You're the Reason

Thank you so much for your encouragement and prayers as I pull away to work on my book proposal!! I finished my chapter summaries Friday night, and started writing sample chapters.

My eyes have been crossing and my brain is saying, "Enough already!" I don't think I've thought this hard or this much in all my life! This is really a challenge for a woman who processes her ideas verbally. Maybe I could just "speak" this book and it would come to be. Hmm, only God can do that, huh?

I just have to share how your prayers are working. God orchestrated something that only He could do to keep me focused. Last week, after I wrote my last blog post committing to get it done, an editor from Harvest House publishers called me at home. They wanted to see if I could meet with them this morning - because they just so happened to be coming to town and had a morning appointment slot open. My literary agent, who I have not talked to in months, told them I had a book proposal they ought to consider. She didn't even know I had been sent to "time out" to finish it.

Only God.

Only God knew I needed that confirmation. That deadline. That push. And only God knew now much my meeting with Terry Glaspey and LaRae Weikert from Harvest House would totally bless me. They had such a great questions and suggestions. Which means I may re-work my chapter outlines but for now I am staying focused on my sample chapters.

I know you have dreams of your own. Calls you wish would come. Doors you pray God would open. I know you are asking God for clarity and direction, provision and protection in your own life. As I step into the dream God is forming in my heart, I am praying for the dreams He has for you, too.

You are the reason I am writing this book. You are the woman I am thinking of as I stretch my heart and my brain cells. You are the woman I want to encourage and walk beside as you step out of the shadows of your doubts and walk in the confidence of who God has created you to be.

But you know what? I am the reason, too. I need this book just as much as anyone. I know what God has taught me and how far He's brought me, but I still need to walk that way again. So, I pray over and write each word for you. But I have a feeling God has me writing this for me, too.

Well. Enough about that. One more thing. I wanted to let you know about my friend Wendy Blight who is offering an online study on Wednesdays this summer. It's based on her book Hidden Joy in a Dark Corner which is about her journey to healing and freedom after a devastating sexual assault. I know for me, summer schedules make it hard to commit to a weekly gathering at a time and place, but an online study gives the flexibility we need. Check it out her blog!