F. P. Lione Answers The Faithful Fifteen
MARCH 2005
Faithfulreader.com: What kind of testimony to your faith are you demonstrating in this book? Do you write fiction that is based upon your faith, or that has a message for the reader? Is your goal to demonstrate your faith in your writing? What kind of testimony to your faith are you demonstrating in this book?
F. P. Lione: We believe that it is our actions in daily life, rather than religious traditions and memorized scripture, that show the world the true love of God. Our character, Joe Fiore, lives his faith everyday by showing God's love and compassion to those around him.
Much of what we believe is shown through Joe Fiore's character. We feel God's message is ageless --- to Love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to Love our neighbor (those nearby) as ourselves. Also to the secular audience, those who may not pick up a Bible might pick up a copy of a book about a New York City cop.
What we wanted to do was show Joe in his maturity in Christ, the goal we attain to, while showing the sometimes more realistic side in Tony's character, which most of us can relate to.
FR: When did you come to a saving knowledge of Jesus? Where are you today in your walk? Is your faith an important part of what you do?
FPL: For me (Pam), it was in high school at age 16 or 17, but I didn't commit to Christianity until I was 30. Frank was also 30.
We are hungry for God and growing in our comprehension of who He is (Love) and who we are in Him.
Faith is who we are now; we can't separate ourselves from God anymore when it suits us. He's part of us now.
FR: Tell us about your church experiences, how you grew up (or maybe didn't grow up) in the church, where you attend now, your involvement in your local assembly, etc.
FPL: Frank grew up in a Protestant home; his father was Catholic but converted when Frank's parents were married. Pam had a very Catholic upbringing, complete with Catholic school and received all the sacraments in the Catholic Church.
We now attend House on the Rock Family Church in Windgap, Pennsylvania. It is a great place of worship where Frank utilizes his skills as a New York City cop by heading up the Security department at the church. Pam also works actively in security and housekeeping.
FR: Who are your spiritual mentors? Your professional mentors?
FPL: Kenneth and Gloria Copeland are a big influence in our life through their ministry as well as Pastors Steve and Roseanne Brower from Christ the Redeemer Church in Manorville, Long Island, but we would have to say Pastors Jim and Janet Petrow since we spend the most time with them.
In terms of professional mentors, for Frank I would have to say my father. He grew up in a tough neighborhood, joined the Marines and served in the Vietnam War, came home and joined the NYPD. He made detective and served as Mayor Koch's bodyguard. He encouraged (forced) me to join the NYPD and gave me so much material to write about.
For Pam I would say Kathie Lee Gifford. I know this sounds strange but I once saw her on an interview and she said something like, "I have just as much of a right to be here as anyone else." That stuck with me while I was writing and sending in our manuscript. Whenever I felt intimidated I would tell myself, "I have just as much of a right to be here as anyone else."
FR: Discuss your calling/mission --- as a writer, and as a Christian.
FPL: As writers we would like our work to reflect God working and moving in the everyday aspects of life. Reality is the key. Most of us who don't come from strong Christian families deal with families that don't share our beliefs, and don't appreciate us changing.
Like our character, Tony, we are faced with the same issues that the rest of the world is. We want to show the difference when faith and love are thrown into the equation.
As Christians, we want to see people enjoy the freedom that Christ died to give us. Both of our families have struggled with issues of alcoholism, divorce, and domestic violence. We know the only thing that can change any of these problems is the burden removing, yoke destroying, power of God.
FR: What are your Scripture reading habits?
FPL: For Pam, John Maxwell's leadership devotional, Faith to Faith devotional and the daily Bible reading it follows. For Frank, daily reading of both the Old and New Testament.
FR: What books have most influenced your work?
FPL: The Bible has been our influence for the Christian aspect of our stories.
FR: Do you read secular fiction at all? If so, who are your favorite authors and why?
FPL: Pam enjoys several secular authors, including Elizabeth George, John Grisham, and Janet Evanovich. Elizabeth George writes Scotland Yard like a Brit and has such keen insight into the darker side of human nature. John Grisham makes you care about his characters. Janet Evanovich writes great Jersey books and her characters are hysterical. Frank doesn't read any fiction.
FR: What are your other media habits --- television, movies, music, etc.?
FPL: We watch "The Believers Voice of Victory" daily. We don't watch much TV, but enjoy "Law and Order." As far as movies, we see a lot of films with our kids. For recent movies, we loved The Incredibles, Robots, and Shark Tales. Frank loved The Passion of the Christ (Pam covered her eyes through most of it), Frank loves the spaghetti westerns, pretty much all of Mel Gibson's movies, and we both love all four of the Lethal Weapon movies. Pam likes the chick flicks but being the only female in the house, she usually watches them alone.
As far as music, Darrell Evans, Third Day, Mercy Me, and Hillsongs in the Christian genre. In secular music our taste is eclectic: Andrea Bocelli, Opera, Classical, Toby Keith, Tim McGraw, and classic rock --- although we don't listen to it very often anymore.
FR: Do you and your family have any special faith-based traditions?
FPL: We pray over our children every night. We pray for our troops, our nation and our leaders daily, we give thanks for our food and our home and family. We live debt free. We won't let our children open their Christmas presents until we read the story of Christ's birth in Luke. We adopt a family in need every Christmas and give to them like we would our own family. (We do it anonymously and sign Jesus' name to it.)
FR: Tell us about your prayer life and habits.
FPL: Again, daily Bible reading and devotional time, which includes private time in prayer for our nation, our troops, and our families. We pray for the sick, and for others in need who we come across in our daily life. We pray for wisdom, guidance, and that the Love of God in us may increase and abound daily. We listen to tapes in our car and strive to be doers of the Word, not hearers only.
FR: Describe what you believe the role of writing in religion is.
FPL: There's a lot of different roles writing plays in religion. John Maxwell's books on leadership and excellence in our professions are applicable in every area of life. Books on prayer, marriage, healing, and prosperity all strengthen us in areas where we need it. Fiction entertains as well as ministers God's word. The many facets of God are reflected in the varied subjects available on the bookshelves, and we believe each writer is anointed to touch a specific audience.
FR: Tell us about one or more of your favorite encounters with readers.
FPL: We've spoken to a lot of people who each had their own unique reason for enjoying THE DEUCE. The funny part is, each one liked something different.
The biggest thrill for us came a couple of weeks after THE DEUCE was released. We got an email from a woman in Milwaukee, Wisconsin telling Baker how much she enjoyed the book. I called Frank at work and said, "We got fan mail!" and read the email to him. Since it was the first correspondence on the book, we wrote back and told her we would send an autographed copy of THE CROSSROADS when it's released in September.
When we received another letter a couple of days later from a woman in South Carolina, we wrote her back as well and we're sending out autographed copies of our second book to those first ten people who wrote to us.
It was awesome to hear from people around the country. If anyone wants to contact us, we would love to hear from them. They can visit our website at midtownblue.com and e-mail us from there or contact Baker Publishing Group.
FR: Would you share a story about someone you've brought to Christ or share how your writing has helped someone?
FPL: We tend to get involved and invest in people's lives, not "smash and grab" in ministering about Jesus. There's one family in particular that stands out to us, a family ravaged by abuse and domestic violence that has come to Christ and now enjoys freedom in Him.
We wouldn't want to say their names and violate their privacy. God has shown us to establish relationships with the people we want to introduce to Christ. Our everyday life reflects Christ's love more than anything else. Talk is cheap, love never fails.
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CLEAR BLUE SKY: A Midtown Blue Novel