#SaturdaySpotlight is on Steve Osborne, Phd & Beyond Chance From the Big Bang to the Empty Tomb

Good Morning and Welcome back to Saturday Spotlight,

Lot's going on this weekend. I'm packing to go to upstate New York (Finger Lakes Region) the 27th - Aug. 6th. I've got a housewarming party this afternoon and a memorial service tomorrow afternoon. So, I'm not going to lollygag around anymore but turn the blog over to Dr. Osborne and let him share his book with you...

Thanks, Pamela. 

Find the answers in Beyond Chance

Where did the universe come from?

How did life begin?

What makes humans so different?

What explains the empty tomb?

From the birth of the universe to the rise of life, from the mystery of human uniqueness to the empty tomb of Jesus, the evidence tells a story—one that challenges the idea that everything we see is the result of blind chance and instead reveals the radiant majesty of its Creator.

In Beyond Chance, scientist and former atheist Steve R. Osborne, PhD, invites readers to examine the clues woven into the fabric of reality itself. Why did the universe begin at all? Why are the laws of physics so precisely tuned for life? How did the first living cell arise with astonishing complexity already in place? And why does the historical evidence for Jesus’ resurrection refuse to fade?

Rather than asking readers to abandon science, Beyond Chance follows the evidence. Drawing from modern cosmology, molecular biology, human origins, and historical analysis, Osborne presents a clear and accessible case that design—not unguided nature—offers the best explanation for life, humanity, reason, and meaning. Science does not erase God—it reveals Him.

Written for thoughtful skeptics, curious believers, and anyone asking life’s biggest questions, Beyond Chance challenges a culture told the universe is silent. It argues instead that the cosmos is speaking—and that its message points beyond chance to purpose.

EXCERPT: The Universe: A Beginning and a Mind

Our journey began with the universe itself. Modern cosmology has revealed that the cosmos had a definite beginning a moment when space, matter, energy, and even the laws of physics themselves came into existence. The Big Bang was not chaos but the birth of order, governed by finely tuned constants so precise that even minute variations would make life impossible.

Gravity, electromagnetism, and nuclear forces are balanced as though calibrated by an intelligent hand.

The universe behaves like a system built for life, not an accident of physics.

Natural explanations stop short. The universe cannot explain its own origin, nor can nothing produce something. The evidence points beyond space and time to a transcendent cause a powerful, purposeful, and personal Creator. Genesis states it plainly: “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.”

The heavens, vast and orderly, reveal not only God’s existence but His glory. The beauty and mathematical precision of the cosmos are not random they are expressions of divine craftsmanship.

Why I Wrote Beyond Chance: When I was challenged to examine the evidence for Christianity, I was stunned.

I didn't grow up doubting God—I grew up not thinking about Him at all. For three decades, I had dismissed Christianity without truly examining it. When someone finally challenged me to look at the actual evidence—not the caricatures I'd constructed in my mind—everything shifted.

I discovered that my arguments against God were built on false assumptions. I had believed that:

-Faith requires checking your brain at the door (It doesn't)

-Science has disproven God (It hasn't)

-Evolution explains everything (It can't)

-The resurrection is a fairy tale (The evidence says otherwise)

Part of my journey to faith was learning that true faith is not the absence of evidence but the courage to follow it to its ultimate conclusion.

When we do, we discover that reason and revelation are not enemies but companions, pointing to the same truth—that we are the work of an intelligent and loving Creator.

Writing “Beyond Chance: From the Big Bang to the Empty Tomb,” has been more than an exploration of science. It has been a journey of faith, reason, and wonder.

My goal was not merely to argue that God exists, but to show that the world itself bears witness to His presence. The evidence for design, purpose, and intelligence surrounds us—from the birth of the cosmos to the intricacies of DNA, from the emergence of humankind to the resurrection of Christ.

The deeper I investigated science, the more I saw the face of God behind it.

Sharing that passion—especially with Christians who are intimidated by science—is part of the driving force behind the book.

Steve Osborne, PhD, is an experimental psychologist who has published peer-reviewed research. Once a skeptic himself, he began a personal and intellectual journey that led him to embrace Christianity as both rational and true. He served as a grant reviewer for the National Science Foundation and a guest reviewer for two peer-reviewed scientific journals. He received his PhD in Experimental Psychology from Arizona State University and his undergraduate degree from UC San Diego, where he graduated with highest honors. His book, “Beyond Chance: From the Big Bang to the Empty Tomb,” integrates discoveries in cosmology, biology, and archaeology with biblical theology. He lives in Northern California and continues to write, teach, and speak on issues of faith and reason. Find out more by visiting his Website.

Get your copy of Beyond Chance at Amazon. Read a Q&A with me HERE.

Thanks Again, Pamela. I hope your readers enjoyed finding out about Beyond Chance and will enjoy the book.

I'm sure they will, Dr. Osborne. We appreciate you sharing with us today and wish you the best of luck and God's blessings with this and all your other works!

THANKS to YOU, Friends for visiting Saturday Spotlight again. I pray you'll continue to drop by weekly for another great author and book.

Until next time take care, God bless and Happy Reading,

PamT

#SaturdaySpotlight is on Jenelle Hovde & The Light of the Stars!

Good Morning and Welcome to another edition of Saturday Spotlight, 

Back in March I introduced you to Jenelle Hovde and I am so pleased to have her back in the spotlight with her brand new release, The Light of the Stars. 

Thanks for joining us again, Jenelle! Please tell us why you wrote this particular book.

Thanks for having me back, Pam. I appreciate the opportunity to tell your viewership about my new release.

I wrote The Light of Stars after learning about Katherine “Kitty” Kirkpatrick, a real girl of British and Indian heritage who was taken from her mother in Hyderabad under East India Company policies and carried to England to be raised as a British gentleman’s daughter. Her story opened my eyes to how Company rules—and the choices of British fathers and guardians—could tear families apart, especially when children of mixed heritage were removed from their Indian mothers, given new names, and brought up with little knowledge of their first home. The real Kitty never saw her mother again and was never allowed to return to India. I wanted to explore the human cost of those decisions through the lens of an arranged marriage: a woman searching for the mother she lost and a man tied to the very institution that helped take her away. By placing my characters, Katherine Grenville and Sebastian Sinclair at the crossroads of love, duty, and faith, I hoped to shed light on the real families who endured such hardships and to offer a story where courage, forgiveness, and God’s guiding hand bring healing even in the most complicated circumstances.

What a wonderful concept! Give us more please...

Sure... 

An arranged marriage. A powerful company tainted with corruption. Two souls caught between obligation and a longing to find their true calling in this Regency romance set in glittering London ballrooms and Calcutta street markets.

When Kitty Grenville’s grandfather announces her engagement to Sebastian Sinclair, she’s appalled. She barely remembers the boy she met once as a child―and now he’s a man tied to the East India Company, the very organization that tore Kitty and her brother from their mother and home in Hyderabad years ago. Unwilling to relinquish her dream of a love match or her passion for astronomy, Kitty is determined to refuse the marriage and find freedom in her own way.

Sebastian Sinclair carries the weight of duty and regret. To atone for past sins, he complies with his grandfather’s orders to return to England, fulfill a long-standing betrothal, and defend the maligned East India Company before Parliament. Though Kitty makes her disinterest clear, Sebastian is drawn to her intellect and spirit.

As Kitty navigates her first London season, her opinion of Sebastian begins to shift, especially when he shields her from scandal. When he’s abruptly called back to India, Kitty stuns everyone by marrying him and going with him, hoping to escape her grandfather’s control―and to find her mother.

But the challenges that await in India are greater than imagined. Together, Kitty and Sebastian must confront the legacy of family and empire―and discover if a marriage born of obligation can grow into a love strong enough to endure.

Enjoy this Excerpt...

Torchlight flickered across the marble arches and carved lattice screens, sending shadows skittering along the palace courtyard. I clutched Ghulam's hand so tightly my nails must have bitten into his skin, but my older brother did not flinch. His other arm wrapped around my sleeve, tugging me close to the shelter of the wall, as if he alone could drag me out of the open expanse and back into the safety of the harem. Somewhere beyond the colonnade, voices shouted, sharp and urgent.

"Stay with me, Noor," Ghulam whispered as a clash of boots echoed against the pavement.

Britishsoldiers and sepoys burst through the arched gateway, red coats blazing in the torchlight.

Perfect! Now tell us more about yourself...

Of course! Here is my "official" bio...

Jenelle Hovde writes regency romance, cozy mysteries, and Biblical era fiction. She especially loves antique stores and vintage books. Often found writing at the Florida beach, she navigates homeschooling with her family and manages two saucy cats who insist on interrupting her creative endeavors.

Stay updated with her latest works and musings by subscribing to her newsletter at jenellehovdeauthor.com.

The Light of the Stars can be found at Amazon in eBook, paperback, hardcover and audio book as well as wherever you get your favorite books.

Thanks, Jenelle! We appreciate your taking the time to drop by to our blog and wish you the best of luck and God's blessings on your endeavors.

Hope you enjoyed Jenelle's visit as much as I did, Friends and that you'll check back each week for another episode of Saturday Spotlight.

Until next time, take care and God Bless.

PamT

#SaturdaySpotlight is on April Paige & April Paige Fine Art!

Good Morning and Welcome to Another Edition of Saturday Spotlight!

It's been one of those weeks where the to-do list multiplies faster than I can cross things off, so I'm grateful to hand the blog over to someone whose work reminds me to slow down and actually feel something.

 Today's spotlight is on April Paige of April Paige Fine Art — a painter, brand builder, and the host of a YouTube/Apple/Spotify show where she talks to creatives about creativity, 'Artist Antics with April'.

 I had the joy of sitting down with her on the show, and it was a conversation I'm still thinking about. We are spiritual sisters.  Take it away, April...

Thanks, Pam!

Where it started for me

I spent years in corporate marketing, boardrooms, brand decks, campaigns for companies most people would recognize. It was good work. But somewhere along the way, I realized I was building everyone else's vision and none of my own. Painting has always been that quite voice inside me wanting to be heard but no time to accomplish it.  

My work as April Paige Fine Art lives at the intersection of two things people don't usually put in the same sentence: spiritual depth and sharp strategy. I paint in oil and acrylic, and every piece is less decoration and more frequency, an attempt to hold something true long enough for someone else to feel it too.

The shop: originals, prints, and design  

The originals are where the heartbeat lives. Each one starts as a feeling and the canvas is where I go to express it. They range in price, but most fall between $800 and $2,500.  They are accessible enough to bring home, but never treated as disposable.

For people who fall for a piece but want something more attainable, or for designers and stagers furnishing a space, I also offer prints. Same image, same intention, just a different way in.

And then there's the design side, which is newer but close to my heart. I've been building out trade-friendly offerings for interior designers, realtors, and home stagers because art shouldn't be the last thing someone thinks about when they're creating a space. It should be the thing the whole room is built around.

You can find all of it at AprilPaigeFineArt.com, and through Saatchi Art.

Artist Antics with April

If the shop is where the work lives, the show is where the why lives. 'Artist Antics with April' is my YouTube channel and podcast where I sit down with working creatives across every discipline and ask them the questions I'm always asking myself: Where does the work actually come from? What does it cost to make it? What is the process of making it and how has it changed over time?  What happens when you stop performing creativity and start telling the truth about it?

Having Pam on the show was one of those conversations that reminded me why I started this in the first place. We talked about story, about faith woven into fiction, about what it means to write, or paint, from a place that's honest rather than tidy. That's the thread running through every episode: creativity as something lived, not just produced.

Whether you find me through a painting, a print, or a conversation on the show, I hope what you walk away with is the same thing, a little more permission to make the thing that's actually yours to make.  No matter if you are the only one seeing it.  It's important to express it.  

You can find me at AprilPaigeFineArt.com, and catch 'Artist Antics with April'  on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify Be sure to connect with me on Instagram, Facebook, X, TikTok and LinkedIn. but most of all...

KEEP CREATING, 

April!

Thank You, SO Much April for joining us today. We certainly wish you the best of luck and God's blessings on your endeavors.

I hope you've enjoyed April's visit as much as I have, Friends. I'll let you know when my conversation with her airs. Meanwhile I hope you'll check back next - and every - week for another episode of Saturday Spoltight.

Until next time, take care, God bless and, whether through Books, Art or Dance... Express Yourself!

PamT

Happy Independence Day, America!

Good Morning Friends,

My Saturday Spotlight guest was unable to visit today so, as it is a National Holiday for us here in America, I'm taking the day to wish everyone a Blessed, Safe and HAPPY July 4th!

And...

To wish blessings upon this country and the world.

If you're a meditating person like I am, here are 2 wonderful compositions by my favorite meditation guru, Dr. Joe Dispenza...

AND

I have both of these and practice the first one, Global Heart Meditation which takes only a few minutes to complete but is really beautiful.

That's all for now. Drop by next week when I'll be spotlighting an ARTIST instead of an author.

Looking forward to seeing you then!

Meanwhile, if you're looking for a sweet romance to enjoy on this holiday weekend, check out....

Detained for Love part of A Hint of Holiday Romance short story collection...

On SALE through July through Smashwords, D2D & Amazon!

Until next time, take care, God Bless and Be Safe in your celebrations.

PamT