Skip to main content

Where's the Blogger?


"Francie, you need to blog more often," a woman said to me at a recent ladies' conference.
Takeoffs at NYC La Guardia airport

"I can't."

"Why not?" she asked.

"Because I'm here..."

...And there, and everywhere lately! My conference calendar was overweight this year, and while we've tried to slim it down for 2014, it hasn't been an entirely successful attempt. The 2014 calendar is trimmer, but still a bit over the ideal range.

So, blogging has become a luxury, but the blog will continue with monthly posts. The EMagazine has gobbled up the blogging time, coupled with flying from coast to coast. Here's the scary-busy itinerary for 2013 so far:

February: Connecticut and California
March: Michigan ("Only one?" Ha. Don't get me started...)
April: California, Alabama, North Carolina, and Tennessee (and by now, airport security was complimenting my outfits as I went through the check point each week)
May: California and Mexico
June: Michigan ("Only one again?" Tried for zero, but failed...)
July: North Carolina (National Sword Conference = five days = like two conferences in one)
August: Virginia (This wasn't a conference. We helped our daughter Hillary move to U-VA for law school, and you know that moving out of state is not for whiners or wimps...)

And here's what's scheduled, Lord allowing, for the rest of the year:

September: South Carolina and Oregon (Harry & David Outlet Store, here I come!)
October: Ladies' Extravaganza-Minnesota (no flight required!), Maryland, Florida
November: New York and North Carolina

I think I need an apartment in California and North Carolina.

And while doing all this flying around, I was opening and closing my Netbook in the airplane, writing as fast as my trained fingers would type. It got to the point where I could tell when the familiar "ding ding" was going to sound at 10,000 feet, where it is "now safe to use approved portable electronic devices." I would be poised with my computer in lap, ready to peel out as soon as I heard the dings.
The view from seat 5F

On the flip side, I could also tell when we would be running out of time (or airspace), as I could feel the beginning descent of the airplane and would think, "Write faster, Francie! Hurry!"

Ding ding: "Ladies' and gentleman, we have now reached an altitude where all portable electronics must be turned off and stowed until landing."

"Nooooooo!" my mind would howl as I tried to put the punctuation in before shutting down. Writing in an airplane seat is as common and normal to me as writing at my desk in the home office. The only difference is there is no "ding ding" in the office to make me stop, unless I set a timer for a stretch break. And it's not disobeying federal regulations if I keep typing right past the timer at home!

Pray for us at Keep the Heart as we labor to produce beneficial materials for Christian women. I'm sure that we would all agree: we all need more prayer.

On the ground (today), from my heart to yours.

"Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life." (Proverbs 4:23)

Comments

  1. KEEP THE HEARTAugust 8, 2013 at 2:43 PM

    If you are reading this, let me know that you'll pray, even if it's only once and only right now! Add your comment below, and thank you!

    ReplyDelete
  2. ElizabethAugust 8, 2013 at 3:13 PM

    Francie - Know that I'm praying for you as always, Dear Friend.

    ReplyDelete
  3. UnknownAugust 8, 2013 at 3:45 PM

    You are on my daily prayer list. You have been such a blessing to me over the years, and I thank God for you. I am praying for your safety, your marriage, your family, your ministry and your health. Thank you for being a willing servant for God.

    ReplyDelete
  4. KEEP THE HEARTAugust 8, 2013 at 4:13 PM

    Laurie McCann Billings Aug 8, 2013 at 4:13 PM
    I'm praying my precious sister!! Whew, what a schedule! Ill be praying as you travel all over and minister to hearts like mine! I'm one of hundreds, who are blessed by your Christ centered teachings!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. KEEP THE HEARTAugust 8, 2013 at 4:14 PM

    Callie Harris Aug 8, 2013 at 4:14 PM
    I tried to comment on the blog, but for some reason I was having difficulties. I will stop right now and pray for your ministry. We are excited to have you join us in our 2015 ladies conference. Thank you for making the sacrifices to help others!
    (copied and pasted from Facebook by KTH staff)

    ReplyDelete
  6. KEEP THE HEARTAugust 8, 2013 at 10:10 PM

    Felicia Doss Aug 8, 2013 at 5:09 PM
    Praying for you, Friend. Looking forward, Lord willing, to seeing you in October!!!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Parents Are Not Responsible for That

Parenthood is not a role for wimps or whiners. There are the exciting times such as music recitals, sports tournaments, and graduations. But if your tribe is like ours, you've probably also had the maddening moments, like the time one of our children discovered how to unfasten the tapes on his diaper and used the contents as "chalk" on the bedroom  wall (yes, it was "his," so that narrows the field of suspects). Children are young for a few blinks, and then we spin around and we're hearing "Pomp and Circumstance," that familiar graduation march as our "babies" walk down the aisle in cap and gown. If they choose to go on to college, four snaps later, we're sitting in the auditorium at their college graduation, scanning a long list of names in the commencement bulletin while waiting to watch them walk across the platform to receive yet another diploma. It's warp-speed fast (except that diaper stage). Parents don't min...
45 comments
Read more

Why Abishag and Not Bathsheba?

When you read Bible stories, do you ever wonder about things? I often wonder, and one story on my "wonder list" is the account of the aged King David and his lovely young caregiver named Abishag. David already had plenty of wives, including one very beautiful stolen wife named Bathsheba. When David was struggling to stay warm (Scripture says "he got no heat"), why didn't he call for Bathsheba? I wonder...and I'm going to hazard a guess that they had grown apart over the years. I can't prove it, but it can't be conclusively denied, either. Here's the Scriptural account, to refresh your memory: "Now kind David was old and stricken in years; and they covered him with clothes, but he got no heat. Wherefore his servants said unto him, Let there be sought for my lord the king a young virgin: and let her stand before the king, and let her cherish him, and let her lie in thy bosom, that my lord the king may get heat. So they sought for a fa...
5 comments
Read more

Wait-Hate

Sitting at what I was sure was the world's longest left-turn signal, I suddenly realized that I was being impatient for no good reason. After all, I was only waiting to turn left and then right...into the gas station. Not exactly like being late for an important date! Wait hate. Many of us struggle with it, and the impatience is making life unnecessarily miserable. Why do we hate to wait? I have some theories and good guesses, but it is possible that one of the biggest reasons why we can't even tolerate driving in a lane with a slow car in front of us is because we've been trained by our culture to expect everything instantly. Have you ever been "that person," driving and yelling "Move over, Pokey Joe!" even though your windows were closed and that other driver couldn't hear you? Tap. Swipe. Send.  Wait-Hate is learned, and this impatience is very costly. Instead of praying and allowing God time to provide direction and confirm...
22 comments
Read more