What inspired you to write this book?
I was reading Steven Scott's book, The Richest Man Who Ever Lived: King Solomon's Secrets to Success, Wealth, and Happiness in early 2007. I'm not sure how many of your readers know his story, but it goes something like this: Steven had lost like 10 jobs in five years. Desperate to figure out what he was doing wrong, he asked his friend Gary Smalley (yes, THAT Gary Smalley) for advise. Gary's advice: read the book of Proverbs everyday for five years (since today is the 17th, read chapter 17, tomorrow the 18th, and so on and so forth). He encouraged Steven if he did that, he would be a millionaire by the end of the five years. It took Steven three. During the course of his journey and reading Proverbs, he found why some things worked out for him and why some things didn't. It began to open his eyes to those secrets he was missing. It changed his whole life and he became a better person because of it.
I got to the end of the book and thought, 'Where's the rest?' It was a wonderful read. I didn't know what I was thinking while I was reading it. I kept looking forward to a reading plan on how to implement his suggestion.
While this was a great book, I needed something more. I'm one of those get-motivated-for-about-two-weeks kind of person. If you give me a system, something easy I can follow, I can work it and get good at it. If you just tell me: 'Exercise three times a week,' I'm going to look back at you and say, 'But how and what?' I tried reading it (Proverbs) on my own but it just wasn't sinking in the way I wanted it to. Then, in prayer one day, I got the idea for the book for myself since I couldn't find an accompanying workbook for Steven's book. A few days later, I felt impressed that if I wanted and needed this for myself, others might need it to.
What challenges did you have writing it?
One challenge was in not reusing a power verse. Some of the ones I wanted to use I didn't even get the chance to write on. None of the verses are repeated in the 365 days. Some of them I could have expanded over a few pages, but I wanted to remain consistent. Every day corresponds to the day of the month. Since today is March 17th, you would go to the March 17th page and the power verse of the day would come from the 17th chapter of Proverbs. I was able to overcome this challenge by using a grid I created in Excel. This way, I could see what I wrote on for all the days marked the 17th without 'reusing' a power verse.
The more difficult challenge was just finishing it. I guess it was finished faster than many books. I started in March of 2007 and finished in November. Nine months seemed long to me. But sometimes that's how long it takes to birth something.
What's your favorite verse/chapter/section and why?
If I had to pick something, I would pick the journaling section. Every page ends with a question applying the power verse to your daily life and how you can implement it. I love that idea because it causes you to really think about what you read and creates a connection between the power verse and the reader. Why read something that is suppose to change your life then forget it the next day? That's why the journaling section on each page is important. It helps to solidify what you just read into your subconscious so that you can dig it out later when you need it.
What's next for you?
There is a series of books I will be writing that has to do with taking you from the minimum to maximum in any area of your life. I’m so passionate about people doing what they were created to do. If everyone would learn how to free themselves up so that they can fulfill those dreams that seem so far out of reach, they and everyone around them would be so much happier. God purposefully puts these out-of-reach dreams in us so that we could partner with Him to make them come to pass. That’s the exciting part for me: helping someone realize they aren’t crazy and that they can do it because God is for them, not against them.
Sometimes all an eagle needs is a little push, and I'm good at that part.
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