Books take me to thousands of places around the world. This week I traveled to Patrick County, Virginia, with the characters of Joanne Bischof's debut novel "Be Still My Soul". I dug my bare feet into the side of the mountain, and felt the cold wind whip at my shawl. I heard the gruff voices of the back country men, and watched as the women scrubbed their floors with creek water and sand. I lived briefly with gracious hosts, Lonnie and Gideon, Jebediah and Elsie. Lonnie told me the story of her abusive father, and of her forced marriage to Gideon. How she and Gideon never thought they would be happy, as each longed for love in their own way. She shed a few tears as she described the birth of her children, and the loss of her baby girl. Gideon, Jebediah, and Elsie sat quietly in the cabin kitchen as she spoke. Pipe smoke drifted around the men, and Elsie fanned it away from the sleeping baby in her arms. I asked Lonnie what it was that she would tell the world, if she could, and she said "tell them His eye is on the sparrow. That's what my Aunt told me, but it took a lot of hurtin' to truly understand."
Grab some coffee from the wood stove, there's a tin mug or two up on the shelf, and sit down at the table with "Be Still My Soul". Lonnie and Gideon will put aside their chores for a little while. They want you to know what God has shown them. "There's a lesson to be learned in this...but you ain't learned it yet" (p.127)
Read the first chapter, listen to the podcast by Joanne Bischof, or order the book at: http://waterbrookmultnomah.com/blog/tag/be-still-my-soul/
This book was provided to me free of charge by Waterbrook Multnomah for review purposes.
