ACFW Conference Prayer for the Audio/Visual Team 1 Thessalonians 1:2-3 We give thanks to God always for all of you making mention of you in our prayers. Father, we are so grateful for all the talented people who work so hard to make the annual ACFW Conference a fantastic, unforgettable experience. Today we’d especially like to hold up the ones …
Unexpected Blessings
Unexpected blessings could be waiting for you in your writing life . . . My first winter in Florida, I visited churches to call “home” while there. My church in Ohio I love has a little over five hundred. I visited one church, and I walked into a room of thousands of people. Overwhelmed, I stayed. I loved the kind …
ACFW Conference Prayer: God’s Presence (Day 40)
ACFW Conference – Day 40 Prayer – God’s Presence & Blessing Psalm 127:1 CEB – “Unless it is the Lord who builds the house, the builder’s work is pointless. Unless it is the Lord who protects the city, the guard on duty is pointless.” Father God, we look forward to the conference and everything You have for us there. Like …
Worth It
There’s a doctor in the family now. After years of training, studying, interning, pulling double shifts, observing, practicing, and paying, paying, paying, a nephew-in-law is officially a doctor. I can’t imagine the school loans he’s facing as he takes this step from student to professional. But the investment will be worth it—not because of the salary he’ll earn (it …
Family Reunion
“How are the family reunion plans coming, sis?” “Oh, didn’t you hear? We’re doing a virtual reunion this year.” “What?” “Life is busy, you know. Lots of other activities to work around. Plus the expense. Imagine what we’ll each save on the prices of hotel rooms, food, travel…” “It’s the family reunion! It’s part of the cost of getting …
Power’s Back On
by Cynthia Ruchti Summer storms sometimes mean power outages. A recent storm left our neighborhood without power for five days. The electric company crews were busy around the clock trying to remove fallen trees and repair line damage. Our neighborhood hummed with the sound of back-up generators—for the blessed houses who had one. The generators worked hard to keep frozen …
Editing as Writing, and Writing as Editing
By Glynn Young A friend and fellow writer asked me if I edited my writing as I wrote or after I finished a draft. My answer was yes. I do both. I edit as I write, over and over again, and I edit once the draft is “finished,” if that’s possible. The question provoked a deeper thought. Is it possible …
Where Does Your Validation Come From?
By Tammie Fickas Early Tuesday morning my phone vibrated with an incoming text from a friend congratulating me on being a finalist in a flash fiction contest. A whoop of surprise burst out before I could stop it. I quickly found the email that congratulated me on being chosen and relished the excitement. Later in the day, while I was …
ACFW New Releases: August 2019
August 2019 New Releases More in-depth descriptions of these books can be found on the ACFW Fiction Finder website. Contemporary Romance: The Butterfly Recluse by Therese Heckenkamp — Lila finds solace in her sheltered world by raising butterflies and surrounding herself with their gentle beauty. They’re all she needs—until a motorcycle-riding stranger roars up her driveway, invading her safe haven, …
Heading for Heaven
by Christine Sunderland In The Fire Trail (eLectio, 2016) I considered the border that runs between civilization and un-civilization, between the civilized world and the wilderness. Once Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden of Eden, mankind has worked to tame the natural world and its wild-ness in order to survive. Man created communities, cities, safe shelters, protected from …