We are still in the process of launching our faith-based press but are rolling out our new name, The Hallway Publishing which is a division of The Hallway Project and still an imprint of Winter Goose Publishing.  More information about The Hallway Project coming soon.

Holidays can be a very difficult time for people. Loneliness is painful and leads to a silent hurt that is often too much for some to bear. Don’t turn your back when someone is hurting, even if it makes you feel uncomfortable. Suicides are actually highest in spring and peak again during fall. Support those that are hurting all year round, because a hurt that is stopped today can save a life tomorrow. 

 Stay of Execution

Photo from CheriBella: http://imgfave.com/view/1836078

In a place where she often feels abandoned and unsupported, she falls into a sheltered cave with reckless abandon.  The loneliness does not cease even with the memories of a better time. It’s hard to not miss the friends of the past. The ones she never should have let turn to only scribbles in an old notebook.

Inside this long overbearing place of poverty, there are no faces of comfort. Words escape them and it’s easier to just ignore.  Struggle is uncomfortable to witness. The idea that we can do nothing pulls us to our own corners, a safe distance from her fight.

Perspective is her only peace. She’s learned to look at her stay of executions as no longer just a moment’s safety, but as glorious grace.

The little things that have pulled her from wreckage, are allowing her to live patiently in today. Embracing small victories that she knows are heaven sent.

That is so much more than most of us can say.

This story by an anonymous family is not unique. It is one that is shared among countless others and should not be ignored. Take a moment to not only pray for this family, but for the many others in similar situations. Do your part in your community to reach out to the struggling. May they be safe and secure always in Gods grace.

Facing Homelessness – One Family’s Struggle

& honest look at the emotions surrounding.

I’ve spent 98% of my life in poverty. Now, in my adulthood and with several children to provide for, I am far from breaking that cycle.  Having a family too young, desperation leading to numerous bad choices, along with plain ole stupidity–I sit here still. Same chair, same scenery and same tested faith.

With children in tow, I face–once again–the real threat of homelessness. Down to my toes I want to believe that God gave us this house and therefore he would not take it away. By pure grace we are here and I have never denied that. I give God the glory for everything we stand on now and have built.  I pray through all my loss and confusion. I pray till I have no words left.

I hate the timeline. The feeling of panic. Through the noise I am trying to listen… hear direction. I want to do what is right and in God’s will, whatever that means to prevent my children’s displacement. I just need to know now what should be my course. But really–who am I to set boundaries and time on the creator of all things and the one who can surpass and break through any and every road block?

I know none of it is my place to question or to ask. My fear comes not only from the unknown but more, getting caught with no plan. Left at the last minute needing to move with no where to go. What would we do with no money? How will it effect my children once again being faced with no security? What happens when school starts up again? I fear for my babies being exposed  to insecurity, uncertainty, and potential risky situations. They will have no bed to call their own. How will we function? Should I search for help now? Should I just pray and wait for an answer? How long do I give before planning our exit?

Plainly I feel lost and unsure. There is some peace but it is threatened daily by my fears and questions. I also feel angry and hurt–shamed by my many failures. I battle with giving up completely on all I have worked for, not just waiting for the last shoe to drop.

For once I want to feel like it will be okay. Not just this moment but every moment. A place where I can modestly lay my head knowing it won’t be taken away. I want my children to not fear their home will be lost and stand comforted by the fact their parents can take care of them.

I know that even if we lose our home, we will have so much more than many others and for that I feel guilty and undeserving.  I try not to ask for things but only listen for direction so that I may fulfill the purpose that God has made for me.

If I am not on that path God, please show me the right way. I want to live in your glory and no longer shrink back to my past out of fear of my present. I am listening — please speak.

Are you open to life?

By Dolly Lee 

Photo source: Creative Commons, Flickr user PaulTomlin http://www.flickr.com/photos/paultomlin/3853270725/

Do you ever look for life in the wrong places?

Pastor Scott slowly walked out on a log, and then he cast his fly near the center of the stream, where he thought the fish were hanging out. He listened for any sound of a trout.

Fly-fishing requires one’s eyes and ears. As he quieted, he realized that the rhythmic, sucking sound fishes make when eating was coming from five feet behind him to the left of the log.  He had walked over that spot because he did not expect to find any trout there. He slowly turned his head, and saw a large rainbow trout feeding on mayflies. Not wanting to scare the trout away by suddenly moving on the log, he slowly swiveled to his left, lifted up his fly, and dropped it into the current a foot upstream from the snacking trout.

The fish were not where he expected, but instead they were where he wasn’t expecting to find fish. Likewise, God can be breaking into a barren place in our lives. But are our eyes and ears open to where He is moving?

Are we open and aware of what God is doing in our lives? Are we paying attention?
 
There have been times when I worked so hard to make something happen in one area of my life that I wasn’t paying attention to God, and what He might have in mind.

Do you ever get so focused on your plans, and forget to check in with God? Maybe, He has other plans for you.

Scott’s fly fishing story spoke to me because so often I think God should be doing “X” in my life. But He is not. And then I have to ask myself to be open to what He is doing, and where He is trying to lead me.

Liz, a spiritual director, once told me that being open to what God is doing in one’s life is the first step to spiritual growth. If God is the one who ultimately causes me to grow spiritually, then it makes sense to be open to Him.

When I am open to God’s work, I cooperate with Him in the process. Jesus is the Vine (the source of my life), and God the Master Gardener, is pruning and shaping me to be fruitful (i.e., make a difference).

If I am stuck on what I think I need to do, or what I think my life should look like, then I am not open. When I focus on my agenda, I close my eyes and my ears to what is actually going on in all of my life. And without intending to be, I can be closed to God’s work, and love.

Often, I pray and ask God to help me to  be aware of where there is life. Where am I sensing His joy? My delight in doing something, as opposed to what I should do. I ask God for the grace to be open, because I am not naturally open.

How do we create openness within ourselves? We create space within ourselves by not being constantly consumed by work, the internet, people, or the myriad of tasks that can fill our days. It might mean taking a walk to talk with God. It may mean carving out 10 minutes a day, or an extended time with God for a half-day, all day, or a weekend to pray, read His Word, and journal. It will look different for each of us depending on our temperament, and where we are in our spiritual journey, and season of life.

If Jesus needed to get away to be alone with God (Matt. 14:22-23), then why wouldn’t we also need time alone with God?

We can also create openness by asking questions.

 
“I try now to approach each person, event, creature, with two questions: How are you my teacher? What am I meant to learn?” Joyce Rupp, The Cup of Our Life

For me, I ask God, “What are you trying to teach me?” I journal about where I sensed His life and delight in a day, and where I felt stressed, or ungrateful. As I journal daily, when I look back on a week, or more of entries, I can sometimes see a pattern of what God has been saying to me.  It may be through a Bible verse, and/or a friend’s observation, or someone’s writing on a blog, or in a book. Or a completely “random” event.

Learning to be open is a skill that can be acquired with practice and God’s grace. It is one that I have been cultivating the past several years, and I am learning to be more aware of His voice in the present moment. Not always. But more than before.

So I invite you to ask God to show you how to be more open to Him, and to His voice showing you where He is creating His life in your life.

What is one step you can take to be more open to God today?

Praying you experience His grace on your journey,

Dolly

Copyright Soul Stops 2011/Dolly Lee.  All Rights Reserved.

About Dolly:

God’s beloved child, wife, mom to sweet girl, writer. Lover of time alone with God, her family, and friends. Passionate about prayer, and making a difference – one small thing at a time. She blogs at http:soulstops.com, and she sometimes tweets @Soulstops.

ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers) is the Voice of Christian Fiction. Founded over ten years ago, it has grown to over 2500 members. Take a moment to visit the website.

ACFW is a premier writing organization with the following mission statement: Our mission is to promote Christian Fiction through developing the skills of its authors, educating them in the market, and serving as an advocate in the traditional publishing industry.

How can ACFW help a writer toward his/her writing goals?

ACFW has many different programs to help a writer. The first one is Novel Track: Writing. It is an email loop for support and encouragement to help you meet your writing goal. Following that is Novel Track: Editing. This loop focuses on how to edit the words you wrote the month before. If you participate in the Novel Track program through the year, you can have a completed novel by the end of the year.

Another way ACFW can help you meet your writing goals in 2012 is through free online classes. Each month (except December) there is a class offered by a qualified writing instructor. Our classes cover a variety of subjects from grammar to deep point of view—and more!

A third program available through ACFW is a large Critique Group which gives writers a way to connect with others who want to critique—and have their work critiqued. Some of the members of the large Critique Group break off and form smaller ones.

Also there is The End Program. Unpublished writers, if they have finished a book, will have their name entered into a drawing. One member will win a free registration to ACFW national conference for the following year for finishing a book during the year.

There are several email loops that the members can join that offer networking and help.

1. Main Loop: Easy to use and communicate about all writing-related topics. You can glean and share amazing tidbits of information via email. This loop is an education itself.

2. Your zone loop is the loop where chitchat is welcome. It is for fellowship with your fellow writers. It is a place where at last someone understands you.

3. Prayer Loop: Many members enjoy supporting one another through prayer. This loop has been a blessing to me.

4. Genre Loops: ACFW recently added several genre loops to discuss the writing craft in a more specific way. On these loops we offer a place to discuss these subjects: Children’s Fiction, Historical, Romance, Romantic Suspense, Speculative, Suspense, Women’s Fiction and Young Adult.

As a member of ACFW you receive a discount on ACFW Conference fees.  A big savings to you when it’s time to register for the annual ACFW Conference. This year the conference is in Dallas from September 20-23, 2012. At the conference the winners of the two contests that ACFW sponsor are announced. The Genesis Contest is for unpublished writers and The Carol Award is for published authors.

ACFW’s very own printed magazine, The ACFW Journal, is published quarterly. You will find articles about the writing craft, member news, industry news, author interviews, book reviews and much, much more.

If you have an upcoming novel release from one of our recognized publishers, a member can submit the information to the ACFW’s Fiction Finder and the New Release Coordinator will make a list of that month’s new releases and send it out to our main email loop as well as a list of blogs.

ACFW has a book club that discusses two books a month. The members vote on which books to read. You can apply to have your book, if it is from one of our recognized publishers, considered by the ACFW Book Club.

ACFW’s blog is a popular destination for people who want to know what is happening in the industry, with ACFW and writing information.

Author Interviews and Featured Author: Each week we post an author interview of a published ACFW member on the public side of the site.

Another important benefit for published members is the opportunity to be included in the FictionFinder database. Fictionfinder.com links readers, bookstores, libraries, book clubs, and authors with great Christian fiction.

As you can see there are many reasons to become a member of ACFW. Go check out our website!

•••

Margaret Daley is an award winning, multi-published author in the romance genre. One of her romantic suspense books, Hearts on the Line, won the ACFW Carol Award (formerly Book Of The Year). She currently writes inspirational romance and romantic suspense books for Love Inspired, romantic suspense for Abingdon Press, and historical romance for Summerside Press. She has sold 75 books to date. Her website: www.margaretdaley.com

Although we fight to be the best, sometimes the best thing to do is take a step back and let God take the lead.

Background by Lecrae and featuring C-Lite

Hook:
I could play the background
I could play the background
‘Cause I know sometimes I get in the way
So won’t You take the lead, lead, lead?
So won’t You take the lead, lead, lead?
And I could play the background, background
And you could take the lead

Verse 1:
It’s evident you run the show, so let me back down
You take the leading role, and I’ll play the background
I know I miss my cues, know I forget my lines
I’m sticking to your script, and I’m reading all your signs (Aye)
I don’t need my name in lights, (Aye) I don’t need a starring role
Why gain the whole wide world, If I’m just going lose my soul?
And my ways ain’t purified, I don’t live according to Your Word
I can’t endure this life without Your wisdom being heard
So word to every dancer for a pop star
‘Cause we all play the background, but mine’s a rockstar
Yeah, so if you need me I’ll be staged right
Praying the whole world would start embracing stage fright
So let me fall back, stop giving my suggestions
‘Cause when I follow my obsessions, I end up confessin’
That I’m not that impressive, matter of fact
I’m who I are, a trail of stardust leading to the superstar

Hook:
I could play the background
I could play the background
‘Cause I know sometimes I get in the way
So won’t You take the lead, lead, lead?
So won’t You take the lead, lead, lead?
And I could play the background, background
And you could take the lead

Verse 2:
Yo, I had a dream that I was captain of my soul
I was master of my fate, lost control, and then I sank
So I don’t want to take the lead, ’cause I’m prone to make mistakes
All these folks who follow me, goin’ end up in the wrong place
So just let me shadow you, just let me trace your lines
Matter of fact, just take my pen, here, you create my rhymes
‘Cause if I do this by myself, I’m scared that I’ll succeed
And no longer trust in You, ’cause I only trust in me
And see, that’s how you end up headed to destruction
Paving a road to nowhere, pour your life out for nothin’
You pulled my card, I’m bluffin’, You know what’s in my hand
Me, I just roll and trust you, You cause the dice to land
I’m in control of nothing, follow You at any cost
Some call it sovereign will, all I know is you the boss
And man, I’m so at ease, I’m so content
I’ll play the background, like it’s an instrument

Hook:
I could play the background
I could play the background
‘Cause I know sometimes I get in the way
So won’t You take the lead, lead, lead?
So won’t You take the lead, lead, lead?
And I could play the background, background
And you could take the lead

Bridge:
I know I’m safest when I’m in Your will, and trust Your Word
I know I’m dangerous when I trust myself, my vision blurred
And I ain’t got no time to play life’s foolish games
Got plenty aims, but do they really Glorify Your name?
And it’s a shame, the way I want to do these things for You, yeah
Don’t even cling to you, take time to sit and glean from You
It seems like You were patient in my ignorance
If ignorance is bliss, it’s ’cause she never heard of this

Hook:
I could play the background
I could play the background
‘Cause I know sometimes I get in the way
So won’t You take the lead, lead, lead?
So won’t You take the lead, lead, lead?
And I could play the background, background
And you could take the lead

So we may boldly say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear,

What can man do to me?” Hebrews 13:6

“Sin has lost its power, death has lost its sting.”

]]> http://hallwaypublishing.com/no-fear/feed/ 0 http://hallwaypublishing.com/find-peace-in-his-love/ http://hallwaypublishing.com/find-peace-in-his-love/#comments Thu, 19 Apr 2012 20:14:31 +0000 The Hallway Publishing http://graceinspiredpress.com/?p=200

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7

If you are a faith-based writer and have a polished and exciting story, please read our submission guidelines.

About Grace Inspired Press:

We are a traditional royalty-paying publisher. There is never any cost to the author for production and distribution. We are looking for writers with an established author platform who are motivated to share and help market their books.

All of our daily battles make up our ability to effectively handle our toughest moments while still feeling we are properly taking care of ourselves and our families. Faced with these heavy burdens, we can be quick to want to fold down, give up, and may feel lost and with nowhere to turn. Grief and depression can quickly set in.

Feeling isolated and alone can be all too real, but the truth of God’s love is the important reality and far greater than our earthly troubles. This can be hard to recognize as we are in the midst of our suffocation.

Ephesians 4 & 5 remind us that we are alive in Christ. By his grace we have been saved.  Saved from this world’s struggles and saved from the eternal grief of separation from Jesus.  Take a moment to break apart your moment’s heartache. To really look at it from a surrendering heart. Give the struggles, bondage and sin to Jesus as he asks for them.  Let it go and break free from what this world weighs you down with. Find not only the freedom in your eternal salvation but also the freedom from this life’s worries. God will make you complete in this life and the next; nothing else will. Breathe deeply, chin-up and have faith in this opportunity God has given us.

But if anyone obeys His word, God’s love is truly made complete in Him.  This is how we know we are in Him. 1 John 2:5

Pray Today: Thank you, God, for gifting me freedom from these struggles, from these wounds. I am blessed with your eternal grace and I let go of my hurts. Guide me as I face today and prepare for tomorrow.

Pray. Breathe deeply. Pray some more.