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Showing posts from December, 2012

Work In Progress

I have been asked to be a part of a blog chain called "The Next Big Thing." For this blog chain, we talk about our latest Works In Progress. Besides my blog, I am also working on a book. Here's some information about it and links to the person who invited me to this chain and also to five other people whom I'm inviting to be a part of the blog chain. Thanks for checking this out! Ten Interview Questions for the Next Big Thing: What is your working title of your book? Behind the Stage Where did the idea come from for the book? From some things my pastor said about life as a pastor What genre does your book fall under? Christian contemporary fiction Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition? Patrick Dempsey as the main character Josh Allen and Elizabeth Banks as his wife Leah. What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?  Behind the Stage  delves into the psyche of a popular minister as he combats attacks on his sim

Soul Searching

My mother in law made a comment a few weeks ago that struck me. She knows I volunteer for the American Cancer Society . Many times she has said she hears about so many more people who have cancer now than when she was growing up. She said that back then everyone talked about the March of Dimes . Now I know the name the March of Dimes and I know it has to do with children. But what I didn’t know was that the March of Dimes has been around for 75 years, was started by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to fight polio and has had famous supporters like Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley. Cancer may be the disease many people are concerned with today, but healthy babies are always a concern and that’s why the March of Dimes changed its focus to preventing birth defects and infant mortality after the polio vaccine was developed. I have to be honest, the March of Dimes is not the best organization for keeping administrative and fundraising costs down. According to Charity Navigator

What Does Giving Biblically Look Like?

Five more kids will have presents from their fathers in prison this year because of the Angel Tree program and the ladies of my bible study. I called some local churches and one of them said they’d look into doing Angel Tree next year, too.   I know it’s not much but it’s something those five kids will not soon forget. Today I’m going over to my local food bank to drop off food from my hurricane closet. Hurricane season ends when November does so I cleaned out my closet and had a bunch of canned soup, ravioli and veggies to donate. I put a note on my Facebook page so my friends can give me items to donate, too. Last year we had a food drive at my birthday party in lieu of gifts so we were able to bring a nice box of items. When I called the food bank, they were eager to get the food with so many people stopping by right now needing it. We already sent a bag of Christmas food and money for a turkey through our church. I can’t help it. I keep hearing on the radio about the

Top 11 Last Minute Gifts

Top 11 Last Minute Charitable Christmas Gifts Christmas is getting closer but it's not too late to do something to make a difference this holiday. The unique items below can be given with the best intentions—to help others. There’s still time to get a notification card sent to the recipient but even if you wait, you can send the notice of the present by email or in many cases, you can print out your own card to hand to your friend or family member.  1.        Alternative Gifts International - $11 pays for a share of a yak for orphaned and destitute children in the Tibetan regions of remote western China . 2.       Spend $25 or more to free forced labor slaves with International Justice Mission . 3.       A llama from Heifer International  - A share is $20 while a whole llama is $150. Heifer provides all kinds of animals from chicks to water buffalo to families that can use them to generate income and useful resources for the family. 4.       A chicken from Mer

Angels In Our Midst

Have you ever thought of yourself as an angel? Angels are messengers from God who sometimes intercede for Him. One Christmas I was such a messenger. It began one night after work when we got a list of children. We drove to where each one lived and delivered something very special. You see it was Christmastime and these children were without their parents. Either one or more of their parents was in prison. We had bought presents for one little girl ourselves and got to deliver them, too.   We drove to a dilapidated, dirty, old apartment complex where our brightly wrapped presents seemed out of place. We knocked at the dark brown door and an older woman opened it. She asked us to come in and inside was a girl about six years old sitting on the floor in her pajamas. Her eyes lit up when she saw what we had for her. Her grandmother, for that was who answered the door, told us to come in. So, we chatted for a little bit about the weather and Christmas while the girl’s eyes wer