In celebration of Christmas, we would like to introduce you to our newest author, Richard Spillman, who is here to discuss the difference between our plans and God’s plans.
Merry Christmas to our entire Mountain Brook Ink family. May 2018 bring you the peace of God’s direction and provision, even if it doesn’t turn out like you expected.
Book 1 in Richard’s end times thriller series, The Awakened, will be releasing Jan. 1, 2019.
Sometimes we have plans that seem good at the moment yet God has something better and we just need to walk in faith. This is one of those times.
What I Planned:
I wrote a nonfiction book: Do What Jesus Did. I believed in its message, and like any author, I was hoping it would sell lots of copies. Years ago, I founded a small mission organization, the Kingdom is Near (KIN). KIN purchased copies that I planned to sell and return the cost as well as the profit to the ministry.
Garbage dump in Mozambique where Kingdom is Near ministered.
I sold a few then God stepped in and told me to give them away. At first I thought, all right, I’ll sell some and give some away. So much for my plans, I didn’t sell a single one after that ,but I had numerous requests for free copies. At first, because the postage would be high, I thought I would only give it away in the US and maybe Canada. I did that for a week then God told me to offer it free everywhere and pay the postage myself. I started to do that, but to be honest it has hard – everything was about to change.
Sign on a prison wall where KIN ministered in the Philippines.
What God Did:
A pastor of a small church in Africa wrote and asked if he could have one of the free copies so I sent him one. A couple of months later he wrote me back to say that he read it and it changed the way he preached. He decided to run a small conference on the book for his church. On the day of the conference the church was overflowing because people from other villages somehow heard about it.
He asked if he could be given a dozen more copies to distribute to those villages. I sent them, but I have to admit I was reluctant because the postage was more than even the price of the books.
Then everything changed when God revealed His plan. The pastor sent me these pictures of him distributing the copies of the book to pastors in surrounding villages. I can’t say that Do What Jesus Did is the international best seller I hoped for, but apparently it is an international best give-away. Which when you think about it is far better, because pictures like these are more than a blessing, they are a treasure stored in heaven worth far more than selling thousands of books. After all, the book is all about Jesus and doing what Jesus did – praying like Jesus prayed, loving like Jesus loved, serving like Jesus served . . . so it should get into the hands of anyone God wants to have read it regardless of the cost. I am so blessed that God would even consider to use me in this way.
What I Want Now:
God changed me. Sure, I still hope to sell some copies, but as long as I can I want to give it away, and I pray that God will allow me to hear more stories of how the book, the story of who Jesus was and what we should be, affects the lives of those who read it.
Now I have finished my first novel, The Awakened. I wrote it with reverence hoping to honor God. I’m excited to see what God has planned for this latest effort.
Richard Spillman has a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and has taught Computer Engineering for over 30 years. He retired two years ago.
Since a university professor has summers off, he used that time for mission work. In 2004 he founded the Kingdom is Near (KIN) Ministries. He has also taught in DTS for YWAM in Mali, South Korea, India and the Philippines. Richard is active on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Wattpad and LinkedIn. On Wattpad he as posted several short stories from the world of The Awakened.
You can learn more about Richard at his website: spillmanrichard.com
Or on his Facebook Group
