First Rose Update

The past year has been a physically difficult one for the author. Mary had cervical spine surgery which kept her fairly inactive so far as travel for Book Signings. However, the sale of the book has been okay. Not a best seller, hot item at book stores or a "Can't live without it" reflection in sales but just a consistent seller everywhere. Since surgery the sequel to FIRST ROSE was readied for publication and she has done 225 paintings. Not bad for the time she has spent recovering from her surgery. However, next year she will resume her book activities hopefully with a new publication of her sequel FIRST of EVER. Thanks for everything! See you soon!

My Take on Hearing the Voice of God

All of us have been guilty of listening to other people, or ourselves, before we hear what God has to say. Often what others have to say is easier for us to receive, so we tend to accept them readily as "God speaking to us through others". Then we go our merry way without really asking or waiting for God to speak directly to us.

Yes, yes, yes, He speaks spirit to spirit to all His creation. It is usually without the form of language. However, one way we can translate what He is saying Spiritually is by finding a similar situation in the Bible and reading what God desired concerning the same dilemma. When everything He says can be verified as having been already spoken to a Biblical prophet in the past, we can "know" it is God.

Please also note, nature, the mind and evil spiritual entities may also speak to you using words also found in the Bible. But they are twisted, fragmented and distorted to suit your desires. God speaks directly to your spiritual "need", evil speaks to your fleshly lusts and will confirm something contrary to the design of God. Evil speaks words to you that you can use for excuses for not doing the right thing. "Evil" is not always the devil. Evil can be your own thoughts, dogma and conclusions on any given subject.

God speaks words of love and encouragement that strengthen and gives one hope. I want to encourage everyone to take the time to listen for personal words of God coming in the "still small voice" (like the conscience)from deep within.

There are so many ways God delivers a message to us. Watch creation, read the Bible, listen to the teacher and preacher at church, listen to people talk and above all commune with Him alone where most of the words impact our spirit...ready to be translated, saturated in unconditional love and always proving to be "right" in the end.

Why FIRST ROSE Should Be Read

A day fishing, golfing or recreating is as refreshing to the soul as it is to the body. Likewise, a day shopping, relaxing at the spa or just being with family can briefly draw the spirit into another realm renewing both mind and emotions.

Indeed a good book on a lazy day or a sleepless night can sweep one from the fray of every day living into a world where imagination refuels creativity and expectations.

FIRST ROSE is that book. It will escort you into new visions of the worlds to come, generate hope and sweetly unveil lost or suppressed dreams bringing them to life again.

FIRST ROSE is not just imagination and fantasy. It is full of sights, sounds and events that could actually be part of our future.

Written with the Bible as guide and taking into account the dreams, visions, near death experiences and beliefs of hundreds of others, Mary Barton Wilcox has woven a literary masterpiece describing her concept of heaven.

FIRST ROSE is an entire book devoted to the inevitable appointment facing us all. From physical death to the throne of God, there is an unending parade of the spectacular.

At the close of the last chapter, only a long deep breath can inhale the immense joy and happiness that will flood the very air around you. Tears will flow, not because of sadness, but for gladness. At last, someone dared to write a book embracing the expectations of all who call themselves the children of God.

OTHER COMMENTS ABOUT THE BOOK

With the brush of reality, the colors of dreams and the stroke of bravery, FIRST ROSE became the canvass for a literary masterpiece.

Hope and happiness are relived in this extraordinary work of fiction. Peace and assurance flood the mind as this book escorts one past the inevitable appointment that awaits us all and into an incredible detailed account of Heaven.

Reality and fiction are woven together creating a book worth keeping and passing on from generation to generation.

What parts are fiction, only the reader can decide. Inspired by creation and the Bible, it is full of spectacular sights and reference to sounds expected in eternity. Its compilation was inspired by years of ministry with people concerning their supernatural experiences which could be supported by Biblical truth.

FIRST ROSE restores insight into life to come and gives every cloud of circumstance here a silver lining. It gives the reader a fresh reality of the existence of a just and loving Creator. It regenerates the possibility that some (if not all) of the occurrences written in the book could actually be true one day.

What CD Inspired the Writing of First Rose?

www.tolag.org/kimwilcox.html

I found it noteworthy that I had just listened to my son's new cd in the car before going to the back porch (deck) and sitting in the swing. It was almost immediately after I had entered into worship with God (during the music and lyrics of "Drinking with Horses")that I walked from the car and noticed the rosebush filled with Spring blooms smothering the railing of the deck. I plucked the "first rose" of Spring, looked deep into its red velvety petals and heard the voice of the Lord speak to me about how much beauty He had put into the rose, which is just a temporal thing, and how much more beautiful would be the eternal. It was then I decided to imagine with as much creative mental ability as I could, Heavenly things. From that came the inspiration to write it down. As I wrote, the inspiration began to flow so easily that I kept writing every day until at the end of four weeks, I had completed an entire book describing in intricate detail all I had imagined. The Heavenly city came alive in my mind and I could see things about Heaven I had never seen before. Did the cd have anything to do with the inspiration? I cannot tell but it was an important part of the atmosphere that day.

More About First Rose, a Literary Epic.

I am delighted with the cover design for First Rose. It will be released sometime in early 2010. I had hoped for an earlier release but I remain content. lol It will be the only entire book devoted to a detailed tour of Heaven. Many questions you have had concerning eternal life will be settled as you read First Rose. It is fictional reality and was based on the Bible, years of counseling, personal thoughts and facts gleaned from others who have had "after death" experiences. Hope and joy will be restored to your life here when you read what may await all of us after death. It is highly recommended for everyone. Enjoy!!

Why First Rose Needed To Be Written

It has been my experience through the years as an ordained minister that people recoil from expressing what they think the "after life" may contain. Since the Bible has given only "the Ezekiel bones" of eternal life and its content, it is up to us who want to know to facilitate the flesh, sinew and body of it. The Holy Spirit is present in each believer's life to reveal "things to come" and "the kingdom of God" to seekers. Our thoughts, imaginations, wishes, hopes and dreams, as they are surrendered to the Lord, play an important part as vehicles through which God speaks to us.

The inspiration for First Rose came immediately after I had listened to a cd "Drinking With Horses". I had listened to it in the car and when I arrived on the back porch of my home, I sat down on the porch swing. The roses which draped the railings of the deck were in full bloom. I reached to pick my FIRST ROSE of spring. I held it close to smell its fragrance and when I looked into the fire of its red color, I distinctively heard a voice speak to me. From my own thoughts came clearly: "If the Creator put so much beauty into the making of this temporary rose, which is here only a short while, why wouldn't He make eternal things much more beautiful and magnificent." Although it was difficult to imagine anything more beautiful than a rose, I made an effort to begin imagining eternal life and some of the experiences we could have there. Of course, I was required to describe all that I imagined with my limited vocabulary but I proceeded to write them down. Those notes evolved into a book which was written within the period of four weeks.