Tuesday, January 29, 2019

Meeting this Saturday

February 2, 10-noon

Cornerstone Christian Church, Wyckoff

All writers are invited, regardless of writing experience.

  • Prepare to share: What are your writing goals for the next six months?  They don't have to be lofty but they do need to be distinct - goals you've weighed and prayed over. 
  • Also, bring questions & comments from our last session about creating video presentations. If time allows, we will discuss any writing related questions.
  • Members (those who have attended more than one meeting) are invited to bring work for critique. Please adhere to the guidelines on our web page.
Hope to see you Saturday,
Barbara

January's Focus Point

Memories, Goals & Vision
My first blog post of the year addressed making memories. I wrote that even though we chose to make good memories (of course), bad memories will also be made. The bad memories come uninvited, but the good memories come from intentional effort. I want to apply this to our 2019 writing goals since we will share them in February.
When we mesh memories and goals, my default memories are of failed goals—everything I didn’t accomplish. My memory doesn’t readily recall the vision and good intentions that inspired the setting of those goals. Rather than considering an unmet goal as failure, let’s regard it as a pause.
We mustn't allow the discouragement of unmet goals to hinder us from setting new ones or from pulling out last year's unmet goals and refreshing them. Maybe our timing was off. Maybe our circumstances were prohibitive. Perhaps our goal needs tweaking or prioritizing. Or maybe (grimace) we need to let go of a goal and move on. Could an old ambition be standing in the way of fresh vision?
It’s a new year. There is no scarcity of vision—there is always more to discover from the God who is infinite in creativity and wonder, and eager to share with us. What will He show us this year? A new process, genre, format, opportunity? We may step into an area that’s new to us, or dabble in writing something we’ve not tried before, or research an unfamiliar topic or genre—perhaps today’s presentation on Creating & Posting Video will become a 2019 goal.
Next month we’ll share our writing goals for the first half of 2019. Let’s talk to God about them with an open heart and ask what aspirations He has for us. We know from the book of John that the Holy Spirit is our Counselor—He will teach us, direct us, supply us—and surprise us.
Takeaway: My 2019 goal is not to make good memories, but God memories. I will seek His wisdom, inspiration, and direction.

Wednesday, January 02, 2019

Don't miss Saturday's meeting!


Creating & Posting Video

Pixabay.com
presented by Phil Brainerd

All are invited to learn about the popular blogging option: vlogging. 
Come and be inspired!

Saturday, January 5, 10 a.m. - noon
Cornerstone Christian Church, Wyckoff
Meeting in the Barn (2nd building on the right)

Seasoned writers and novices, bloggers and blogger wannabes, we welcome you. 
I hope to see you Saturday,
Barbara

Thursday, December 06, 2018

December's Focus Point


Since there are Christmas references in December's Focus Point, I'm posting it now. Our plans for the first three months of the new year are listed below.
cocoparisienne@pixabay
No Excuses
My blog this week was about Joseph and Mary’s trek to Bethlehem and the disagreeable conditions they met when they arrived. I pointed out that God was in it all—the donkey ride, their sub-par housing, the timing. Not only was He in it, He had orchestrated it.
The struggle I had in writing the post and the topic itself, helped me realize how particular I can be about having the right circumstances. Many pressures and concerns were pressing in on me. My addled brain wasn’t cooperating and I craved a quiet space to write, with no interrupting calls, demanding emails, or weighty obligations. Instead, I was given a stable—and God was there.
In spite of everything screaming for my attention, I put my fingers to the keyboard and found that, even in my relatively mundane writing task, God’s grace was sufficient. I wrote the blog, engaged in the conference call, responded to the complicated email, and prepared for today’s meeting. I was amazed that although my thoughts were still scattered amid the demands, I satisfactorily completed what I needed to do.
When our hearts yield to God’s nudge to extend ourselves, 1 Cor. 9:8 says He “is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.”
Takeaway: When we press on in spite of our limitations and insufficiency, we experience the sweetness of God’s presence and all sufficiency.

2019 meetings:
  • January 5 – Creating & Posting YouTube Videos – Phil Brainerd
  • February 2 – The Value of Surveys & How to Conduct Them – Shirley 
  • March 2 – Social Media – Elyse & Nyah