Author K.M. Weiland & Faith Enough

Author K. M. Weiland is my guest today. Here's Katie:

"Faith Enough: Hagar and Mairead

When we think of the great women of faith in the Bible, it isn’t often that Hagar comes to mind. Her story is surprisingly brief, almost a footnote in the larger tale of Abraham and Sarah and the chosen nation to which they would give birth. When I visualize this Egyptian maidservant, I inevitably bring to mind the vampish taunts of actress Zoe Sallis who portrayed her in John Huston’s film The Bible. But somewhere in the course of reading Genesis so many times, I’ve realized that the vague details of her story leave room for another interpretation.

This woman—who was also destined to give birth to a great nation—was abandoned, thrust out from her home by the father of her son, left to wander the desert, and presumably die. When at last she and Ishmael collapse beneath a bush, her hopelessness is tangible: “Do not let me see the boy die!”

Whatever Hagar may have been (and there’s little doubt that she behaved less than angelically toward her mistress, even as there’s little doubt that Sarah probably behaved less than reasonably toward her maid), whatever she may have become after this chapter ends and she exits the Biblical account forever, she stands as a beacon for the rest of us in our own moments of hopelessness.

She cries out to God in despair, probably doubting that this God of Abraham’s would even hear her, much less respond. She had not even faith enough to ask for a miracle. She didn’t ask to be saved; she asked only to be spared the sight of her son’s death. And from that tinier-than-a-mustard-seed grain of faith—just faith enough to speak up—God granted her a renewal beyond anything she imagined.

In my recently released medieval novel Behold the Dawn , my heroine, Lady Mairead of Keaton, is forced into a situation just as hopeless. Pursued by evil men, she flees to the Third Crusade in the Holy Land, only to be captured by the infidels and watch her husband die of his wounds. Alone in a hopeless situation, with only the kernel of her battered faith to support her, she too must find the courage to call out to God.

And when He answers in a way she never expected, by bringing her a rescuer in the shape of the condemned and embittered knight Marcus Annan, she must embark on a perilous journey that will force her to cast everything upon the Lord and trust that even in the midst of impossible circumstances, He is, indeed, a God of hope. He is a God who may lead us to the edge of our endurance—to the edge of Hagar’s desert—but He will never abandon us, so long as we have even just faith enough to speak up.

About the Author: K.M. Weiland http://www.kmweiland.com writes historical and speculative fiction from her home in the sandhills of western Nebraska. She is the author of A Man Called Outlaw and the recently released Behold the Dawn . She blogs at Wordplay: Helping Writers Become Authors and AuthorCulture ."

Thanks for that great insight and the book sounds truly intriguing.--Lyn

Marlo Schalesky--If Sarah, Why Not Me?

Today another writing friend shares a story. This time it's her story.
Here's Marlo:

"Infertility. Most of my adult life, I fought it. It’s challenged my faith, robbed my bank account, and in the end, made me into a stronger, braver woman. From it, I’ve written a nonfiction book on infertility, Empty Womb, Aching Heart, and several novels. But none of that would have happened if I hadn’t remembered Sarah.

For years friends and family would say “Remember Sarah!” to encourage me to have faith. Rebecca, Rachel, Hannah, Elizabeth--God opened their wombs, but mine was still closed. Didn’t I have enough faith? So, my Bible sat on the shelf, unopened, my prayer journal lay unused, and my attendance at church dwindled.

Then, one day I was cleaning out the closet when I found a small journal with peonies on the front. I sat on the floor, with my back against the closet door, and rubbed one hand over the first page. “Junior Year,” it read in big purple letters, my favorite color. I flipped to about half way through and began to read.


I saw the sunrise today, Lord. It was amazing. I wish I could say that I saw it because I was up early to pray, but as You know, I had to pull an all-nighter to get that paper done. But it was worth it to see the streaks of orange, red, and gold at the dawn of a new day. I stood there and thought to myself, I know the One who made that sunrise. The same One who lives in me. You know, I can feel You there, Lord, in my heart. Some days, like today, Your love is a tangible thing, like a warm blanket that wraps around my insides. In these moments, I feel like I could shout to the stars about what an awesome, incredible, super-wow God You are. I can’t believe there was ever a time when I turned my back on You. What a fool I was. But everything’s different now, God. My life, my heart, is filled with the wonder of knowing You. I’ll never forget this feeling. I’ll never forget to keep loving You. I promise . . .


Tears came to my eyes. I’d lost something more precious than my hope for a child. I’d lost my closeness with God. And that had made my heart even emptier than my womb. Yet, I could still feel the anger at God that was lodged in my heart like a huge stone, burying me in my self-made tomb. How could I ever get past my pain?

I rose from the floor and began to write.


God, it’s me, you know, the one who keeps asking you for a baby. Well, I’m so mad at You I could just spit . . .

That long, slow journey back to God is also reflected in Kinna the main character in If Tomorrow Never Comes. She, too, finds a new kind of strength and sacrifice through her journey through infertility.


Only when I surrendered all my dreams, doubts, and difficulties to God, He gave me two daughters, and after miscarriages, twin boys.
All God asks is that we bring our frustration, fears, anger, and questions to Him. He has big shoulders, as big as the sunrise."

Marlo, I also had to go through infertility and all the nasty tests and dismissive doctors. I am grateful for the son and daughter God gifted me with. Yet sometimes God does not send children. I think however that your story shows that God never abandons us and the true victory is to live within His gracious will for us.