PRAY: Praying Through Distractions
“Do you mind the music?” my neighbor asked as I entered the small gym in our neighborhood clubhouse. A steamy June morning combined with hay fever symptoms had prompted an indoor prayerwalk. “Not at all,” I responded. After all, he’d started his workout first, and my walk would take forty minutes. Surely I’d outlast him and his boombox. And surely his songs wouldn’t all consist of Latin pop/rock. Wrong—on both counts. Not only did I not outlast him, but he had an entire CD of the driving Latin beat. Because I seek to concentrate on intercession, I don’t always take my iPod along when I prayerwalk. Now, I faced a new test. How could I pray effectively amidst the throbbing bass and screaming vocals? Although Zumba (an aerobic-style workout set to Latin music) has intrigued me for several months, today’s musical offering didn’t promise much in the way of a prayerwalking experience. Wrong again. I began my treadmill time by confessing my distraction and frustration. I asked God to help me worship regardless. Suddenly, I realized: The following day, my two youngest daughters were leaving on the first leg of their summer mission trips to South and Central America. And in about two weeks, I was traveling to Guatemala and a mission trip with SUSIE Magazine. “Listen, and pray for the people who listen to this kind of music every day,” God whispered. That day, I had no trouble keeping up with the fast-paced treadmill. (Maybe there’s something to this Zumba idea after all). And I had no trouble concentrating on my prayers, either. While I walked, I could see the faces of the people in whose countries my daughters and I will serve. As I heard their music, I prayed for their lives, their hearts, and their responsiveness to the Gospel. I prayed for the teams and leadership who would minister to them. And the more I prayed, the more easily my prayers flowed. God’s grace allowed me to deal with my distractions by turning them into prayers. What about you? What distractions threaten your prayer time? How can God use them for good? Let us pray—and talk about it,...
read moreWRITE: Cec Murphey Appreciation Month
Little decisions can make a big difference. In 2007, as I pressed through the challenges of ghostwriting a memoir, I whined to an editor friend that I needed a “Ghostwriters’ Support Group.” “You should get in touch with Cec Murphey,” she responded. After she provided his contact information, I made a small decision and reached out to the man whose name is synonymous with ghostwriting. I sent an email and received a polite, personal response. I also subscribed to his newsletter so I could learn more about the man and his message. Cec Murphey, as he once told me, is “used to being ignored.” God—and Cec’s tremendous talent—is changing that with the success of projects that include the best-selling 90 Minutes in Heaven, written for Don Piper, and Gifted Hands, written for Ben Carson. This week, I read and enjoyed Words of Comfort for Times of Loss by Cec Murphey and Liz Allison. And Cec takes particular pride in his most recent release, When a Man You Love Was Abused.Today, Cec Murphey writes many books that bear his name as author, but as a ghost- and collaborative writer, he does what I do. To be more accurate, I do what Cec does—on a smaller, less-experienced scale. My little decision led to a bigger one when in 2008, I had the opportunity to attend a One-Day Intensive Writers Workshop in Cec’s Atlanta-area home. Because of the rapid way God moved me from writing magazine articles to books, I hadn’t spent much time around other writers. Until that weekend, I’d never attended a writers’ conference or workshop. I went—and fell in love. I fell in love first with the writing community. I’d never known others who cared as much about words and the way they are put together as I did. Here—at last—I found people who spoke my language. As Cec shared his wisdom with the five of us, I realized: I know what he means. I understand why he’s saying this. It all makes sense. That weekend, I began a connection with other writers that’s an integral part of my present-day life and ministry. I also fell in love with the man I’m blessed today to honor today. I watched the gentle, direct way he interacted with our small group. I heard his passion for God as he spoke of his dual commitment to keep learning about the craft of writing and to do as much as he could to help other writers. And I felt a strong sense of empowerment as—after multiple revisions—he praised not only my writing but my willingness to improve. I attended the workshop to learn more about the craft of writing. I came away with much more. I now had a spiritual and writing mentor in this man who willingly, consistently lays down his life in service of others; who doesn’t hesitate to speak the truth in love; who gives without thought of return; and who writes each book with a consistent commitment to excellence. I’m thankful for my little decision and for the big difference it made—in my writing and in me. Thank you, Cec. Thank you for your example of excellence in your craft and selflessness in your service. Thank you for your prayers. And thank you for the millions of words you’ve...
read moreREAD: Review, THEY ALMOST ALWAYS COME HOME by Cynthia Ruchti
A review–and a drawing to win this exciting new book! Fear. Stark, gripping fear. They Almost Always Comes Home opens with a fear that closes in on Libby Holden as she realizes her husband, Greg, is missing. Alone on what he intended as his dream trip through the Canadian wilderness, he hasn’t returned. Not yet. And maybe not ever. Libby’s fears compound as the search begins. They magnify as she confronts her true feelings about her failing marriage, her missed opportunities, and her own failures. As she, her best friend, and her irascible but wilderness-savvy father-in-law embark on a journey to find her husband, Libby doesn’t realize she’s on a journey to discover much more. As I read this debut novel, I found myself turning the pages and drinking in great gulps of story as though someone might snatch it away before I quenched my thirst. Ruchti’s plot captured me. Her characters moved me. And her gifts of language and imagery left me in awe. Every great novel has the goal of story and the result of inner change. They Almost Always Come Home tells a compelling tale that moved me to reexamine myself and my own often-selfish approach to life and relationships. As it moves back and forth between fear and faith, the book leaves the reader with a sense of satisfaction—and a longing for more. I’ve decided to give a little background for the authors I know personally. I won’t review a book I can’t recommend, but I think it’s appropriate to tell you when my acquaintance goes beyond Facebook or hearsay. Cynthia and I had corresponded through an online writers’ group but became instant friends this spring when we served on faculty together at the Quad-Cities Christian Writers’ Conference. My only regret about our connection is that many miles separate us. Cynthia lives in Wisconsin where she makes potato corn chowder for her husband of 37 years, loves on her three kids and five grandchildren, writes and produces a daily radio broadcast called The Heartbeat of the Home, edits and writes for the radio ministry magazine Backyard Friends, writes devotionals for TheChristianPulse.com, and serves as the current president of the 2,000-member American Christian Fiction Writers. Read more about Cynthia and her stories of hope that glows in the dark at www.cynthiaruchti.com. Sound like a book you’d love to read? Leave a comment here (or through the “contact” form on my website–click “contact” to the right of this post) and I’ll enter you to win an autographed copy of They Almost Always Come Home. I’ll announce the winner on Friday, June 11, so leave your comment before midnight Eastern Time on the 10th. Make sure to include your email address and a few words about your interest in this...
read morePRAY: Anywhere, Anytime
I participate in an online professional writers’ group. Every Monday and Thursday, panelists ask questions and group members respond. It’s a fun way to gain fresh insights and different perspectives from people in various facets of the writing and publishing world. A recent question asked about our favorite “perk” of the writing business. Some writers love the travel and excitement of research. Others enjoy setting their own hours and working from home. Still others mentioned the opportunities their writing brings them to touch lives and impact God’s kingdom. In an uncharacteristic burst of spontaneity, I wrote down the first perk that came to my mind. I love the fact that, as a writer, I can work when I’m not (technically) working. I can think up ideas or brainstorm an article while I’m walking in my neighborhood, driving down the road, or waiting for an appointment. And as I contemplated a new PRAY post, I realized—that’s what I love about prayer, too. Why do we think we must find a particular position, posture, or place to pray? Jesus showed us that common places can be holy ones. As we read about Him in the Gospels, we don’t see Him walking in royal robes or inhabiting a king’s palace. Instead, He seems to prefer the lowly places: a manger, a fishing boat, a rough wooden table. His presence brings holiness to what we consider normal or everyday. That’s what He does in our lives, too. When we’re talking to a coworker in the office hallway, driving kids to a ball game, or filling our cart at the grocery store, we have the opportunity to encounter God in prayer. Of course, we can meet Him there just as we meet him in the quietness of a church sanctuary or the silence of our morning devotional time. Ask God to help you see some of your ordinary moments as moments of prayer. As you approach Him, He may surprise you with the way he turns the humble into the holy and the ordinary into the extraordinary. Pray. Don’t buy the lie that says you must wait for a special moment or a certain place. Each minute and every location is holy because He’s there, waiting for you. Start...
read moreWRITE: Frequently Made Errors #2–Too Much Backstory
This mini-series addresses common errors writers make. I should have added in my previous FME post that all these represent errors I have made—and may still make at times. But the reason I share them is because when I edit others’ work, I often see similar problems from different writers. That’s why I call them FMEs or “Frequently Made Errors.” TOO MUCH BACKSTORY can occur in either fiction or nonfiction. All my published work is nonfiction (unless you count some poetry from years ago), so I would call nonfiction my area of expertise. But I do know that in fiction, backstory means the story before the story. Novice fiction writers face the temptation to give too much background information too soon. Almost any fiction instructor urges wannabe novelists to tell the story they intend to tell and allow the characters’ past to unfold alongside it. This same backstory problem can occur with nonfiction as well. The author of a recent manuscript I critiqued began his book by telling why he was qualified to write it. He explained to his readers what they could expect and what he hoped they would learn. He told about the ways his journey had blessed him and how he hoped it would, in turn, bless them. Do you see the problem? If you managed to read all the last paragraph, you did better than most people would have done with his manuscript. The advice I gave this aspiring author used the same words I referenced for wannabe novelists: just tell the story. Don’t tell us how you or why you came to write the book. Don’t tell us how wonderful it is. Tell the story. Share the principles. Give us background information along the way if need be, but don’t put your reader to sleep. Backstory doesn’t keep readers reading. Telling the story does. When you make a new friend, do you find out everything about him or her at your first meeting? Do you automatically ask about childhood experiences, likes and dislikes, or intimate details of work and family life? Of course not. You let the information unfold naturally in the context of your relationship. If it helps, think of your writing as a relationship with your readers. Don’t break up before you begin. You came to your manuscript to tell a story or teach a truth. Stick with your primary purpose, and leave the backstory in the background—right where it...
read moreWelcome
I've asked God to use my writing and speaking to count for eternity. I'm passionate about relationships and creativity.
