The Nothing Blog

This morning I contacted my Physician and asked Him how to be healed of a chronic condition. I was tired of trying to deal with it on my own. Not only does it wear me out, it creates anxiety in me, I become impatient and think negative thoughts. When this condition flares up it's hard to focus on the task at hand. I needed to visit with Him. Just the two of us spending quiet time together. I said to Him, "There must be a cure for this, isn't there? I mean, I've been looking to You for help and counsel for many years now and You always have the perfect solution for my afflictions!" He said, "Yes, your condition is not a rare one, in fact, there is an epidemic of it in the world today. People don't want to look to Me for help, they look to each other and to the things of this world. They are finding it doesn't work and they become more desperate. But I have the cure. It's 100 percent guaranteed to cure STRESS  but you must apply it to your life eve...

 When inspired thoughts come to me, as an author I can't wait until later  to write it down.  I have learned that I won't remember exactly how I felt when the thought came and exactly how the inspiration was leading me to express it on my computer screen or writing pad. So immediately I'll either dig in my purse and scribble the initial thoughts on the back of a crumpled receipt or go to my computer and just type out a few of the insights that flashed in my mind. Well it happened when I was reading Donald Miller's book, Blue Like Jazz.   Donald Miller is a skillful writer, obviously using his God-given talents and I have enjoyed reading his book. Here's the passage that gripped me the most and I knew I needed to share this insight! (That's what Encouragers do, when they find something wonderful they want to encourage everyone with it! Yes, just like I'm doing now.) "I know a little of why there is blood in my...

God gave me a Superman for a husband. Wait, let me say that in another way. God gave me a SUPER Man for a husband and amazing father to our two wonderful daughters.His name is Don. No, he doesn't wear a cape but he is clothed in the righteousness of Christ. I call him SUPER Man because is a super man. He has endured many painful trials -- some have lasted years -- and he won't complain about any of them. By the grace of God he's miraculously survived two strokes that literally hit him back-to-back while he was in ICU in the hospital. He does not complain. Picture is from Melbourne Beach, FL. Pictured: Don, Mary, Grace He married me. He does not complain. That's one reason he's a SUPER Man. I was a wild child of God whose faith was in its infancy stages when we met and married. He and I both knew my salvation was secure and I was hungry to know God as deeply as He did. See, even that long ago he had enough knowledge of Scripture and godly wisdom to be a pastor. His w...

Yesterday in the middle of very hectic traffic I saw a sign  -- like a bumper sticker -- on the back window of a pickup truck. The first time I read it, I laughed out loud. I was at a red light and the truck was two lanes to my right. I tried to get my cell phone out quickly enough to snap a picture before the light changed. I knew if I had a photo of it I could concentrate on the anxious traffic instead of the hilarious message. But I wasn't fast enough because I also had to get the passenger (AKA shotgun) side window down -- it was tinted --and it would be difficult to capture the message clearly in a photo. I also had to be alert because I knew that at any moment the traffic light was going to change from red to green. And in Atlanta,  I know I have to be ready to  press my accelerator pedal to the floor to scoot through the intersection as soon as the light changes or there will be a sort of stampede of honking ho...

Food. Who doesn't like to think about, talk about and EAT food? We all do to some extent. I have always enjoyed cooking. It's a perfect opportunity to let creative juices flow; and that's always invigorating for me. All of the senses are awakened when meals are prepared --the vibrant colors of vegetables and fruits, the smells of creative combinations of meat, spices, pasta, vegetables simmering together, and oooh, the textures of crunchy raw carrots, celery, or fresh green peppers dragged through a garlic hummus dip! And then of course, TA-DA!, there's the presentation of the meal! I like to challenge myself to try to imitate a meal that I previously enjoyed in a restaurant. I'll think about what's in the recipe and recall the flavors. Then I'll try to make it at home for my family. Last week I was in a grocery store that makes fresh sub sandwiches while you wait. They had chopped cilantro as an offering for one of their signature sandwiches. I was pleasa...

A few weeks ago, when I told the sistas in my Totally Devoted marketplace gatherings that I finally FINISHED Totally Devoted 3, I think I gave the impression that it was ready for the publisher to deliver it to the public! Whoa! No! Not yet! There's so much more to do before I can send it to my publisher/friends @ Yawn's Publishing. Yes, I finished writing all 31 devotions for Totally Devoted 3, but the manuscript is now at the editor. Then it has to come back to me to actually make the corrections on my computer. Then I have to finish collecting all the photos (31 of them) and caption each one of  them. I designed the front cover on November 30, 2011. (In 2010, the inspiration came to create a Totally Devoted trilogy in a boxed set so I already knew the titles and colors of the three books before they existed.) I realized this morning I have much more to do before my third book is able to come to life. And it was at that moment I saw t...

I poured my heart out in my previous post and published it. Then this afternoon I checked it,  noticed a couple typos and went back in to correct them. Well, I corrected them alright! I hit some key and deleted the entire post. All of it. Pictures! The story!  My inspiration! Gone! I decided it was time for a revival. My precious hubby, I call him Super Man, helped me search the internet for over two hours to try to find a way to recover my post! After all that struggling and whining (me, not Super Man -- he doesn't whine, really!) I realized that it was not an accident that I totally deleted my heartfelt message. God is sovereign-- there are no accidents -- and He can do anything He wants. He wanted to remove that message and entice me to write another one. So here I am. I am rewriting this with the knowledge that "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." (Philippians 4:13). That's the only way I'm going to be able to do ...