What's in your cup?

The characters in my story drink one thing: tea. They live in a small southern town and they drink tea in two ways: sweet tea over ice, preferably sipped from tumblers while sitting on a swing in Grandma Rose's rose garden. Or they find solace in drinking Sister Clara's tea served from a steaming kettle accompanied by white chocolate macadamian nut cookies.

But, I mustn't forget Kai. Kai is an angel sent to minister to the family. Although Kai is an angel, he has learned to love a "cup of joe," and is delighted to find one of his assignments is being a barista at a coffee shop where he ministers to all sorts of amazing people.

As a writer, I always have my trusty insulated cup nearby while I'm at the keyboard. I used to be a sweet tea addict but lost the taste for it when I had COVID. Now, my drinks of choice are ice water or iced coffee; or when cooler temps prevail, hot coffee with peppermint mocha creamer.

I can type for hours without stopping to eat if I have something in my cup.

What's in your cup? Inquiring minds want to know.

All photos created in PicMonkey by Jerralea using personal, family and stock photos. Please do not copy. 

This is Day 2 of a taking my reader along a journey with me as I birth my book. I hope you consider checking in daily to see my progress.

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I write for believers, but if you are not a believer and would like to know more, visit A Ticket Home. to find the way Home.

Sharing at InstaEncouragements Link-Up

Morning Routine

Good morning, dear Readers. Today, I want to talk about how we begin our day.

Now, I don't claim to be an expert on mornings. There are others more qualified than me. For instance, Jennifer Dukes Lee, who calls herself a morning evangelist, has written a whole book about it, entitled "How to Love Your Morning." I highly recommend it.

However, in August, I'm taking you along on a journey of birthing my book, sharing my life as a writer and the story God has given me.

I feel the most important thing to start our day is to wake up thinking about God. Our first thoughts influence our day.

If I want mine to be about God, it starts the night before. I use the Lectio 365 app and play the nighttime selection for that day, listening to it as I drift off to sleep.

You'd be surprised how often I wake up with some of the words said in Lectio 365 swirling in my brain. 

Another thing that helps is to listen to praise and worship music throughout my day. I often hear the words to a song reverberating in my brain when I awake. (I hightly recommend the song, "I Know A Name." I listen to the CeCe Winans version.)

My first task after waking, getting dressed, etc., is to take one scripture, ask God for direction, then write a prayer about that verse.

Then, I can start tackling the to-do list. 

As a writer, I'm looking for blocks of time where I can work on my book everyday. Monday's are writing days where I devote the whole day in some way to writing. Editing, blogposts, listening to a teaching, and writing outlines are all good ways to refining my message.

But there must be time for actual writing somewhere in my day. 

I've laid the groundwork for inspiration when I have thought about God, prayed to Him, looked at His word. Now, I can expect His inspiration to show up as I work hard.

Inspiration shows up when there has been perspiration!

How about you, dear Reader? How do you start your day? What is your first thought when the alarm goes off?

All photos created in PicMonkey by Jerralea using personal, family and stock photos. Please do not copy. 

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This is Day 1 of a taking my reader along a journey with me as I birth my book. I hope you consider checking in daily to see my progress.

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I write for believers, but if you are not a believer and would like to know more, visit A Ticket Home. to find the way Home.

Sharing at Sweet Tea & Friends, InstaEncouragements Link-Up

I can't afford to wait.

Readers, I'm in the last third of my life and I can't afford to wait any longer to share the story God has given me.

I'm hard at work on my fiction series in progress called "The Hesed Files," stories of how God uses His angels to participate in unfailing love and mercy. Book One, Morgan's Redemption, chronicles a family's journey through secrets, pain, bitterness, loss and transformation into children of God.

I wrote it to bring you hope. Because, all believers are being transformed into what God had planned them to be. You are, after all, His masterpiece.* But I know life can be discouraging and dark.

I want to share with you the hope I find in scripture. My passion is to show you through the words and ideas I share with you to convince you no one is beyond redemption.

Never give up praying. While there is breath, there is hope.

I also can't afford to miss telling you something the Lord impressed upon me in 2019 because I feel He wants me to share it with everyone. 

What if you believed, reqally believed, that goodness and mercy is chasing you down?**

Would that belief make a difference in your outlook? I believe it can.

Join me in the coming days and weeks. I'm going to take you with me on the journey of birthing my book. Dear Reader, will you come?

* Ephesians 2:10

** Psalm 23:6

All photos created in PicMonkey by Jerralea using personal, family and stock photos. Please do not copy. 

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I write for believers, but if you are not a believer and would like to know more, visit A Ticket Home. to find the way Home.

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This post was written in response to the prompt, "afford," provided by the Five Minute Friday writing challenge. We write for five minutes on a prompt. (Adding links, scriptures, graphics, etc. takes longer.)

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Sharing at Five Minute Friday and Sweet Tea & Friends

Come Follow My Journey Through the Phases of Becoming a Published Author

 A phase is a distinct stage in a process; a single part of a larger plan, project, or process.

As a writer, I'm in the developmental stage of achieving my dream. I've written my manuscript, I've worked on it with a coach, and now I'm in the editing phase. 

At some point, I will be in the launch phase where I encourage others to help me bring my message into the world

I found these statistics about wanting to be a writer:

80% to 81% say they want to write a book.
15% actually start writing.
3% manage to finish a full manuscript.
1% or less get a book published. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Hey! I'm excited! I'm in the 3%.

Since so many are interested in writing, I thought it might be fun to invite you follow me through the phases of being a writer.

In August, I will be writing a series of blog posts about the process of publishing a book.

I hope you will be a part of the series, read and comment. I can't know what readers want if I don't ask.

Here's my first question:  do you want to be a writer?

All photos created in PicMonkey by Jerralea using personal, family and stock photos. Please do not copy. 

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This post was written in response to the prompt, "phase," provided by the Five Minute Friday writing challenge. We write for five minutes on a prompt. (Adding links, scriptures, graphics, etc. takes longer.)

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Thanks for dropping by the Journey! I want to always share my post, A Ticket Home. for those who might not know the way Home.

Sharing at Five Minute Friday and Let's Have Coffee

If You Want to Go That Route ...

I live on a state route. It runs approximately 167 miles from the tip of our state to the mid-state region. The route goes through parts of the Shawnee National Forest and has many beautiful stops. It also has many opportunities to get off the beaten path. A person could get lost; but if he found a state route marker on the road, he could easily determine the way back home.

I am also on a spiritual journey. It has many twists and turns along the way and it would be easy to follow a rabbit trail and end up far from where I started.

My pastor, Jack Oliver, once said this: "Whatever has my attention determines my direction."

Just like finding a mile marker helps get us back on the route we intended to travel, getting our eyes fixed on Jesus gets us back on our spiritual journey Home.

In our travels, we often run across many distractions ... things we think will make our journey easier or more productive. Things we don't see any harm in doing. Maybe we join forces with a group who seems like-minded but we soon realize they are leading us down the wrong path.

What do we do? We get our eyes back on Jesus. He is big enough to get us on the route Home.

The answer is always to seek Him first.

"But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you."  Matthew 6:33 NKJV

 

It's a simple strategy ... but it works! 

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Today's post is a response to the prompt, "route," provided by the writers at the Five Minute Friday community.

I'd also like to offer a little prayer I wrote about God's protection on our journey:

SHADE

The Lord himself watches over you!
    The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade. Psalm 121:5 New Living Translation

Abba,

 

I stand on Your Word; so, I believe You are watching over everything happening in my life. You are protecting me – even from bad decisions because you know my heart is to honor You.

 

When the heat of humiliation threatens to overwhelm me, Your shade will protect me.

 

You are watching over me and only allowing what is best for me to touch me.

 

Help me to remember this. Don’t let me get stuck when I wonder if I took the wrong steps. Help me keep moving forward, always keeping my eyes on You. If I have not seen what You want me to see, I pray you will open my eyes and heart to see them.

 

Help me to get Home to You with honor.

 

In Jesus’ mighty name, so be it, amen.

All photos created in PicMonkey by Jerralea using personal, family and stock photos. Please do not copy. 

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Thanks for dropping by the Journey! I want to always share my post, A Ticket Home, for those who might not know the way Home.

Sharing at Five Minute Friday, InstaEncouragements Link-Up

The Short End of the Stick

The short end of the stick is an idiom for getting an unequal deal. 

It reminds me of when we were little, my mom would make us share a Pepsi. If I poured it into glasses, sometimes the level of my Pepsi was a little higher than my brother's. (Just being real here.)

Of course, my brother would yell, "Hey no fair. Jerr gets more Pepsi than me."

He got the short end of the stick.

My mother solved the problem by saying "Jerralea, you pour the soda into two glasses. Tim, you choose what glass you want."

I worked at pouring equal amounts after that.

If only injustice could be solved so easily in today's world!

If you're short-sighted it does look like people get away with doing terrible things. You might think, "What's the use of doing good. People do what they want and it seems nothing ever happens to them."

But in the long run, the law of sowing and reaping comes into play.

A man will sow a certain kind of seed. And he will reap a harvest from that seed.

Good seed brings forth a bountiful harvest.

Bad seed produces bad things.

Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. (Galatians 6:7 NKJV)

In the end, it will matter what kind of seed we plant.

All photos created in PicMonkey by Jerralea using personal, family and stock photos. Please do not copy. 

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This post was written in response to the prompt, "short," provided by the Five Minute Friday crew of writers. We free write for 5 minutes on the prompt. (I always take longer to add scripture and a graphic.)

Thanks for dropping by the Journey! I want to always share my post, A Ticket Home, for those who might not know the way Home.

Sharing at Five Minute Friday and InstaEncouragements Link-Up, Let's Have Coffee

 

Happy 250!

250 years of Indpendence! Thank You, Lord, and our deepest gratitude to all the patriots that paved the way for our freedom. May we never forget their sacrifice. 

On independence Day, I like to share a post I wrote a few years ago about the time we spent July 4th at Clearwater Beach. Portrait of an American Family is about a little Latino family I observed having a wonderful time at a Independence Day concert. Click here. I hope you enjoy!

All photos created in PicMonkey by Jerralea using personal, family and stock photos. Please do not copy. 

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Thanks for dropping by the Journey! I want to always share my post, A Ticket Home, for those who might not know the way Home.