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by Lucinda Secrest McDowell @LucindaSMcDowel Imagine my surprise when, at age fourteen, I actually got to meet my idol � Hayley Mills!  We were both aboard the final voyage of that great ocean liner,  Queen Elizabeth I.  It was a heady moment, I assure you. And, of course I have an old-fashioned �selfie� to commemorate it. For those of you too young to remember,  Hayley Mills  was the Disney darling who starred in many films such as  Pollyanna  and  The Parent Trap . Not only was I a fan and admired her, I actually wanted to  be  her.  To the extent that for at least a year I had styled my hair the same as she did in  Pollyanna  and even wore drop waisted dresses with black stockings. Oh yeah.  That was my dream. One day, at age ten, I sat down and wrote Hayley Mills a letter.  (This is your first hint that I am destined to become a writer�)   I had decided if I couldn�t be her , I could possibly b...

by Lucinda Secrest McDowell  @LucindaSMcDowel You may be a fantastic writer�author of all sorts of books and blogs and articles. But when your readers begin to invite you to speak, it�s important to make sure you have a whole new set of skills to ensure that your speaking events run smoothly.             I love to encourage writers and speakers. And one of the key ingredients to having a successful speaking career is making sure all details have been clearly communicated between you and the event organizers.  In advance.  Believe me, this will prevent all kinds of heartache. I cannot even begin to tell you the stories I have heard from speakers who expected one thing and were shocked when it never happened. (By the way, I hear just as many stories from event organizers who had certain unmet expectations from their guest speaker.) To avoid such misunderstandings I learned many years ago that a mandatory �Speakers Contr...

by Lucinda Secrest McDowell @LucindaSMcDowel Mike and I had arrived at the New Hampshire retreat center as speakers for the week�s Family Camp. While settling into the Lodge I glanced over at a bookshelf full of bound volumes of� what was it? Old copies of InterVarsity�s  HIS Magazine  from the 70�s and 80�s.  Thumbing through the pages I quickly discovered my very first freelance article on short-term missions  �What to Take and What to Leave Behind!� A rush of memories came over me�serving as a mission pastor in San Francisco, selling that first article to a magazine I respected and subscribed to. And how that one open door in publishing eventually led to many more.  After a heavy sigh, it was time for a prayer of gratitude. That  HIS  editor Linda Doll took a chance on me and used my article. That God gave me gifts and then the perseverance to work hard to get better at writing. That (miracle of miracles) today I am still writing. I�m knee-deep in w...

by Lucinda Secrest McDowell @LucindaSMcDowel Summer 2018 will soon be only a memory� Labor Day will have come and gone.  Whether you are back into the routine of filling backpacks and lunchboxes or at the stage of filling your calendar with work or volunteering, FALL can be a season of fresh beginnings.  Since I juggle three jobs (writing, speaking and high school teaching) Fall is my serious kick-off-and-start-running time. Perhaps you feel this way as well.  May I suggest my own strategy for balancing life at this time of year? I call it  P.R.E.P P � PLAN  R � RHYTHM E � EXTRAS P � PRIORITY   PLAN :  Right now, lay out your calendar pages for September, October, November, and December and fill in all that is already scheduled: work, activities, appointments, concerts, church services, Bible studies, etc. Include your children�s� games, recitals, field trips and school holidays as soon as you get the notice. Look at the four months. What is alrea...

by Lucinda Secrest McDowell @LucindaSMcDowel Whoever invented the phrase �the wind rustling through the leaves� obviously sat on this screen porch in these woods. The breeze is so cool, the leaves are dancing, the birds are singing, and I am remembering one year ago when I sat right here and asked God to guide my writing of a new book. Last summer while house/pet sitting for dear friends, I spent hours just listening � remembering stories, researching prayers and biographies and biblical teaching so that I would have enough chapters to submit to potential publishers. My desire was to write a devotional focusing on key biblical words that encourage action.               At that time I had the 40 words and needed everything else.               This summer? On the same porch, attended by rustling leaves, I hold the published book in my hand � �Live These Words.�...