Thankful for These …
Thankful for These …
Healing and help. Those two words go together so well. When someone struggles with pain, a helping hand is so appreciated. And I’m no exception. Especially as I worked on A Place of Healing, for the subtitle says it all: Wrestling with the Mysteries of Suffering, Pain, and God’s Sovereignty. There were days of such physical pain that I had to wrestle to write even one page. But God graciously sent some incredibly helpful people my way.
Like Larry Libby. I have worked with my trusty editor-friend on previous books, but never have I had to lean on him as hard as with A Place of Healing. Larry was able to hold a “stethoscope” up to my soul and give language to the stirrings and murmurs inside my heart—for that, I am eternally grateful. If anyone walks away from this book having drawn closer to God and His Word, I have you to thank, Larry.
And I’m always leaning on Wolgemuth & Associates for help. Robert and Bobbie Wolgemuth are longtime friends with whom I have harmonized on many a hymn, not to mention collaboration on past books. They are also intimately acquainted with the path of pain I’ve journeyed on these many years, and so I thank you for your prayers, Robert and Bobbie. I’m indebted to the growing team at Wolgemuth & Associates, especially Erik and Andrew—God bless you both for opening doors for me to wheel through.
The good folks at David C. Cook have helped give a big boost to A Place of Healing. From Dan Rich to Don Pape: Thank you for extending the Cook platform to me so that I can share my story with a new generation of readers. I’m especially grateful to Erin Prater and Susan Tjaden, who became real cheerleaders for the book, giving care and thought in refining every page and paragraph.
There were plenty of times at Joni and Friends when I had to pull away from the computer and simply lie down to give my body a break. It takes a team of people to not only help me research and type, but to get me sitting up comfortably in my wheelchair and moving forward. My coworkers—Judy Butler, Francie Lorey, Rainey Floreen, Amy Donahue, and Jaime Chambers—deserve a round of applause for the many times they lent a hand.
Finally, special thanks to my dear husband, Ken, who has faithfully walked beside my chair these many years, seeing me through every hurt and happiness. Ken and I pray that the insights I’ve shared in A Place of Healing will lift the spirits of the reader to new heights of trust and confidence in our wonderfully sovereign God—He is our very present help for every need; He is our place of healing.