Today, I'm being interviewed at This is My Life by Erica Newton. Check it out.
http://ericanewton.blogspot.com
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Close Out Report
Today has been a full day just managing all the comments and cups to pull from. I wish you all could have won something, but your chances aren't over. We are filled up for the month of October. We'll be giving out paragraphs here and there as teasers. We're going to give something away at every stop.
Today, the blog broke 100 unique visits in one day, which is a big deal for us because this blog is still so very young. I just installed the Sitemeter and I'm happy I did.
I want to thank my family for their support in supplying nearly all the gifts. They were a huge blessing. I want to thank all my faithful Pretty, Prosperous, Powerful followers who ventured over here to show support. Tomorrow, it'll be business as usual, but tomorrow also kicks off our blog tour. We'll keep updates at all our blogs. Keep us in prayer.
I'd like to thank my husband, Lensey, who is also my publisher at Living Waters Publishing Company. He sacrificed a full work day to help me manage this book launch. Saturdays are full days for him. So, thanks darling. Love to everyone!
Today, the blog broke 100 unique visits in one day, which is a big deal for us because this blog is still so very young. I just installed the Sitemeter and I'm happy I did.
I want to thank my family for their support in supplying nearly all the gifts. They were a huge blessing. I want to thank all my faithful Pretty, Prosperous, Powerful followers who ventured over here to show support. Tomorrow, it'll be business as usual, but tomorrow also kicks off our blog tour. We'll keep updates at all our blogs. Keep us in prayer.
I'd like to thank my husband, Lensey, who is also my publisher at Living Waters Publishing Company. He sacrificed a full work day to help me manage this book launch. Saturdays are full days for him. So, thanks darling. Love to everyone!
Karen Tims, a Grand Prize Winner
Karen,
You made it here quick after the Twitter announcement. You were the first to comment, and it only took seven minutes between reading at Twitter and getting something posted. For that, you get the $100 Victoria's Secret gift card.
You made it here quick after the Twitter announcement. You were the first to comment, and it only took seven minutes between reading at Twitter and getting something posted. For that, you get the $100 Victoria's Secret gift card.
3 Romantic Tips
As a married couple, your romantic relationship needs to be healthy, and believe it or not, God desires for both of you to be fulfilled in one another. Here are three tips:
1) Talk about the things you want from one another. Discuss your sexual desires, romantic desires, etc. Your spouse won't know if you don't tell them. Don't expect them to be mindreaders.
2) Make a game out of one upping each other in the area of romance. See who can get up earlier to make breakfast in bed, or who can get home from work first and make the other a bubble or milk bath. Things like that make coming home fun and gets the engines reved up.
3) Take walks together. Talk to one another about something other than bills and kids while you walk. Maybe even hold hands. Think about the last time you saw an older couple holding hands in public. It probably gave you a warm, fuzzy feeling. It's not sexual, but it is romantic and sweet. you need it all in a marriage.
1) Talk about the things you want from one another. Discuss your sexual desires, romantic desires, etc. Your spouse won't know if you don't tell them. Don't expect them to be mindreaders.
2) Make a game out of one upping each other in the area of romance. See who can get up earlier to make breakfast in bed, or who can get home from work first and make the other a bubble or milk bath. Things like that make coming home fun and gets the engines reved up.
3) Take walks together. Talk to one another about something other than bills and kids while you walk. Maybe even hold hands. Think about the last time you saw an older couple holding hands in public. It probably gave you a warm, fuzzy feeling. It's not sexual, but it is romantic and sweet. you need it all in a marriage.
Third Prize, a Purchaser's Prize Goes to...
The third prize, a $25 Frederick's of Hollywood gift card, goes to .....................
GLORIA MARTIN
We'll need your mailing address. Please send an email to preacha1975@yahoo.com or lenseyh@yahoo.com
GLORIA MARTIN
We'll need your mailing address. Please send an email to preacha1975@yahoo.com or lenseyh@yahoo.com
What Are Your Marriage Pointers
As a married woman or man, give us some of the things that makes your marriage better. Share your pointers.
Q&A with Lacresha Hayes
Q: What makes your book special?
A: It's easy to understand and apply. There's not a lot of psycho babble like most. This is real people talking about real issues. There's biblical reference, mostly Song of Solomon, one of the most beautiful books in the Bible. There's stories from real people. It's just a great tool because it combines the best of all things marriage related.
Q: Did you and your husband find any vulnerable areas in your marriage as a result of this book?
A: Yep. We were able to repair several things that we hadn't paid much attention to before. We were able to identify some communication issues and get it fixed up. It was just an all around blessing, as my husband has said.
Q: Give us a run down of what to expect in the book.
A: Well, there's a couple's section, a women's section, a men's section, stories from real couples, and intimate exercises. It is jammed with tips, ideas, hard truth, and opportunities for personal and corporate growth. You can expect to come away from the book with your eyes wide open.
Q&A with Lensey Hayes
Q: What was your inspiration in being a co-author in this book?
A: My wife and I have a strong relationship, but it didn't happen automatically. Those first months were extremely hard. I was unprepared and I figured that had to be why so many marriages fail. Once we got it together through the Word of God, utilizing what is written, I realized that I needed to share what we'd seen work, not just for us but for others.
Q: Has the book changed your marriage from the time you started writing until you finished the book?
A: Definitely. We had to learn even more from each other because we were writing a book together. We had hundreds of discussion points come up while combining our ideas and knowledge. We both got a deeper understanding of one another. We're better for the book. If we didn't make a dime from sales, I like what happened between us personally during the writing process.
Q: What has been your biggest hurdle to clear in marriage?
A: There were a lot for me, but the biggest would be taking full responsibility for my family. Coming from being a single, young man into a family with a teenager, I wasn't prepared to be a dad at all. I wasn't as ready as I thought I was. However, I wasn't about to give up. I'm not a quitter and it's worked for me in marriage. It's not for quitters, that's certain.
Q: What role does the Bible play in your marriage?
A: Everything is the short answer. We allow it to guide us constantly. When we mess up, we go back to the Bible. I'll share a life truth with you that will never change. If we could just possess and utilize the fruit of the Spirit, we'll have everything we need to make our marriages successful, and any other relationship.
Q: Give us one piece of advice.
A: Short answer, you can't be selfish. The unit is more important than selfish ambition. Put your spouse second only to God and your marriage will work out every time.
Welcome to the Book Launch Party
We are delighted to be launching our book, Truth and Intimacy: A Couple's Journal. This book is a super special marriage-building tool.Summary: Weddings happen in a day, but building a happy and healthy marriage takes a lifetime and much diligence. It takes sacrifice and love, understanding and patience, all of which is are traits that must be developed. This book is about developing the traits necessary to have a successful marriage.
Most couples don't get married with the intention of getting a divorce one day, but sadly most people have experienced at least one failed marriage. This book helps prevent that by teaching couples how to relate to one another.
This book has it all, marriage advice, stories from real couples, scriptural references, discussion points, and a question/answer/journal section for couples to identify their strengths and weaknesses and make adjustments.
Today, we make a big push for a book that we believe can help revolutionize your marriage.
Friday, September 26, 2008
Finding Balance by Guest Blogger, Heather Thompson
Balance. Why is that so hard to achieve? As a stay-at-home and work-at-home mom of 2, I struggle with that daily. I'm a child of God, a wife, mother, daughter, friend, sister, business owner, Sunday school teacher…you get the idea. And chances are you wear just as many hats if not more. So what is the one thing that unfortunately so many times falls by the wayside? Our marriages.
When you spend all day serving others and wearing all those different hats, at the end of the day all you want to do is relax and have a little time for yourself. But for me, that seems to be the only time of the day I get to spend uninterrupted quality time with my husband. After the kids are in bed, chores done, lunches made for the next day, this “leftover” part of my day and myself is what my husband gets. But at this point in my life, this is the best part of the day for us to be together and commit some time to the single most important earthly relationship we’ll ever have – our marriage.
I am by no means an expert on marriage. I have been married 11 ½ years and am very proud of how far we have come. I was brought up to honor my vows and I intend to do just that, no matter what it takes. My mom has always told me, “In your marriage you will have many ups & downs and fall in and out of love many times.” She & my dad had been married for 50 years when he passed away almost 3 years ago. And you know what…she was right! How do people commit to marriage and think it’s going to be a bed of roses for the next 50 plus years? We are human, we change, life changes. But as a Christian who said my vows before God I intend to stick with the “for better or worse” part.
So how do I find balance when it comes to life, my marriage, and my children? I try to focus daily on my priorities…God 1st & Family 2nd. I have found if I try to base every decision whether big or small, each day, on those 2 things, then everything else falls into place. Trying to balance life and balance it well can be a challenge. If I can just remember each day to put God 1st and family 2nd, then life will find its balance.
When you spend all day serving others and wearing all those different hats, at the end of the day all you want to do is relax and have a little time for yourself. But for me, that seems to be the only time of the day I get to spend uninterrupted quality time with my husband. After the kids are in bed, chores done, lunches made for the next day, this “leftover” part of my day and myself is what my husband gets. But at this point in my life, this is the best part of the day for us to be together and commit some time to the single most important earthly relationship we’ll ever have – our marriage.
I am by no means an expert on marriage. I have been married 11 ½ years and am very proud of how far we have come. I was brought up to honor my vows and I intend to do just that, no matter what it takes. My mom has always told me, “In your marriage you will have many ups & downs and fall in and out of love many times.” She & my dad had been married for 50 years when he passed away almost 3 years ago. And you know what…she was right! How do people commit to marriage and think it’s going to be a bed of roses for the next 50 plus years? We are human, we change, life changes. But as a Christian who said my vows before God I intend to stick with the “for better or worse” part.
So how do I find balance when it comes to life, my marriage, and my children? I try to focus daily on my priorities…God 1st & Family 2nd. I have found if I try to base every decision whether big or small, each day, on those 2 things, then everything else falls into place. Trying to balance life and balance it well can be a challenge. If I can just remember each day to put God 1st and family 2nd, then life will find its balance.
Written by Heather Thompson
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Couple's Corner ~ September 23
Today's couple's corner is the "A Mile in My Shoes" exercise
Today, try to put yourself in your spouse's shoes. If the wife normally cooks today. Let the husband do it, even if everyone knows he can't cook. Believe me, there's nothing like a burnt meal to make a man appreciate his wife. If the husband would normally take out the trash or mow the lawn, let the wife do it.
These exercises help couples appreciate what the other adds to the family unit. It's more than using imagination. It's now getting the experience and understanding that each person is necessary and each person brings something important to the marriage.
Today, try to put yourself in your spouse's shoes. If the wife normally cooks today. Let the husband do it, even if everyone knows he can't cook. Believe me, there's nothing like a burnt meal to make a man appreciate his wife. If the husband would normally take out the trash or mow the lawn, let the wife do it.
These exercises help couples appreciate what the other adds to the family unit. It's more than using imagination. It's now getting the experience and understanding that each person is necessary and each person brings something important to the marriage.
Sunday, September 21, 2008
If You're Going to Strive...
If you are going to strive, strive together with your husband/wife. Amazingly, even in a time when everyone seems to be driven and goal oriented, couples are often striving for two different things, or the same things in different ways. They are wearing themselves out and all the while feeling unappreciated and alone. Which all brings me to this post.
Imagine being physically tied to someone. He wants to go east. She wants to go west. They both take off going two different directions. What happens next is one reason many couples experience friction in their lives. The line in the rope tightens as they pull in two different directions. Then, it becomes a battle of strength. The strongest one ends up dragging the weaker one. How far and how long do you think they'll make it? More importantly, how long do you think it'll take before bitterness takes over?
If you gotta strive, do it together. Sit down and discuss your plans, goals and fears. Make a singular plan for your family and work that thing together, doing the same things or at least working in harmony with one another until you've accomplished your goals. That way, no one is unnecessarily bitter or tired. Both parties know they have someone who is in this fight with them. The bond grows closer, forming something many will never understand - self-sacrificing love.
Copyright 2008 (All Rights Reserved)
Imagine being physically tied to someone. He wants to go east. She wants to go west. They both take off going two different directions. What happens next is one reason many couples experience friction in their lives. The line in the rope tightens as they pull in two different directions. Then, it becomes a battle of strength. The strongest one ends up dragging the weaker one. How far and how long do you think they'll make it? More importantly, how long do you think it'll take before bitterness takes over?
If you gotta strive, do it together. Sit down and discuss your plans, goals and fears. Make a singular plan for your family and work that thing together, doing the same things or at least working in harmony with one another until you've accomplished your goals. That way, no one is unnecessarily bitter or tired. Both parties know they have someone who is in this fight with them. The bond grows closer, forming something many will never understand - self-sacrificing love.
Copyright 2008 (All Rights Reserved)
Friday, September 19, 2008
Book Launch Giveaways
On September 27, we will have a book launch party here online. We want it to be a celebration for all those who show up. Below is a list of giveaways for the book launch party and how to win them.
Grand Prize ~ $100 Victoria Secret gift card
(given to one lucky purchaser of the book)
Other Prizes:
~ $10 Walmart gift card
(to one commenter)
~ $25 Walmart gift card
(to one commenter)
~ $25 Frederick's of Hollywood gift card
(to one lucky purchaser of the book)
~ $50 Frederick's of Hollywood gift card
(to one lucky purchaser of the book)
~ $50 Victoria Secret gift card
(to one lucky purchaser of the book)
~ Victoria's Secret Dream Angels Heavenly Must-Have Bag with Scents- $39.50 value
(to one commenter)
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Truth and Intimacy Book Launch and Blog Tour Kickoff
The online Truth and Intimacy: A Couple's Journal Book Launch Party will be on September 27, all day long on this blog. We will giveaway various virtual door prizes to the attendees. Our book will be marked down that day for on-the-spot orders. It's going to be a blast!
Our blog book tour will also begin. Below are a few of our scheduled stops:
Our blog book tour will also begin. Below are a few of our scheduled stops:
September 28
This is My Life (Erica Newton)
September 29
Debbie's Daily Doings (Debbie Todd)
September 30
High Powered Woman (Alicia Grimes)
October 1-2
Ron Berry
October 4
WritePublishMarket Blog
October 7
Comfort and Support (Vicky Warren)
October 10
Free Spirit (Marvin Wilson)
October 13-14
Virtual Book Tours (Karina Fabian)
October 15-18
Books and Authors (Joyce Anthony)
October 20
On Assignment (Linda Beed)
October 24
Sips N Cups Cafe (Peggy B. Phifer)
We will keep you updated and abreast of any changes right here, so stay tuned in.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Truth and Intimacy: A Couple's Journal Has a New Cover
We are so delighted about our new and improved cover for Truth and Intimacy: A Couple's Journal. We feel this one better accentuates the message inside the book. It is more appealing overall. Leave us some feedback.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Truth
Someone recently asked us the reason for truth being in the title when much of the book is about building intimacy. Truth is the beginning of intimacy, rather trust is the beginning and has its beginnings in truth.
We've all had those people in our lives who were so brutally honest that we avoided them like the plague unless we needed to get an honest opinion. We might not always like what they say, but those people can be trusted because they are honest, even to their own hurt. While marital truth need not be harsh or brutal, it does need a certain die-hard, sold out to the cause of honesty effect.
Marriage is not a temporary thing. It's permanent. How can two people who'll be together the rest of their lives live peacefully with all kinds of secrets and hidden agendas? It can't. From the beginning until the end of your marriage, truth should be an integral part of everything else.
We've all had those people in our lives who were so brutally honest that we avoided them like the plague unless we needed to get an honest opinion. We might not always like what they say, but those people can be trusted because they are honest, even to their own hurt. While marital truth need not be harsh or brutal, it does need a certain die-hard, sold out to the cause of honesty effect.
Marriage is not a temporary thing. It's permanent. How can two people who'll be together the rest of their lives live peacefully with all kinds of secrets and hidden agendas? It can't. From the beginning until the end of your marriage, truth should be an integral part of everything else.
Monday, September 15, 2008
Celebrating My Wife
When we were just dating, I couldn't keep my eyes off that beautiful woman in the picture. She made me happy. She made me feel daring. She let me be who I was. That's why I married her. Every time I see that picture, I remember how she turned me into putty with her baby voice and soft touch. I celebrate that woman then and the one she is now. I'm a blessed guy.
You have to do the same. Think about who she was and who she is now. You could have married hundreds of other women, but she grabbed your heart. Why? Whatever it was, don't let that die. Don't let yourself see her differently. And, don't allow a foreign woman to blind you to what you truly have, men!
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
An Excerpt to Feast Upon
There comes a time in marriage when you must forcefully call to remembrance the former things because the pressures of life have drowned them out. People sometimes forget what made them fall in love and choose the mate they now have. Wives forget how charming their husbands once were. Husbands get accustomed to clean houses and meals on the table and forget how life was without their wives. But there was a time. Yes, there was!
There was a time when the sight of your wife made you feel excited and more complete both inside and out; when the sight of your husband made your knees weak. There was a time when a smile melted your heart and sweet nothings were your breakfast and supper. There was a time when getting up an hour early for your spouse was a reasonable request. In fact, it was an honor because you loved your mate so much. You thought about your wife all day long at work. You thought of your husband and eagerly awaited his return home. You both feasted on the other’s smile, words, hugs and kisses. Those are the times that should never die.
Alas, some things seem to die all too quickly. They seem to drown in a pool of responsibilities, disappointments and pain. It seems as if those were the good old days, ones that it takes effort to even remember. It may even seem like a distant memory of another lifetime. But, it wasn’t. It was you and the person of you now have. It was you and the one you couldn’t see yourself living without. It was this man and this woman, the two who are reading this book together. What happened to you both? How did you ever slip so far away from one another that you no longer appreciate the beauty, the "fairness" in Solomon's words, of each other?
There was a time when the sight of your wife made you feel excited and more complete both inside and out; when the sight of your husband made your knees weak. There was a time when a smile melted your heart and sweet nothings were your breakfast and supper. There was a time when getting up an hour early for your spouse was a reasonable request. In fact, it was an honor because you loved your mate so much. You thought about your wife all day long at work. You thought of your husband and eagerly awaited his return home. You both feasted on the other’s smile, words, hugs and kisses. Those are the times that should never die.
Alas, some things seem to die all too quickly. They seem to drown in a pool of responsibilities, disappointments and pain. It seems as if those were the good old days, ones that it takes effort to even remember. It may even seem like a distant memory of another lifetime. But, it wasn’t. It was you and the person of you now have. It was you and the one you couldn’t see yourself living without. It was this man and this woman, the two who are reading this book together. What happened to you both? How did you ever slip so far away from one another that you no longer appreciate the beauty, the "fairness" in Solomon's words, of each other?
Excerpt from Truth and Intimacy: A Couple's Journal
(unedited)
Pre-order now at http://store.livingwaterspc.com
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