A Good Read

I am a reader.  I have been ever since I was a little girl.  I’m one of those that read the entire Nancy Drew Series way back then. 

I’ve read many books that have inspired me.  You can see a list of some of those to the right of my blog. 

But none has moved me out of my seat and out into the public quite like this one. . .



Within months of reading this book, which I did in one sitting, the blanket ministry was started.  I didn’t have a clue what I was doing, but God did.  After two winters, over a 1000 blankets were handed out to the homeless and needy and my husband and I ended up on the front page of the newspaper. After two years of seeing and talking with the homeless, I saw that there was a soul beneath the hardened exterior that was not any different from mine.  These people are a creation of God just like me and have gone through the pain from others, poverty, and bad choices.  They also need to know love and experience grace and mercy as I have experienced.  And so I am now involved in a book project interviewing the homeless, giving them a voice, sharing with the world that there is a somebody inside that tired shell of theirs, a real beating heart that longs to be heard.  I don’t have a clue what I’m doing here either, but God does, and I am following the best I know how as He leads.

And one of those ways is through another good read, this one. . .

When I open this book, I feel the Holy Spirit draw me in.  Reading this one gives me courage and boldness this quiet girl never had as a young one.  Reading this one fills me up with love and compassion for my fellow Bowling Greeners.  Reading this one puts my mind back into perspective when the enemy tries to thwart my direction. Reading this one gives me comfort, strength, direction, solid footing, peace, and joy. 

Let me clarify this.  The books are good reads, but it is the authors who do the inspiring.  Ron Hall, his wife, and Denver and their story is what inspired me.  And it is the author of this second book that gives me the abundant life He promised me. And I’m not talking about things that can and will rust away eventually, but the things I listed above that never have to go away.

Sometimes I don’t know what direction to go in.  Five years ago, when I felt life was spiraling out of control, I started to hear His whisper saying, “Write it down.”  As you see at the top of my blog, I kept hearing this for two weeks.  Then one morning I let my Bible just freely open up on my lap and these are the words my eyes fell on. . . “Write in a book all the words I have spoken to you.”  I gave in.  I wrote my first book which contains over 75,000 words.  I put it away to begin another and then another and now I have this project with the homeless.  He never said to me anything would be published, He just said to “Write”.  I don’t know where all of this is going, and that’s ok.  I might be scared out of my mind if I knew.  I’m just trusting God with each step.  And I will continue to open up the best book ever because not only is it a good read, it is my LIFE. 

God gave me the opportunity to thank Ron Hall from the book, Same Kind of Different As Me.  I had been wanting to do this but did not know how.  He got a hold of my story through someone else and I received an e-mail from the lady who works with him telling me he read my story and wanted to thank me for what I was doing with the homeless.  I in turn, got to send my “Thank You” back to him.  How awesome is our God to allow me the privilege to say Thank You to these authors?!

And to the Author of the best read ever and the Author of my life. . .I say “Thank You!”  for everything you have done in my life, most importantly sending your Son to die on the cross to pay the penalty for my sins, and giving me this life that you have and walking through it every step of the way with me. 

Next time you pick up a book to read, make it a good read.  You just never know how God will use it to move you on to that next step in your life.

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