I am so excited to share a BIG secret that I have been keeping!!
My new book, "Path of Hope (Daily Reflections on Hope from the Psalms
for the Lyme Disease Journey" will
be released on May 1st!!
This book, "Path of Hope", is the first and only Lyme patient specific book that focuses on finding hope from scripture in the Lyme Disease Journey. There are 31 topics covered in this book to match the days of the months of the year. Each days devotion has a portion of scripture from the book of Psalms, a reflection, a prayer, an inspiring quote, and highlights a specifically chosen song that relates to this reflection. "Path of Hope" can be used as simple encouragement to those who feel hopeless in this journey or as a guided daily devotional. Either way, "Path of Hope" will provide spiritual encouragement and offer hope to thos who feel hopeless in this journey.
It has been a ton of hard work and thousands of hours and it has been the Lord's grace and goodness each step of the way to see this project coming to fruition. Even as I am sitting here writing this I am humbly thanking the Lord for His strength in helping me complete this project. This was a book that resonated deep in my heart and was written out of a love for those struggling to find hope in their battle with Lyme Disease and this journey of walking this difficult and painful path. I started writing this book over a year and a half ago ... writing on slips of paper, napkins, medication bags, etc... and in a variety of different places... in hospitals, doctors offices, treatment sessions, etc.
The timing of finalizing things with this book release and
finishing up last minute items with this book has not been lost on me. The journey through this disease
has brought a myriad of different emotions: excitement at the progress of
healing that I am slowly experiencing, joy at finding a wonderful and
experienced medical team to help me, anger over the lack of understanding and
support in the political arena of Lyme, discouragement at the extreme lack of
energy I have and the way that fighting Lyme Disease prohibits me from living
life fully the way that I wish I could, and sometimes hopeless at feeling this
journey will never end.
This past week alone brought some news that was completely unexpected to me and another delay in this long road of healing. My heart was broken and I have cried more tears, found myself discouraged again, and have laid out my broken heart once again to the One who loves me more than life.
But this past week in many ways is once again reflective of the entire journey. I have found that there are so many emotions and issues that accompany this journey in fighting Lyme Disease, and yet there is incredible hope to be found in the book of Psalms for the different experiences that we face as Lyme Warriors.
On this journey with Lyme Disease patients may experience all of the emotions I listed and more, including feeling hopeless about the present and the future, but our God of Hope quietly and tenderly reminds us to hope even when everything feels hopeless. Our greatest hope lies in the fact that death is not the ultimate answer and that we have a full and perfect life, with no pain, no brokenness, and no Lyme Disease in Heaven. This hope- this beautiful and living hope (I Peter 1:3-4) is for the future but gives us hope for our present. I have always found great comfort in the Psalms, but none so much as since this journey began. As I approach another anniversary of when this season began and everything was shattered, I look back on the now tattered pages of the book of Psalms in my Bible with a smile. These 150 chapters have provided much comfort and hope, especially on days where I felt I could do nothing but cry.
My prayer with this little book is that it will encourage anyone who reads it, lead them to scripture, remind them that they are not alone in this fight, and gently remind them that the God of hope is very present and active in this often hopeless feeling journey.
May the Lord bless you abundantly dear friends and give you strength for the journey's before you and may we find everlasting hope in our ever present and faithful Savior.
“Lord, you know the hopes of the helpless. Surely you
will hear their cries and comfort them.”
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