Tabitha Caplinger's Blog: TabithaCaplinger.com, page 14

#TCO3Bloodline

It's here!!!!   After two years of imagining and typing and praying we are just a little over a month away from my official book release!!!    I feel like I should be acting more casual about all of this, like a cool hipster writer sipping espresso at a downtown cafe. But I'm in my pajamas in my living room still doing a happy dance. Part of me still can't believe my little story is acutally being published. (Thanks BookTrope and Vox Dei for believing in me and this book.)   The rest of me is

Feed The Dog

    I have spent a lot of time the past couple of weeks wearing my pastor hat. Along with leading a couple of small group discussions, God opened several opportunities for me to chat with some of my girls about their lives and struggles. Be it over quesadillas or coffee I had the immense privilege of listening to these women talk about where they are, what they are dealing with and where they want to go. Not only did He give me the opportunity to speak into their lives, but He spoke into mine.

More Than A Story

I wrote a book. And its being published by an actual publisher. I'm still very excited about this.   A few years ago I had this notion that I should write a book. I know a lot of people have that notion, there are a lot of books. Being a youth pastor I also had this idea that if a minister was going to write a book it had to be a devotional. I saw writing as much a part of my ministry as preaching or counseling and to me that equated to non-fiction Bible studies.    So when this story started

#speaklife so #lovewins

    This week our little county in Missouri has made national news. A transgender high school senior wants to use the girls’ bathrooms and locker rooms at school. The school board is trying to make decisions about what the policy will be on this type of situation moving forward.  I am sure you have an opinion on the topic. We are on the news because a lot of people have an opinion on the topic. I have an opinion on the topic. Want to hear it?    You’re not going to because that’s not what this

BFFs

  I have the best bestie in the world. Part of the reason I know its true is because we have the best "how we became friends" story.    My hubby and I had just moved to Alabama to take a youth pastor position. We had been there like 2 weeks. We took the youth group roller skating. My current bestie was then one of the volunteer youth leaders. Reluctantly she donned a pair of rented roller skates and stepped onto the rink. She made it about half a lap before she fell on her butt. (I can laugh

Change of Plans

Proverbs 16:9  The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.   I am a planner. I like plans, and schedules and lists. I like to lay out how my day and week and month are all going to look in nice neat, color-coded, glory on my calendar. I don't like spontaneity. I don't like last minute changes. God knows this about me and yet He insists on rocking my boat on a regular basis.    It happened this week. I had everything going along smoothly with my publishing team and we hit

Do something.

This morning I dropped my oldest daughter off for her first day of first grade. We sat in the private transportation line waiting for our turn and praying for God's provision for the day and the year. It's our little morning tradition. I hold her little hand and ask God to protect her and her heart, and to help her to be kind to others so they can see Him. She smiles and says amen with me and then waves goodbye as she ventures into her day.    Watching her walk into that school building this[image error]

A Glimpse of My Week.

I have been a little neglectful of social media this week because I was super busy cheering some awesome teenagers on at the Assemblies of God National Fine Arts Competition. I am so proud of all their hard work and great attitudes not just through the week but all year leading up to this moment. I wanted to share a little bit with you all, so here are some pictures of our students from the week. If you want to see more check us out our student ministry on facebook and twitter. @FSMisYOU Thanks

Learning to Love Yourself

     One of the most freeing things you’ll ever do is learn to love yourself. There’s so much peer pressure on everyone to look, talk, and act a certain way, but then, that can detract from who you really are. It’s easy to follow the crowd, but it’s more rewarding to learn how to love yourself.      I’ve always hated myself. I hated the way I looked. I hated the way I talked. I hated the way I was so shy. I could have easily given you a list about everything I wanted to change about myself, and

Know Your Enemy

     Claire watched her niece slump down in her seat, arms crossed and jaw clenched, “You would have thought he was crazy if he had told you.”      “I know that but he knew what was wrong with Maggie the whole time and did nothing. He could have helped her, could have helped me help her,” Zoe ranted.      “No, he couldn’t.”       Zoe snapped her head toward Claire. “What do you mean he couldn’t? He’s one of us, he fights these things he could have stopped it.” Her heart rate increased along with