Welcome to the first Five Minute Friday post of November 2016!

How’s everyone doing? Gearing up for the holidays? Raking tons of leaves? Still desperately clinging to the last fraying strands of warm-ish weather?

Since November is traditionally known as a month of gratitude, I thought it would be an appropriate time to remind you all just how grateful I am for each and every one of you!

So, in a demonstration of my gratitude for the one-of-a-kind community called Five Minute Friday, I’ll be hosting a giveaway here every week during the month of November!

 

 

[Tweet “It’s GIVEAWAY MONTH at Five Minute Friday!”]

Go ahead and join the Heading Home mailing list here if you haven’t done so already to make sure you don’t miss out on any of the news!

You’ll find this week’s giveaway item and instructions on how to enter when you get to the bottom of the post.

But first …

Have you heard?

Fistbump Media just released a brand new e-course, and it’s fantastic!

 

30 Days to #SelfPub: How to Take Charge of Your Publishing Goals

(Affiliate link)

This course will hold your hand step-by-step through the self-publishing process, from start to finish.

 

[Tweet “Check out this new #selfpublishing course from @FistbumpMedia!”]

 

Learn more from Fistbump Media president Dan King in this blog post interview, and in the video below!

 

 

The price is currently $19.99, but only through November 7th, 2016! Starting November 8th, it gets bumped up to $29.99, so make sure you get in on the action now!

Order the Fistbump Media Self-Publishing Course now!

 

This week’s Five Minute Friday prompt is:

 

 

[Tweet “This week’s Five Minute Friday prompt is: JOURNEY .. Come write with us!”]

Ready? GO.

Sometimes I forget that all of life is a journey.

It sounds silly, I know.

But sometimes I get stuck in the moment, lodged in a rut, or zoomed-in focused on the nitty-gritty of the day-to-day.

I get frustrated by small things and forget to look at the big picture.

It’s nearly holiday season, which often gets me reflecting back on past years. This week I found myself looking ahead in my calendar at the weeks to come, and inevitably I thought back to last year around this time.

Last December was one of the worst health months in my life. Some of you may remember that I was down for 21 days (including an overnight hospital stay) with a weird viral heart infection combined with carbon monoxide poisoning. Literally the day I started to feel better after three weeks in bed, I slipped on ice, split my head open and had to get internal stitches and external staples in the back of my head. I had concussion symptoms for a full month afterwards.

Now, I don’t share these details for pity or sympathy and I am oh-so-aware that so many struggle with issues far more significant and devastating.

But the looking back has made me thankful for the ups and the downs. I thank God for His gentle leading, for His gracious provision, for guiding me to wide open green pastures.

I thank God for growth, not just in the past year, but past years, and

I thank God for the journey.

[Tweet “I thank God for the journey.”]

What are you thankful for?

STOP.

 

And now, it’s GIVEAWAY TIME!

This week’s giveaway item is a limited edition Five Minute Friday mug!

 

 

[Tweet “Enter to #win a Five Minute Friday mug! #giveaway”]

 

To enter the giveaway, share this post on one (or more) of the social media channels and leave a comment to tell me where you shared. Each share can be added as a separate entry in a separate comment.

Winner will be drawn on Monday, November 7th. Winners must have a U.S. mailing address.

 

Happy writing, friends! Link up your own five minute free write below!