Open Your Umbrella
“If you want the rainbow, you’ve got to put up with the rain.” ~ Dolly Parton It was a spring night in April and a line of ferocious storms rumbled through my hometown bringing with it high winds, heavy
Praise the Lord! by Pat Simmons
One Faith, One Lord, one Baptism. Ephesians 4:5 For one week in July, I was in the midst of saints at the P.A.W. (Pentecostal Assemblies of the World) Convention. I never said, “Praise the Lord” so much. I enjoyed every
Join Chandra Sparks Splond in Saying a Prayer for Marriages
Today marks my fifth wedding anniversary to my boo thang, Greg Splond. Anyone who has been married for longer than five minutes knows that marriage is hard work, even on a good day. Just like all couples, we’ve had our
Between A Rock And A Hard Place
“Good decisions come from experience, and experience comes from bad decisions.” ~Anonymous As far as I’m concerned, the phrase “desperate times call for desperate measures” is an understatement when it comes to Aron Ralston. I vaguely remembered hearing
Writing from and for the Journey
I haven’t turned on my creative fiction juices in a while, because although I absolutely love manufacturing interesting characters and breathing life into them, I also have a deep love for nonfiction writing. Over the past year or so, I’ve
What’s Holding You Back?
I’ve known since I was 14 years old that I’ve wanted to write books, but I didn’t sit down to actually write one until after I had my daughter in 2004–almost 20 years later. I don’t think it was a
Run To Win
If you can pick up after a crushing defeat, and go on to win again, you are going to be a champion someday. ~ Wilma Rudolph The year of 1996 marked my life with several milestones, two of them
What’s In Your Basket?
Every year, I donate a basket of goodies to be raffled off at the annual RT Booklovers Convention. To win, persons had to give their names and email addresses as a way for me to build my monthly newsletter list.
Should I Write a Book?
The fact that you’ve been drawn to the post tells me a lot about you. You’re at a point where either you’ve had this idea to put pen to paper for a while, or someone has planted a seed in you that has you wondering if you have what it takes to write a book.
The Day A Paper Plate Changed My Life
God enters by a private door into each individual. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson I used to be a “Yes Woman.” If someone needed a volunteer, I’d do it. If they needed someone to plan a party, put together
Always Remember a Blessing Is a Blessing
Have you ever found yourself earnestly praying for something from God only to get mad when the blessing arrives because it didn’t come in the form or package you wanted? I was having a conversation with a friend the other
Healing for a Mad Blackamoore Woman
Vanessa Riley here, I am so pleased to be a part of BlackChristianReads.com. Here, there are so many wonderful women sharing their faith to extol and encourage others. My fan girl self loves that I am in this tribe with these
Our Lives Matter
When the Black Lives Matter movement began to dominate the headlines, I saw an image I would never forget. There was a photo of an armed police officer, or military personnel with his gun—more like an AK-47—pointing at a shirtless
Sometimes Dreams Change
Don’t tell me what God can’t do. This is a year of celebration for me because it is the tenth anniversary of me publishing my first book, Spin It Like That, and I’ve decided it will also be a year
Why is this man just now getting to know his children???
I am sooooo excited about this latest release, Deacon Brown’s Daughters, which I (Michelle Stimpson) co-authored with CaSandra McLaughlin. This is our 5th book together, and we really put out “feet” in this one! It’s the story of Stanley David Brown,