“Teena, I just heard on good authority you have a new book,” said my pastor. Would you like to talk about the book Sunday and sell it after the service?”
“My family will not be at church this Sunday, but I can do it next Sunday.”
I welcomed the delay so I would have time to pray about it. My plan did not include selling books in a church. When I told a friend about the invitation, she reminded me of Proverbs 16:9, “We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps” (NLT).
It occurred to me God may not have a problem with books selling in a church after the service is dismissed. God is the author of a bestselling book that has changed countless lives for the better. The people Jesus drove out of the church were thieves making an exorbitant profit from people who came to worship God. The first testimony I received about the power of God came from The Cross and the Switchblade by David Wilkerson. His book became a steppingstone that led to my salvation and a lifelong love for the Bible. I decided to let the Lord determine my steps.
The pastor gave me ten minutes to talk about the book. I read the story in the acknowledgements that explained how God brought me full circle from reading a book to becoming an author, followed by a few selections from the first chapter. The moment I returned to my seat, a woman dropped a twenty on my lap and said, “I want two books.”
“After the service,” I whispered and reached in my box to reserve two books.
After the service, the pastor’s wife cleared papers from a table covered with a pleasing blue cloth that had blessed embroidered on the front. I set twelve books on the table. She immediately arranged them in two staggered rows and set a flower in the middle. I sold out in ten minutes.
There were a few books left in my box, but I needed them for an upcoming conference. My husband and I were in the car about to leave when a man waved for us to stop. He wanted a book.
Obviously, God had a better plan than I did, so I set aside my plan to wait for God to open doors.
Faith's Mystery 