IN MY WORDS – When Cinderella came to town, I had to see the show. I left the performance with mixed emotions and a new wealth of information. Here are just a few things I learned that evening:

• Every women, no matter the age, wants to feel like a princess. Many sweet young girls came to the show wearing tiaras. There was also a mix of young adults and older women sporting the jeweled crowns.
  
• Beautiful settings, lovely costumes and great choreography make up for other negative details.
• What negative details? On to the next important lesson.
• You cannot change a classic fairy tale and think it will be a success. The show was re-written, barely keeping the true story elements and adding in a ridiculous politically correct agenda. Really, people? This is Cinderella!  Get the story right!
• Good acting makes a huge difference. Fortunately, the lead character playing Cinderella did an excellent job. But it would have been so much better if they had remained true to the story.
  
• Leaving us with the final analysis: Cinderella is and always will be a rags to riches story, a tale of dreams coming true, and overcoming obstacles and of course….it’s always about how different your world can be if you just have the THE RIGHT SHOES!

Have you ever been disappointed when a classic tale is totally re-written?

Best wishes to all for a happy, healthy, safe and blessed Thanksgiving.

If we took the time to list all the things we are thankful for, I’m sure we would have pages and pages listed.We give thanks unto the Lord, the giver of all good gifts.

Whether you are surrounded by family and friends or completely alone today…God is with you. He promises to never leave or forsake us.

And for those Black Friday shoppers tomorrow…be careful! It’s a crazy world out there. Personally, I’m avoiding all malls and crowds. I will probably take my city-girl sister out so she won’t get too bored in the country. But we’ll go to a small village, perhaps visit a tea room and if we buy anything it will be to support local shops and village businesses.

God bless you this Thanksgiving Day! 

Winner of the Amish book from last week is…Cindy – Congrats! Please send me your email address.

IN MY WORDS – A Happy Autumn Birthday to all my fellow-October birthday friends!

I love being an October baby and this year my fall birthday month was filled with a flurry of activity, travel, friends and…some major transitions in life. All good. Because we serve a good God and a loving Father. 

I pray you have a blessed birthday year with new, rich discoveries of all God has planned for your life. You are precious to Him.

A special happy birthday to Pam Meyers, Carol McClain, Loree Huebner, Katy Lee, Rebecca Luella, Ada Brownell and Carole Brown : ) Hope your day was/is blessed.

IN MY WORDS – I finished reading the first two books and enjoyed both of them. Karen Witemeyer is one of my favorite authors. I don’t read a lot of Westerns but Margaret’s book was truly a great read and worth the change of genre for me.

Heaven Help Heidi is the second book in a series and I am saving it for my vacation time, allowing the anticipation to build : ) I absolutely loved the first one in this series: Beween Us Girls. I would highly recommend it!

Also on the TBR list is Someday Home. I have read this author before and never been disappointed in her work.

What are you reading this summer? Any favorites or new authors you’ve discovered?

Leave a reply to enter a drawing for a signed copy of “The Crossroad” by Beverly Lewis. Don’t forget to include your email address.

IN MY WORDS – No more DIY projects! I make this promise to myself every time I tackle a new project and encounter every difficulty possible for the simple done-in-a-day idea. Liars. False advertising at its strongest level.

It’s never done in a day and its always more complicated than they promise. Yet I still fall for it and find myself paint splattered, tired and worn. Downright cranky. The latest episode was painting a dark wood kitchen hutch. We’re had it for ages but it was always too dark for our bright blue and white kitchen. After looking at countless sales and flea markets for a hutch that would work, I finally decided to dive in and just paint the thing white. “Antique Lace” if you want to be specific. Except it first had to have a grey primer on it to cover the dark wood.

Sure. Never did realize all the nooks and crannies in this piece of furniture. So on to the lacy paint color. Hmm…doesn’t look good. Kinda’ like a really shabby shabby not so chic. Yes, it will take two coats. After two days of hard work and bending and twisting and realizing I’m getting too old to sit Indian-style for any length of time, it is done. Finished. (above photo)  I’m exhausted and I somehow managed to get grey paint in my hair. Grey, really?? Couldn’t it have been a blonde highlight color? I down some Advil, manage to sleep away some of the aches and pains and return to the kitchen several times a day to admire my new finished piece. Yes, I like it much better. But please remind  me next time to just go out and buy a new piece of furniture….

What was your latest DIY project? 

Congrats to the Winner of last week’s giveaway -Sally Davidson!   Please send me your mailing information.

IN MY WORDS – Here are my spring-colored daffodils, bending and reaching towards the light coming from the window. I kept trying to stabilize them but I’d turn back around and they were s t r e t c h i n g and r e a c h i n g for the light yet again. Hmm…I bet you know where I’m going with this thought.

Yes, so should we be stretching and reaching for the true light – JESUS.

Not allowing anyone or anything to pull us away from His light and the joy of His presence.

I came home one day and the whole plant had toppled, fallen over on the carpet, still straining for the light. I hope and pray God revives the same hunger and yearning within me and within you. To the point of falling to our knees, bowing before Him in adoration, hands extended for His touch.

Never tire or stop reaching for the light of the Lord.

IN MY WORDS – Yes, we all have them. You may fear spiders. Speaking before an audience. Fear of small spaces. Heights. Bridges. Elevators. (don’t read Angela Hunt’s book, “The Elevator.”)

Fear of dogs. Cats. Clowns. The list goes on…I confess one of my unreasonable fears is a Car Wash. Uh huh. I will not drive through a car wash by myself.

Dirty car? It can wait till I have brave hubby with me. For some odd reason, I just don’t trust driving through one by myself. My active “what-if” trained mentality of a writer kicks in. What if I run off track and crash into the walls? What if the water never stops spraying and the exit door won’t open? What if I’m locked in there for the night without a cell phone?

Silly I know, but that is why it is an unreasonable fear. It didn’t help that my husband took our dog through one before.

The small helpless pet trembled and shook and took weeks to recover from all the noise and battering on the car. I totally get it, my poor pet.

What is one of your unreasonable fears?

We are all interesting characters and our fears create amazing story ideas : )

IN MY WORDS – Hearts and Flowers and a Trader Joe’s “For the Love of Chocolate Mousse Cake” = True Love : )

It is lovely to be cherished. I love my husband, God’s gift to me.

Yet the one whom my soul loves first and foremost = Jesus.

Jesus first. Always.

As a couple married almost 30 years, we both still understand the importance of keeping God as our First Love. Because of this, we are blessed.

If you are single, divorced, widowed, hoping-to-be-in-a-relationship or just plain tired of all this love and romance stuff, remind yourself that Jesus loves YOU – fully, completely, more than any one else.

Wishing you all a sweet Valentines Day…

Note: Winner of Amish novel is Francoise, congrats and please contact me!

Are there certain conversations from the past that yet linger in your thoughts?

Harsh words spoken in anger that plague you during the darkest times.

Or lovely words offered with encouragement and love, boosting your confidence and self-worth.

Our words are valuable.

As we head into the brand new year, I pray that we will be mindful of the power of our words. In conversation and in our writing. Written words linger even longer. Use caution with words on social media; they will cycle on and on with a lasting impression. 

Treasure those words that are spoken in love and truth. When someone speaks a positive word to me, I often write it down so I can go back over it again and again. Let us offer these sweet words of hope, faith and love to a hurting generation.

Will you join with me this year, resolving to think before we speak, and definitely pray before we write?

“If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man’s religion is vain.” James 1:26

Sharing a poster from my favorite church in Long Island, NY. We recently attended one of their Christmas performances and were amazed at the professional and anointed production. This church has always been known for its excellence even when they were a small storefront of about 20 people. They have grown to over 700 and their Christmas outreach reaches over 4,000 visitors through six performances in two weekends.

Which got me thinking…what if our churches came back around to a focus of Christmas outreach? Beyond our cute little “Christmas program” that is put together within a few weeks and usually focuses on how adorable the children are. NOTE: I have nothing against this, especially involving children in these concerts. They are precious and can touch the hardest heart with their innocence. But I’m wondering what type of results we would see if we all gave 110% to our presentations with hours, days and weeks of effort to showcase our best. I’ve noticed people shying away from involvement, anything that requires too much time and effort. They are busy with Christmas shopping, baking, wrapping presents, decorating, running around preparing for this one day of the year. I look at that and then look at a church like this where all those details are set aside till after the outreach and programs are over.

Parents, children, teenagers, couples, and singles are at practices for hours, laughing, loving, working together to present to the lost the message of the gospel. And the results are amazing! What if we all drew closer to this type of Christmas? I believe it would make the holiday so much more meaningful and blessed. People are more open at Christmas to receive the gospel. We should take advantage of this great opportunity and give our all to reach the lost.

Please share any outreach suggestions in a comment. Bonus: you will be entered in  a giveaway for a Christmas dvd or the novel, “When the Morning Glory Blooms” by Cynthia Ruchi. Please include your email address in the comment.