With the book release just over three weeks away it is hard not to think about the sheer awesomeness of writing and publishing my own book. Thank God that He’s keeping me in my place. From the very beginning, when I first set out to write a book, I knew there were some things I would have to avoid. As the book release draws ever closer (YAY!) I’ve come up with a concrete list of things that writing/releasing this book cannot be about:
- the money
- the fame
- my own glory
- me.
The Money
If you ask the select few that I told that I was writing a book in the early stages, I’m fairly certain that they could all tell you that I said this wasn’t about the money. Sure, making a little extra money is nice, but that’s not why I wrote a book. If that had been my motivation behind writing then the book would have sucked. We all know those artists that start recording music because they think it will sell, not because they really believe the message of the song (I’m looking at you, Tim McGraw, and “Felt Good On My Lips”!). Please, dear sweet Jesus, don’t let that happen to me. I wrote the book because I fully believe it is a message that needs to be told. Writing a book can’t be about how much money I’ll make off of it. Period.
The Fame
Do I really think this book will make me famous? Not so much. Once again, if I wrote a book just to get famous then it would suck. I don’t want to wear a meat dress or do something crazy just to get noticed. Now, being more well-known in Catholic circles wouldn’t be all that bad, but again, so not my main motivation for writing this (or any other) book.
My Own Glory
This book simply cannot be about my own glory. It isn’t about the wisdom I possess or the maturity with which I wrote. It isn’t about making my blog bigger, or gaining a wider audience. Any number of those things may happen anyway, but again, that isn’t why I wrote a book. I don’t want to get a big head about myself just because I wrote a book – and if I do, someone please come put me in my place. The book isn’t about my glory, it is about His. Period. The book is about Him, about His goodness, about how His love overcomes the lies of Satan. It is about His love, His ability to break through hearts of stone and warm them with all that He is. The book is about His glory, not mine.
Me.
It can’t be about me. I don’t want it to be about me. It might sound weird, but I really don’t want it to be about me, I want it to be about Him. Yes, you will get bits and pieces of my story in the book, but my story is wrapped up in His story. As I wrote in the introduction, I must decrease and He must increase. The book is about Him far more than it ever was or will be about me. I’m beyond grateful that He is using me to get this message out. Ever after all this time I still struggle to put into words what it means to me that He is using me in this way. It simply leaves me speechless as I stand in awe of Him.
So…when I say that I hope you buy, read, or share the book, I hope you know that it isn’t about me. It is about the message. It is about God. I do hope you read it. I hope you like it. I hope you see God’s handiwork in it. I hope He speaks to your heart, whether it is through me or not. And if, by some gracious miracle, He speaks to you through the words He moved me to write in this book, well then, praise Him all the more.
You can go here to pre-order signed copies, if you so choose!