Where God Finds You - Interview & Giveaway!

UPDATE 11/04/12 10:10 PM WINNERS!

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Timestamp: 2012-11-05 04:06:31 UTC
Congrats to Merry and karen k! Email me your addresses, ladies, and Anita Higman will mail the books to you!

* * * * *I'm happy to share Part 2 of my interview with Anita Higman. In this part we talk about her new book, Where God Finds You. This is categorized as non-fiction but is a blend of fiction and non-fiction; it's a unique book that you'll enjoy reading--and reading about! Here is the interview, followed by information about the book and a giveaway.

I love the title Where God Finds You because you wrote a couple of the Love Finds You books (Love Finds You in Humble, Texas and Love Finds You Under the Mistletoe), so this title is a nice tie-in with that. They sent me a couple of excerpts--Ruth, the woman with the issue of blood, and Peter--which I really liked. Can you tell me a bit about this book?

The woman with the issue of blood who touched Jesus' cloak is actually my favorite! Where God Finds You is forty devotions infused with biblical fiction. I'm hoping that this will help women--and people in general, not just women--to fall in love with the Bible stories all over again. Each one is written in first person, so hopefully that will help you to grasp their inner thoughts and pull you into the story better than third person. My hope is that even though the culture is very different during this time period, we're still struggling today with the same fears and failures and triumphs and the same sin, and we still need the same God and we still need the same forgiveness. I hope readers see that it's very relevant for today, even the Old Testament, which people don't seem to read that much anymore. It seems like maybe the new generation is somewhat fading on their interest in reading the Bible and the Bible stories. I grew up on the Bible stories. My dad read them in our home and I heard them in Sunday School. It seems like there may be a new generation of people who don't even know the Bible stories. I hope this will help them fall in love with the stories again and go back to their Bibles and read it for themselves. And so people don't get confused, the true account from the Bible is listed there [in the book] right after the first person account.

I saw that each one has the fictional account, then the Biblical narrative, then a devotional.

Right, a Life Application, and there are questions for either personal reflection or Bible Study groups.

Tell me about the woman who touched His cloak. What about that one makes it particularly special to you?

I do think that's my favorite even though it's a really short story and we don't know much about her. But God must have been awfully impressed with her faith because we're still talking about it all these years later and she is in the Bible! A lot of people came to Jesus and said "This is what I need." It was probably a matter of shame that she didn't openly come to Him. It was difficult for her because of the time period and the cultural emphasis on being unclean.

That is one thing that has always amazed me about this story and about a lot of things in the Bible: the public nature of certain things, such as uncleanness. You had to tell people things we would keep private because you had to tell them you were unclean. She really wasn't even supposed to be in such a close crowd of people, right?

My guess is probably not.

Even touching Jesus, she was taking a risk because theoretically, she would have made Him unclean.

It's the only episode in the Bible, as far as I know, where somebody did that, where someone touched his cloak like that. I have a feeling she wasn't supposed to be there, and she was going to touch and run! She had enough faith to think she really would be healed, and she was. Jesus felt the power going out of Him, and it was such a dramatic scene, that Jesus wanted to talk to her. He didn't mind about the unclean aspect. He wanted to talk to her. I just love this story and think a lot of women can relate to this. Maybe they don't have that particular situation but they might feel unclean in other ways. There might be spiritual ways they feel unclean and they would like to not do anything but maybe touch His cloak. It's embarrassing to go public with things we've done that are sinful.

I wonder, though, since we don't have to say "I'm unclean," if we hold a lot of things in that we need to be more authentic about. I'm glad we can be a bit more private and not tell folks when we have an issue of blood that makes us unclean, though)

Yes, I think we hide a lot of our sins and our struggles. And maybe we should be accountable to more people and have some close godly friends that we look up to and are accountable to. I think that's a positive thing. It's nice having some godly women friends you can talk to and who can pray for you.

Tell me about how you came up with the title.

I didn't! Actually, the publisher came up with the title but I like it because I think it does fit the book. I think it went through a whole evolution of titles, and usually that's the way it is. On some of my other books, there might be as many as five titles that they have gone through until they feel like they have just the right one that will capture the essence of the work and also capture people's attention when they're glancing through the shelves. A lot of times, books are not necessarily put out face forward, and you just see the spine. You might get a customer's attention for only one second--if you're lucky!

Since this is Standard Publishing and your Love Finds You is Summerside, they weren't trying to connect the titles.

Right. They're different publishers, but they don't mind the connection at all because it will help bring my fiction readers to this non-fiction book.

How challenging is it to write Biblical fiction--trying to stay true to the Bible and not put anything into it while filling in some gaps and helping readers understand emotions and culture?

Well, it was such a daunting task, when the original editor asked me to do it, I told him no! Some other things fell through and he was trying to think of something that I could add some fiction to, and he came up with this idea. It was a really great idea, infusing devotions with first-person Biblical fiction! I don't know if anyone's done anything quite like this before. It was a great idea but I didn't know if I was the correct person for the job. I'm such a perfectionist about things and because Biblical fiction has been done so well, I was completely intimidated, to be honest with you. So I told him no because I didn't think I could do the job the way it needed to be done. He said, "I will not accept that as an answer." (She laughs.) I had never heard that from an editor before! I so appreciated it. It was so wonderful and fresh, but it was scary, too. He said, "I would like you to pray about this." So I said I would pray about it over the weekend. And I did, and everything changed. I hear from God from time to time pretty clearly, but not like that! That was very clear. And it was yes, and I was to write this book., even if I was frightened. I was to put all that aside, all that "Anita stuff" and all that "I can't, I can't," and with His power, I was going to. I emailed him and told him I would do it.

Then it really got scary because I knew it would take quite a few months of research. So that I could get the epic feel of the Bible and the rich language really in my head and my spirit, I had a CD player in my bathroom and I would listen to the Word as I would put my make-up on and any time I was in the bathroom and while I was running errands. So I was listening to the Word out loud, and it changed my life! I highly recommend that to anyone who wants to get a different feel of the Bible. Usually we just read it, and I think our minds have read it so much we just skim things. Hearing it out loud is a different experience, and that really helped me a lot. I had some books on Biblical culture that I was working on at the same time, and some of it just came down to prayer. And just like the woman is raising her hands on the cover, that's what I had to do in the morning. I said, "Lord, I don't really know exactly how to do this; I'm doing my part, doing the research, but I really need your help." And He did, every day, somehow I managed to get a chapter done, and then I would start polishing. It took some time to polish, too. Somehow, the book got written, with the Lord's help, truly.

How did you decide which people you used? You have some people that are less known or unnamed--the woman that touched His cloak, the man at the pool at Bethesda, Pilate's wife, the Queen of Sheba, the woman of Samaria. Then you have some very well-known people: Ruth, Paul, Martha, Rahab, Eve. How did you choose who you used?

That's a good question. One of the criteria is that I had to have a passion for that particular person and what they did in the Bible. I knew I could write it in a more passionate way and make it come to life if I had always been interested in that story. So it had to mean something to me. Not that the other Bible stories don't, but I just have more passion about these. It does look a bit like a hodgepodge selection of people, doesn't it?

There are forty of them, and it's a devotional book, so they can do one a day or one a week or however they want?

As fast or as slowly as they want to do them. Individually or as a group.

Well, I'm looking forward to reading the whole book! Thanks so much for sharing about it.

Where God Finds You
40 Devotions Bringing Bible Characters to Life
(Standard Publishing)
ISBN: 978-0784733639
September 2012/240 pages/$12.99
In forty devotional tales, Where God Finds You breathes new life into ancient Bible characters. Live with and learn about more than forty Bible men and women, including the wife of Pontius Pilate, Esther, John the Baptist, Delilah, Lazarus, and Mary Magdalene.

Through reflection on Scripture and prayer, you’ll discover a place in each of these lives of vulnerability, tenderness, truth, and love—a place where you can find God . . . and where God finds you.

Where God Finds You is unique among women’s devotional books in that it brings dozens of men and women of the Bible to life through dramatic short stories, connects biblical truths to today’s culture, and offers readers an opportunity to reflect on what they’ve learned. Each devotion features:

• A dramatic retelling of Scripture that allows the reader to crawl into the pages of the Bible.
• The Story from God's Word: a quote or paraphrase of the applicable Bible passage in a reader-friendly version.
• The Story—From Then to Now: a personal reflection from the author to help link the passage to life today.
• The Story—Questions to Think About: prompts for personal reflection or group discussion that lead to practical application.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Best-selling and award-winning author, Anita Higman, has over thirty books published (several coauthored) for adults and children. She's been a Barnes & Noble "Author of the Month" for Houston and has a BA degree, combining speech communication, psychology, and art. Anita loves good movies, exotic teas, and brunch with her friends.

Find out more about Anita at http://www.anitahigman.com.

MY THOUGHTS

This is a unique and fascinating book. Familiar and not-so-familiar stories from the Bible are retold in a fresh way through first-person reflections of the individual being highlighted. The scriptural account follows each meticulously researched and carefully crafted fictionalized perspective. Questions for reflection complete the chapter and focus ooon that particular character and/or event. This book can easily be utilized for individual or group study, either daily or weekly, as scheduling permits. For the person unfamiliar with characters and stories from the Bible, this is a great way to begin learning them. The more experienced believer will enjoy the fresh perspective and insights Higman brings to these characters and stories.

GIVEAWAY!

Anita Higman has graciously offered to give a copy of this book to two of you. To enter, leave a comment on this blog by 8:00 pm CST Sunday, 11/04/12 and I will randomly draw a winner. US Residents only, please. You must include an email address if you do not have a blog. Winner will have 48 hours to respond to notification or another winner will be chosen.


Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Anita Higman and Standard Publishing as part of their Blogger Review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”