Heidi Gray McGill's Blog, page 12

Challenges Won’t Stop Me

In this Challenges Won’t Stop Me podcast, Melony Brown and I discuss the steps taken to keep our disabilities from defining us. Join us for “Our Hearts See More Than Our Eyes: losing her sight didn’t stop her.” I pray you are encouraged during the next 25 minutes for this exciting, laughter-filled chat.

Deleting or reworking scenes in a book often feels like cutting your hair without a mirror while using preschool scissors

Editing out scenes is tough for me. I mean, I wrote the words, they must be important. Things that often get cut or reworked usually involve me telling the reader my thoughts. I want to let readers know the backstory, but there’s a fine line between giving too much and too little information. The scene below is technically still in Matters of the Heart, book 3 in my Discerning God’s Best Series, but in a completely different format where the reader is engaged with the action.

Air escaped Han...

My Response To God And Others – An Expectation Of Obedience

When my girls were little, they learned about my husband and my expectation of obedience. When asked to do something, I would say, “Do it right away, all the way, and with a happy heart.” I don’t know where that phrase originated, but it reminded them to obey quickly, make more than a half effort, and complete the task without complaint.

It reminds me of a Bible story. As mentioned in Luke 19, Zacchaeus was one of Jericho’s chief tax collectors. You’ve probably sung the song and remember the ...

Have I spent my winter soaking up God’s goodness?

I love spring and its variety of colors, especially after a winter full of muted shades. But to get there means rain, and we’ve had our fair share here in South Carolina.

“When a farmer’s land has had many showers upon it and good crops come up, that land has experienced God’s blessing upon it. But if it keeps on having crops of thistles and thorns, the land is considered no good and is ready for condemnation and burning off.” – Hebrews 6:7-8 TLB

As believers, we can drink God’s goodness a...

Proverbs 31 Celebrates Women As They Are And Where They Are

Marbeth Skwarczynski shares about her book, The Women Who Set the Precedents, in today’s blog post. Marbeth: “I became an admirer of Bathsheba while writing this book. She was transparent as she used her experience and her words to reach out not only to her son but to other women thousands of years into the future. She was a God-inspired author who deserves the utmost respect. In a way, she is the foremother of today’s Christian women authors.” Read the rest of Marbeth’s post here.

Age or experience are not always the definers of being an excellent mentor

Faith is to believe what you do not see;
the reward of this faith is to see what you believe. St. Augustine

My pastor father moved us to South Portland, Maine, the month before I turned twelve. I was excited to make new friends, graduate from children’s church, and move into the youth group.

My first friend was an odd girl named Stephanie. She was mature for her age, had a quirky sense of humor, loved Jesus with all her heart, and was an excellent student of the Word and at school. She was ...

Self-deception is easy when you compare yourselves to others around you – Realities of an Indie Author

If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves. Galatians 6:3 NIV

Well, that verse hit me between the eyes, literally. My phone slipped. I’ll let you use your imagination. That attempt at humor was necessary because the verse hit too close for comfort. Yes, that was a lame attempt at a pun.

Being an independent or indie author has its challenges, one being comparing myself to those I perceive as doing well, or at least better than the mediocre person writin...

Spring – a season of new growth

“See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.” Isaiah 43:19 NIV

Spring is colorful in South Carolina, and it starts earlier than the calendar date of March 20th. The transition from one season to the next blends so smoothly I can easily miss it if I’m not paying attention.

Sometimes I’m not paying attention spiritually, either, and get stuck in a dreary winter mindset.

“Forget the former things;...

If my underlying objective is to evoke emotion in my reader, then my ultimate goal should be to awaken a yearning for God in my reader’s heart.

There’s a difference between being a Christian Author and being an author who is a Christian. My books are an extension of who Christ is in me. Writing books isn’t a job I do; it’s a ministry in which I am privileged to participate.

I don’t want to give lip service to God so I can categorize my work as religious or Christian fiction. I can’t shy away from my beliefs and pray that a half attempt will lead others closer to a walk with Christ.

I desire to stand out.

To be a Christ follower...

Perseverance shows determination and steadfastness. I obviously have very little of all three.

“Better is the end of a thing than its beginning; and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.” Ecclesiastes 7:8 RSV

I recently navigated a tough season of life. Let me rephrase—I’m still navigating—with one oar and a leak in the boat.

“It always seems impossible until it’s done.” ~Nelson Mandela

Have you ever been there? At the bottom looking up? It’s not as if you believe God has abandoned you, it just that…

Okay, so maybe you don’t feel that way, but I struggled t...