A Step in the
Write Direction
October 26,
2015
Update: Another interesting week.
Adopted a doggie from the humane society last Wednesday, but am going to have to
take him back. He’s bitten me or another family member several times this last
week and the vet today said he had “behavioral problems.” They couldn’t even
give him an examination without him nabbing and growling. Now I have about $75
of doggie supplies to find a home for!...Good sermon Sunday by another interim
pastor on Psalm 139:1-6. God sees, God hears, and God’s with us. One statement
stuck with me: “God knows where we are and He knows where we’re going!” Also,
“If you’re going through a storm of doubt and unbelief, Christ will not leave
you in that storm alone. He’ll walk beside you.”
Thought for
the Day: “You chart
the path ahead of me and tell me when to stop and rest” (Psalm 139:3 tlb).
Song for the
Day:
He placed me
upon the strong rock by His side.
My steps were
established, and here I’ll abide.
No danger of
falling while here I remain,
But stand by
His grace until the crown I gain.
“He Brought Me Out,” Henry J. Zelley
Laugh for the
Day:
Differences of Opinions
Dr. Eugene Brice tells
a disturbing story about a minister who returned to visit a church he had once
served. He ran into Bill, who had been an elder and leader in the church, but
who wasn't around anymore. The pastor asked, "Bill, what happened? You used to
be there every time the doors opened."
"Well, Pastor," said Bill, "a difference of opinion arose in the church. Some of us couldn't accept the final decision and we established a church of our own. But we found that there, too, the people were not faithful and a small group of us began meeting in a rented hall at night."
"Has that proven satisfactory?" asked the minister.
"No, I can't say that it has," Bill responded. "Satan was active even in that fellowship, so my wife and I withdrew and began to worship on Sunday at home by ourselves. However, my wife began to develop ideas I was not comfortable with, so now she worships in the northeast corner of the living room, and I am in the southwest" (King Duncan, quoting Eugene Brice, Collected Sermons, www.Sermons.com).
"Well, Pastor," said Bill, "a difference of opinion arose in the church. Some of us couldn't accept the final decision and we established a church of our own. But we found that there, too, the people were not faithful and a small group of us began meeting in a rented hall at night."
"Has that proven satisfactory?" asked the minister.
"No, I can't say that it has," Bill responded. "Satan was active even in that fellowship, so my wife and I withdrew and began to worship on Sunday at home by ourselves. However, my wife began to develop ideas I was not comfortable with, so now she worships in the northeast corner of the living room, and I am in the southwest" (King Duncan, quoting Eugene Brice, Collected Sermons, www.Sermons.com).
Writer’s Tips:
Leads
Capture the editor's attention in
your very first paragraph. It takes only five seconds for a reader to turn the
page and go to another article. If an editor doesn't like your first page, it
won’t take him long to return your manuscript in your SASE, or send you an
e-mail rejection, and go on to the next manuscript in his pile. I like the
saying, “The lead brings your reader from the front porch into the living room
and invites him to sit down and have a chat with you.”
Following is one of the best leads
I’ve ever read:
We
brought her home from the hospital. We had awaited the moment with excitement
for almost nine months. We brought her into the newly remodeled room that had
been a sewing room. It was freshly painted a pastel pink, and the flower print
curtains just matched.
We
gently laid her in her new bed and raised the sides to keep her from falling
out. We looked at her pink and wrinkled face. She looked like a prune, but she
was ours and we loved her.
We
changed her diapers. It was no fun, but we knew it would be necessary for a
while. We fed her slowly, being careful not to spill food on her
bib.
She
was crying herself to sleep as we tiptoed out of the room. We looked at each
other, put our arms around each other, and held each other close. It was a
loving moment: Grandma was home from the hospital.[i]
Or
how about some of these leads?
“Where’s
Papa going with that ax?” said Fern to her mother as they were setting the table
for breakfast. (E.B. White, Charlotte’s
Web)
“Nancy, you’re kidding, no statue can
whisper!” (Carolyn Keene, Nancy Drew: The
Whispering Statue)
Have a good week spreading
the
gospel
through the printed page.
Donna
Clark Goodrich
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