Catch me if you CAN! Today, I’ve posted an interview with multi-published author Debby Mayne over on the CAN (Christian Authors Network) blog. Check it out if you have an interest in book marketing, Debby, or her books. She shares some interesting ideas including a sticky marketing situation. (I won’t give it away, but it involves a popular Greek pastry).  ...

Today, my fourth child and third daughter begins leadership training for her summer mission trip. She’ll serve in Panama for thirty days with Awe Star Ministries, helping lead a group of students to minister the truth of the gospel in both bustling city and remote jungle settings. For part of the trip, she’ll live in a hut. For all of the trip, she’ll endure steamy temperatures, miles of walking, and long days. And (as with her previous seven mission trips), she’ll have one of the most rewarding experiences of her life. Today, she and the other leaders begin nine days of training. They’ll learn the basics of first aid and CPR, emergency evacuation procedures, and almost anything you could think of that will prepare them for this experience. They’ll also receive some powerful Bible teaching that will equip them to work with students of various backgrounds and abilities. As Karissa enters this new level of responsibility, she wants to be both equipped and prepared. So it’s for my daughter, the other leaders, and anyone else—those with new jobs, those with the pressure of high expectations, those who have accepted great challenges—that I pray today. Father, today I come to You on behalf of those who take responsibility for others. Some are parents who hold a newborn and realize this tiny life depends on their actions. Some are workers beginning a new job for which they are qualified, yet unsure. Some, like Karissa, are filled with enthusiasm and experience but rising to the next level of service. Some are health practitioners charged with the care of others. Some have had undesired responsibilities thrust upon them. And some are stepping into tasks they knew lay ahead but have fallen to them today. God, today I lift up all of those who take responsibility for others. I thank You for these tasks and for their willingness to assume these critical roles. I praise You for making them the type of people worthy of trust. I ask You to meet their needs according to Your riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Prepare the way and make it straight before them. Give them what they need to walk out their duties with excellence. Grant them the grace to remain conscientious in both little and large details. Expand their minds that they might have wisdom and insight to see what others don’t. Give them great communication, peace, and unity with colleagues in a bond nothing and no one can break. And as they carry out their responsibilities, gracious God, I ask that You pour into them Your perception to see as You see, to care as You care, and to, above all, love one another...

(Today, I’m sharing with you an adaptation of a devotional I wrote for the Christian Authors Network. Enjoy!) “Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am gentle (meek) and humble (lowly) in heart, and you will find rest—relief, ease and refreshment and recreation and blessed quiet—for your souls” (Matt 11:29 AMP). My personality type tends toward the opposite of what my teenagers call hipster. In other words, I’m one of the last to adopt any popular trend. It took me three years to set up a Facebook page, another two to add a Twitter account. And PinTerest? Forget about it (so far). It shouldn’t surprise you, then, that I avoided what I saw as the popular movement of choosing an annual watchword for my devotional life. Avoided, that is, until this January, when God whispered a single word into my heart: humility. Really, Lord? Couldn’t it be “joy” or “blessing” or even “best-seller”? Haven’t I encountered enough humbling circumstances over the past few years without having this word as my focus in 2013? Maybe not. Or maybe those humbling circumstances failed to produce what He wanted to see in my life. A week or so after God gave me my less-than-desirable watchword, I wrestled in prayer over a situation with a friend. He expected a lot. He communicated little. He took me for granted. My mental list of complaints expanded and extended—until I remembered my watchword. How could humility play a part here? I wanted to confront this man in anger, not respond in gracious humility. But once again, God drew me up short. “Make a list of ten things you appreciate about him.” Say what? My already-lengthy list had nothing to do with things I appreciated. But, one deep sigh and a “Yes, Lord,” later, I began my inventory: heart for the Lord; genuine love for his family; well-worn Bible; unique insights into Scripture. It didn’t take long to realize my complaints carried little weight against my friend’s fine qualities. And it took only a little longer for God to show me that true humility wouldn’t see the negative side. True humility would consider the other person more important than herself. And true humility would look like Jesus: “humble in heart.” My profession lends itself to moments of contemplation and reflection. But if I’m not careful, I can move into the destructive downturn in which I found myself ensnared. And regardless of what you do for a living, you can find yourself accentuating the negative, too. With or without humility as our watchword, Christ set the example when He took the form of a servant. And when He makes us “humble in heart,” we can...

When I prepare a book proposal or help other authors with theirs, I encourage them to determine its unique selling point (USP). That’s the distinct difference that makes a reader decide, I want to read this one. That’s the essential quality that tells an editor or publisher, We should publish this. And of course, that’s the Wow factor that causes people to move from browse to buy. Of course, USPs have other applications than books. This morning, as I contemplate a busy summer, I’m taking time to pray for the Greater Philadelphia Christian Writers Conference (GPCWC) where I’ll teach and represent Sisterhood Magazine July 30 – August 3, 2013. Like all the conferences where I teach, this one offers connections with agents, editors, publishers, and fellow sojourners on the writing trail. Keynoters will challenge and inspire. Workshop leaders will provide targeted instruction in the nuts and bolts of our work. Writers will have both group and individual opportunities to speak with the experts about their work. The conference I’ll teach at the GPCWC this year is one of my favorites, “WannaBe Published,” a continuing session geared toward the new and/or not-yet-published writer. You can read my bio and a description here (scroll down to #6, and check out all the other great offerings, too). Yes, conferences cost money (although scholarships abound, especially if you register early). And time, as we can all attest, is precious. So what’s the USP for the GPCWC? What one special quality would move a writer to expend money, time, and energy to attend this conference? Presence. The powerful presence of Christ. That’s how I describe the factor that sets both of conference director Marlene Bagnull’s conferences (GPCWC and the Colorado Christian Writers Conference, held in the heart of the Rocky Mountains) apart from the rest. Of course I don’t mean Jesus is absent from other conferences. But I do mean that His Spirit with its accompanying fire and fervor visits both these conferences in a way that moves writers—whether new or experienced—to give their best. When I attend these and other conferences, my primary purpose is to teach and encourage other writers. But at the GPCWC, I never fail to find myself touched by the speakers and changed by the whispers and weight of the Holy Spirit. God’s presence is never accidental. Besides her deep desire to encourage writers, Marlene’s love for the Father is the first thing people notice about her. Her network of prayer warriors uplifts this conference months before any of the staff or conferees arrive on campus. I believe the conference reflects this passion and that His abiding presence is the fruit of hearts pointed toward Him. As you look over your...

Sunday evening, a dear friend’s wife passed into eternity following a massive stroke. Cec and Shirley were married for 57 years. I haven’t figured out a way to hold a hand or send a hug via cyberspace, but that’s what I want to do. As much as he and I love words, my friend and his family don’t need them right now. In the same ways I ache for my friend, I hurt for those affected by the terrible storms in Oklahoma. Again, no words seem adequate, beneficial, or necessary. But I know my heart has been turned to the Father since the reports started coming in, just as it was turned toward the Father when I first learned of Shirley’s stroke. I invite you to join your prayers and heart with mine: God of all comfort, today we come to You once again without words. We trust You when we hurt. We look to You even when we don’t understand. And this day, we bring our dear ones to You. We come to you today as Emmanuel, asking You to be near to those who are hurting. Touch them in ways they can feel, know, and understand. We come to you as Healer, asking You to touch each life with tenderness and power. We come to You as Redeemer, asking You to pour grace upon grief and truth across terror. We come to You as Father and Friend, asking You to carry and sustain those who can bear no more.  Oh God, we read that Your mercies are over all Your works. Cover these dear ones with Your mercy today. Lighten the load of those who face terrible tasks. Ease the pain of those who face the unspeakable. Make Yourself known to those who don’t know You. And grant each one Your peace that passes understanding. Deliver them from evil. Protect them, strengthen them, and keep them in Your name—the mighty name of Jesus in which I pray with tears, AMEN.  If you have words of comfort or specific prayer needs, feel free to post them here. Thank you for sharing and...

“____________ isn’t treating me with respect.” “____________ borrowed something of mine—again—without asking.” “____________ doesn’t see things from my perspective.” This morning, all these thoughts ran through my head before it left my pillow. I wish I could say I responded in prayer. I start my day that way (almost) every day. But today, I brooded and stewed. I fretted and fussed—all in stony silence. Outwardly calm (as long as no one made a close inspection), I was inwardly upset. And it was everyone else’s fault. At least in my head. But some time in the Word and a prayerwalk later, and I realized the source of the problem. She stared back at me from the bathroom mirror. Once again, I’d allowed myself to listen to wrong voices, focus on wrong things, and ended up with a wrong attitude. So today, I’m praying for you. Because I know you. And I know that–today or another day–you’re just like me. God, today I bring to You my bad attitude. No one else gave it to me. Nobody else caused it. Although it often seems contagious, I know it doesn’t spread like a virus. The true problem with my attitude bears my name. I can’t fix this myself, Lord. I’m grumpy. I’m crabby. I’m touchy—and no one had better touch me, because those bitter bubbles simmering under the surface might explode. Father, today I need You to fix my attitude. I need You to help me take the form of a servant. I need You to help me consider others more important than myself. I need You to replace my haughtiness with humility, my pouting with praise. I need You to change me, because I can’t change myself. Jesus, You gave us the perfect example of someone who put Himself last. When  scorned, mocked, and lied about, You remained silent. When reviled, You did not revile in return. You had every chance to spew words of hatred but spoke words of healing and forgiveness instead. Today, my Master, move me to lay myself down on Your altar. I acknowledge my inability to do even that much on my own. Live, move, and breathe through me. Help me to die as You live Your life through me. I can’t get it right—but You can. In Your holy name I pray, AMEN. Because of website updates (HUGE shoutout to Tekeme Studios for the new look), I’ve been away from Read. Write. Pray for a whole month. And I didn’t want to return with a bad attitude (hence today’s prayer). If you have a bad attitude, you don’t have to tell us about it. But if you’d like prayer, feel free to share in the...