chronological list of DONLAND BOOKS BOOKS BY PERRY COMER The Prize (Donland) The Messenger Donland and the Hornet Donland’s Ransom Donland and the Hornet Raid on Port Royal Donland and the Hornet The Bond of Duty Donland and the Hornet Siege Donland and The Hornet The Rescue Donland and the Hornet Donland’s Courage Donland’s Victory Donland: Uncharted Waters Donland: Devil’s Wind The Snake Killer (Juvenile Action/adventure) God's Broken Man (Allan Brooks) (Christian Fiction) Fall of Fort Fisher (Juvenile action/adventure) (Civil War) Andrew's War (Juvenile action/adventure) (Civil War) Fighting Marines: Hardy’s Commission Fighting Marines: Hardy’s Challenge

You would think that with retirement would come more time to do the things you dream of doing, such as writing. Wrong! Retirement means a re-shuffling of priorities. Yeah, all the stuff that you put off doing has to be done. The wife has her list. And, doctors take up more of your time than you thought possible. Then there is that other problem, the blank page. You would think after having written twenty-six books that the blank page would not be the obstacle that it is. Writing by this stage of life should be easy, free-flowing and exciting. Sorry, but it is still a struggle. Retirement is great in one respect, no more "have to". A pastor's life is one of "have to", there's always the next sermon and the next meeting. Retirement has no such constraints, no more long hours of study and preparation. And yet, there is still not time to write. The "have to" has changed, I have doctor appointments, the wife has doctor's appointments and the vet has appointments. The trash still has to go out, the lawn has to be cut and then there are all the funerals to attend. Geez! I just want to write.

Marines 1798 - 1835

Marines in the Frigate Navy 1798-1835 The first half of the 19th century saw little dramatic change in military technology or in military and naval tactics. Marines, formally organized by an act of Congress in 1798, would perform the same functions they had assumed during America's fight for independence. In May 1798, in response to the depredations of French privateers, President John Adams instructed American frigate captains to make reprisals upon the com- merce of France. Initially, Marine units were based upon the size of the ship and appointed directly, but on 11 July 1798, an act of Congress authorized "establishing and organizing a Marine Corps." American ships with Marine detachments soon set sail, landed, and captured a shore battery at Puerto Plata, Santo Domingo, and participated in the capture of more than three-score French vessels before the Treaty of Peace brought an end to the undeclared war. The renewal of the Barbary Wars in 1801 resulted in orders to the Mediterra- nean Squadron for many Marines, where they fought alongside sailors at ships' great guns. In 1805, near the war's end, Marine Lieutenant Presley N. O'Ban- non, with six privates, and a motley force of Arabs and Greeks, marched 500 miles across the desert from Egypt. Reaching Derna, the Marines led a charge through the town, captured its fort, and raised the flag for the first time over Old World territory.

Being Right Can Be So Wrong

Writers complain about the blank page; about how daunting it is to "have to" create. The blank page intimidates because of all the filled pages that others have written. The black page intimidates because no matter what you put on that blank page it will not measure up to the work of others. Shallow and empty, lacking passion and little more than a pale reflection of greater works is how you view what you create. Living for Christ compares to the writer's difficulty with the blank page. It is so difficult to take the life that you have and to live it in a magnificent manner that glories Christ. Your sins and failures are always before you as is the greatness and selflessness of great Christian men and women. Those men and women are not necessarily those of history but are those of your own ancestry. Grandmothers and grandfathers, those who your family have lifted up as examples and perhaps those your church has lifted up. Who am I in comparison. Flawed and weak are the words upon the page, flawed and weak are the days of our lives. The worth of our work and the works of our lives are best viewed by another. We are too close to what we have created and we are the ones who know of the erasures, deletions and imperfections that have preceded what we have created and what we have become. Truly, it is better to be judged of God that to be judged of self.

When God Leads

When God says move, He doesn't mean tomorrow or next week. He means Now! By the same token, until God says to move you are better to stay where you are. We can neither run ahead of God or lag behind Him. When it comes to writing, and this only applies to the Christian, you write when God leads. You will know when He is leading for the words and thoughts flow from somewhere deep within you. Some would call it a "muse" but just me, I'm just not that smart or that creative. When I'm writing sermons God takes over and this is how I know that God can direct writing. Pray up and God will lead!

Power For Living

The blank page is the stuff of nightmares for writers. It is a sad truth that writers spend more time preparing to write than they do writing. Hanging over them 24/7 is that blank page. The "you have to get started" voice in your head hammers you and shames you. You say "ok" after I check facebook, "'ok" after I check the mail. After one more game of solitaire! By them it's time to eat, pick up the kids or what ever. Paul prayed in Ephesians 3:15 "that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being." God is ready and willing to infuse you with power to do His will and His work. If your writing is for His glory, He will give you so much you won't be able to write it fast enough. Start with prayer and you will be amazed at what the Lord will do through you and in you.

Psalm 23 - He Has Your Back

I said to a friend of mine today as we sat down to eat, “I’ve got your back.” Do you know who really has your back? God does! The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, 3 he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. 4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley,[a] I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. Psalm 23 NIV God is my Shepherd and He is always watching over me (lie down in green pastures). Nothing happens to me that He isn’t aware of. As a young man I was in places I shouldn’t have been at doing things I shouldn’t do (dark valleys) – still He watched over me. God is my shepherd and He always provides for me (He refreshes my soul). Not a day passes that He doesn’t provide what I need in the way of food, shelter and the necessities of life. God is my Shepherd and He directs my life (the right paths). His rod and staff keep me in line and on those paths. God has my back – well, He has all of my life. As Jesus said, “He holds us in the palm of His hand and no man can pluck us out of it”.