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Single Mom by Choice
[Guest Post by Krista Pettiford – We met each other through the San Diego Christian Writer’s Guild. She is a gifted and talented writer, and I am absolutely thrilled to have Krista share her story about her family. If you know of any broken families who might need encouragement, please pass this one along!] I was married and had four children when I became a Christian. Before that, I was very worldly. Though I had been raised by religious parents and even went to Catholic school for my early education I never had a real example of godly living. When I met my husband I was an unwed mother of…
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Forgiveness: The F Word
[Guest Post by Nicole Reyes – I can’t wait for you to hear her later this month as one of the speakers for Quarter Life Conference. She is an advocate for the local church, and I can’t wait for you to hear why. In the mean time, read her powerful story about forgiveness.] Forgiveness, also known as the F word, can be a hard pill to swallow. Archbishop Desmond Tutu knows what he’s talking about. He said, “Without forgiveness, there’s no future.” Many of you are thinking… “Well, you don’t know the pain I’ve been through.” I don’t know your past pain, but I do know what’s even worse than…
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If I Told You How I Felt
If I told you how I felt–you might not forgive me. This month’s new theme is on forgiving others. And recently, I’ve felt lousy. I even posted this on Facebook last week: “If you’re afraid to say how you really feel for fear of losing the friendship, maybe (gulp) they were never a true friend to begin with!” I felt I couldn’t hold it in any longer. Thankfully, when I woke up early one morning I came across this life changing post from Donald Miller. He admitted to being too careful. He wrote, “The sad thing is when we’re careful, we are actually being affected by fear. People are careful when…
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My Relationship Idols
[Guest Post by Alyx Vergara – I’m pretty sure we met for five seconds at my former roommate bridal shower years ago, but have stayed connected via Facebook ever since. It’s been fun to watch her journey over to Hawaii and become the person God wants her to be. Today, if you’re struggling to let go of any relationship idols, be encouraged by Alyx’s story.] My name is Alyx, I am 22 and I live in Hawaii. My journey here started with heartbreak. Three months before my first semester of Bible college, my world was turned upside down when my best friend/ex-boyfriend decided to move on without me. Living without…
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Couples Therapy
[Guest Post by Angela McNeil – I have had the privilege of getting together with her a few times. She’s taken our family portraits, headshots of mine, and of course her daily dose of sarcasm on her Facebook status’. What I appreciate most about my friend Angela, is she’s never afraid to be honest about her past. If you have ever been in an abusive relationship, I hope you will be encouraged by her story.] You mean not all relationships are like this? When I was in High School 1993-1994 my father worked for a software company that was on the Online community craze, like AOL chat rooms and IMing.…
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Just Thank God and Move On
[Guest Post by Brett Wilson – I met her through our mutual friend Sarah Martin. She is a fun, single lady who writes fairy tales of faith, single-hood, and coffee. If you have recently gone through a breakup, I hope her story will encourage you to thank God and move on.] “Hey, baby! Wanna be our guest?” I snapped my head to see where the voices were calling from. I was at a stoplight on a citrus-sunny road somewhere between Virginia Beach and North Carolina. There, simultaneously stopped on my left was a group of baseball-capped men in a dirty white pickup truck. “Really, Lord?” I thought as I tried…
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How to Write an eBook
I’ve received more than a few requests over the past weeks on how to write an eBook. The printing and publishing business is changing–and fast! Yesterday as I was watching the movie The Help, I was reminded just how far our culture has come with putting words on a page. Not only are we allowed to write about all things including race or sex, but we have religious freedoms as well. As a Christian and as a writer I believe we have a responsibility to seek and speak the truth. Clearly one is much harder than the other. My favorite verse (pertaining to writing) in the Bible is from 1…
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My Heart is Torn
As I sit here writing this, I am literally tearing my hair out. Every time I write a book my life seems to go through a major transition. First there was Faithbook of Jesus. When I was writing my first book I realized how much my heart couldn’t handle serving two masters. I made the extremely difficult decision to quit my dream job to move back with my parents and write full time. Then there was Not Another Dating Book. It came as such a surprise. My second book had just been canceled the day I finished writing it. I wasn’t confident in my writing abilities or the direction of…
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New eBook Loves Me Not
I wrote a new eBook entitled Loves Me Not: Heartbreak & Healing God’s Way that released on Amazon and Barnes & Noble, and Smashwords on May 6th for only 2.99! If you’ve read Not Another Dating Book, you’ll notice I don’t talk about my story. That’s because it wasn’t until after I submitted my manuscript to Harvest House that I met my husband Marc. That’s why I’m excited to release my follow up with features including: + Why Guarding Your Heart Isn’t Enough + Can Men and Women Be “Just Friends”? + Desperate Singles + Breaking Up With “The One” + Why Changing Your Significant Other Won’t Work + The…
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The Little Things
“Our relationships are a blessing from God—something we should take very seriously—even when it comes to the little things. I believe God wants to bless you and your relationships. In life, it’s easy to judge other couples based on how they appear on the outside, instead of taking the time to get to know what’s going on inside their lives and their home. Every relationship takes work, and by God’s design every couple is afforded the same grace. Instead of wishing you were like this couple, or thanking God you’re not like that couple—take some time to do inventory on your own relationships. If you’re married, pray for your spouse.…
