Today on my blog, I’d like you to meet fellow author Jessica White. Jessica’s romantic suspense, Song in the Dark, released yesterday. Drawing from Greek mythology, Jessica has created contemporary characters in a contemporary setting, adding the element of God’s unconditional love.
RESCUES AND RESCUERS
One thing I love about God is the myriad of names He answers to. There are over 900 different ones in scripture from the well-known “I AM” to the lesser known “the God who answers by fire.” But one of my favorites is “God my deliverer.” It first appears in 2 Samuel but also is used four times in Psalms as David flees for his life and cries out to God to rescue him.
At some point in every person’s life, we need a rescuer. There is another name of God “the God who saves” or in the New Testament, Jesus, “the Lord is Salvation.” From the book of Exodus when the people beg God to save them from the land of Egypt all the way to Revelation, people call upon God to save them from enemies both external and internal.
In my book, Song in the Dark, homicide detective Dean Blackburn struggles with the lie that he is not a rescuer. After being unable to protect his brothers from an abusive father, losing his mom, and then becoming a cop and witnessing innocent people murdered, he has cemented his belief that his job is to seek justice for the dead, not be a hero.
But beneath that fear is a loyal heart that believes he won’t be able to save those he loves from the murderers he hunts. And yet he refuses to acknowledge he’s already rescued someone. Well, three someones—his three Dobermans. After finding their mother injured at a homicide scene, he checked in with the vet to see how she was doing, only to learn she had died, but they managed to save the three pups she was pregnant with.
When Dean learned they were three brothers, he couldn’t get past the parallels in his own life or bear to see them separated. So even though he had just transferred to the Albany Police Department, had no accrued time off, his apartment was in the middle of renovations, and he had never had a pet before, he took them in.
Thankfully God is a bit more prepared when He rescues us, but Dean’s love for his “boys” very much emulates God’s love for us. Dean would move heaven and earth to make sure they are safe, taken care of, and loved. If you asked him, he’d say those boys rescued him, not the other way around.
When you talk to rescue dog owners, you’ll often here, “he/she chose us.” I didn’t write in the backstory of how Dean got his boys, but in hindsight, it’s amazing to see how God worked it all out. Dean chose the boys, and three years later in the opening scene of Song in the Dark, the boys chose the woman who would become the love of his life.
Dean still insists he’s not a rescuer. And in the classic definition he’s not. He doesn’t rush in to save Jenna. Instead, he creates space for her to find her own way out. People often ask “why doesn’t God just swoop in and rescue us?” I believe it’s because He wants us to understand He is in us, and therefore we’re stronger than we realize. Or He sends others alongside to minister in our time of need to show us love means standing in the fire. This book let me show readers this portrait of God’s love.
I’ve witnessed this unconditional love in my own life. Most of our pets have been adopted from shelters or rescue centers. They all are loyal and loving and give way more than we give back in return. So when I was looking for an organization to support with this book, I knew I wanted it to be a Doberman rescue. Half of the profits from the first three months of sales will go to the Doberman Rescue of North Texas.
For more information about Song in the Dark visit my website, www.authorjessicawhite.com and to read early reviews visit Goodreads.
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