While I was writing my first book, I was actually writing my second book. If listing the major points of your book counts in the writing process, I was definitely writing my second book. The same inspiration that moved me to write my first book was encouraging me to write my second. I kept a running list on a spreadsheet for every miracle I used in my story. Alongside the miracle in my story, I kept the corresponding miracle in the Bible with its chapter and verse number. I was fully committed to the concept that the Biblical miracles can be repeated in modern times. Those events can change lives-both in this world and the next. I included miracles in my first book, Love, Truth, and Power. For me, it was a clear and essential element driving the story. For the average reader-maybe not so much. God helping man fix his problems through miracles and inspiration was the focus of my book or personal therapy. I had to share that in a more direct way by explaining every modern miracle found in my book. What started out as personal therapy inspired by God turned into an overwhelming desire to share the love, truth, and power that can only come from God.
When we get past the fleeting incentives of fame and fortune, the most important thing remains-the message of the book. The greatest incentive for me was to know my message was well received and, in some small way, made someone’s life a little better. Looking back at my childhood, I always found a story on TV or in the movies satisfying when the good guy prevails, saving the day and all the people I cared about. Over the years, that concept has taken a back seat as authors focused more on stories where the evil prevails and our hero is helpless or nowhere to be found. That’s the opposite of what I read in the Bible, the greatest book of all. Through studying the Bible and the teachings of Jesus, I’ve learned that with the right choices, even ordinary people can become heroes. I can actually feel a rush in my mind, heart, and soul when this happens. It’s like I’m being drawn to the love and peace of God. This I have to share through my books.
In this book, I write several brief chapters on how we may team up with God to achieve our success. Here is one chapter:
Chapter 13: God + Us = Success Example 6
Chapter 18 provides another example involving Lucky and Grunt. Earlier in the book, Grunt administered a beating to his friend, Lucky. It seemed like the right thing to do. Since that time, his spirit underwent a major upgrade thanks to the influence of John and Grunt’s family. It motivated the new and improved Grunt to call the new and improved Lucky. They both shared the divine intervention of God through John.
You may ask, why would Grunt want to beat up his friend in the first place? When we live without God in our life, we often limit our choices to bad ones of various degrees. Grunt concluded that beating up Lucky for a botched job would pacify his ruthless boss, who may have opted for a more permanent solution. Lucky not only understood Grunt’s choice, but appreciated being allowed to live.
Finally, after God healed Grunt’s heart, he needed to check on his friend with a phone call motivated by love. The call ended after they resolved to end the evil and stop Mr. Cain. Without actually saying that they needed God’s help, they knew they did when they said they couldn’t do it alone.
In our lives, we might relate to Grunt, Lucky, or both. If we have hurt anyone by making what we thought was the best choice, we may be like Grunt. How do we fix this? Like Grunt, maybe a simple phone call to express genuine love and remorse may heal the soul. If someone has hurt us and we understand the reason, we may be like Lucky. The person who hurt us may hurt even harder, regretting what they have done. Like Lucky, we need to let them know we harbor no malice and will forgive, as Jesus has taught us.
On a side note, I probably would never have written this book until I realized most people would have missed the Christian references in the first book I wrote. Otherwise, they would have missed a significant portion, or perhaps the entirety, of my book’s message. This became clear to me when I was discussing my book with my wife. She said that most people aren’t that familiar with the Bible and would likely miss many of my Bible references. Like any wise husband, I agreed. But this observation was significantly more important than I should take out the trash.
As I stated earlier, I wrote my books to convey a message more than attaining fame or fortune. I would hate to think I missed out on all three, so writing my first book, my only non-fiction book, had to happen. Even if nothing else came of it, I had the peace of mind knowing I’d done my best to connect God’s word to a novel I never envisioned writing.