One of my heroes is a woman named Perpetua. She was a noblewoman born in A. D. 180 in the city of Carthage in the Roman Empire. She was a woman who loved the Lord Jesus more than life. Perpetua loved her family—her father, her mother, her younger brother, and her baby son—but she loved Jesus more and paid the ultimate price for it.
I was so excited to find this lovely book on this hero of the faith. Combine a well-told, accurate story, with beautiful, colorful illustrations, and stunning interior and cover design in a sturdy hardcover book with thick pages, and you have a real treasure. There’s a real lack of quality children’s books today, but this one is definitely very high quality. And it’s not just for children. While a good book to read aloud to young children, it’s also great for the whole family. I, as a 20-year-old, loved it! I keep picking up this book and poring over the amazing illustrations. I also love that words from Perpetua’s own diary are included in the story. The glossary and notes to the reader are a helpful addition, too. Thank you Hannah and Naomi and the Carrington family for producing such an excellent book!
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“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me,
Because the Lord has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to those who are bound.” Isaiah 61:1 This month, I’ve written about how there are millions of people trapped in slavery. But today I want to talk about how, without Jesus, we are all slaves. Slaves to sin. Slaves to darkness. “Nothing happens just because we are aware of modern day slavery, but nothing ever will happen until we are.”
—Gary Haugen, president of International Justice Mission When Elsa’s father died and her mother left, Elsa and her younger brother moved in with their elderly grandparents. They barely had the money to support themselves and buy food for Elsa and her brother, let alone pay for school. So making money to pay for their school fell to twelve-year-old Elsa. She took whatever jobs she could find, and somehow managed to keep her and her brother in school. After high school graduation, Elsa saw an opportunity to work as a nanny in Europe, but she needed a sum of money to cover the cost of getting a visa. She was vulnerable, and that’s when the traffickers came. I first learned about modern day slavery when I was around 13. A close friend of mine was raising awareness of slavery and funds to support rescue missions. Before that, I had no idea slavery still existed.
But I learned that there are more slaves today than at any other time in history. I learned that, even though it’s illegal everywhere, it happens nearly everywhere. Even in the U. S. I learned that slavery today goes by many forms and names, some of them being: human trafficking, sex trafficking, forced labor, debt bondage, child soldiers, and forced prostitution. Whatever form it takes on, slavery is a person being deprived of their freedom. A large percentage of slavery victims are women and girls and many of them are children. I also realized that the Bible tells us over and over again to rescue those who are oppressed and to stand up for justice. For just a few examples, see Isaiah 1:17, Proverbs 14:31, Isaiah 58:6-12, and Zechariah 7:9-10. But it can be easy to hear about issues like modern day slavery and think, what on earth could I possibly do that would make a difference? How am I supposed to help seek justice and rescue the oppressed? So this month, as a way for us to fight slavery together, I am donating all the profits I make from any books I sell during the month of December to three of my favorite organizations that are working to rescue those trapped in slavery: International Justice Mission (ijm.org) Joy International (joy.org) and Rahab’s Rope (rahabsrope.com) In case you didn’t know, I have independently published four books. My first book, which I released when I was 17, is nonfiction about issues like slavery, abortion, and orphans, with stories of people from history and people today, and ways ordinary young people can take action, all from a biblical Christian perspective. Since then, I’ve also published a medieval fantasy adventure story, a children’s picture book about my little sister Sadie and her journey with epilepsy, and my most recent publication, the first in a historical fiction series set in first century Rome. (By the way, the second book in this series is well underway and, Lord willing, will be released sometime next year. I’m crazy excited about this book!) And my parents have written a poetry book, and my older sister Samantha has written and illustrated a children’s picture book about a sled dog during WWII. So, how do you order the books? We now have an online store!!! Click here to visit our store and order books! The books are $10 each and, for this month only, shipping is free. During this month, I’ll also be sharing several more blog posts about modern day slavery and other ways you can fight it. Normally, I only send one or two emails a month to my email subscribers, but this month is special. I’ll be sending an email for each new post. If you haven’t already, will you please join my email list? This is one of the best ways you can help out a young author, and it doesn’t cost you a thing! Well, as always, remember that, “He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it,” (1 Thessalonians 5:24). All for Him, Savannah Jane Hi friends! Many of you know that I have been planning on fighting human trafficking this month by participating in a challenge called Dressember.
Well, after talking to a dear cousin/friend and discussing it with my parents, I have decided not to do Dressember this year. While the Dressember Foundation supports some really great organizations that I respect, I’m concerned that they also might support some things that I do not agree with. I’m still going to do something to fight human trafficking this month, though! This is a passion God has placed on my heart, and in the near future I will share with ya’ll what I’m doing instead. As always, remember that, “He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it,” (1 Thessalonians 5:24). All for Him, Savannah Jane |
Hi! I'm Savannah Jane...I'm the author of several books for children and young adults with a passion to encourage young people to live for Jesus. The third born in an amazing family of seven children, I was homeschooled all the way through. This is where I share encouragement for Christian girls, updates about my books, writing tips, book and movie reviews, and assorted other tidbits. Archives
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Quote"When I try, I fail. When I trust, He succeeds."
-Corrie ten Boom I'm on GoodReadsFollow my family's writing, illustrating, and publishing business/ministry.Follow my blog on Bloglovin' |