It's Gonna be a Crazy Ride!

So, here’s the promised update!

I was up pretty late the other night working on some final stuff submit to a publisher; three of my favorite chapters from my book, a synopsis, who I thought the target audience was, and my inspiration. So I’ll share some of that with you guys, although I won’t give out all the juicy details. I want you all to buy the book if we decide to go with this publisher!

This book is entitled Another Ending, and it is very much a book about hope. It’s about the power of the cross, about overcoming the darkest of obstacles and returning home. With Jesus, it is always possible to stop running away and to return home. I want my readers to really grasp this…we live in a dark world, but with Jesus we are able to maneuver it a little better.

I focus on some the toughest things that face young adults today, including date rape and abortion. It’s a bit of a love story, but don’t worry, it’s not too sappy. And there’s not a cheesy, happily ever after ending. It’s a good ending, believe me, but I hate authors that write endings that would probably never happen in real life. I want this to be a believable story, so I left out the expected happily ever after and took it in a bit of a different direction. Hopefully this gets you intrigued!

Most importantly, this story is about running away. It’s about turning away from Christ when life gets tougher and tougher. The main character, Molly, is constantly searching for peace away from Christ, away from the church. And yet the farther away she tries to run, the emptier she feels. She keeps running into…you guessed it…ending. Dead end after dead end. But, I want my audience to see that facing trials is possible with Jesus. Molly can only return from all she’s run from with his help.

And…that’s all I’m going to give you. Just a little nibble to draw you in.

This has been an incredible journey. The story is written in first person, and I felt like I stepped into a different life while writing. It’s very personal…what Molly has struggled through, I’ve struggled through. She’s very much a part of me; I simply can’t let her go. So that’s why I’ve started the book’s sequel. I couldn’t leave her where I did…I have big plans for her. And I have nothing else to do this summer with Ben in Sioux Falls. Might as well, right? I thought so.

And like I told the publishers, this is all inspired by Christ. I’ve loved reading and writing my whole life, but I thought getting published was only a dream. But life is short. I don’t want to wait to live out my dreams. Sure, I’m in college. Nope, I don’t have a degree in English or Creative Writing. I’ve never attended any workshops or took any writing classes. But I’ve read hundreds of books, and I feel like that has made me into the writer I am today. And a publisher wants my book from only reading three chapters and a synopsis. So that’s encouraging!

I am inspired simply because I am a helper. Explains why I’m in social work! I want to help this hurting generation see the hope that only comes from Christ. This is my mission field…God hasn’t called me to Africa; he’s called me to my computer. He’s called me to step outside my comfort zone and pursue this with everything in me. So that’s what I’ve been doing since October.

I’ve been so encouraged by you all. Thanks for believing in me. I have the best support group and fan base ever. Please keep me in your prayers…this is a big decision for me and my family, because getting the book published is a pricy investment. Pray that we will know exactly what to do. If this isn’t the way to go, I want it to be crystal clear. But mostly, please pray for the people who will one day read this work. The message is powerful. I want it to plant seeds in people, to help bring people home, like Molly comes home. My prayers are for the readers, not me. I’ve done the work and put myself out there, and I know Christ will lead me exactly where I need to go. What I really want is for the hearts of unbelievers to be open and ready. Please partner with me on this. My one and only goal is for Christ to get all the glory, not me. It’s not about me. It’s all for him. So thank you for all the congratulations…but the glory belongs to Him, and Him alone.

1 Corinthians 10:31
So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.

13 months to go!

Ben and I always joke that our entire relationship has been about waiting. Six months waiting to make it “Facebook official” and to be able to go out alone together. 9 months waiting for me to finish high school so we could once again be at the same school. 19 months of waiting to say, “I do.” And as summer draws closer, we get to do three more months of separation as Ben stays in Sioux Falls to work and I head home to Yankton for one more summer of working, amazing quality time with my mama and the rest of my family, wedding planning, and lots of working. Ben is the only one who really understands how frustrated I get when we’re apart for long amounts of time. Let’s just say that my patience level is very small. I absolutely hate being apart for more than a few days. I have such a deep respect for military couples who are separated for months at a time with no option of driving home for a quick weekend together. I couldn’t do it…so I’m glad Ben isn’t a military man!

But waiting and separation is one of the biggest reasons I know that Ben is completely and totally committed. In high school when we were waiting those six months, girls used to tell Ben that they wished a boy would wait for them the way he waited for me. The fact that he respected my dad’s wishes and was willing to wait six months to just date me was pretty romantic in my fifteen year old brain. And my nineteen year old brain…I still think that was pretty romantic. J And then Ben endured my crazy emotions last year while I was still in Yankton and he was at USF. I was pretty ridiculous at times. Poor guy…but he took it like a champ. And we got engaged so I guess it wasn’t that bad…at least that’s what I tell myself to justify my craziness. And we both know that this summer will be tough for me, and I will probably get antsy and emotional just like I did last year. At least I know he’s prepared!

A few weeks ago someone asked me why I thought I was ready to get married. It sort of caught me off guard, and I simply wanted to say “Because we love each other.” But that’s a lame reason. A lot of people fall in love, but that doesn’t mean they should get married. But thinking back to all the waiting made me realize that I know we’re ready for this because of what we’ve gone through and what we’ve learned from it. I know that Ben respects me and my family. I’ve known from the beginning that Ben wanted something real and lasting, and he proved it by waiting and being incredibly patient with me. The trust and respect between us is so strong because we’ve learned to face problems head on and talk through them. So yes, we may be young, and to some marriage seems a little crazy. But I think we are more ready for this than people who may be years older than us. Others tell me that I have my whole life to be married and that I should take these years to go out into the world and have fun. I don’t want to do that alone. I want Ben to go with me, and I want to have fun together. I want to chase dreams with him right by my side. I know I have my whole life to be married…is it wrong to want an early start? I can’t imagine anything better than living life with my favorite person in the whole world.

So…let the waiting continue! 13 months to go until wedding day, three months of summer separation. It’ll be worth it. We’re pros at waiting anyway.