Advent Week 3: Joy
December 15, 2024
During the early stages of writing Live ABOVE the Chaos, I took my young daughters to an event that required me to wait an hour in the hot sun.
That’s when I spotted her, a giant oak tree.
Artistically gnarled and well established in her old age, she beckoned me out of the intense heat and into her shade. As I entered the haven of her dappled light, I remember hearing a distinct crunch underfoot and looking down to see what I was walking on.
I was literally standing on a mattress of acorns several inches thick!
Standing there under that beautiful oak, I received a vision for my book. I knew I couldn’t discuss everything in-depth, but what if I filled the pages with so many seeds that readers would hear the crunch of acorns as they turned the pages? What if God would then used those acorn thoughts to produce immeasurable spiritual growth in each reader?
I wrote the book I would want to hand to any person who has:
Do I provide comprehensive answers to all of life’s big questions? No.
Do I provide enough answers to settle a tired soul and inspire to investigate further? I hope so.
Do I explain all there is to know about how God controls the chaos of difficult circumstances? No.
Do I provide enough information so that a person can start to see how God uses difficulties (even tragedies) for good? I think so.
Do I reveal all there is to know about what it takes to stay on the path of spiritual maturity? No.
Do I present enough of an understanding that a person can begin walking more closely with Him starting today? I believe so.
I wrote it to find my way back. Though I would write pieces of it differently today, it still tells my story and plants seeds I believe will grow to produce good.
But each one should be careful how he builds. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.
