Am I really more Apathetic than Active when it comes to healthy relationships? I mostly cried through the entire Sunday sermon at church. Feeling vulnerable and unable to hold back tears, I ended up expressing all my pent up frustrations to the first woman I encountered after the service. I knew I could trust her to simply listen, and was more than willing for her to pray for me after I’d
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Breaking Free of Relationship Killers – Together is Better!
Can You Call Yourself a Christian and NOT go to Church? This was the loaded question asked by Pastor Scott at the start of his new series titled “Breaking Free of Relationship Killers“. This will be the first post of what I hope to be an ongoing series of my response and reflections to weekly church sermons. I’ve actually been collecting my notes for months now, so I’ll do my best
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Releasing Myself of Expectations
If I examine each of my relationships and our typical conversations, they are almost all focused on comparing and not completing (or embracing our differences). And at the core, isn’t this also about expectations?
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Ode to Psalm 129 #April #PoetryMonth
Stair 10 in the Psalms of Ascent (Stepping Up Study by Beth Moore) At the beginning of 2008, I participated in a group Bible study on the Psalms of Ascent. I truly miss diving into the word via Beth Moore’s teaching. On occasion, I will take out my box of Bible study workbooks (I once calculated 10 years and over 1000 hours of study inside that box!) I will have
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When Failure is Part of God’s Plan
Failure according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary: 1a: omission of occurrence or performance; specifically: a failing to perform a duty or expected action b (1) : a state of inability to perform a normal function c: a fracturing or giving way under stress 2a: lack of success b: a failing in business 3a: a falling short (deterioration or decay) 4 : one that has failed Is it just me, or is the concept of failure taboo these days? Why do we avoid
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Six Things You Need to Know about Your Writer
This is awesome! I fight my true urges reflected in these points daily and need to give in to achieve my writers’s potential. Read on if you’re a writer or know one…
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WCCW Conference 2015 Reflections
Time to Be Brave and Embrace the Call to Write! Attending a writer’s conference is one of those things difficult to transfer onto paper (or screen.) You really have to be there to understand the full experience. From making face-to-face connections with writers and mentors you only known via social media to making new contacts with fellow writers or published, yet unfamiliar authors—there are many benefits beyond simply listening to
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Book Review: Burning Sky
Burning Sky by Lori Benton My rating: 5 of 5 stars Authentic in both historical details and deeply rooted characters set in late 1700s New York, author Lori Benton delivers a visual and emotional journey for readers. After several years of living in captivity with the Mohawk people, the woman who was called Burning Sky returns to her homestead and white heritage near the settlement of Shiloh, New York. Divided
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Book Review: Angels Walking
Angels Walking by Karen Kingsbury My rating: 5 of 5 stars I listened to this book on Audible, but plan to also buy the paperback copy because there are several people (including my own children) I want to loan the book to. It is my first Karen Kingsbury novel, to my regret, as I realized I should have been a long-time reader of hers given my own future as an
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Book Review: Out of the Ruins
Out of the Ruins by Karen Barnett My rating: 4 of 5 stars With a perfect combination of historical detail and unique characters, Karen Barnett brought life to early 1900s San Francisco. Amid personal tragedy, the 1906 earthquake forces Abby Fischer to face her fears and take risks she never thought she would. I was on the edge of my seat, up late night after night while slowly reading through
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TOP 10 Ways I Use Real Life to Inspire My Fiction Writing
I have lived a relatively profound life. Some things “happened” to me, and were beyond my ability to control. Others were the result of poor choices, ignorance, or a secret desire to create drama when I felt things were a little boring. As I have matured as a woman and in my walk as a Christian, I have realized that each experience–every defeat, hurt, or challenge–has led me to a
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5 Things I’ve Learned as a NaNo Noob
It was October 31 and the deadline for submitting my final draft to my publisher for No Eye Has Seen: Book 1 Beyond the Valley. During the previous week, I had psyched myself about finishing Book 1 and diving right into Book 2 by participating in National Novel Writing Month 2014. Last year, I signed up but that was about all. But this year, I felt I needed to follow through.