Thursday, February 01, 2024

Jackpot! in ebook format

 My first novel that I published in 2022 is finally available in ebook format!  Unfortunately, there is a hitch with Amazon and it did not link my paperback and ebook. But, you can order the Kindle version here:

https://a.co/d/4m8Si6b

As far as I know, it is now available worldwide on practically every ebook platform including Apple Books and Barnes and Noble. 

Thank you for your support! 

Tuesday, January 23, 2024

Jackpot! eBook available February 1, 2024

 I am pleased to announce that my debut novel, which is already available in paperback will be available on all eBook platforms February 1, 2024. It can be pre-ordered on many of the platforms now at

https://books2read.com/u/mdPpad

It can be purchased as an eBook for $6.99 which beats the publisher's paperback price of $24.99 by $18!

Thank you in advance!


Sunday, January 21, 2024

When Opinions Divide

 I recently looked at some Facebook pages of people who de-friended me over the past several years. Some of them defriended me because I held certain OPINIONS of things going on in the government or in certain disease related things.

They laughed at me, even belittled me for questioning the popular narrative regarding presidents, both current and former. They ridiculed me for questioning the so-called science behind the last pandemic and completely dismissed me and my opinions saying things like "you better adjust your tin foil hat" or "you belong to a cult" or even better, "no TRUE Christian would never even dare think that way."

Well, I'll give them this: they are tenacious and consistent.

Despite recently exposed FACTS about government things and health care things, they are still towing the popular narrative, right down to thinking that everyone should still be wearing face masks. 

Wow.

Even when their FB posts where public and I could have commented on them, I didn't, because they have the right to their own opinion. 

I'm definitely not claiming to be perfect. I certainly am not. Nor do I expect others to be perfect. I do expect a certain amount of courtesy when giving a differing opinion among friends and former colleagues. Why can't we disagree without name calling?

I guess it comes down to this: when you see you are losing an argument to facts, quit the argument and start attacking the person.

I've been told numerous times to "follow the science."  Fine.  Whose science? The politicians' science? Big pharma's science? Liberal science? Conservative science?

When I was growing up, science used to be just facts. Now it seems it is whatever agenda the entity paying for it becomes "real" science.

How dare you tell me to not "question the science." I thought that's how you did science.

How dare you tell me to not question the news? I will question it until it quits reporting opinion as news. And then I'll still question it.

So, what is the purpose of this post? I'm not sure. Maybe I just needed to get it off my chest.

Thanks for listening/reading.

Thursday, November 16, 2023

Jesus Is Enough

 When I was in my mid-twenties, I lived in Los Angeles. I was preparing for missions and was attending the Church on Brady. It was actually the First Southern Baptist Church of East Los Angeles DOB as the Church on Brady. It was led by pastor Thom Wolf.

It was a great time in my life. I was single and completely unencumbered by anything permanent. Don't get me wrong, I love being married and have been for nearly 31 years, but not when I lived in LA. 

Anyway, I got to interact with so many people who were completely sold out for Jesus. And I loved it. 

One day, I was having coffee with a man who had been a missionary in a very poor part of a very poor country. I'll not give his name. He told me of the extreme poverty in which people called home and it was horrifying. He said that a number of prostitutes had given their lives to Jesus, but they continued in prostitution because there was no other way for them to make a living. 

When I questioned this man, he answered, "Jesus Christ is not the answer to every problem."

That statement has bothered me for nearly 40 years and I do not believe it to be true. In fact, I say, "Jesus is the answer to every problem." 

Jesus changes lives. Jesus makes a way when there is no way. Jesus saves in entirety. 

JESUS IS ENOUGH!

How can I say that? Because Jesus IS God! The Bible says that everything that has been created, Jesus created! If He can speak the world into existence, He can rescue a prostitute from prostitution. If Jesus can speak light into existence, He can restore people and families. If Jesus can raise from the dead, He can give eternal life. Yes, Jesus is enough!

Wednesday, November 15, 2023

Why I Write

 I love writing. I've always had an affinity for it. Well, for telling stories, really. When I was young, I would make up stories to tell anyone who would listen. The problem I had then was telling the stories as if they were real, as if they actually happened to me.

That was dishonest and I know that now. But I never had the mentoring to channel the love of the story into writing. 

I did well on my writing assignments in high school and college. I laugh now thinking about how I bragged that I had to write a ten-page paper every week for a certain class. I also remember a class that demanded a rough draft before the final project. I would simply type out the paper on my Royal Electric Typewriter, then go back with a pencil and paper and "create" a rough draft. I always got ""A's" on my writing projects.

While we were missionaries, I would write a newsletter that went out to hundreds of people, telling them about what God was doing overseas. I'd also write about our children and include any fun personal stories. Due to a hard drive failure, I've lost all those emails.

When I became a pastor 16 years ago, I was prolific in writing blog posts here and on our church website. I also interacted with many other bloggers which introduced my writing to a couple of editors of Southern Baptist publications. I began writing missions articles and eventually wrote some larger projects including the International Missions Emphasis piece on Beijing for the International Mission Board. 

About 10 or so years ago, I began writing my first novel, "Jackpot!" which was finally published in 2022. Except for the fact that it made me a published author, it was a miserable failure. There was virtually no publicity for it from the publisher and I personally sold most of the copies that were sold. As of this writing, it ranks as number 1,395,097 in books on Amazon and number 43,198 in Religious Literature & Fiction on the same. 

I finished my second novel about a month ago and am currently seeking literary representation. I have only queried 17 agents so far and have had a negative response from three. I have big hopes for this novel and am praying for success.

That brings me to the purpose of this post. Why do I write? 

I write with a three-fold purpose:

1. To glorify God

2. To edify His church

3. To build His kingdom

I certainly don't seek fame. In fact, I love my anonymity. I don't seek fortune, although I would not reject it. My purpose is to write in such a way that Christians are encouraged and those who are not Christians would be drawn to God through His Son Jesus Christ. In those two things, I believe God will be glorified. 

That's why I write.

Wednesday, October 11, 2023

Novel Update

 I have written a little over 113K words towards my next novel, "Peering into the Darkness." It's taken a different direction than what I first anticipated. While the protagonist still sees angels and demons, the gift is used to bust a huge crime ring that involves celebrities, politicians, and other powerful people.


I hope to have the first draft completed by the end of October and will begin looking for literary representation. 

In the meantime, if you know me, please pray for this novel to be a success so that it will encourage the Bride of Christ and bring God glory!

Wednesday, September 06, 2023

Second Novel

 I began writing my second novel this morning. It is tentatively titled, "Peering into the Darkness." The protagonist is Josh Weston who gains the power to see angels and demons and becomes privy to the secret plans of the devil to deceive the world. It is once again based in Tulsa, Oklahoma and locales around NE OK. 

Saturday, March 18, 2023

Half a Century with Jesus!

 50 years ago today, I trusted Jesus as my Lord and Savior. In this past half century, I cannot boast about my faith, faithfulness, or my devotion, as it is truly not about me and I have messed up numerous times. It is all about God. In His great mercy, Jesus died on the cross, was buried and was raised from the dead. He was seen by hundreds of people before ascending to Heaven. I, along with millions of others, am awaiting His return. The Bible says that God loves the world so much that He sent Jesus to die for us and whoever would put their faith and trust in Jesus would never die spiritually, but instead have eternal life! This is open to everyone, including you. Won’t you surrender yourself to God through faith in Jesus Christ? It will change your life- and your eternity!

All reactions:
Pamela Goodell, Jo Boyne and 100 others

Wednesday, August 31, 2022

Jackpot!

Front Cover

 I am anticipating the publishing of my first novel, "Jackpot!" any day now! It has been a long time coming and I am very excited about it, to say the least.  This is the blurb on the back cover:

        

After winning millions in the Lottery, Owen Rigsby embarks on a reckless journey of self-destructive indulgence, trying to live up to his imagination of a millionaire lifestyle only to find himself alone, empty and morally bankrupt.

        A lifelong hatred of the drunk driver who killed his father stands in the way of finding peace with himself and God. Owen learns of the killer's upcoming parole and feels compelled to avenge his father's death. But when the opportunity arrives, Owen discovers forgiveness is a far greater treasure than money and all it can buy.


If you would like an autographed copy, please contact me at rick@rickboyne.com. The list price is $21.95 (set by the publisher, not me) plus $3.49 for postage. (Total is $25.44) This offer is good in the USA only. I accept PayPal, Venmo, and CashApp. Please include your mailing address in the email and to whom the autograph should be addressed. 

Thursday, January 06, 2022

Insurrection? What Insurrection?

 A year has passed since so-called insurrection at the nation's capitol.  I say "so-called" because none of the "insurrectionists" had weapons. If it were a real insurrection, there would have been much much more bloodshed, instead of just one woman protestor.

This whole thing stinks to high heaven. There is video of the Capitol Police opening doors and letting the protestors in with the caveat, "Don't break anything." Those who have been arrested have not been charged with insurrection, only with trespassing misdemeanors. 

There are reports that T ordered the national guard and the DC police chief agreed but was overruled by the DC mayor and by NP. NP, as SOTH, oversees the Capitol Police and her responses are at best confusing, and at worst, traitor-like. 

It is obvious to many, if not most, that the media guided this red flag event. Even today, my local station, was reporting on the "Deadly Insurrection" as if protestors had killed police or politicians.  People need to realize that if the majority of those there were actually T supporters, they were then 2A supporters as well, and they did not show up armed. Can we all agree that real insurrection would be truly bloody? 

Something is rotten in DC. Always has been; always will. 

God help us all.

Tuesday, May 18, 2021

Elections have consequences

 Gas prices are rising.

Lumber prices are rising. 

The Taliban is back. 

Hamas is attacking Israel. 

Russia is massing on Ukraine’s border. 

Conservatives are being censored. 

Science is what you want it to be. 


Elections have consequences. 


But don’t blame me; I voted for the other guy. And something sure doesn’t seem right with this guy....

Wednesday, January 06, 2021

Chaos in the Capitol

(Writing this as it is currently happening in DC)


Just my observation, but I think what we are seeing in Washington is the base group of Americans who are fed up with being lied to and ignored for the past 12 years. And remember, not everyone who wears a MAGA hat is a MAGA subscriber. Stories have been swirling for days of how agitators were going to go along side the peaceful protestors to cause trouble. If this was Antifa or BLM instead of MAGA, the Capitol would be on fire by now.

I've been watching a live stream for the past hour or so of the protestors on the steps of the Capitol. They are chanting "USA" and waving flags. Obviously, I don't know everything about everything that is going on, and my observation could be off.

I've read FB posts from Trump Haters denouncing everything about this. I get that. 99.9% of the protestors are peacefully protesting. I think they genuinely believe the election was rigged for Biden to win. There certainly seems to be enough documented discrepancies to come to that conclusion.

Don't get me wrong. I think there are lots and lots of things wrong with Trump. There is no politician who is perfect. (For sure) 
 
I'm sick of "politics as usual," that is, that people in power can get away with crimes just because they are in power. Take a look at the Clintons. Conservatives are tired of the GOP having no spine. I think people are starting to realize that they are the other side of the same political coin as the DNC. I'd love to see the end of both parties, or, at the very least, term limits. That would take care of a lot of the corruption.

I don't put my trust in a politician or a man-made institution. I trust God. At the same time, I understand the frustration believing the election was not just.

Tuesday, September 01, 2020

Third Party Voting

Are you  fed up with the two party system? Do you feel that voting for either party is essentially the same and are considering voting for a third party? According to ballotpedia.org "As of August 31, 2020, there are 1,186 candidates who filed to run, including:

  • 323 Democratic candidates
  • 163 Republican candidates
  • 65 Libertarian candidates
  • 23 Green candidates"

They layout their case that there are only four "notable" candidates and parties:

Biden (D)

Trump (R)

Jorgensen (L)

Hawkins (G)

For many people, it comes down to issues. For some, it comes down to the character of the candidate. We can debate all we want, but the reality is, a third party vote is essentially wasted.  I wish it wasn't, but it is. The third party votes by conservatives fed up with their party only subtracts from the more conservative of the two. Third party votes by moderates fed up with their party, only subtracts from the more moderate of the two.

In reality, the decision for most people is between Trump and Biden.

For me, and most Americans who don’t actually hate a candidate, we have a few months to determine for ourselves, who is the better man for the job.

On the one hand, there is the incumbent who has an ego like Nebuchadnezzar. He’s definitely not a politician but seems to care about his country.

On the other hand, the challenger is a career politician who has some genuine cognitive issues. His character flaws are as blatant as the incumbent’s but his concern for our country seems to be along party lines.

Does character matter? Absolutely! Do issues matter? You better believe it!  What about voting your conscience? Sure, if you want your vote to ensure the one you dislike the most wins. Isn't that a cop out? Not if you look at reality and know that either Biden or Trump is going to win. There is no way for a third party candidate to win, at least not in THIS election.

Reality says it’s going to be one of the characters from the two party system. Voting your conscience for a third party candidate is only good in your opinion.

One of these years, I would love to have a candidate that I truly supported rather than voting against someone. I suppose I will support Trump, but I certainly don't like everything about him. And I certainly wish he would have someone monitor his Tweets...

Nevertheless, I urge you to look back at a post I made a few years ago,  My Grandmother Was a Life-Long Democrat.  Of course, vote your conscience. But don't waste you vote!

And, no matter who is president, don't forget to pray for them and for our country!

God Bless America!

Saturday, August 01, 2020

13 Years Pastoring

13 years is a long time. This past year seems to be the longest. I, nor any of my friends, have ever faced the challenges of being a pastor during a pandemic.

13 Year Anniversary Pic
At least since mid-March, traditional conventional ministry, at least personal pastoral ministry, has been anything but normal or conventional. I have faced criticism from folks for following the recommendations of the CDC and closing down for public services. Likewise, I have faced criticism for not closing down soon enough and/or reopening too soon. There is literally no way to please everyone. And the pastor will be the one blamed if anything regarding the pandemic goes wrong within the church.

Falls Creek was cancelled. So was KBA. We made the heart wrenching decision to cancel Vacation Bible School.

There are several older members who I have not seen in person since March and they refuse to allow me to visit them in their homes. In fact, I’ve only been in a handful of members’ homes since March. I hate it.

Nevertheless, I have continued to preach every week. We never had a completely empty sanctuary. We have had a couple people saved and I was honored to baptize 3 people last Sunday. We have been on Facebook Live and have had hundreds of viewers. We are back to “normal” except for Sunday evening services. Attendance is suffering. We are at approximately 35-40% of regular attendance. Giving is down. We were the first in town to reestablish our children and youth programs. But we have also lost several people through this crisis.

Nevertheless, through all of these issues, God has been faithful. We were able to raise over $7000 for our Pakistani Christian friends who are suffering more than we are. Both children and youth were afforded the opportunity to attend an alternative to camp this past week, thanks to the efforts of volunteers.

If you'd like to watch the live service online, go to facebook.com/immanuelsouthern at about 11 am (Central) on Sunday mornings.  If you'd like to contribute to our church, you can also do that online at http://www.bfok.org/give-immanuelsouthern

I don’t know what the future looks like, but I know who holds the future! God is good- all the time!


Monday, July 27, 2020

Is Everyone God's Children?

I hear it all the time, "We are all God's children."

It is a nice sentiment, but it isn't true. Actually, there are a whole lot of nice sentiments that aren't true, but I digress...

What IS true is that we are all "created in the image of God." (Refer to Genesis 1:27). In other words, we are all God's creation. BUT, that doesn't make us His children.

Children, whether natural born or adopted are heirs of their parents. We are not naturally born into God's family. We are adopted by means of grace through faith in Jesus Christ. (Refer to Ephesians 2:8-9) Actually, that is the ONLY way to be adopted in to God's family. (Refer to John 14:6)

So, where does the idea that we are "all children of God" come from? It comes from bad theology and wishful thinking.

You see, to be adopted into God's family, certain things need to happen. The first is that a person must feel the conviction of sin by the Holy Spirit. The second is that they must trust Jesus to be their savior.

Those two things are entirely necessary, but certainly not natural. Very few people will admit that they are sinners under their own power. No one likes to think of themselves as broken or blemished. But, until that happens, that is, that you realized that you are lost, in danger, in mortal/eternal peril, there is no need to seek out a savior.

Then, this is where things get tricky. The world says that if we are good enough, we will go to Heaven; that if our good outweighs our bad, we get judged "good." Unfortunately, that isn't how this works at all.

God says (and He should know) that sin (being bad) separates us from Him and that our bad deeds have to be rewarded with death. BUT He also says that He loves us and wants us to be saved from that horrible "reward." He says that He showed the whole world that He loves us by sending Jesus to take that horrible reward for us, even though we were still being bad.

He says that if we "openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in [our] heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved!" (Refer to Romans 10:9)

That's it. That's how you become a true child of God! Not by doing good things. Not by being dunked or sprinkled by a preacher or priest. Not by living the best live you can live. Not by going to church. Not by giving money. Not by any other way. And it has to be through Jesus only! He was the one that took the horrible reward for your sin. Not any other person who has ever lived.

So, how about you? Are you a true Child of God? If you need some help getting there, leave me a message or get in touch with me. God loves you; and so do I!