For Budding Writers

Monday, April 12, 2010

She Speaks Scholarship Giveaway

Have you ever had a dream?

A dream that you tucked deep in your heart, and were afraid to even speak it? 

Every year women come to the Proverbs 31 Ministries She Speaks Conference with just such dreams.  It may be a dream to write, or speak. It may be a dream to lead a women's Bible study, or start a ministry to unwed mothers. 

As the director of the writer's track at She Speaks, I meet women every year who are wondering if they have what it takes to write.  They might think the dream is foolish ... because who would read what they have to say?  But the dream beats so hard in their chest they just had to come to the conference.  However, they tenderly protect that dream, even as they put themselves out there for all the world to see.

Is that you?  Do you have a dream to write but haven't taken the first step?  Or have you been writing for awhile but know God is prompting you to take the next step in your writing journey?

Today, I have the privilege of announcing a contest to help someone take that next step of obedience in their dream to write. 

Thanks to the generosity of author extraordinaire, Cecil Murphey, I will be giving away one scholarship to attend the She Speaks 2010 Conference, held July 30-August 1 in Concord, North Carolina.   If you haven't heard of Cecil Murphy's amazing newsletters for writers, you'll want to click here to subscribe for free! While you are there, spend some time reading about Cec.  He's coming to the conference and will be speaking to all the writers, and meeting one-on-one for some informal coaching.

And to win it, all you have to do is write an article that would be appropriate for publication in the P31 Woman Magazine.  We'll pick one article as the winner.  In addition to winning the scholarship, we'll also publish that article in the magazine.  Kind of like icing on the best cake you have ever eaten!

We may also select some honorable mentions, and will publish those if we do. 

So - how do you win this amazing prize?  Here are the rules for the She Speaks Scholarship Contest:

1.   You must not have attended She Speaks in past years. 

2.  Write a 500-1000 word article that would be appropriate for publication in the P31 Woman Magazine.  See the guidelines on the link to the magazine, and see archived feature articles for a sample of our style. 

3.  Only enter one (1) article per person. 

4.  You can either attach the article in a Word document or include it in the email.  Include a creative title and your name.

5.  Email the article to me at editor@proverbs31.org  on or before Thursday April 15, 2010 at midnight.

6.  If you have a blog, please help us promote the She Speaks Conference by writing about this contest and linking to the She Speaks Conference site.   If you want to post the She Speaks button on your site, feel free to copy it.  But it is not a requirement. 

7. The winner of this contest will be awarded a scholarship for the cost of one person’s registration for the 2010 She Speaks conference.

The value of this scholarship is $575 which includes your conference materials, conference registration, 2 nights at the conference hotel and meals associated with the conference. Please note it does not include any travel expenses. Also, you will be assigned a roommate or you have the option to pay the extra charge for a private room. This scholarship is transferable, but only for someone who has not attended the conference.  It cannot be traded for cash.

Your article will be evaluated by the P31 Woman editing team, and we will announce the winner on April 21st.

This is the first year we have scholarships to offer, and we are thanking God and Cecil Murphey for this opportunity.   Please pray about what to submit.  And, if you aren't a writer, please send a note to someone you know who is. 

Happy Easter!

Why did Jesus fold the linen burial cloth after His resurrection? I never
noticed this....


The Gospel of John (20:7) tells us that the napkin, which was placed over the face of Jesus, was not just thrown aside like the grave clothes..


The Bible takes an entire verse to tell us that the napkin was neatly folded, and was placed at the head of that stony coffin.


Early Sunday morning, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance.


She ran and found Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved.. She said, 'They have taken the Lord's body out of the tomb, and I don't know where they have put him!'


Peter and the other disciple ran to the tomb to see. The other disciple out ran Peter and got there first. He stopped and looked in and saw the linen cloth lying there, but he didn't go in.


Then Simon Peter arrived and went inside. He also noticed the linen wrappings lying there, while the cloth that had covered Jesus' head was folded up and lying to the side.


Was that important? Absolutely!
Is it really significant? Yes!


In order to understand the significance of the folded napkin, you have to understand a little bit about Hebrew tradition of that day. The folded napkin had to do with the Master and Servant, and every Jewish boy knew this tradition.


When the servant set the dinner table for the master, he made sure that it was exactly the way the master wanted it.


The table was furnished perfectly, and then the servant would wait, just out of sight, until the master had finished eating, and the servant would not dare touch that table, until the master was finished.


Now if the master were done eating, he would rise from the table, wipe his fingers, his mouth, and clean his beard, and would wad up that napkin and toss it onto the table.


The servant would then know to clear the table. For in those days, the wadded napkin meant, "I'm finished."


But if the master got up from the table, and folded his napkin, and laid it beside his plate, the servant would not dare touch the table, because..........


The folded napkin meant,
"I'm coming back."