Posts by ChrisMadaySchmidt
The truest thing I can tell you: the gift of today
While I believe it’s always the write time for hope, humor & heart, oftentimes grief shows up at our doors without invitation. An emotion that follows no rules—no “how to” manual—I’ve heard grief described as a “sucker punch” by one, and as a wake-up call by another. In my own life, grief recently paid a…
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That little extra push: remembering your why
What’s one thing that motivates you to get out of bed each morning? For me, it’s a call to sprinkle hope, humor & heart through my writing. But whatever our “why,” it can prove hard to keep pressing forward when results remain elusive. For instance, last year I submitted six stories to a few publications…
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Leveraging the most of our time: pressing into the wait
We’ve all likely heard the directive to “be patient” at least once in our lives. It might even be a situation that required us to “wait on the Lord.” Waiting is hard stuff. But what if we could leverage that time to our advantage by eliminating distractions that sidetrack us and then—with intention, or actively—press…
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Creating a roadmap: a new kind of ‘en-vision’ board
Years ago, I attended a vision board workshop, filling my blank page with magazine clippings—images, words and phrases that resonated with me. A few years later, I was invited to another workshop involving more of the same—aspirations I hoped for, encouraging expressions, go get ‘ems. Yet neither instance presented any tangibles for me to strive…
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Leaving a legacy of love: intangible expressions that promote life
Where there is love, there is life. ~ Mahatma Gandhi One of my favorite descriptions of love is found in the Bible: “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it…
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Divine interruptions: when to take that leap of faith
What do a power outage and a leaky roof have in common? In my household, the former (another blog post in itself) put a stop to plans, or movement, my husband and I set in motion this past summer. And the latter instigated movement—thanks to a downpour delivered on Christmas Eve straight into our kitchen…
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A youthful spirit: redefining ‘adventure’
Someone recently told me: “You know you’re getting old when… homemade Chex Mix excites you.” Instead of a precursor to old age, however, I prefer to classify it as “childlike appreciation” for the simple things—a youthful spirit unburdened by the trappings of commercialism, materialism and “comparisonism.” As I navigate the latter half of Club 50…
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When it no longer works: a rule of thumb for trying something new
In 2020, I wrote the first draft of my novel—from which my upcoming Sweetwater series derives—at the end of my work days. In 2021, I shifted #allthings writing related to the hours between 6:30 and 8 a.m., with exercise later in the day to allow more time for prayer and purpose (aka writing) before my…
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Pinterest and charcuterie boards: finding humor in the messy middle
What do Pinterest and charcuterie boards have in common? An end vision. You’ve seen them: the memes that parody Pinterest boards by displaying each perfect [fill-in-the-blank], followed by another person’s hilarious attempt to duplicate said project. Can you relate—the results of your dream appearing completely different than your Pinterest board ideals? Welcome to the messy…
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Everything is permissible but not beneficial: the 100% rule
It’s easier to hold your principles 100% of the time than it is to hold them 98% of the time. ~ Clayton Christensen If you could apply one tip to your life to make it easier in 2022, would you? Motivational speaker and author Benjamin Hardy calls this tip the “100% rule”—making a decision with…
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