Congratulations, Marcia Gruver and Diamond Duo!

Hello and Happy Friday!

Be a Barnabas is all about encouragement, so today, I'm here to encourage my fellow writer Marcia Gruver. Marcia signed a three-book deal in 2007 with Barbour Publishing. Go, Marcia! What a blessing! Her first book, Diamond Duo is now on the shelves. Click on the book title to be sent directly to her site on Amazon.com.

My favorite part about this book is Marcia based this fictional account on a true-life unsolved murder case in Jefferson, Texas. I love historical unsolved mysteries, so when I found this tid-bit out, it made this book a must-read for me!

I began reading this book and fell in love with one character in particular -- Sarah. She stands out with superior dialogue and likeability. I am eager to keep reading and find out her fate. I hopes she doesn't die in the end. I just hate that. LOL

While you are out in cyberspace, check out these other witty bloggers and their interviews with Marcia Gruver on life and writing. And, be sure to check out Marcia's personal blog by clicking right . . . here!

Take care and God bless!

Chelle and Be a Barnabas

P.S. I'll have MAJOR news soon on Be a Barnabas! Sign up for my blog alerts. I don't want you to miss anything! God is so good and is working, working, working!

And now for those blogs to check out:

A Latte and Some Words

A Little Bit of Sunlight

Anne Greene

Be a Barnabas

Book Splurge

BookingIt

Cara’s Musings

Erica at ShoutLife

Fictionary

God With Us - Finding Joy

Horizontal Yo-Yo

Janice Olson

Lighthouse Academy

Marthawrites

Mary Connealy - real life

My Christian Fiction Blog

Net’s Notes

On The Write Path

Pam Krumpe

Patti’s Porch

Readin N Writin

Relz Reviewz

Tamara Lynn Kraft

Terri Tiffany

The Friendly Book Nook

The Writer’s Tool

Writing by Faith

BaB is International! Well, at least North American!

I can't believe it! God's message is going to places that not even I could imagine, ask or think. Isn't there a scripture about that somewhere? ;o) And, leave it to my my mom to find it! On a recent search for her little girl's pen name online, she found this article all the way in Canada! That's "write"! CANADA!! God is encouraging His children across the globe! What a great Dad!

Here is the article if you would like to check it out:

Cheering on Your Kids

Praising Him all day, every day!

Chelle and Be a Barnabas :o)

National Make a Difference Day - Saturday, October 25, 2008!

Hello, Be a Barnabas readers!

I pray you are having a blessed week so far. I wanted to let y'all (Can you guess I'm from Texas?) know about a great way to serve in your community this Saturday.

On Saturday, October 25, 2008, millions of people across the country will participate in National Make a Difference Day. USA WEEKEND Magazine created this event to encourage neighbors to help neighbors throughout their communities.

From picking up trash to mowing a widow's lawn, there are tons of ways to show God's love in our World. Need ideas? Visit USA WEEKEND for their cool Idea Generator.

Are you a Barnabas who helps out in your community? Let us know what you're doing by commenting below.

May God bless you richly for your service for His children,

BaB Ministries :o)

Watch Your Mouth

All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and creatures of the sea are being tamed and have been tamed by man, but no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.

OUCH! This scripture found in James 3, is a testament to the trouble our tongues can get us into. Have you ever let something slip from your lips that should have been thought about first? I know I have. And, wow. The problems that can come about when I forget to filter!

I'm notorious for "open-mouth-insert-foot" syndrome. I often let my emotions rule me allowing words to burst forth that I didn't think about or--in most cases--mean.

I knew I had a problem...and I gave it to God. Are you in a situation where your words get in the way? Are you negative, argumentative, or simply not feeling you are the person God created you to be? Today, let's pray together that our words will be of God and not of the enemy and that Jesus may assist us in controlling this slithery serpent full of poison.

Heavenly Father, please today enter into my soul and take hold of my tongue. Give me discernment before I speak and may all my words be Your words. To lift up and encourage your children. To edify them, not to crush them. Please allow me to see all lives and situations as you do. And fulfill in me what it is to be a Christ Follower.

In Jesus' name I pray, AMEN!

Wash us clean, Lord! Wash us clean! May we be more like You.

Hallelujah!

October 2008 - Words

Hello, fellow Barnabi (Is that Barnabas pluraled?)

This month, God has layed on my heart to focus on the power of our words, how simple they are, and how easily they can come crashing down around us.

In Ephesians, Paul writes:

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. - Ephesians 4:29

Let no unwholesome talk come out of our mouths. What constitutes unwholesome talk?

Let's see...foul language? I would say yes. Sarcasm? Definitely. Gossip? Oh, yeah.

Am I guilty of any of this? Of course! We all are! And, as much as I hate to admit it in public, I've been known to fire off a curse word as fast as lightening when I get heated up about something. I hate that I do it. I hate that is it still second nature to me. But, I pray about it and with the help of the Holy Spirit, a listening heart, and a husband who is my accountability partner, I now hear "stop cussing" usually before it erupts from my mouth. and, when I say erupt, I mean erupt.

You may be wondering why I am telling you this.

Because, I am not special. I am not perfect. Yet I am still a child of God.

And He loves me in spite of how "human" I can be. In spite of my past. In spite of how I used to live and breathe. But, now, as a Christ follower, I follow Jesus. And, you can, too.

This month, I'll write about our words, our goofs and how wonderful our Father in Heaven truly is. And, I'll be honest about it. I didn't find Jesus at age three. I found him 25 years later after a lot of junk. Plain ol' junk. But, I know how it is without Him. And, I'll never go back.

God is faithful and true and HE LOVES US. Believe that. He loves us no matter how we act or what we've done. Invite Him into your heart and allow Him to do His work inside you. I am so blessed that I did. I'll share my stories with you soon.

Have a blessed and joy-filled week. Until I write again...

Dawn
God's Cheerleader

Gimme a G!

Gimme an O! Gimme a D! What's that spell?

Okay, I will admit, I get really excited about being God's Cheerleader as I wave my pom-poms high in the air wishing I could do basket tosses without seriously injuring myself. But, seriously, can you really be overly enthusiastic for God?

I think not!

That is why today at Be a Barnabas, we will focus on the good, the bad and the ugly of being an encourager for God. Being a Cheerleader isn't always back flips and cheers. Sometimes, you are trudging through mud getting your cute little skirt and matching tennis shoes all yucky. That's right, I said yucky.

Sometimes in life we say things we don't mean. We either phrase it incorrectly, use the wrong word alltogether, or let our words bypass our filter and send the sludge out for all to hear.

I recently had a friend make a comment about a turning point in my writing career. This short yet innocent remark did its best to send me plummeting in a tailspin diving under my covers to hide my head in writing shame. Did she mean it as such? No.

But one thing's for sure, it made me wonder how many times an innocent remark escaped my lips instead of staying on my tongue where it should have died in the first place.

OUCH! Makes me want to hide behind my pom-poms. I know I've done it, and I'm sorry for it and humbly repent.

Our words are power. They create life…or bring death. I choose life. And, through this, I am eternally grateful to my friend for helping me realize it so I may guard my tongue as Christ commanded. Remember when James said that both fresh water and salt water cannot flow from the same spring? (See below)

The wise Solomon once said, "The tongue that brings healing is a tree of life, but a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit." (Proverbs 15:4 NIV)

This week, I will consider all my words before they escape into the air with crushing potential. Once it's out there, it's out there never to be taken back, and now with e-mail, it can be forwarded. Scary thought isn't it? ;o)

Until next week, keep praising, keep encouraging, and keep those pom-poms flying high.

In His Service~

Dawn Michelle Michals
God's Cheerleader

James 3:9-12 (NIV)

9With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God's likeness. 10Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. 11Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? 12My brothers, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.