The Next Right Thing + A GIVEAWAY

Laurie here with a book recommendation! If you've been reading my posts for any length of time, you know my love language is goals and dreams. This book, The Next Right Thing, and the podcast that it sprang from, have been so instrumental in my life. (And it's on super Kindle sale!)

To put it figuratively, I tend to sprint toward my goals at full speed until I get to a brick wall. And the author, Emily P. Freeman, is a gentle voice that not only encourages me to slow my pace and find some peace, but shows that in most cases, that brick wall of a dream is totally doable. I might not be able to plow through it, but I can climb it, brick-by-brick -- one "Next Right Thing" at a time.

The story of how and why I went back to school is a long and complicated one, but the right one. Despite the fact that my favorite shows growing up were Rescue 911, Trauma: Life in the ER, and Dr. G: Medical Examiner, I didn't think I had what it took to be in the medical field, but I always felt drawn toward it. After graduating with an English degree, I worked in PR, started a family, and the bricks in that wall started getting taller. The programs I'd looked into would all required 8+ prerequisite classes, losing my income for a little while, upending my family's routine, missing my kids' formative years, derailing my writing career. That was if I even remembered how to balance an equation or study for an exam.

So finding Emily P. Freeman's podcast and then reading her book helped show me that I didn't have to have all the answers and ducks lined up ahead of time. I didn't even have to quit writing and my family wasn't going to suffer if I was working hard for a season. All I had to focus on was the Next Right Thing, the closest brick I could reach on the wall.

It somehow feels like ages have passed and *yesterday* that I enrolled in that first chemistry class almost 2 years ago. I'm now beginning my 8th prerequisite, waiting on my last transcript to clear on my nursing school application. And I've found all of the doubts I had were unfounded because, when the Lord calls you to do something, he gives you the strength and the tools and the favor to do it, even if it doesn't look exactly how you envisioned it.

What's the dream that feels insurmountable in your life? What brick walls have you scaled with the Lord's help? Since it's Laurie and Sherrinda's birthday week, we're giving away Kindle copies of The Next Right Thing to a few lucky commenters! Good luck!

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Laurie Tomlinson is the award-winning contemporary romance author of That’s When I Knew, With No Reservations, and The Long Game, currently featured in the Once Upon a Laugh novella collection. She believes that God’s love is unfailing, anything can be accomplished with a good to-do list, and that life should be celebrated with cupcakes and extra sprinkles.
You can connect with her on her Website, Facebook, and Instagram.