Called Blog
Thoughts & Musings on Calling
It was about a year ago that I heard from my friend, Dom; he was holding a copy of Called, the first copy I had ever seen. I made my way to Portland that weekend to speak on C. S. Lewis to a room full of folks at Dom's church. It was then that I saw my words in print for the first time.
It's tough to put into words how much that moment meant. That was one year ago this month.
Like many folks my age, I first read Donald Miller's Blue Like Jazz in undergrad, when Coldplay was still a new band on the scene, and The Terminator himself had just been elected governor of California. For many of us, Miller's "non-religious thoughts on Christian spirituality," set in the familiar Pacific Northwest I called home, was a rite of passage.
So you can imagine my excitement when, some 10 years later, I stumbled upon a BookPage review that set my new, debut book, Called: My Journey to C. S. Lewis's House and Back Again, alongside Miller's latest work, Scary Close: Dropping the Act and Finding True Intimacy.
Friends, the book-loving folks over at Goodreads are giving away two free copies of my new book, Called: My Journey to C. S. Lewis's House and Back Again.
The drawing is for this week only, so, you know, head on over and enter. And if you know of any friends who might appreciate the read, be sure to let them know.
It was a strange feeling walking into a local gas station and seeing my own face staring back at me from the newsstand.
It was an even stranger feeling buying a copy to go along with my morning coffee when my wife asked. I made sure to fold the paper over when I placed it on the counter, hoping to avoid any awkward looks, or even more awkward conversation.
Writing Called felt like getting naked in front of a crowded room.
Some of the people you know. Some of the people are perfect strangers. Either way, the fear is what they will think, and whether they'll laugh.
That's why I chose to start the book by turning to the wisdom of Mr. Bob Dylan himself:
"Bob Dylan once said a poem is a naked person. I’m not much of a poet, but I hope you’ll excuse me if I go ahead and take off all these layers."
