May you know the love of Christ... (Ephesians 3:19)
I have a secret to tell you. I turned fifty this year! Considering the fact I began writing in my early twenties, it's hard to think of myself as being that old, but there is plenty of evidence to prove it. My children who were preschoolers when I wrote This Girl Named Amber are now adults. One of my daughters will graduate from college this spring, and she will be returning for her fifth summer of working at the camp where my husband and I met--the inspiration for Camp Laughing Water. Some of my first readers are now in their thirties with children of their own. It's strange. It's delightful. It reminds me of God's goodness and faithfulness.
Over the years I've had to update my books to include technology, language, and cultural changes that weren't a thing when I first wrote them. From cell phones to social media to new words and phrases, I try to keep them as modern and relevant to current readers as possible, but the message of the books remains the same. From one generation to the next, Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever. The writer of Hebrews said that thousands of years ago, and it's still true. His love does not change. He will never love me any more or less than He does right now, and the same is true for you. He does not love me because I've been writing inspirational stories for almost thirty years, or because I trust and follow Him. He loves me because I am His child. Even at fifty years old I can still say that, and you most certainly can too!
Now, our level of recognizing and believing His love for us can change, and that's why I wrote these stories originally and continue to write new ones today. His love may be steady and unchanging, but our hearts are not. We doubt. We question. We get confused. We make mistakes and feel unworthy. We might get completely off course and think we can never get back to where we once were, but that's a lie. It's never too late. It's never too much for Him to handle. He can handle our mess, our doubts, our fears, and our lives, no matter what.
I hope that whether you recently read one of my books and got that message, or it's been a few months or years, that you still believe it. Own it, dear one. Make it your identity: I am a child of God and He loves me. I am forgiven. I am free. I am His, and nothing can take that away from me.
I have a secret to tell you. I turned fifty this year! Considering the fact I began writing in my early twenties, it's hard to think of myself as being that old, but there is plenty of evidence to prove it. My children who were preschoolers when I wrote This Girl Named Amber are now adults. One of my daughters will graduate from college this spring, and she will be returning for her fifth summer of working at the camp where my husband and I met--the inspiration for Camp Laughing Water. Some of my first readers are now in their thirties with children of their own. It's strange. It's delightful. It reminds me of God's goodness and faithfulness.
Over the years I've had to update my books to include technology, language, and cultural changes that weren't a thing when I first wrote them. From cell phones to social media to new words and phrases, I try to keep them as modern and relevant to current readers as possible, but the message of the books remains the same. From one generation to the next, Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever. The writer of Hebrews said that thousands of years ago, and it's still true. His love does not change. He will never love me any more or less than He does right now, and the same is true for you. He does not love me because I've been writing inspirational stories for almost thirty years, or because I trust and follow Him. He loves me because I am His child. Even at fifty years old I can still say that, and you most certainly can too!
Now, our level of recognizing and believing His love for us can change, and that's why I wrote these stories originally and continue to write new ones today. His love may be steady and unchanging, but our hearts are not. We doubt. We question. We get confused. We make mistakes and feel unworthy. We might get completely off course and think we can never get back to where we once were, but that's a lie. It's never too late. It's never too much for Him to handle. He can handle our mess, our doubts, our fears, and our lives, no matter what.
I hope that whether you recently read one of my books and got that message, or it's been a few months or years, that you still believe it. Own it, dear one. Make it your identity: I am a child of God and He loves me. I am forgiven. I am free. I am His, and nothing can take that away from me.
