Declutter

I'm happy to say we made it home safe and sound from Hawaii after a minor scare we might get stuck in the Houston airport thanks to Hurricane Isaac. I just kept thinking, "Really, people? We couldn't have gotten stuck in Honolulu?" But it was an absolutely phenomenal trip, and I can't wait to sort through the pictures and share some with you guys soon. There's something about getting away for a little while that really helps reframe your priorities, hone in on your focus, and catch your motivation again.

So that's what I decided to write about today. Several weeks ago, I felt God telling me to declutter my mind. I thought that was an interesting concept and one I wouldn't have come up with on my own, yet exactly what I need to be working on. I don't know about you, but I'm always worried about something. Usually it's nothing big... just an accumulation of lots of little things. Some times it's even dumb things, like remembering to take shoes back or do the laundry. But after a while of holding on to all these little things in my mind, they take up all my mental real estate so that I struggle to  hear the ways God's nudging me. It's like I'm in pool, and instead of being led by a gentle wind, I'm flopping around between a hundred floats and pool toys--which is especially appropriate here because I don't know how to swim.

It's time to throw the floats out of the pool.

Last week, we took a day trip to the Big Island of Hawaii, and the attitude of the Hawaiians there really resonated with me. They have such an "aloha" spirit and are very mellow, not wasting time worrying over things they can't control. And after a while of being around that, it started to rub off on me.

I started thinking a different kind of "what if"-- what would happen if I let go of my worries? I mean, really let go of them and laid them at God's feet? If, instead of going over and over things in my mind, I prayed about them and let go? Is this not what the Bible says to do anyway? The concept began to settle in me. Do not worry about tomorrow, for today has enough trouble of its own. If your heavenly Father knows when a sparrow falls, do not fear, for you are worth more than many sparrows. This same God who created the heavens and the earth and the most beautiful sunsets and stars and mountains and oceans and waterfalls sees me, right where I am, and cares for me. What help can my worry add to that kind of power?

As we were flying home, we ran into trouble in Houston, as I mentioned earlier. When we did board the plane after something like sixteen or seventeen hours of traveling already, I was a little freaked about flying through a tropical storm. But something really cool happened. I checked my phone, and a prayer I had prayed earlier that day was Bible Gateway's verse of the day.

Isaiah 26:3: "You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you."

Our vision gets blurred when we allow anxiety and worries to cloud the picture. We lose sight of who we are meant to be, and what we are meant to be doing. We lose sight of purpose.

Then we saw this. Check out the picture Matt took from the airplane. It's not super clear because he had to take it through a plane window, but in the middle there is a rainbow. Above the clouds. Above the storm. I thought this was just the coolest thing. 

God's promises are still there, whether or not we see them. And especially in the storm, He is always reminding us of His love. I hope that encourages you today, whether you are going through a little storm or a big one. Declutter your mind. Look for the rainbows. They may be just above the clouds.

Book Winner!

I'm excited to announce that Lindsay Harrel has won this stop of Cara and Melanie's blog tour contest!

A big thank you to everyone who entered! Keep an eye out for an announcement from Cara and Melanie about the grand-prize winner!

I'm traveling back home today and can't wait to share some pictures with you all when I get back to my regular blog posts on Wednesday. Hope you all have a great day today!

Mackinac Island GIVEAWAY!

Today I'm SO excited to be hosting Cara Putman and Melanie Dobson on their blog tour. These two ladies are not only special to the hearts of many of us writers, but they are also phenomenal authors. So without further adieu, please welcome Cara and Melanie. Giveaway details are below.



Mackinac Island. It’s a magical place that allows you to step back in time from the moment you first step off the ferry. Authors Cara Putman and Melanie Dobson have teamed up for a tour of the island, now and then. Comment at each stop for a chance to win a copy of one of their books set on Mackinac Island. You’ll find the list of stops here. Share the tour on twitter, Facebook, pinterest and other places, and you’ll gain extra entries for the grand prize of a copy of each of their books and a 5 slice box of Murdick’s Fudge, straight from Mackinac Island. Just be sure to email Cara at cara@caraputman.com, so she can record your entries. The grand prize winner will be drawn August 27, 2012.

Cara Putman: A Wedding Transpires on Mackinac Island The draw that pulls my heroine Alanna to return to Mackinac Island is helping her parents keep their art studio open. Several shops on the island display art and photos created by local and regional authors. That served as the impetus for me to create the Painted Stone studio. The island is a place that inspires photos that show the blue sky reflected off the lake in contrast to the grass and quaint shops and Victorian homes. It’s hard not to shoot tons of photos under a cloudless sky.

The island has drawn artists and writers from its earliest days. There are several shops that highlight local artists. And the plaque pictured to the right is in memory of Constance Fenimore Woolson, an early American writer who loved the island. Is it any wonder we were drawn to the island as a setting for our stories? 

A Wedding Transpires on Mackinac Island:  Join attorney Alanna Stone as she returns home despite her determination to never set foot on Mackinac Island again. Once again in close proximity to Jonathan Covington, her first love, she vows to protect her privacy and her heart from the man who still makes her pulse race. But when her worst fears are realized and history repeats itself—landing her in the midst of a murder investigation—Jonathan may be her only hope. Will they be able to lay aside the past and let God heal their hearts, or will reconciliation come too late?  Read the first chapter here.

Love Finds You on Mackinac Island: As the Gilded Age comes to a close, Elena Bissette’s family has lost most of its fortune. The Bissettes still own a home on fashionable Mackinac Island, and they spend summers there in hopes of introducing Elena to a wealthy suitor. Quickly tiring of the extravagant balls at the Grand Hotel, she spends her days walking along the island’s rugged coastline. There she meets Chase, a handsome laborer who invites her to watch the ships from an abandoned lighthouse. The two begin to meet there in secret, hoping to solve a mystery buried in the pages of a tattered diary. As Elena falls in love with Chase, her mother relentlessly contrives to introduce her to Chester Darrington, the island's most eligible bachelor. Marriage to the elusive millionaire would solve the Bissettes' financial woes, and Elena is torn between duty and love.  Read the first chapter here.


GIVEAWAY! To be eligible for this giveaway, simply leave a comment below telling us why you think Mackinac Island sounds like a cool place. Cara and Melanie will round up all the comments at the end of their tour and do a random drawing for the winner's choice of any of their books. Sounds like a sweet deal to me! So get chatty, and good luck!

What to Bring to the ACFW Conference

This was my very first vblog, and I can't tell you how many people stopped me at the conference to tell me they found it helpful. That totally made my day! I hope you find it helpful too!

Do you have anything to add to my list? What are you bringing to the conference this year?

Hiatus...

Hi all! I'll be taking a short one-week break from blogging and will return to new blog posts on August the 27th. In the meantime, I'm planning to pull a couple of my older blogs to help get everyone in gear for the ACFW conference. Can you believe it's just about a month away?

Just for fun today, why don't you tell us your dream vacation spot and why.

I would have to say mine would be a tour of Europe, with a long stop in Italy. Italian food is my favorite, and the history there is so fascinating. Maybe someday I'll swing a European trip in the name of "research." A girl can dream!

What about you? And if you're having a hard time choosing, what's the coolest place you've been?

Two Dog Bowls and a Merciful God

I wrote this blog post back in 2010, when my only readers were my mom, and on a good day, my husband. As I was thinking about something to post for today, I found this, and it touched me all over again. I hope as you prepare for the next season of your life, be it back-to-school preparations or getting ready for conferences, you are encouraged by this message to persevere in your writing. Things may not look how we expect, but God always has a plan ahead of us.

I've also included a couple newer pictures of the puppies for your viewing pleasure. :)

***

Schroeder's favorite spot to nap is on top of the couch. He seems to think he's a cat.

Maddie enjoying a Greenie treat. Doesn't she look like she's smiling?

A few months ago, though, we decided Maddie needed a friend. I'm a huge believer in animal rescue, as there is currently a terrible problem with pet overpopulation in America, so naturally I started researching dogs at various local rescues.

I didn't want a shelter dog (from a kill shelter) because shelter dogs have a stigma. They're not always vaccinated. They sometimes come with emotional baggage. And let's face it, kill shelters are terribly sad.

But then I found Schroeder, my handsome purebred Cocker Spaniel, and he changed all that. We took a chance on him, and oh, what a glorious "chance" it turned out to be.

So you can see how my dogs teach me daily about redemption. They came from awful situations, and now they're sleeping on Brookstone blankets. At least, when we're not looking.

That's where this blog fits in.

Maddie has this obsession with their food bowls. She wants their food to be in both bowls. If one bowl has food but the other doesn't, she will paw at the empty bowl until someone comes to fill it up. So the other day, there I am, sitting on the couch and watching TV, and Maddie walks over to her food bowls and proceeds to shamelessly paw at the empty one in an effort to get my attention. I told her, "Maddie, you have plenty of food in the other bowl. Eat out of that one." Reluctantly, she walked over to it and ate from it.

And in that moment, I thought to myself, how many times does God say to me, "Ashley, you have plenty of food in the other bowl. Eat out of that one."? Sometimes we get so distracted with what we think is the perfect means of sustenance that we miss out on the bigger bowl. We're so filled with discontent that it blinds us from seeing provision.

In what ways do you find yourself focusing on the empty bowl, and how has God called you to a bigger one He's already provided?

The Power of Words

"The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit." Proverbs 18:21

Have you been keeping up with the Olympics? Like the rest of the world, I've become such a fan of Gabby Douglas. I think she's just adorable and such a joy to watch. If you don't know, she's sort of a star on team USA and helped us win gold in the team event last week.

Since that time, the buzz about her has abounded, and with it has come the inevitable snark from certain segments of the media. One big thing people have been criticizing is her hair, which frankly, is so dumb. For starters, there's not even anything wrong with her hair. I'd sure hate to see what they said about my hair on my, "Meh, I don't think I need to dry it" days. But even if her hair were awful, um, hello critics, she is a famous Olympian. People love her. Get over yourselves. Unfortunately, it doesn't stop there. Apparently on the bully-a-successful-sixteen-year-old bandwagon, attacking her mother's financial stability is also fair game. Needless to say, Gabby caught wind of it, and the past couple events, she has performed terribly.

She posted this message on her Facebook page this morning: "Whew I finally got some good rest after having to deal with some of this negativity. First my hair - then my mom. I guess noone could wait till we finished competing so that we could keep our concentration and focus. But you know what one more final to go! Ladies let's make it count!!!! LET'S GET EM!! #USA #beamfinals #floorfinals Pray for us ♥ Gabby" 

This message makes me so sad. How often do we underestimate the power our words have on others, especially when we see them as famous and invincible? The same goes for people who we see as beyond our reach... the ones who seem to live such different lifestyles than us. But I think it's so important to remember that no matter where a person is, they have a story, and that story matters to them. It matters more that we can imagine. People don't just wake up one day and decide to be difficult. Circumstances in life shape them. They shape all of us, and our words have the power to do that shaping.

I'm reminded of the Casting Crowns' song "Jesus, Friend of Sinners," and I hope it encourages you today. Remember that your realm of influence has a much greater circumference than you could ever see.