Into the Fire

From my soon-to-be published for e-readers only at this time: . . . in a love song

From Chapters 5 and 6:

     He cleaned up and set on his way to The Tavern to enjoy Pet’s cooking even if it would be just a cheeseburger and fries. Who was he kidding? He hoped to feast on her pretty face and get a warm reception from her stealth façade. Of all the local information the guys had pumped into him in the short time he’d been here, not one of them had mentioned this pretty gal who worked behind the bar. There’d been plenty of chatter about some other women in town, like Leann, one of the checkers at the supermarket who apparently had a fondness for construction workers.

     It was 2:30 when he walked in, the jukebox playing rock ‘n’ roll tunes from the 50s, 60s, and 70s. Not as loud as last evening. The place had a healthy crowd for a Saturday afternoon with several tables occupied. He strode toward the bar and straddled a stool next to his coworker Keith who looked like a hangover danced in his head.

     “Bud, you look like you shoulda left when I did,” Dale kidded.

     Keith looked over with a sly smile after taking a sip of his tomato beer. “And miss all the fun?” His smile turned into a grin.

     “Hmm. Yeah, hard to pass up a little fun, huh? Gotta pay the price, though. You know it ain’t free.”

     “Never is, is it?” And he laughed a bit like that much movement hurt.

     “Here ya go, Trouble. Hope it goes down easy cuz it won’t come up that way.” Pet turned to Dale after setting a plate full of sunny-side up eggs, hash browns, sausage, and toast in front of Keith. “What can I get for you?” Her smile was confident this afternoon.

     “Cheeseburger, fries, and a Coke, please. Heavy on the onions.” He looked her in the eyes when he ordered, and she didn’t flinch.

     “Onions, huh?”

     “No reason not to,” he replied with a subtle smile. That comment got to her ever so slightly.

     “Heavy on the onions it is then.” She turned to get his Coke and when she placed it in front of him, she said, “You got a name?”

     “I’ve been called my fair share of them, but Dale Rivers is my given name.” He held out his hand to her.

     “Patricia Edison. No relation.”

      He smiled at her quip. Her grip was firm, and he didn’t let go for an extra beat. “Nice to meet you, Patricia.”

     For that extra beat, her confidence wavered as it had last night. Her hand was soft, and it felt good in his. He let go. She disappeared into the kitchen.

     “Whoa, dude. What’s up with that?” Keith seemed to have surfaced from his haze.

     “What?”

     “Pet don’t talk to just anybody like that. She makes herself off limits to most everyone.”

     “How come you guys never mentioned anything about her? You filled me in on all these other chicks around town but not her. Why?”

     Keith stared at his eggs for a moment. “Pet’s different.” He took a forkful and shoved it in his mouth, chewed, and then downed a big swig of the red beer.

     “Different how?”

     “She’s a Cadillac. Know what I mean? There’s some nice cars out there, but you know you got somethin’ special with a Cadillac.”

     Dale could see Keith was dead serious. Respect in his tone. Keith kept eating, staring down at his food.

     “Like an El Dorado?”

     “Like a classic shiny red El Dorado only belonged to one owner its whole life.” Keith pushed his plate away and downed the rest of his drink. As he tugged his wallet out of his back pocket, he said, “Word of advice? Don’t go there. See ya Monday.” He put a twenty on the counter and walked out.

     Dale turned slightly on his stool and watched him leave.

Six

When he turned back to the counter, she placed the plate in front of him. “Don’t pay any attention to Keith. Especially when he’s hungover which is usually every Saturday morning for as long as I can remember.” She said it without malice.

     “You guys more than friends?”

     “A very long time ago. High school. First love and all that jazz. It ended badly. And it wasn’t love at all.”

     “I think he’s still hangin’ on to that first love thing.” Dale captured her gaze and spoke straight over some love song.

     She surprised him when she laughed. “You see those babes last night?”

     “Hard to miss them with the guys gettin’ whiplash lookin’ at them. Why?”

     “Keith left with the one showin’ the most skin. That’s his MO. Has been for as long as I’ve known him.” She ragged off the counter next to him, holding Keith’s dirty dishes in her other hand. “I don’t work tonight. Want to take me to dinner?” She grinned at him.

     “Yeah. I do.”

     “Don’t expect much more than good conversation, and you got yourself a date.”

     “Where and when?”

     “Pick me up here at around 6 o’clock. Alright?”

     “Sure.”

     “Let me know if you like your burger.” She walked back into the kitchen. 

Thank you for it all, Lord. Apart from you, I can do nothing. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

And so they continued on their journey to be counted in the census at Bethlehem. The very pregnant Mary with her husband Joseph traveled to Joseph's place of birth to fulfill the prophecy that said the Christ, the Messiah, would be born in Bethlehem. And so shortly after arriving to find the normal places of lodging full, they retired to the stable where the Son of man, the Son of God, would be born to this faithful couple who in accordance with their spiritual instruction named their boy Jesus who would become the Savior of the world. 

God, keep reaching the lost. Holy Spirit, keep drawing them to Jesus. Jesus, keep saving those souls who finally realize that you took their sins upon yourself and died in their place re-establishing the peace between God and man. Thank you is never enough. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

Go tell it everywhere! Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. (Hebrews 13:8 NIV)

Father, never enough thank yous. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

Hard Target by J. B. Turner is Book 8 in the Jon Reznick Thriller Series. 

Trevelle Williams has been Jon's mysterious hacker and has helped him in hard situations every time he's needed quick and tough answers in life and death circumstances. Now Trevelle needs Jon's skills to help him because he's been discovered and can clearly discern his life is in serious jeopardy because of some information passed along to him by another hacker friend who didn't have time to look into it. Trevelle feels threatened to the point of meeting up in a face-to-face with Jon Reznick who he calls "Mr. R.". 

Trevelle isn't the only one being threatened and in danger. A woman who works for one of the alphabet agencies has found serious discrepancies in the Pentagon's budget and several men who've investigated the very things she's discovered are dead from what appeared to be "accidents". Trevelle and Jon decide to warn her before she testifies in a Congressional committee meeting. 

A major private "security" firm led by a former CIA man takes care of problems like Trevelle and this woman. Jon summons the FBI to offer protection for these two whistleblowers, but the FBI (including Assistant Director Martha Meyerstein) want to go by the book and arrest them for having discovered classified information which the woman is going to expose to the committee. Jon insists they need protection until after she testifies. 

Constant relocation, being at odds with the FBI and disobeying a direct order, murders and mayhem, all occur before Jon finds the hard target to neutralize.

Hard Target is another bona fide thriller with a touching Epilogue and an expressed hope of something real developing between Martha and Jon. Jon's well aware that he's been reluctant to admit any feelings other than professional respect for Martha, that he needs to lay off the Dexedrine, and that he's seriously considering if he might be ready for a real relationship. 

Definitely profanity present. 

Father, you know hearts and minds. Please continue to provide what J. B. needs to write the stories he's compelled to tell. Watch over him and bless him. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

     After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him."

     When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. When he had called together all the people's chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Christ was to be born. "In Bethlehem in Judea," they replied, "for this is what the prophet has written:

          "But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel."

     Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and make a careful search for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him."

     After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.

Matthew 2:1-12 (NIV)

Five things I love about Christmas & Five things I don't like related to Christmas:

"Jesus Is The Reason for The Season" – it's true, and I love it.

I love rereading about Joseph, the earthly father of Jesus. Such an amazing ordinary man. A heart after God and willing to do the improbable and impossible because he listened to the messengers and messages the Father sent to him in person and in dreams. An obedient soul who believed God and acted on that belief.

Buying gifts. Admittedly, when I can, I overdo it. Giving is my thing. I think it was my dad's as well. He got far more joy from giving than receiving. I do too. 

I love Christmas carols. Used to be you could always hear them playing in any store. We sang them all in school a long time ago and actually went caroling. Knew all the words by heart. When I got saved, they became even more real and meaningful.

All my Christmas decorations. Turning off all the lights except for the Christmas lights inside and out. So beautiful. 

Now for the unpleasant things:

I don't like wrapping presents. Not at all. The year I went to Europe with my friend, I brought back many Christmas gifts. I believe we got back on December 23rd, and I had to wrap all of those gifts in a hurry to get them delivered. It was agonizing. Since then, I no longer do anything fancy. Wrap them nicely and stick a bow and tag on them. Done. 

Not a fan of the commercialization, and by that I mean the over-emphasis on Santa and anything unrelated to the real reason for the season. It grieves me when I can't find Christmas wrap with Nativity related designs, etc. 

I don't like silly/stupid pseudo Christmas songs. (I can be slightly flexible here but not much.)

For being a devoted Christmas lover, I don't like/watch Christmas movies ever. And I don't read Christmas novels. Just not a fan at all. 

I don't like "white elephant" gifts. Waste of time/effort/potentially money. Not fun. 

So there you have it. Yours?  

Father, Christmas is amazing. Always has been for me, but when Jesus became real to me, I learned the  reason for the season. I can never thank you enough. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

Originally titled "What I appreciate about Mary and Joseph".

I love Mary and Joseph, the imperfect but perfectly placed human parents for the Son of God. I love them and appreciate them because they knew God, they watched for His signs, listened to His voice, obeyed His instructions which, as is sometimes the case, could not have been easy since His supernatural power was fully engaged in their lives. To trust that Almighty God sent His ministering spirits to speak to them as individuals and as a couple requiring some extremely difficult decisions and moves are incredible, admirable, and fascinating acts of obedience. They were a model family where the brunt of the decision making rested on Joseph, and from the first to the last one was neither simple nor easy.

To watch the splendor of God's plan unfold in their lives must have been both awesome, strange, and challenging. When the young Jesus stayed behind to discuss matters of God with the Rabbis and was discovered missing in their family crowd later in their journey, they were rightfully shocked and visibly – and understandably – upset upon retracing their steps to find Him. His explanation about being in His Father's house must have – to use a modern slang term – blown them away, but it had to remind them of all His history that had transpired and that they couldn't escape their own humanity.

I love those two, hand-picked by God, parents of the "Son of man", the man and woman of God who responded to His call and hold an esteemed position in the Kingdom of God. Ordinary people made extraordinary by the Hand of God for His purpose.

Just as He asks of us all . . .

Father, may it be to me as you determine . . . In the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

A pregnant mother riding on a donkey's back to make the journey to Bethlehem carrying the son of man/Son of God to be named Jesus. Two obedient souls traveling as God directed them. Two ordinary lives made unique and extraordinary by the God of the universe. The first Christmas: the Savior of the world came down to earth.

Father, we can never thank you enough for any and all of it. Thank you for rescuing me and giving us all the joy of Christmas – you still haven't abandoned your Creation. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

This is my favorite version of this song and will always be. The original recording. It's been done and done well by many artists, but this one . . . in my heart, it's the best. And no matter where or when it plays, at some point I'm in tears. Powerful and profound. 

Jesus, only you gave everything for us. Everything. We can never thank you enough. May those who don't know you realize you are the only way to perfect peace in eternity, the introduction to God and the intimacy of the Holy Spirit. May they know you are the Great I AM. Hallelujah. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

Hard Shot is Book 7 in the Jon Reznick Thriller Series by J. B. Turner. 

Jon takes his daughter Lauren to a Yankees ball game in New York City on the 4th of July while she's interning at a publishing house for the summer. While they're waiting to get into the stadium amidst the huge crowd, gun shots resound around them. Jon shepherds his daughter behind a pillar as people panic and try to scatter. Dead on the pavement are multiple policemen. 

Jon's instincts kick in and he spots the location of the shooter. He hustles his daughter into a cab and instructs her to go immediately back to their hotel or her apartment. Following that he spots two men jump into a van. Jon commandeers a motorcycle and the chase is on. 

This begins the series of executions by a specific radical group of white supremacists conducted by three brothers who literally worshiped the leadership of their step-dad who raised them up to follow that brotherhood with the motto "Blood in, blood out". Their step-dad was justifiably killed by police. The fourth and oldest brother removed himself from their family and hated their step-father. Someone is giving the three brothers their instructions and providing them with all the equipment they need to carry out their missions. Let's be clear here: any of these white supremacy groups are radical leftwing groups just as the Nazis were. They are not "radical rightwing" groups as some ill-informed novelists and media would prefer to label them. These hateful, murderous individuals who murder because they think they're superior or wish to eradicate the police or anyone with whom they have a beef are basically just prejudiced killers who believe it's their right to execute other people who don't adhere to their agendas.

Jon finds himself conversing once again with Assistant Director of the FBI Martha Meyerstein after the shooting. Martha knows her high opinion of Jon doesn't resonate with all the legalism of her colleagues, but in spite of his rogue ways, he always gets the job done. It's a tough fight for her defending him, but she can't help but appreciate his thorough preparation and attention to the dangers at hand. He warns her that this isn't over, that he's sure there's more horror to come. 

The 4th of July has Times Square pulsing with people including Lauren, and Jon's exasperated by his daughter's stubbornness to participate in spite of his warnings and pleas for her to remain at home. Jon hustles to the area only to hear the shots ringing out, the massive people panicking and finally pushing against the crowd to get to the restaurant where his daughter is supposed to be taking refuge. 

She's not there. 

Hard Shot forces Jon to take inventory of his soul, to face that sometimes he is totally out of control, that sometimes he can't even hope to be in control, and that if he loses his daughter, he will lose himself. He's flooded with personal assessments of ways he's got to take stock of his life, that it isn't as "easy" as neutralizing bad guys – that sometimes those targets can literally get away from him. And sometimes his daughter refuses to seriously take his advice as she's in the process of maturing. This time they both learn what can happen when warnings are ignored. Added to it all, he's beginning to face how important Martha is becoming to him – not something that comes easy for him to realize or admit. 

Hard Shot is a bona fide, fast-paced thriller – the way a thriller is supposed to be. Any kind of human "supremacy" groups are perfect examples of man's sinful nature, of the worst of us, and there are no good reasons for any groups of this kind. None. 

Plenty of profanity. 

Father, please continue to bless J. B. with more stories. Only you know hearts and minds. And only you save souls. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.