Erica Vetsch's Blog, page 13
January 15, 2023
Writing in Baby Bits
Have you ever had one of those days weeks months?
Here we are on the third Monday of January. In November I had my new year planned with plenty of time for writing along with my usual volunteer activities. Throw in a doctor’s appointment or two and some expected minor surgery, and my winter plans were complete.
But NOTHING has gone the way I planned so far!
It all started with my summons for jury duty…and I was selected to serve on a jury for a criminal case that is expected to last four weeks or more. So every day I show up at the courthouse, listen to testimonies and cross-examinations, and then go home exhausted and heart-sore from the tough testimony I’ve heard. Then I try to keep the details straight until we do it all over again the next day.
I realized before the second day of the trial was over that I needed to be super focused on my writing during my available time – somewhere between 6:00 and 6:30 in the morning. And I can only squeeze out about ten minutes during that half-hour.
What is an author to do???
Since I know this situation isn’t permanent (it isn’t, right?) I only needed to come up with a solution to last for those four weeks or so. I wanted to make some progress on my WIP, but mostly I didn’t want to lose the story.
What do I mean by losing the story? It’s when you take such a long break that you’ve lost the heartbeat of your story and have to spend time reading through all your notes and what you’ve written so far to bring it back again.
Photo courtesy ShutterStock Enter Baby Bits. I got this concept from homemaking. One YouTuber I listen to calls it “Tiny Tidies.” That’s where instead of dedicating hours to cleaning your house, you take care of tiny messes whenever you see them.
How long does it take to put a magazine back in the magazine rack? Less than a minute. Stick a few dirty dishes in the dishwasher? Maybe two minutes. In fifteen minutes or less your living room and kitchen can look presentable.
Do you get the idea?
How long does it take to write two hundred words? Would you believe about ten minutes?
And two hundred words are enough to breathe life into my story each morning.
Of course, these two hundred words aren’t going to show up if I go into my story cold. It takes preparation.
When I decided to approach my story this way, I needed to read through it again, have an idea of what was going to happen in this scene, and since I was introducing a new POV character, I needed to understand who she was and how I wanted to portray her.
By Wednesday morning when I sat down for ten minutes between my first cup of tea and my shower, I knew what I was going to write. That afternoon during a break from the court room, I jotted down some notes that covered the rest of the scene. The next morning, I was able to make more progress.
Is this a permanent solution? No. If I was working full time outside my home, I would need to come up with a different kind of writing schedule.
But the “Baby Bits” of writing each morning will help keep my story alive until I can return to my regular routine - hopefully by the middle of February!
What secrets do have of coping with unexpected breaks in your routine?
January 14, 2023
Sunday Scripture & Prayer Requests
The Baptism of Christ by Andrea del Verrocchio and Leonardo da Vinci, c. 1475,
Uffizi Gallery, Florence, Italy. [PD-US]
John the Baptist saw Jesus coming toward him and said,
"Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.
He is the one of whom I said,
'A man is coming after me who ranks ahead of me
because he existed before me.'
I did not know him,
but the reason why I came baptizing with water
was that he might be made known to Israel."
John testified further, saying,
"I saw the Spirit come down like a dove from heaven
and remain upon him.
I did not know him,
but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me,
'On whomever you see the Spirit come down and remain,
he is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.'
Now I have seen and testified that he is the Son of God."
John 1:29-34
The Seekerville bloggers are praying for YOU and for our entire blog community. If you have any special intentions that need additional prayer coverage, leave a request for prayer in the comment section below.
Please pray for our country and for an end to the problems that plague us at this current time, such as the increased cost of fuel and food and the rise in crime.
Also, please join us in praying for the protection of our military and for law enforcement officers and border agents.We are so grateful for all of you—for your friendship and your support!
God bless you and keep you safe.
January 13, 2023
Weekend Edition
If you are not familiar with our giveaway rules, take a minute to read them here. It keeps us all happy! All winners should send their name, address, and phone number to claim prizes. Please send to Seekerville2@gmail.com. If the winner does not contact us within two weeks, another winner may be selected. **(All winners' emails will receive a response within a week. If you do not receive an acknowledgement, we may not have received it. Please leave a comment in the following Weekend Edition.)
Monday: Jaime Jo Wright explored how God redeems our time
Tuesday: Dana Lynn celebrated Here's to Your Health
Wednesday: Ruth Logan Herne breezed in and spent a couple of days chatting with wonderful folks, and folks even FOLLOWED her over from Facebook! In light of that, we have THREE WINNERS of "Love's a Mystery in Cut and Shoot Texas". DAWN, JENNA and CONNIE PORTER SANDERS have won copies! Send us your information to the Seekerville email posted above... And congratulations!
Monday: When God throws a curveball or two or three into your life, how can you keep your story alive? Jan Drexler explores the possibility of paring your writing time to fit the time God has given you in the hard seasons of life.
Tuesday: Pepper Basham is your hostess
Wednesday:Debby Giusti will be blogging today about the writing journey! Be sure to stop by and add your two cents to the conversation!
Thursday: Winnie Griggs is your hostess
JUST REPUBLISHED!
Ruth Logan Herne's beautiful reunion love story "Try, Try Again" , the book that readers loved, the story that opened multiple doors for Ruthy's mid-life crisis career from hairnet and nametag jobs to an award-winning, bestselling multi-published author has a gorgeous new cover designed by Beth Jamison and an amazing sale price of $7.35 for the full-length novel! We're so happy to re-launch this gripping story of God's perfect timing and sacrificial love... and how the truth will set you free. Happy reading!
Disclaimer: Any blog post that includes an offer of product purchase or service is NOT to be considered an endorsement by Seekerville or any of our authors (please see our Legal page )
Low Content Books: Are They Still Worth It in 2023? by Jason Hamilton at Kindleprenuer
Need A Writing Buddy? by KM Weiland at Learn How To Write A Novel
5 Reasons Why It's Still a Good Idea to Have a Blog by Colleen M Story at Writers Helping Writers
How to Become a Confident Author by Daniel Parsons at Self Publishing Formula
Reaching for the Brass Ring by James Scott Bell at Killzone blog
Upcoming Fiction Workshops featuring Laurie Schnebly Campbell at An Indie Adventure
How to Help Others Take Your Writing Seriously by Edie Melson at The Write Conversation
The Difference Between Setting and World Building by Janice Hardy at Fiction University
The Writing Brain vs The Speaking Brain by Jarrett Wilson at The Writing Cooperative
Setting S.M.A.R.T. Goals for a Productive Writing Year by Lisa Jordan at ACFW blog
January 10, 2023
Winter's Quiet is Author's Gift
The title says it all.
I own/manage a farm with my husband, kids, friends, and assorted animals.
It is wonderful, it is growing by leaps and bounds, people come here and for nine weeks, they have So Much Fun!!!! And that fun-filled, squash-filled, pumpkin-bedazzled nine weeks takes five months to produce.... so for seven months of the year I write in the wee smalls and do farm related activities all day.
With a whole lot of other folks around, because otherwise it wouldn't all get done.
But when winter comes along, even gray, dismal, wet, rainy winters like this one has been so far (with the exception of a KILLER STORM that swept through Christmas week, what a monster!!!) I get more time to write.
That's a total blessing. Those five months from December through April are my breathe-easy months because even with holidays and holy days, and sports for kids, and unexpected adventures, I get more writing time. This year the goal is to finish my current mystery (1/3 done, expected to finish by Valentine's Day) and Kindling Christmas in Wishing Bridge (expected to finish by April 30th)....
And then I move on to next mystery and an indie mystery series that I'm working on (first book nearly complete).
I write daily but I plan in two-year increments. I do this because it keeps my head in the game. I do it because I can see actual progress day-to-day and that's important to me. My goal has always been to put family and faith first, and I do that by making sure there's no guilt... my writing is done in my time, my days are open-ended enough to keep family and friends and farm in reach.
So my two-year goal right now is to finish at least four books in 2023, then four more in 2024. I have two nearly done... so that's very reachable. And if I end up with more time, there's a project waiting for me to have an opening, but it will have to wait because the first four/year take priority.
Four books/year keeps me earning a living I can live on.
Those four books keep wheels turning in multiple directions, but all moving forward.
And if the world stopped paying me to write books today... if it all dried up... If the entire industry collapsed, I'd still write because I waited nearly fifty years to be able to live my dream and it's not something I'd give up easily. Especially when aging can have deleterious effects on health, mobility, cognitive awareness.
I love writing stories!
But while some may look at my life and see chaos (or the generous ones call it organized chaos) I see Carpe Diem at work: Seize the day! Make it yours and God's and share what you can.
Folks ask me if I sleep in on weekends.
No. Never. Because the body is a habitual thing, and sleeping in could make it feel like it's deprived the other five days... besides, there are SO MANY PEOPLE in my life that if I sleep in, I'm unprepared for the onslaught. Or (maybe...) it's that I'm a morning person just like some o' youse are night owls... and we learn to budget our personal biological clocks to fit our jobs, our work, our ethics.
I am having the time of my life.
I am living two dreams, the writing and the farm and am so blessed by all the people around me.
And as I write this, we are nearly complete with demolishing three rooms to make them into one big, open, friendly farm kitchen.... the old kitchen, the powder room and the pantry are all merging into a new big room after thirty-four years of not being able to fit our family around the kitchen table.... we will finally have a big table in the kitchen, LOL! The irony is that our family has more than tripled in size, so we still won't be able to fit around the table, but we can fit more of us, and that's awesome!
Hey, throw your hat in the ring for a free copy of my newest mystery "Love's a Mystery in Cut and Shoot Texas", a wonderful story about the best Christmas blessing of all: A baby!
Inspirational author Ruth Logan Herne has sold millions of copies of books, has had millions of pages read on Kindle Unlimited (that's a whole new category of success, isn't it???) and loves her opportunities, truly gifts from God! She's in love with her crazy family, her faith, and is living the dreams she wanted for decades, and is super-convinced that when you slow down, you die... so she never slows down. :) Write her at loganherne@gmail.com, visit her website ruthloganherne.com or friend her on Facebook. She'd love to hear from you! And if you're a writer: Keep writing! And if you're a reader: Thank you so much! You're the reason we're here... you bless us, every day!
Here's To Your Health
2022 also had some negatives. Most of these are health related. I have struggled with my weight most of my life, and now I have to deal with diabetes. I love writing, but I sit for long periods of times while I work. I also tend to drink too much sweet coffee and eat too many bad carbs and sweets while I work. I have 6 books releasing in 2023, four from Love Inspired Suspense and two from Guideposts. It's no wonder my numbers have gotten a little out of control. I needed to make a plan.
I don't usually make resolutions. They get broken and leave me feeling guilty and defeated. This year, I decided instead of resolutions, I was going to make some lifestyle changes. Spiritually, I started listening to a daily podcast on my way to work to help me get deeper into scripture during the day. For my health, I made an appointment with my doctor and we have started a plan to work on improving my health and making better choices. Also, I have started working with a dietician to help me change my mindset about food. As far as my writing goes, I enjoy using dictation while I write. I have added dictation while I walk. Also, I have cleared off the clutter hiding my adjustable stand up desk so I can actually use it. I hope that with these changes, I can continue to enjoy my family and be productive for years to come. Do you have any changes you plan to make for 2023?
Dana R. Lynn is an award winning author of romantic suspense and Amish romance who believes in the power of God to touch people through stories. Although she grew up in Illinois, she met her husband at a wedding in Pennsylvania and told her parents she had met her future husband. Nineteen months later, they were married. Today, they live in rural Pennsylvania and are entering the world of empty nesters. She is a teacher of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing by day and writes stories of romance and danger at night. She is represented by Tamela Hancock Murray with the Steve Laube Agency. Dana is an avid reader, loves cats and thinks chocolate should be a food group. Readers can contact her or sign up to receive her monthly newsletter at www.danarlynn.com.
January 9, 2023
Good Monday morning, Seekerville! How has your 2023 star...
Good Monday morning, Seekerville! How has your 2023 started? Off with a bang? At the Wright house, ours started slothfully and is still rather slothful. The week of Christmas had me down for the count with fever, bronchitis, and then it was followed with the stomach flu, and now I'm on sick bed hangover with my son who decided to follow in his mother's footsteps.
All that to say, I thought I'd be about 20,000 words further into my book deadline. Alas. Not so. But this is the writing life, right? We're all used to deadlines never going as planned.
I've learned a lot about the phrase "God redeems our time" in the last two years. When I look back at a bullet list of "life", I realize that it's only God's grace that gets us through. Since 2021, I've experienced:
Passing of my MomLoss of my 18 year position at the day job (thx Covid)
Loss of health insurance, and then . . .Head concussionBronchitisWalking pnuemoniaCovid x's 2Lyme Disease seizure relapse
Car accidentAnother car accident...And you know what? I KNOW your list looks similar. There's no need to compete for bullet point spaces, because it seems all of our lives have these 'life lessons' on them--or ones of similar sort. Doing life through the difficult is a feat in itself. It truly is God's grace that we accomplish anything--let alone deadlines. How many times have I prayed "Lord, redeem the time to Your glory"? So many. And I'm praying it still. Praying it as I binge watch Pirates of the Caribbean with my son as I'm thinking about all the things that need to get done . . . but feeling dreadful and sick. Praying it as I struggle trying to figure out finances and life. Praying it as I navigate grief--why didn't anyone tell me year 2 was 100xs worse than year 1? Praying it as I stared at a blinking cursor and think, "this is my career ending novel".
Want some encouragement today? Somehow through this "time redemption" prayer system, I've met every deadline without requesting extensions. And, there have been weird, unexpected blessings that really shouldn't be able to happen. It's a nicer bullet list:
A secondary "office" at my Dad's house where I write and he has companyBeginning of a new career as a Social Media Manager for authors in the writing community A month-long family trip to the Oregon Coast (gifted to us by loving friends and family)Three books written with met deadlines and very few edits required! (WHAT??)A litany of encouraging notes and gifts and long distance hugs from readersEspresso made by my burgeoning barista of a daughterTime to snuggle with my son while we're sick... and so onSo I write this today in hopes to encourage you. God sees you. He WILL provide. He will redeem the time . . .
How can we pray for you?
___________________________________________________
www.jaimewrightbooks.com
www.madlitmentoring.com
Jaime Jo Wright loves to read—and write—fiction with elements of mystery, faith, and romance from her home in Wisconsin. She's a coffee drinker by day and night, lives in dreamland, and exists in reality.
January 7, 2023
Sunday Scripture & Prayer Requests
THE EPIPHANY OF THE LORD
Adoration of the Magi, Peter Paul Rubens, Cambridge,
England, 1634. [PD-US]
When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea,
in the days of King Herod,
behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying,
“Where is the newborn king of the Jews?
We saw his star at its rising
and have come to do him homage.”
When King Herod heard this,
he was greatly troubled,
and all Jerusalem with him.
Assembling all the chief priests and the scribes of the people,
He inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.
They said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea,
for thus it has been written through the prophet:
And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
since from you shall come a ruler,
who is to shepherd my people Israel.”
Then Herod called the magi secretly
and ascertained from them the time of the star’s appearance.
He sent them to Bethlehem and said,
“Go and search diligently for the child.
When you have found him, bring me word,
that I too may go and do him homage.”
After their audience with the king they set out.
And behold, the star that they had seen at its rising preceded them,
until it came and stopped over the place where the child was.
They were overjoyed at seeing the star,
and on entering the house
they saw the child with Mary his mother.
They prostrated themselves and did him homage.
Then they opened their treasures
and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod,
they departed for their country by another way.
Mt 2:1-12
(The Epiphany is actually on January 6, but many churches in the USA celebrate the Epiphany today, on Sunday, when the majority of the faithful will attend services.)
The Seekerville bloggers are praying for YOU and for our entire blog community. If you have any special intentions that need additional prayer coverage, leave a request for prayer in the comment section below.
Please pray for our country and for an end to the problems that plague us at this current time, such as the increased cost of fuel and food and the rise in crime.
Also, please join us in praying for the protection of our military and for law enforcement officers and border agents.We are so grateful for all of you—for your friendship and your support!
God bless you and keep you safe.
January 6, 2023
Weekend Edition
If you are not familiar with our giveaway rules, take a minute to read them here. It keeps us all happy! All winners should send their name, address, and phone number to claim prizes. Please send to Seekerville2@gmail.com. If the winner does not contact us within two weeks, another winner may be selected. **(All winners' emails will receive a response within a week. If you do not receive an acknowledgement, we may not have received it. Please leave a comment in the following Weekend Edition.)
Monday: Mary Connealy opened the year with talk of a new series. The winner of a $25 Amazon gift card is Tina Peterson
Wednesday: Mindy Obenhaus was here to discuss Goals, Resolutions and One Word.
Thursday: Audra Harders discussed choosing your One Word wisely
Monday: Jaime Jo Wright will be our hostess
Tuesday: Dana Lynn will be our hostess
Wednesday: Ruth Logan Herne swoops in with how she makes the quieter five months of non-farm winter pay off in her writing goals with possible advice on how not to kill people by scheduling your writing time when you can actually do it! And she's sweetened the deal with her newest Guideposts mystery "Love's a Mystery in Cut and Shoot Texas" to some lucky commenter! Come on by and see what the Ruthinator has to say this time!
Ruthy's newest mystery is available now! "Love's a Mystery in Cut and Shoot Texas" is up on the Guideposts website and you will love, love, love her contemporary offering in this 2-for-1 duo with Janice Thompson! Available in hardcover, e-formats or order the entire series and have them delivered to your door each month! #mustlovemysteries
Disclaimer: Any blog post that includes an offer of product purchase or service is NOT to be considered an endorsement by Seekerville or any of our authors (please see our Legal page )
Hand Hobbies: A Resource Guide to Writing Basics by Michele Wheat at Wristband Express (this link was submitted by Laura Henne as Seekerville "played such a valuable role in helping my Girl Scout Troop with their Novelist Badges.")
How to Effectively Grow Your Email List with Facebook by Jonas Fischer at MailerLite blog
Three Powerful Ways to Brainstorm New Story Ideas by Kristen Kieffer at Well-Storied
How to Make Money with Subscriptions by Michael Evans at Self-Publishing Formula
Build Your Writing Self-Efficacy by Ariel Curry at Jane Friedman
How to Choose Your Best Writing Yes for the New Year by Kristen Hogrefe Parnell at The Write Conversation
BookFunnel promo of Inspy Romance books on Kindle Unlimited
The Big Three for Backing Up Your Computer Work by LA Sartor at An Indie Adventure
Parts of a Story: 14 Core, Tonal, and Plot Elements by Jason Hamilton at Kindleprenuer
7 Expert Tricks to Improve Your Newsletter at David Gaughran
January 4, 2023
Choose Your One Word Wisely
by Audra Harders
Hello Friends, and Happy New Year!
Many writers have joined the trend to choose a One Word for the year. The One Word represents something they wish to change, accomplish or a multitude of other reasons particular to that person, for the year.
Instead of talking about my One Word choice for this year, I’d like to share with you my word for last year and how my life surprisingly revolved around it. My One Word for 2022 was:
When I chose the word, I knew I was at a crossroads for many things - family, faith, future. Nothing was meshing together for me any longer so I needed to “defrag” (a button I push on my computer frequently to clean up my harddrive) my brain and my life. I chose this word at the beginning of December 2021 when my local writing friends and I got together to reflect on the year and plan the next.
GENESIS did not wait to step into action!
Over the New Year weekend 21-22, Boulder County experienced a massive wildfire that wiped out two towns almost to entirety. In my office - due to a mass EXODUS of co-workers during 2021 - I was the only person able to update our Extension website for our office with resources to help the multitude of people affected by this disaster. My reasons are many, but this event triggered my decision to retire from the day job a year earlier than planned. I was mentally tired and the thought of doing the job of 2 or 3 people until vacancies could be filled was the impetus for telling my director on January 3, I planned to retire at the end of March.
Without financial income. Without a plan for my future. Without a net.
But I did have the blessing of my husband and kids. And the quiet blessing of my Lord who removed all anxiety over the decision.
My year of GENESIS had begun.
I will not bore you will all the personal blessings I discovered throughout the year - oh my, I think you’d click off this post and go “phew, enough of that!” LOL!! But I would like to describe my writing GENESIS.
As I said, I didn’t have game plan other than enjoying freedom, spending time with my loving aunt (the last of the older generation on both sides of my family), and regrouping to kickstart my writing career.
Well…the first two were accomplished easily enough. The writing? The more I tried, the more confused and frustrated I became.
I wanted GENESIS to cover my writing - a career I’d put on hold for so many reasons.
But, the words and inspiration would not come.
I didn’t fight it, though I was deeply disappointed. Instead, I turned to books written by authors I loved and respected, and discovered works by new authors fed to me through BookBub.
Over the past couple of years, I had created a fictional town in the mountains of Colorado. I had planned to work on that series. Contemporary inspirational romance.
But my tastes in reading had honed in on historical romance - mainly the Victorian era. I gobbled up story after delightful story and discovered a nugget of desire to research the time period.
By the end of summer, I had gathered together the research and works of a series I had created at the start of my writing journey oh so many years ago. Originally, the series was set in the Regency era, but I had a strong desire to set the books in Victorian times.
Frankly, nothing was making sense about this entire change of heart. Though two of my original books had won numerous unpubbed contests - including the GENESIS (ACFW contest for Unpublished writers) - I couldn’t really figure out what to do with the stories to fit into my new inspiration.
And then I attended the ACFW conference with one of my local writing buddies in St. Louis, MO. That’s where it all changed. I found my direction.
I had one of the most incredible GENESIS moments of all.
At that conference, we prayed together in the hotel room for wisdom and guidance in writing and all aspects of life.
The ideas started flowing.
I filled pages of my notebook with handwritten plots and characters.
I mapped how the series would flow together.
I came home with 7 plotted novellas that stemmed from the over-arcing novel that would pull the entire adventure together.
This entire post took you through my year with a One Word I’d hoped to use to renew my spirit. It did that and so much more.
If you ascribe to the One Word beacon of fulfillment for the year, I recommend you pray over it and choose wisely. Always remember, the Lord has plans for you. Do not disregard His path when you grow weary along the way. He’s chosen you for special things. Accomplishments in His Name so special we’ll be humbled by His faith in us.
He will rejuvenate your spirit as He did mine.
He will lead you.
He will never leave you.
Oh, and by the way, my One Word for 2023 is DISCERNMENT. I’ll let you know how that goes next January!
Do you have a One Word? Share and let’s talk about how it might shape your year!
We know that in everything God works for good with those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose. Romans 8:28 RSV
Audra Harders writes "rugged stories with heart" featuring fearless men who haven't a clue about relationships, rescued by ladies who think they have all the answers. In real life, she's married to her own patient hero, has two adult children, and a very strong-willed Corgi. She began writing right after her second kidlet was born and sold her first book to Love Inspired mere months before that same young adult graduated from high school. Surviving those years in between reminds her God does have a plan for her life...and that He has a tremendous sense of humor. You can visit Audra at:Website: www.audraharders.com
January 3, 2023
Goals, Resolutions and One Word
by Mindy Obenhaus
Originally posted in January 2019 Ready or not, a new year has arrived. And like a new calendar waiting to be filled, January presents us with a blank slate. A new beginning. But like any journey, it’s best approached with a sense of direction. As a compass points our way, we, too, need something to guide us through the coming year. A reference that keeps us moving forward instead of allowing speed bumps and unexpected detours to determine our course.
How do we do this?
Goals – Goals are specific. Maybe you want to lose ten pounds, get a better paying job or get your book published. Whatever your goal may be, you must take action in order reach it. If you want to lose weight, diet and exercise will play a key role. A better job typically doesn’t just fall into your lap. You need to actively seek that new position, perhaps improving your skills along the way. And even if publication doesn’t happen for years, you still need to keep writing and learning.
Determine your goal, then make a list of steps that will help you reach it.
Resolutions – People used to ask me, “What’s your New Year’s resolution?” To which I usually replied, “I don’t make resolutions, because I don’t make promises I can’t keep.”
For several years now, I have made it a practice to go to the gym on a regular basis. And if there’s one thing I’ve noticed, it’s that the gym gets more crowded on January 2nd. Seems everyone and their brother resolves to eat healthier and get fit. The second thing I’ve noticed, though, is that by March, most of those people are gone and we’re back to the same sweaty faces we saw the previous year.
A resolution is a promise, typically made to oneself. Yet while we may resolve to lose ten pounds, that doesn’t mean it’s magically going to happen. As with a goal, a resolution requires action to become a reality.
What steps do you need to take to fulfill your resolution?
One Word – This has become increasingly popular in the past few years, particularly among Christians. Prayerfully choosing a single word to be your focus for an entire year is really about attitude.
In 2018, my word was grateful. No matter what life threw at me, good or bad, approaching it with gratitude changed my perspective. This year, PEACE is my word. Something I'm still trying to wrap my brain around, but I have 363 more days to better understand.You can learn more about your One Word at myoneword.org.
Whether you choose only one of these tools or pair them together, you can feel more confident marching into 2019 with a sense of direction. Even if you wander off the path, the right focus can put you back on track.
Fast-forward to 2023 - You know, it's kind of amazing to stop and think about everything that has happened since I posted this four years ago. Our world has gone through some changes. But many of us still approach a new year with some sort of direction in mind. So let's talk about it.
Do you run headlong into each new year or do you approach January with a goal, resolution, one word or something else?
Award-winning author Mindy Obenhaus is passionate about touching readers with Biblical truths in an entertaining, and sometimes adventurous, manner. She lives on a ranch in Texas with her husband, two sassy pups, countless cattle, deer and the occasional coyote, mountain lion or snake. When she's not writing, she enjoys spending time with her grandchildren, cooking and watching copious amounts of the Hallmark Channel. Learn more at www.MindyObenhaus.com
