Some people have asked me, when they pick up one of my books, if there are certain things in them. I’m always able to answer in the negative, but I thought you might like to know those things, and why I don’t include them.

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1. Magic – I know this is sometimes a hot topic for authors. Some have no problem with it, others consider “white magic” okay (I honestly don’t know what that is), others are iffy about it, while still others say no to any and all. If you look up witchcraft (one of the terms for magic in the Bible) in the Bible, it is always talked about in a negative light. Galatians 5:19-20 say it is a work of the flesh. In 1 Samuel 15:23 it says that rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft. If the Bible speaks so strongly against it, why would I think it was okay to include it in my stories?

2. Graphic Scenes – Some people don’t mind graphic details of blood and gore. Some seem to enjoy it. Personally, I don’t like graphic details. I have a vivid imagination and just stating something without being explicit is enough for me to picture it. Have you ever thought about how the Bible handles graphic scenes? Think of the concubine who was cut up in pieces and sent to the tribes of Israel. It was a stated fact that this happened, but it didn’t go into graphic details about how it was done. Or in Judges 3 when Ehud killed the king of Moab, it states things, but really isn’t graphic like books are today.

3. Sensual Details – I am still not sure why so many Christian authors have started to include the sensual details of how someone smells and all the feelings they have when they see another person or *gasp* their fingers touch. (Okay, any time there is “electricity” between a guy and girl I grin and wonder which one was jumping on a trampoline.) The Bible says we are to think on things that are pure and right and lovely. Putting sensual thoughts and ideas into the heads of anyone, married or not, is not helping them keep their thoughts with all diligence.

4. Language – Swearing, cussing, euphemisms, and such are growing more common in today’s published books. Even in Christian ones. Some authors justify it by saying it is “real life” but seem to forget the command to not take the name of the Lord in vain. They also fail to take into account that if they are including those words in their book, they are causing the reader to see and digest them. If the reader is reading aloud, suddenly they are swearing or taking the Lord’s Name in vain because the author included it in the story. If there is a character in the story who does swear, it is easy to say, “he swore” without including the actual words used. There is no reason to defile yourself, or your readers with vile words just because people say them.

5. Immoral Behavior – It’s a sad fact that this would even be thought of, but I wanted to add it (even though no one has asked me about it) because I’ve seen it in supposedly “Christian” books. They talk about same-sex “couples” as though it’s not a sin. They treat divorce as though it was sad or maybe even wrong, but then remarriage is okay. They take the readers into depths of sin and shame leaving dirty images in the reader’s minds. Ephesians 5:11-12 says we are not to have fellowship with the works of darkness and that it’s a shame even to speak of them.