is new to me and I can not wait to read her mysteries. What book is recommended to begin with ?
I love reading mysteries, and Double the Lies had me on the edge of my seat. I couldn't put it down. Looking forward to the next Annalee Spain mystery. Would love to win it.