Recently I found myself driving down a road I haven’t driven on in over 20 years. 

This road led to a place I once worked a LONG time ago.  A place where I did some growing up – a little too fast in some ways and not fast enough in others. 

At this point everything looked just like it did years ago, but then I looked a little closer. 

The bright red sign, just rusted, faded and leaning. 

I saw some changes on the island.  New homes tucked in beside old home sites.  New siding on old places and new docks and boathouses.

And then I saw this…

The picture doesn’t do justice to what happened to the restaurant where  I once worked.  The windows are all gone, the doors are missing and the roof?  Gone.  All that’s left is a shell of what once was.  A shell that is nothing more than walls with a few broken chairs, remnants of the roof, scattered leaves, and twigs and a faded sign.

A faded sign as a reminder of what once was here.   It’s as if everyone left one day and never came back.  It’s as if no one cared enough and everything fell apart… the roof caved in, the windows were knocked out, the weeds came up and the sign fell down.

That could’ve been me.  I could be the one without a roof or windows and with a faded, crooked sign, which is a great analogy for the current state of my hair, but I digress…

I looked around at this place where I’d spent so much time and realized, once again, the incredible grace of God.   I stood in this place where rebellion once reigned in my life and I thought about where I was headed.  This little side trip came as I traveled at a women’s retreat. My topic -  foundation of faith. 

I LOVE how God works.   All those years ago, He knew this day would come.  He knew that I would  make my way through the mess I’d created and back to Him.  He knew that this prodigal child would eventually return home. 

But more than just returning to His presence and grace in my life, He now uses this prodigal to speak to others.  Why?  That’s not a question I can answer.  I just accept and move on. 

I accept that He has taken my faded sign and painted His will over it.  His Fingerprints are all over my heart and my life.  I feel His presence when I stand before a group and open my mouth – for to tell my story, but to share His Words.   I still stand amazed at what the Lord has done and is doing in my life.

I’m so excited about speaking at Get Revived Next week!!  I just clicked over to the conference site and saw an addition to the lineup – Kelly Minter!  Okay, y’all have to come.  Kelly is the author of No Other Gods and Ruth: Loss, Love, and Legacy and she’s a tremendously talented musician and singer!  The girl is amazing!

But along with Kelly, there’s Lisa McKay, the Preacher’s Wife, Tiffany Stuart, Tea with Tiffany, Lisa Shaw….. before I forget someone, go look at  the list – speakers.

Amazing speakers and incredible fun (the chat option is always hopping) AND you can do it all in the comfort of your own home!  5DAYS of speakers!! All for only $12.95!

Just looked at the schedule … I’m kicking it off Monday morning at 8:30am Central time.  And I’m a little nervous!  There’s such an incredible lineup of speakers and I’m the first one!
I’m going to need some support!!  Y’all come on over!

Here are all the details:

March 15th-19th, 2010 - only one week left to register!
Register Today for 12.95!
This conference is all about giving you a spiritual dose of adrenaline because we all need it sometimes.

This event’s speaker line-up is phenomena (Get Revived Speakers)l. These are some great women of God, humble enough to serve and strong enough to stand up and proclaim His word to all who are in need of hearing it. This conference is for any woman in need of revival in her spirit.
What you can expect for $12.95:
* Live sessions, entirely online, with some of the Christian community’s most popular speakers and authors.
* Ability to download all of the MP3’s from all the sessions, as well as handouts, chat logs, and presentations.
* Participation in real-time question and answer sessions with all of your favorite speakers.
* Lots of downloadable swag as well as entries to win some great prizes!
* Fellowship: make some new life-long friends and experience some fun and fellowship.

Visit A Woman Inspired at: http://awirevival09.ning.com/?xg_source=msg_mes_network

She came into our life 17 years ago today — all fair haired and blue-eyed.  We had a dark haired, dark eyed princess and she was to be the blonde baby princess.  She’s blonde, but princess is not a title she has ever aspired to.  She’s the baby of the family who rarely allows us to baby her.

She’s independent and strong-willed.  (She must get that from her Dad…)

She has a great sense of humor and a sharp wit.  She’s smart and fun to be with.  She is a rebel and a peacekeeper all at the same time.  She believes in pushing the envelope and challenging ideas that she doesn’t believe are right or fair.

She’s talking about college and life beyond but I’m not sure I’m ready.   New situations don’t scare her, they intrigue her.  She is fascinated by life beyond these days – and that’s good.  But hard on her Mom.  She is ready to soar, but we still have her tethered to the ground . . . for just a while longer.

I remember this

And this ….

but these days she looks more like this

17!

I cherish every moment I have with her.  She is my FAVORITE blonde daughter.   Happy Birthday, Paige!

I was so blessed to be invited to speak to this great group of women at Lakewood Baptist Church….. they were sweet, wonderful and incredible.  I just adored meeting each of them.

Jackie, Lori, Me and Amy – what a sweet bunch… well, not me.  I’m not calling myself sweet that would be ….. well, that would be weird.

And then Jackie tells us her story about crocheting prayer shawls…

and we all cried… alot.

And then there were the purses… oh how they blessed me so.  This is the one that this sweet group blessed me with.  I LOVE it.

And I loved my time with them.  And I’m in the market for another new purse so if you’re looking for a speaker and you have a cute purse …. I just may be your girl.

This past weekend I was blown away by some zebra clad chicks from Prattville.   I hit the road Friday afternoon and landed down on Lake Martin with two large houses filled with women who were ready to laugh and have fun.  They were also eager to dive into God’s Word and dive we did – head first into the deep end. 

There are so many wonderful moments to share and so many new girlfriends to tell you about.  Let me just say that Michelle and Shannon are two AMAZING girls who know how to plan a retreat! They also love to accessorize and Michelle introduced me to Charming Charlie – what’s not to love about these two! 

They had these super cute t-shirts made – I LOVE what they did to my website clipart – and check out the girl in the middle.  Yep, zebra.

I’

It was an incredible weekend with incredible women and it was my honor to serve the Lord alongside them

Aren’t the adorable in their hot pink!!  So many precious faces.  My new friends. 

Sometimes you just meet women and your hearts connect.  My heart connected with these women. 

I plan on seeing them at Charming Charlie in the very near future.  You’ll find us in the zebra section.

My 52 new things in 2010 was modeled on some of my local Birmingham girls idea — I loved it and ran with it….

for about two weeks and then I dropped it like a cheating boyfriend.

I’m trying to make it back… but I’m struggling.

I did drink Starbucks in the Bahamas a few weeks ago… sweet, but not the point of the 52 NEW things.

I want to SHARE new with you.  Here is my goal (and isn’t it great to have goals):

To catch up with a post filled with NEW THINGS.  When will that happen?  Well, let’s not get all hasty.  I like to think of this as an organic process.   Okay, in all honesty, I don’t think anyone is interested in my new earrings (zebra and cute), my pink carryon way atop a shelf at Factory Connection, and my new purple scarf.

I want to share something new that is different, unique, and offers something to my readers… all 6 of you.

I’m gathering up my all  new stuff  –okay, I have ONE thing, but I’ve put it in a …. no I haven’t.  It’s in my makeup bag in the bathroom.  I’m thinking about gathering up some new things.

Until then check out these chicks who are ROCKING the new things

Trina (who I think of every single time I see a peacock anything)

Brandi (who is my Charming Charlie loving pal with an incredible sense of  humor)

Later …. off to find some more new things or really just play on Facebook.

Winners for the tickets to A Woman Inspired -  Get Revived Conference March 15-19 are ….

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

9	3	2	6	13

Timestamp: 2010-02-18 15:40:45 UTC

Cathy Davis (9)

Rhonda Lindley (3)

Angie (2)

Serena Hanson (6)

Patti (13)

And if you didn’t win, there’s plenty of time to register!  Just head over to A Woman Inspired and sign up today.

I’m so excited to be speaking at the Get Revived this year! 

I was honored to speak at Ministry Online last year and am THRILLED beyond measure that they’ve asked me to speak at Get Revived! 

The wonderful Amies of A Woman Inspired have put together the most incredible event … AGAIN!  The speakers lineup is mind-boggling.  It’s four days of wonderful speakers and, here’s the best part, you can come in your pajamas!  Yep, you can and no one will ever know… unless you tell them.  So don’t do that or do, it doesn’t matter.  It’s an online conference.  You can logon and listen to the speakers.  You can interact with the others in the chat space.  (It’s like talking in class, but you don’t get in trouble.) There’s also a Q&A with the speakers – and that’s always fun. 

I have so MANY wonderful friends speaking at this.  There’s Lisa Shaw, Lisa McKay, Angela Parsley, Marsha Harwood,  Amy Bayliss, Lori MacMath, Leigh Hargis Gray and Tiffany Stuart – and there are SO MANY MORE who I just adore!   Y’all this event will BLESS your socks off!! 

Also, I have a sweet new friend, Mandy Young speaking – and y’all have to come by and say hello to Mandy.  She is funny, sweet and just a ray of sunshine.  She’s also incredibly courageous and her story is amazing.   She’s also being introduced by the another wonderful young woman, Candace Cameron Bure.  You may remember her from the old Full House days, but now she’s on the new series, Make it or Break It, where she plays a Christian and it’s not a ‘faith based’ show, but it’s one of my favorite new shows. 

I adore both these women for their courage.  Mandy has the courage to face incredible adversity with a smile and Candace is a shining light in Hollywood.  She’s standing up among unbelievers and she’s stating she’s a believer in and follower of Jesus Christ.  I appreciate both of these women.

Now, to the GIVEAWAY part (thought I would NEVER make it, didn’t you?)

The sweet Amies of A Woman Inspired have given me not one, but FIVE tickets to this conference. All you have to do is comment and you’re in the drawing! 

But enter fast – the contest is over on Wednesday at 11pm.  Oh, and remember to put your contact email in your comment so we can FIND you if you win! 

Oh, and if you don’t win… it’s so reasonable priced you can still make it…. it’s only $12.95 for the whole She-Bang!  Can’t beat that …. well, unless you win then it’s free…. but never mind.

I remember the angst of NOT having a boyfriend on Valentine’s day.  Oh, the agony that no one would give me a cute stuffed animal and a box of candy.  As I grew older the stuffed animal turned to roses and the box candy …. well, it stayed the same.  But the angst was still there.  I NEEDED to have a boyfriend on Valentine’s day, if ONLY for that one day.

It is the day made for sweethearts.  The day for love.  The day of hearts.

Oh, if only I’d known what the Lord had in store for me.  Maybe I would have waited more patiently.  Maybe those solitary Valentine’s days wouldn’t have seemed so lonely.

If only I could have looked ahead to see the man who would come into my life, maybe Valentine’s day would have been like a ‘coming attractions’ instead of all whine-fest.

I’ve had my sweetheart for a lot of years now.   He’s the love of my life on February 14 and all the other days of the year.  When I look at all the cards, the candy, the roses and those cute stuffed animals, I remember a girl who so desired to have a ‘boyfriend’ on Valentine’s day — and she got her wish.

Happy Valentine’s day (and if you’re still waiting on your ‘boyfriend’ consider this season your ‘coming attractions’)

McKenzie & Me – she’s a darling funny, fun girl.  We held down our end of the booth – we called it the sanguine end.  Lots of laughter.  McKenzie knows just what she is  doing and I’m just winging it.

This is my “free” Internet access.  Some girl told me it cost $5 so I paid her $5.  Guess she has to make a living, too.

The sun was great –

Louie Giglio was INCREDIBLE.  If you’ve never heard him speak run, do not walk, to YouTube right now and watch his Laminin talk.  Oh my, it WILL ROCK your socks, yes it will.  Loved him.

The music was AMAZING

Late night jam session with musicians from all different groups.

Francesca Bastastelli poolside.  This girl can sing!

And there was so much MUSIC.

Mercy Me, Newsboys, 33 Miles, Big Daddy Weave, Downhere, Mandisa,

Bumped into Jeff with Big Daddy Weave in the Bahamas.  He was nice enough to explain the free Internet thing to me and he’s a nice Alabama boy.

Met sweet Jenny with Addison Road and she is a darling and has the most adorable baby girl!  Just wanted to squeeze them both.

I ran into the members of the band Downhere and what a sweet bunch of people.  LOVE them and did not know they sing one of my FAVORITE songs, Here I am …. check it out on their website … you’ll know it and if you don’t you’ll be greatly BLESSED!  I, too, want to live my life as an offering.

I also met so many WONDERFUL people who don’t have websites, blogs, or facebook pages. I met people who just LOVED being on the cruise and people who planned to come back in 2011.  I met people who wanted to bless others with this cruise.  I met people who had blessed others with the KLove cruise.

I met people who handed over their own bibles when they heard the news that the crew of the ship wanted bibles.

It was a blast and a blessing to be on this cruise.  I’m still in shock that the Lord allows me to do such a thing.  He is just too good to me.

Would love to have you join me on an upcoming Premier Christian Cruise.

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