This week’s blog is a testimony but it also comes with a great amount of personal transparency.  It is my prayer that it will bless and encourage you.

For the past few years I have been working on two books that I knew from the very onset of my writing that God intended for them to be published.  They are completely different in nature and content.  Both of them represent experiences in my life that I know were not only for my growth and benefit but also to bless others in the same manner.  The first book has been completed now for 14 months and the second one (which actually was the initial book I started) is about 1/3 of the way complete.  I am sure you’re asking the obvious question.  What’s the hold up?  Presently the delay has been the lack of finances.  However, I cannot say that finances were the issue at the beginning. 

At the beginning I lacked confidence in myself.  I allowed the enemy to plant thoughts of insecurity and insufficiency in my mind.  He posed questions such as, “what makes you think anyone would want to read anything you’ve written?”  “Why go through all that time and effort and no one will buy it?”  “Don’t you think you’re stepping outside your comfort zone, who made you author?” For some time I allowed the enemy to stall me and even back me into a corner resulting in me putting my work on a shelf.  Then when I became determined to defeat the enemy and forge ahead my computer crashed and all the work I had put into the first book was lost and unable to be recovered.  Even with that devastating set back, God continued to speak to me and direct me to start again.  In addition to that over a year and a half ago I began writing a weekly blog.  All of this was slowly but surely building my faith in God’s plan for me and pushing me forward! 

In December of 2014 I was blessed with an anonymous contributor with the initial startup funds to publish my first book.  I was in awe of such a generous blessing and immediately forwarded it to my editor.  A few months later my father who is 92 experienced a sharp decline in health, was hospitalized, and is now living in a long term nursing care facility in Indiana.  I knew my ministry commitments had to continue, but I live by the principle that family comes first!  Since then much of my time has been spent traveling back and forth to look after him, and partner with my siblings to ensure that he is getting adjusted to his new lifestyle and receiving the best of care.

In the midst of everything that was going on in my life, I was notified that a publisher was looking for writers to submit materials for a compilation book she would be publishing.  It immediately captured my interest, but for whatever the reason I didn’t act immediately.  Finally after much deliberation on my part, I decided to submit two of my writings.  Not having much of a feeling as to whether I believed they would be accepted or not I basically told myself it doesn’t help to try.  After some time I was notified that my writings were not only accepted but they didn’t even require editing or revisions. 

At that point I think I was taken aback and did not even process what was really happening!  Admittedly I did not realize the magnitude of what God had done for about a week and a half when I saw the book cover on Amazon.com.  This may not be MY book, but God saw fit to publish MY writings through another medium!  I believe this was meant not only to encourage me, but also to strengthen my faith to believe that MINE is coming soon.  Even though to some degree I have been a contributing factor to my delay God has not given up on me.  He believes in me and what He created me to accomplish. 

Through this one incident which is truly a life lesson, I vow that I will never take lightly anything that God has enabled me to accomplish.  Furthermore when God gives you an ice cream sundae, He never forgets about the whipped cream and the cherry on top . . . When my daughter held up the book to announce that my writings had been published in a compilation book in our Sunday worship service, the congregation cheered like they were at a football game!   How mindful of my Father to encourage me in such a way that I have no choice but to get the job done and trust Him to provide the resources to fund it!  Oh I guess I should tell you the name of the published book  — “One Sister Away” Encouraging Words From One Sister to Another, Volume 2.

In closing I want to share a verse in the bible that spoke loud and clear to me and may very possibly do the same for you.

“Though thy beginning was small, yet thy latter
end should greatly increase.”
Job 8: 7  (KJV)