I have been keeping a lock-down journal, for no other reason than that I may, if we ever get out of lock-down, want to look back in five or ten years time and see what I did and how lock-down worked for me.

But I began it when lock-down was going to last for 3 weeks. And I sighed and continued for the next 2 weeks when it was extended to 5. And I am still writing. But I haven’t dared read it back. Why, you may ask. Because I have the feeling it is all going to be the same, over and over again.

And I am feeling a little bit like that about my long Friday posts. After all, I don’t want to bore you guys when you make the effort to read them.

In 2018 I fulfilled a dream. I managed to complete the series of novels, based on scripture, entitled God’s People. (You can see the first three, Witnesses, Disciples and Believers here). But I have, actually written a fourth one. The final one, although chronologically it should be the first. This volume was the biggest challenge. Many of us are familiar with the New Testament stories which the first three novels cover. But there is not a great deal recorded about day to day life in the Hebrew scriptures, so I had to use some poetic licence.

That doesn’t mean to say that I made the stories up. Each one of them is recorded in Scripture. But some of the details are the product of my imagination.

Due to unforeseen circumstances beyond my (or anyone else’s) control, and now Covid bring the world to a halt, I have not managed to publish the fourth book, which is called Forerunners (as in those who went before Christ). So I suddenly had the idea, as I was mulling over what to write, that perhaps I should share this fourth novel on line. With you.

I know God did not inspire me with the stories for them to sit in a drawer in my desk and gather cobwebs. He inspired me so they could be shared.

So from next week, unless anyone strongly objects I am going to serialise Forerunners. I may do a chapter at a time; I may split some of the chapters up so you don’t lose interest because ‘this post this week is too long’. But hopefully, posting them on a Friday morning, will mean you will be able to spend 10 minutes over the weekend reading. And hopefully, after the first couple of chapters, you will be hooked into the story and not want to miss a week.

So there we go. I am excited about sharing this with you. I pray as you read it, it may illuminate parts of the Hebrew bible for you in new ways.

Let me know what you think.

Enjoy it.