The Led, Not Driven book is here!

Edit:  Funny enough, I wrote this post months ago, ready to release my book, Led, Not Driven! The copies I ordered came in the wrong color and Amazon was a bit slow to rectify the situation, so here we are, even later than our late release date! The good news is, the first 175 orders from our shop will get a second copy (one of the “limited edition” grey version we’re calling it. ” />) so basically BOGO-style till we run out. On with the actual post!!

Today, I’m releasing a brand new book that’s been 5 years in the making! (I’ve literally released 3 other books in that timeframe! ” />) Why did it take so long, you ask? Well, it’s kind of a long story. ” /> Like literally. It’s taken longer than I expected to learn how to live led by the Lord, instead of driven by my own ambitions. 

This book is going to be different from anything you’ve ever read from me. 

The Finishing School, Grumpy Mom Takes a Holiday and Pray Confidently and Consistently all have a running theme that guides us as we look at different areas of life, mom struggles and prayer struggles. Springboard Prayers is a book of 125 actual prayers to jumpstart your conversation with the Lord. 

But this one? It’s basically like my diary as I journeyed through a year and more of living out my 2018 word(s) for the year, “Led, Not Driven.” The entries are short and easy to read, but I hope you’ll read them slowly and process them with me. It packs a lot of thoughts in one short book. 

Related: My Word of the Year for 2018

The ironic part is that I thought it would go to press much sooner than this. 2020 to be exact. This is literally still on our site. ” /> 

I am sooooooo glad we waited, though! I got more time to live out the message and actually listen when the Lord asked me to slow down on the actual book I was writing on slowing down.

Today, I wanted to share the epilogue for the book. I hope it gives you a glimpse of what’s to come!! You can order now in our shop or on Amazon! 

This book took two years longer than I originally hoped to publish. 

I guess I learned something after all. 

It’s the spring of 2022 and as I sit here at my computer, I’m reflecting back on this journey. The delay to produce this book reminds me of the work God has done in my heart when it comes to pace. The old Valerie would have demanded we meet a release date but how could I force it while simultaneously drinking in the firehose of this me sage? 

God has continued to work on me since I stopped journaling. There’s been ups (I got off Instagram for good, something that could only happen by God’s grace and prompting), I’ve taken on less projects and said no to things and I’ve started to pay attention to actual people around me. For this introvert who used to be obsessed with checking things off a list? It might be lost on your extroverts, but that’s actually a brag. 

There have been hard moments too where Covid delays for our products sent me into a sustained fight or flight response. The stress it put on my physical body is something I’m still trying to recover from.  

I am more convinced than ever that many of our trials come from simply trying to overload our plates with what we want to accomplish. Things God isn’t asking us to take on. Sometimes, I think we whip our heads around and ask God “why are you giving me more than I can carry?” And He’s gently saying, “Sweet child, I didn’t! The burden I told you to carry was light. You just kept trying to add things in.”

As we carry things, whether it’s dirty clothes to the laundry room, groceries to the kitchen, a child to bed, may we remember the invitation of God’s light load. Our imaginations lead us to believe it’s restrictive and painful but our gracious God, who if I can remind us, formed our hearts and bodies, knows full well what we can carry. And he know’s the pace to go. 

And great news! he’s more than willing to lead us, if we’re willing to follow. 

So who is this book for? 

• The one who struggles with trying to rush through life. 
• The one who is tired of the pace. 
• The one who feels lost and needs more direction. 
• The one who wants to hear from God but feels too busy to notice. 

After you get a chance to read, I would love for you to come back and leave a review wherever you purchased it! Stay on the lookout because in on March 23, we’ll be starting a virtual book club. Click here to join!