The Road to Journey with Me

After waiting patiently in line the lady grasped the little orange book I’d just signed and looked me in the eye. ‘This is great,’ she said waving my latest forty day devotional, ‘but when are you going to write a yearlong one? This is too short.’

Little did she know that thought process had been prayed over, and a publisher with a request firmer than her question had already approached me. However I was under no illusion that writing a 365 devotional was a completely different ballgame to anything I’d done in my six previous titles. After all, I only ever meant to write one book - ‘Under the Rainbow’. I was a nurse, not an English scholar! Telling my story of walking with God through tragic family circumstances was purely to help others experience God’s presence in life’s tough stuff as I had done. But writing has a way of getting under your skin, and for me, telling other people’s stories – both contemporary and biblical – drew me in, and wouldn’t let me go. My life as an author had begun.

However, the greatest Author of all had gripped my heart, impacting every step of what had been a difficult life-journey with His Word, often through short inspirational readings when my mind was too tired to engage in deep Bible study. The importance of that experience led me to write two forty day devotionals, which God has graciously used to comfort, encourage and inspire others. That has been such a privilege, and a personal blessing.

And so ‘Journey With Me’ was born out of challenge. I thought it was only a matter of writing down what God would say to me everyday during my quiet times for a year, and let the reader journey with me in the process. But I quickly related to Jill Briscoe’s response when asked of her experience writing a yearlong devotional: ‘I soon discovered I was neither devotional, nor daily!’ Neither did I foresee that the year ahead would include knee-replacement surgery, quickly followed by major illness for both of my elderly parents, and the subsequent death of my much-loved father.

No sooner had I started into what would be my longest write to date, than I realized the arrogance of my idea of encouraging others to journey with me spiritually over a year! I was discouraged, and falling behind with my writing, even wondering if this was one book that wouldn’t be finished. In an emotional time in God’s presence one morning, He graciously whispered to my heart ‘Catherine, why don’t you let people journey with Me? This isn’t about you.’ The weight of responsibility fell instantly and I regrouped, reorganizing my writing and setting to the task with increased enthusiasm, so thankful for the help of the IVP team along the way.

I chose to write in the early mornings because of the personal challenges during that year, using the seasons, church calendar, biblical cameos and themes, anecdotal material, and scripture that has personally challenged me, to produce a book that would ultimately encourage us to journey with God on a daily basis. The Psalmist reminds us “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105). Therefore it is my prayer that however difficult the terrain we might face in the year ahead that we will come to know the Guide on the journey in a deeper and more personal way. That has certainly been my experience as I’ve written ‘Journey With Me’.