Please join me in welcoming Barbara M. Britton back to the blog today to share a playlist for her new Biblical fiction novel, Heavenly Lights: Noah’s Journey!
HEAVENLY LIGHTS: NOAH’S JOURNEY
SERIES: Daughters of Zelophehad #2
GENRE: Inspirational Historical/Biblical Fiction
PUBLISHER: Harbourlight Books
RELEASE DATE: Feb 20, 2020
PAGES: 180
Noah bat Zelophehad might have broken tradition by being able to inherit her father’s land, but her heart’s desire is to have the finest herds in all of Israel, something an orphaned and unmarried woman has never achieved.
Jeremiah ben Abishua cannot speak, nor hear. God has made his thoughts captive to his mind. But he can communicate with one shepherdess, a woman who sees his skill with animals and treats him like a man worthy of respect.
When their people disobey God and incur his wrath, Noah and Jeremiah must overcome tragedy in order to change perceptions in the tribes of Israel. Will their kinship desire to care for one another and the four-legged creatures God has placed in their care, be able to flourish in a land filled with enemies of the One True God?
God gave Noah bat Zelophehad four sisters, a way with four-legged creatures, and a strong spirit. She will need all three gifts to thrive in the Promised Land of God and find love with a special shepherd.
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Playlist for “Heavenly Lights: Noah’s Journey
by Barbara M. Britton
In one more week, the daughters of Zelophehad will travel further into the book of Joshua and further into God’s promised land. Who are the daughters of Zelophehad? They are five orphaned sisters who secured land rights for women. Noah will be at the forefront in this novel which tackles the fall of Jericho, Achan’s sin, battles for Ai, and a rededication of the people of Israel.
Yes, there is a female Noah in the Bible. So, what would my whip-toting shepherdess choose for a playlist?
All you 80’s ladies will remember “We Are Family” by Sister Sledge. Noah and her sisters went before Moses to ask for their land and now they continue to venture into a foreign land together. They even remind Joshua many years later about their land (Joshua 17:3-6). Noah can sing:
“We are family, I’ve got all my sisters with me.”
“Heavenly Lights: Noah’s Journey” opens with the fall of Jericho. Noah is in the fields with her flocks and herds. What happens to animals when the ground shakes? Noah will be singing with Carole King “I feel the earth move under my feet.”
Noah has been tending flocks for many years with the rugged, mute, and handsome Jeremiah. Since Jeremiah cannot hear or speak, Noah has created a sign language they can both understand. When Jeremiah is injured in the battle for Ai, Noah realizes that she cares for him more than she has let on. Her song now is “I Won’t Last A Day Without You” by the Carpenters.
Noah believes, “I can take all the madness the world has to give, but I won’t last a day without you.” Noah also has a strong faith in God and could sing this to Him, too.
As Jeremiah clings to life, Noah sings to God a song by MercyMe, “Even If.” She feels “Right now I’m losing bad.” But she also believes the future belongs to God. “My hope is You alone.”
I won’t do any spoiler alerts, but Noah and her sisters have a strong faith in God. After all, they went before an assembly of men to ask for something that had never been granted before…inheritance rights for girls.
Noah’s theme song, and one for all the daughters of Zelophehad (Mahlah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah, too) comes from Jeremy Camp. “Walk by Faith” says: “Well, I will walk by faith, even when I cannot see.” The girls didn’t know if their request for land would be honored, but God said, “They’re right!”
I hope you enjoy my second novel with the daughters of Zelophehad as they brave new challenges and new territory.
The title for “Heavenly Lights” comes from James 1:17:
“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”
A perfect verse for brave, faith-filled girls. Even one named Noah.
Barbara M. Britton lives in Southeast Wisconsin and loves the snow—when it accumulates under three inches. She is published in Biblical fiction and enjoys bringing little-known Bible characters to light in her stories. Barb is a member of the American Christian Fiction Writers, the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, Romance Writers of America and Wisconsin Romance Writers of America. Barb has a nutrition degree from Baylor University but loves to dip healthy strawberries in chocolate.
Barbara M. Britton is offering a copy of Heavenly Lights: Noah’s Journey to one of my readers! (print or ebook, print is open to US only; ebook is open internationally) Void where prohibited by law or logistics. This giveaway is subject to Reading Is My SuperPower’s giveaway policies which can be found here. Enter via the Rafflecopter form below.
What about you? What interests you most about Heavenly Lights: Noah’s Journey? Which of the songs that author Barbara Britton mentioned have you heard / do you already love?
I love the faith journey Noah takes. She had a very unique story. My middle name is Tirzah, one of Zelophehad’s daughters. I look forward to reading her story.
Thank you for joining us, Rachel. How special to have Tirzah as a middle name. You don’t hear that name much. Maybe it will gain popularity.
How neat, Rachel!
I’m intrigued by the sisters being allowed to inherit and Noah’s ability to communicate with Jeremiah. I think it sounds like a wonderful story that I’m looking forward to jumping into soon.
Hi Brandi! I hadn’t heard the story of the daughters of Zelophehad until a few years ago. There is a lot of Scripture devoted to these girls (Numbers 26:33, 27:1-11, chapter 36, and Joshua 17:3-6). Why hadn’t I heard their story? I was only going to write one book and then decided to take the girls through the book of Joshua. I had made Jeremiah a mute, but he is one of my favorite characters. Thanks for commenting.
I am intrigued by how these are new characters about women in the Bible who I never heard about!
Hi Katherine. I was shocked too! I taught chapel for many years and I would have loved to have taught this story. These girls are perfect for Vacation Bible School. I hope more people learn about them. Thanks for joining us.
Beautiful cover
Thank you, Nancy. My publisher does a nice job on the cover art. I appreciate you stopping by.
I enjoy Biblical fiction! Barbara, your cover is stunning!
Hi Caryl! I am really blessed to have such beautiful covers. I really like the bright colors. Biblical fiction usually has a woman with a head covering on the cover, so you have to find a way to make it stand out. Thanks for joining me here.
I am familiar with all the songs that Barbara mentions. At this point in my life I have passed an “Even If” time and am on the “Walk by Faith” path. I am looking forward to “Home” (my favorite song by Chris Tomlin). I look forward to reading “ Heavenly Lights: Noah’s Journey.”
Hi Roxanne. I am so sorry that you had an “Even If” time. That song came on the scene when my sister-in-law passed away from ovarian cancer at 53. I had survived a breast cancer fight and wished she could have survived her cancer. I, too, look forward to “Home.” Chris Tomlin sings so many wonderful songs. I listened to “Good, Good Father” during some difficult times. Thanks for joining us and continue to walk by faith. I’m sending you a cyber hug.
the characters
Thanks for joining us bn100. I hope everyone likes the sisters and their friendly shepherd, Jeremiah.
I recognize some of those songs, these are interesting definitely thought provoking themes.
Home is a good one
Hi Calvin! Some of those songs go back to the 70s. Oldies but goodies. I may still have some Carpenters albums laying around my home. I’m glad you joined us.
Added to my TBR list!
Hi Abigail. Thanks for adding Noah’s story to your TBR list. I appreciate you joining us.
yay!
Barb I absolutley love this cover! In reading the former books Noah seems to have exceptional beauty!? Anyway your playlist has my favorite song of all time…”We are family”. Family is so important to me and it makes me wish I were one of the daughters of Zelophahad.
Hi Sherrie. “We Are Family” is such a fun and meaningful song. Actually, someone in Book 3 says they want to be a daughter of Zelophehad. I’m glad you joined us.
This book sounds like a very good read, and the cover is Beautiful! Thank you for sharing about this book. I will be adding it to my TBR list.
Hi Alicia! I’m happy you joined us. I had lots of adventure in the book of Joshua to work with in this novel. There’s always something going on in a story with five girls. I hope you enjoy “Heavenly Lights.”
I would love to read this whole series. Reading about all of these sisters and how they managed by themselves (with God’s help of course) to collect their inheritance without a male relative would be quite the feat. I have heard almost all of the songs before, I just have not listened to the Jeremy camp song.
Hi Judi. The faith of the daughters of Zelophehad inspires me. Deuteronomy 10:18 tells us that God defends the cause of the fatherless, and God supports these brave sisters. Thanks for joining us.
LOVE the premise of this series, Barbara!
Good luck and God’s blessings
PamT
Thank you, Pam. I appreciate your support. Thanks for joining us.
I’m curious about the created sign language created between Noah and Jeremiah.
Hi Amy! Because I didn’t plan on writing a series, I made Jeremiah mute. When he became the hero of book two, I had to deal with his lack of hearing and speaking. My mom is almost deaf, so I have experience with making hand motions. I used my real life experiences for the hand communication. Thank you for joining us.
Sounds really good
Hi Lori! I had a lot of fun writing about these girls. Thanks for joining us.
the book is great and then the cover is great eye catcher
Thanks for joining us, Desiree. My publisher does a great job on my covers. They are so bright. I’m glad I finally discovered these sisters, so I could write their story.