where (oh where) has alicia been?

Hello friends,

I'm in the middle of the Fall speaking run which started with Alaska (mentoring workshop, rally, and Sunday Service in Fairbanks), Arizona (district women's retreat in Prescott) , and Tennessee (Leadership Consecration services in Memphis), and will end with Texas (CFNI women's retreat), Tennessee (attending MOPS convention and being interviewed on the Brian Mason Show), Louisiana (Bethany World Prayer Center, Healing Place, and New Iberia), and Illinois (Leadership gathering at Covenant United Church of Christ).

God's presence has been both thick and refreshing. And...I'm starting to feel a little weary around the edges from the travel. I certainly appreciate your prayers.

Kate (amazing webmaster) and I are re-dreaming the website and hope to apply a face lift both visually and structurally over the next month. If you have any ideas, please let me know!

Also, I just posted a discussion topic at our facebook group about what kind of messages group members would like to receive as part of truthportraits tribe.

Below is an email from my publisher about Finding an Unseen God. The grace of God!

Peace to you all---alicia

"Some neat news from my side: We've recently chosen your book for submission to a few annual book awards: the Christianity Today Book Awards and the ECPA (Evangelical Christian Publishers Association) Christian Book Awards. In addition, we've submitted the cover to be considered for an ECPA cover award. The awards are months away, but we're super excited that they could lead to wider readership and recognition of your book. And I'm also personally pleased that of the 25 or so new nonfiction books we did last year, yours was chosen by our team to be among the 2 or 3 we could recommend for each award.--Jeff"

at the stoplight

Around 10:30am this morning, a dear lady ran a red light and we collided in the intersection. I had the two oldest children with me. My kids and the woman are fine, thank God. The car is not. The ER doctor said I'd be sore for 2-4 weeks but currently I just ache and feel very stiff :-).

I didn't want to go to the hospital by ambulance because I knew that would frighten my kids. Bear and Granny drove to Springfield in record time, and as soon as they came I explained to the kids that mommy needed to go check her neck at the doctor. Jonathan began to cry.

"Mommy, are you going to die?!!"

"No Jonathan, mommy's not going to die. I'm going to be just fine."

"Mommy if you die, who is going to speak?"

"Excuse me?"

"If you die, who it going to speak? Who is going to tell the people about Jesus?!"

"Oh buddy, I'm not going to die. But you and your sister and your daddy...all of us can speak about Jesus."

"I can't yet," Jona said, "I still say 'uhm' too often."

My precious, precious children.