DONATING BOOKS TO REHABS, PRISONS, SHELTERS, HOSPITALS, & LIBRARIES

PLEASE HELP ME DONATE BOOKS to REHABS, PRISONS, SHELTERS, HOSPITALS, & LIBRARIES (AND PLEASE SHARE THIS in your social media and emails….. everywhere~!). I am going to be donating a nice, big pile of the book I wrote (FORTIFY YOUR SOUL) to REHABS, PRISONS, SHELTERS, HOSPITALS, & LIBRARIES. I am looking for contacts and addresses for these rehabs, prisons, shelters, hospitals, and libraries. If you have INSTITUTIONS you’d like to see blessed, please send me the full contact info. (This is not for me to send them to your friends and family, but to make donations to legitimate institutions).

A partial list of places where we have donated books: Truth for Women Center, Northampton County Prison, Sarasota County Jail, Self Help Movement, Books Through Bars,  Sussex Correctional Institution, Eagleville Hospital, Lakeside Academy, Daytop, Steered Straight, Inc., MOTHERS IN CHARGE, COVENANT HOUSE, ANCORA PSYCHIATRIC HOSPITAL, LITERACY VOLUNTEERS ASSOCIATION, GILDAS CLUB OF SOUTH JERSEY, Susannah’s House, Hope All Day Foundation, Salvation Army Drug Program…. and more to come. Just tell us where to send a copy.

Optional Additional Help: The shipping of these books will get expensive, as each book weighs 1lb. So, if anyone would like to help me out by offering non-tax-deductable donations to help with the shipping, that would be very wonderful~! Actually, if anyone would like to help me pay for the donation books, too, that will make the pile I plan to donate grow even bigger. I’ll gladly accept any help, but mostly I am seeking contacts and addresses to donate books.

Thanks for your support~!

Fortify Your Soul Cover

——-

If you would like to read the diverse endorsements and learn more about this book, follow these links: https://fortifymylife.wordpress.com/books/ and https://fortifymylife.wordpress.com/category/book-updates-for-my-book/

To read more about me, follow this link: https://fortifymylife.wordpress.com/about/

To see the book on amazon, follow this link, but I’d rather you get it directly from me, so I can be the one who makes the money~! Publishing this was VERY expensive~! www.amazon.com/Fortify-Your-Soul-Letters-Friends

To follow the blog and receive updates with blog posts, go to the top right corner of the page, where it says “Follow this Blog”.

Read the Fortify Your Soul Introduction:

One of the most precious people in my life called to tell me that he was heading off to a 28-day recovery program. He was going to be turning 40 during this period of time. I told this marvelous man that 40 is the perfect age to get his life together. It is never too late for a brand-new lease on life! I went on to explain that the number 40 shows up a lot in the Bible. We discussed a whole bunch of fabulous Bible stories that include the number 40. We couldn’t stay on the phone forever, but he said he would like to hear more. I started to write my dear Dude a collection of letters.

This dear friend decided to stay at the recovery facility for an additional three months. I was glad to hear this, for two reasons: (1) he was being serious about his recovery, (2) I was having a great time writing him letters. Now I had extra time to keep writing. He was a “captive” audience! He had never heard the stories of the Bible put in such a way that they were interesting or relevant to him. He had always felt out of the loop, and that didn’t bother him at all. But now something was different. “Dude” was loving these letters, and he actually gathered a group of people in the recovery program each time a new letter arrived. He read the letter out loud to a group of men, few of whom were normally interested in the Bible, and they would have a discussion on the topic of the letter.

This growing audience would call this time “Bible study.” I was touched and amazed that this tough crowd was enjoying these letters. That really spurred me on. I thought it would be wonderful to end up with a collection of 40 letters based on the number 40. It is this completed collection of 40 letters, 40 stories written to my buddy that have been adapted into this book.

Now why on earth would that be interesting to anyone else? Because the biblical use of the number 40 is amazing, encouraging, refreshing, and fortifying. How many times do you hear the expression “40 days and 40 nights”? Which kings ruled for 40 years? Why 40? It is beyond coincidence that this number appears over and over! I discovered that when I encountered the number 40 in the Bible, there would often be an intriguing lesson. There was typically a time of trial with a relevant revelation and a positive outcome. As I studied the Bible to develop the 40 stories, I would come away with fresh thoughts and a renewed perspective. I discovered cool ideas and strategies that I could apply to my own life and share with others.

As I wrote about Noah, Jonah, King David, Peter, and many others being released to their assignments and destinies, paths would open so I could follow their testimonies to destinations of new beginnings, higher levels of victories, and heart-thriving revelations. This is what I shared in the “Dear Dude” letters. God loves us and He is excited about our fruitful destinies! God rocks!

These great Bible stories are told from my own perspective. They are recounted as a sister would casually tell them to a brother who has never really heard them, while eating chicken wings and pickles. The tone is informal and familiar. There are plenty of quirky jokes and inspiring insights. This is a voice that has clearly not been groomed by the Christian marketplace. For the book, I have added a section to each chapter that is meant to churn up questions, thoughts, and feelings. These contemplations will lead you to consider the content of the Bible more deeply, how it applies to life’s circumstances. You will finish this book having a lot more information about Christianity. I suspect that Fortify Your Soul will make most readers hungrier for the things of God. Fortunately, there are many resources included to assist you in heading out on a path of discovery and adventure with God.

OK, ready? Roll up your sleeves, this could get messy (in a good way)!

A FUN BOOK REVIEW FOR MY BOOK

I spoke with someone today who gave me some really great feedback about my new book, Fortify Your Soul, which is only in the pre-release phase at the moment. I wish I could word his thoughts exactly as he did, he said it better than I will as I try to capture the essence of his review.

This man, a family member, laughed and told me how proud he was… and how blown away he was by how much I knew about the Bible. Then started the fun comparisons~!  He felt Fortify Your Soul was “Micheneresque”. (Coming from Doylestown, PA, where the author James Michener grew up, that is a high compliment.) Well, I didn’t know what he meant by that. He went on to clarify the statement. Michener, he said, would start with a simple theme (Hawaii, or the Chesapeake) and then put together a work of astounding magnitude and complexity in which the characters add life and depth to the now no-longer-simple theme.

This man went on to say that he had gone to church as a child, pretty much against his will, and was bored while there. He never read the Bible and that was fine with him and everyone else. But, he had what he called a “comic book” knowledge of a few Bible stories. I’m guessing he had a visual image in his imagination, drawn like a children’s book illustration, of Noah and Jonah. Those are the 2 Bible characters he named. I get it. As a kid I could add Daniel to that list, and that just about exhausted my Bible familiarity. He was impressed and entertained as so many Bible stories came to life in Fortify Your Soul. He said he tried to make himself read more slowly, because he wanted to race through the book. He read it in 15 hours over the course of 3 days. I told him he’d have been better off reading a chapter or 2 per day over a longer period of time. He agreed.

But, the most fun part of his review was this. He said it was like watching the Steve Martin movie The Three Amigos... which he set up as the comic equivalent of The Three Musketeers. His point? Something classic and timeless was made very approachable and friendly, reaching a new audience~!  And.. several times he commented on how much he enjoyed my brilliant use of slang. (Yup, I write like I talk, ‘n’ all~!) He said it was just so FUN, he is going back in and re-reading stories that he especially enjoyed.

I did it~! I did it~!

I did it…. I made the Bible read in such a way that someone who would not ordinarily read it had a blast getting to know Bible characters and some of the timeless, useful lessons conveyed in the book. Well, I just wanted to share that. Made me feel good.

——–

To read a blurb about the book and see the other endorsements, click here:

https://fortifymylife.wordpress.com/books/

Here are some updates about the book along the way, the introduction, the cover design, and more:

https://fortifymylife.wordpress.com/category/book-updates-for-my-book/

Fortify Your Soul – Read the Introduction

Amazing, encouraging, refreshing, and fortifying……

Fortify Your Soul Introduction,

               by Laurie Hayden Bergey

One of the most precious people in my life called to tell me that he was heading off to a 28-day recovery program. He was going to be turning 40 during this period of time. I told this marvelous man that 40 is the perfect age to get his life together. It is never too late for a brand-new lease on life! I went on to explain that the number 40 shows up a lot in the Bible. We discussed a whole bunch of fabulous Bible stories that include the number 40. We couldn’t stay on the phone forever, but he said he would like to hear more. I started to write my dear Dude a collection of letters.

This dear friend decided to stay at the recovery facility for an additional three months. I was glad to hear this, for two reasons: (1) he was being serious about his recovery, (2) I was having a great time writing him letters. Now I had extra time to keep writing. He was a “captive” audience! He had never heard the stories of the Bible put in such a way that they were interesting or relevant to him. He had always felt out of the loop, and that didn’t bother him at all. But now something was different. “Dude” was loving these letters, and he actually gathered a group of people in the recovery program each time a new letter arrived. He read the letter out loud to a group of men, few of whom were normally interested in the Bible, and they would have a discussion on the topic of the letter.

This growing audience would call this time “Bible study.” I was touched and amazed that this tough crowd was enjoying these letters. That really spurred me on. I thought it would be wonderful to end up with a collection of 40 letters based on the number 40. It is this completed collection of 40 letters, 40 stories written to my buddy that have been adapted into this book.

Now why on earth would that be interesting to anyone else? Because the biblical use of the number 40 is amazing, encouraging, refreshing, and fortifying. How many times do you hear the expression “40 days and 40 nights”? Which kings ruled for 40 years? Why 40? It is beyond coincidence that this number appears over and over! I discovered that when I encountered the number 40 in the Bible, there would often be an intriguing lesson. There was typically a time of trial with a relevant revelation and a positive outcome. As I studied the Bible to develop the 40 stories, I would come away with fresh thoughts and a renewed perspective. I discovered cool ideas and strategies that I could apply to my own life and share with others.

As I wrote about Noah, Jonah, King David, Peter, and many others being released to their assignments and destinies, paths would open so I could follow their testimonies to destinations of new beginnings, higher levels of victories, and heart-thriving revelations. This is what I shared in the “Dear Dude” letters. God loves us and He is excited about our fruitful destinies!

God rocks!

These great Bible stories are told from my own perspective. They are recounted as a sister would casually tell them to a brother who has never really heard them, while eating chicken wings and pickles. The tone is informal and familiar. There are plenty of quirky jokes and inspiring insights. This is a voice that has clearly not been groomed by the Christian marketplace. For the book, I have added a section to each chapter that is meant to churn up questions, thoughts, and feelings. These contemplations will lead you to consider the content of the Bible more deeply, how it applies to life’s circumstances. You will finish this book having a lot more information about Christianity. I suspect that Fortify Your Soul will make most readers hungrier for the things of God. Fortunately, there are many resources included to assist you in heading out on a path of discovery and adventure with God.

OK, ready? Roll up your sleeves, this could get messy (in a good way)!

——-

That is the introduction to Fortify Your Soul as it appears in the book, but I have added the bold emphases just for the blog post.

And if you would like to read the diverse endorsements, follow this link: https://fortifymylife.wordpress.com/books/

To read more about me, follow this link: https://fortifymylife.wordpress.com/about/

To follow the blog and receive updates with blog posts, got to the top right corner of the page, where it says “Follow this Blog“.

The Full Cover Layout for My Book, Fortify Your Soul

I have received the full cover layout (front, back, spine and all) of my upcoming book, Fortify Your Soul. After hitting some speed bumps with the publishing process and with some unexpected twists in my life (which I may get into in another post), we are getting very close to having this book published~! 

In case you have trouble reading the cover, the following is the text from the back of the book:

IT’S NEVER TOO LATE TO DISCOVER YOUR PURPOSE IN LIFE

Do you want to live a more meaningful life?

Unfortunately, something so simple can get complicated…really fast. With thousands of books and seminars available—all trying to give you the secrets to a more purposeful life—you might be asking: Is it really this hard to know who I am and what I have been put on Earth to do?

No, it’s not!

In Fortify Your Soul, Laurie Hayden Bergey takes you on an inspirational journey that is often humorous, always relatable, and consistently encouraging.

You’ll discover…

• Spiritual growth that makes sense and gives purpose to your everyday life

• That there is actually a written blueprint to direct you toward who you were designed to be

• That you can transform your thoughts and attitudes in positive ways

• How you can be a catalyst for transformation…wherever you are, whatever you do

Laurie shares 40 entertaining and down-to-earth devotional stories of people who triumphed over adversity, overcame personal challenges, and fulfilled their destinies. Each story will give you new keys to unlock your purpose and supply you with tools and fortification for this great adventure, the life you were created to live!

Laurie Hayden Bergey and her husband, Brook, are the founders of Miracle Waters Ministries and The Gift List. Laurie has her Masters in Practical Ministry. She also serves as an ordained deacon at New Covenant Christian Community Church in Bethlehem, PA. Her creative passions include being a glass jewelry master craftsman, and an amateur chocolatier. Laurie has also served in the United States Peace Corps in Niger, West Africa. Visit the author’s ministry website: miraclewaters.org. Visit the author’s blog: fortifymylife.wordpress.com.

Here is a description of the book’s content. Click this link.

To read some of the past updates about this book, click this link~!

HELP… Please Vote on the COVER Samples for My Book

My publisher has sent me four sample covers for the Book~! I want your feedback. Please tell me – What do you think? Be harsh; be specific. Which will sell the best to a 50% male and 50% female audience? What else would you like to say? Say it~! I want to hear in now, before we go to print~!

Fortify Your Soul – Lighthouse Cover

Fortify Your Soul – Sailboat Cover

Fortify Your Soul – Bird Cover

Fortify Your Soul – Key & Notebook Cover

PLEASE VOTE AND COMMENT~!

Which do you like the most and why? The winner will still be tweaked a bit, but I’d like to get some feedback…. please, please, please~!

Here is a description of the book’s content. Click this link.

To read some of the past updates about this book, click this link~!

Fortify Your Soul – Book Updates

 

I have several updates about my book as we get closer to the publication date.

1- The title will be: Fortify Your Soul: 40 Letters to Friends Seeking Purpose and Peace

~

2- I have the production schedule:  My Production Project Manager at Nori Media Group (Destiny Image, Ambient Press) wrote to say, “We have started the editing process. We will do a thorough edit and formatting of your book, and then do the pagination/text design layout.  I expect that to be done by the 16th of May.  At that point, I will send it to you for your review.  You can expect to receive it from me by May 19th, and your comments/corrections will  be due back to me by May 30th. After your review, there will be another editor that will do another proof (incorporating your comments/corrections), and then we will begin to finalize the files for press. At this point, I expect to send files to press in mid-to-late June.”

~

3 – Brook and I snapped hundreds and hundreds of photos. The photo in this post is the one we’ve singled in on for the book jacket. My Mom says I look like an angel, but that isn’t what we had intended. If you have ever seen people lined up at a Greek ruin to have their picture taken while they’re standing behind a decapitated Greek statue…. It was a bit more tongue in cheek, like that~! We were being goofy.

 

Please be in prayer for the editing,

and also for the design of the book~!

~

Fortify Your Soul should be released by early July…..

OH MY~!

 

 

HELP… Please Vote on the Title of My Book

I have just heard from my publisher. We are working on the title for my book, and I would like your help. PLEASE VOTE AND COMMENT~!  I am posting this blog post onto my facebook page, too.  Here are some contending titles. What do you think? Which do you like the most and why? These may still need to be tweaked a bit, but I’d like to get some feedback…. please, please, please~!

Grab Your Life: 40 Letters to Friends to Fortify Souls and Activate Destinies

~

40 Days and 40 Nights to Activate an Amazing Life: Letters to Friends Seeking Purpose and Peace

~

Fortify Your Soul: 40 Letters to Friends to Strengthen Lives and Activate Destinies

~

Until now, I have been calling this book FORTIFY MY LIFE: 40 Fortifications for the Heart & Mind & Body & Spirit Designed to Strengthen Lives and Activate Destinies. If you would like to know more about the book to give me feedback on the title, here is a description of the book’s content. Click this link.

To read some of the past updates about this book, click this link~!

Two Outrageous Endorsements from the UK~!

I have gotten a few more endorsements for my book. They are so cool~! Both of them come from leaders in worldwide organizations which are having a tremendous impact on seeing peoples’ lives restored. Both of these endorsement rocked my world, as I respect these leaders so tremendously.

The first one is so well written that I wrote back and asked, “SO when is YOUR book coming out~?” It is from Kent & Mary Alice Martin. These are missionaries our church helps send to England to be the directors of Betel UK. Betel is a worldwide recovery program that has extremely high success rates, in the world of recovery places. Kent & Mary Alice live shoulder to shoulder with recovering addicts. Their stories will make you explode with hope, and some can break your heart.  “Betel UK is dedicated to continue offering hope and hospitality free of charge to the neediest men and women of Great Britain–at no additional cost to government social services or families.” Click Link to see Kent & Mary Alice’s webpage. Kent & Mary Alice are some of my real life heroes~!

The second quote is from Nicky Gumbel of The Alpha Program. The Alpha Program is near and dear to my heart, as it was the informational presentation that encouraged me to make the intellectual  and emotional investment of my heart and mind into the Kingdom of God. I confidently became a follower of Jesus in Alpha. Nicky is smart, and cool, and so funny. I adored the videos in this course and had the privilege to see them many times, as Brook and I helped out on the Alpha staff at our church as small group leaders. I never got tired of these videos, and picked up new stuff each time I watched them.  Click here to link to Alpha clips. And…  Here’s a good 3 minute clip of Nicky~! Man, I love this guy~! Literally, my heart expands when I hear him talk. He wrote a very nice letter to Brook and me, and it really made my day when I opened that envelope.

The Endorsements:

In the life-restoring ministry of Betel (described in these pages), we’re always looking for modern story tellers, writers who can demystify ancient truths to make scripture accessible to the hardest heart or most unbelieving 21^st-century mind. Fortify My Life does that. It’s non-threatening, easy and relaxed, like a coffee-table book for the hungry soul, satisfying so many tastes at once. It’s a volume of personal letters, a thought-provoking journal, an inspiring devotional book, and a Bible-study guide all in one. Forty sacred stories, all but forgotten by this generation, are retold with the crisp wit and seeming intimacy of a close friend who understands the disbelief of a “Christophobic” world. Laurie asks as many honest, jargon-free questions of the Bible as she answers. She cleverly draws out the pithy essence of these timeless accounts, simultaneously provoking a curiosity to understand them deeper–and the God who stars in them. How quickly can I get copies of this book for the hundreds of broken, recovering Betel men and women who need it?

Kent & Mary Alice Martin

Directors, Betel UK

——————

“I am delighted to hear of Laurie Hayden Bergey’s fascinating book project and wish her every success.”

Reverend Nicky Gumbel, The Alpha Program, Holy Trinity Brompton, London, UK

What Will be the Title of My Book?

I have JUST remembered that my publisher is having a creative meeting today. One of the things they will be discussing is the title for my upcoming book. This has me feeling a bit vulnerable and small. So, bring it…. I need prayer and encouragement. Everything is going to OK, right? I’ll like the title, and be able to market this mind-child of mine right? I’ve entrusted the final say to people I trust and respect, haven’t I? Please add comments~!

This photo is of me when I was approximately 8 years old. Small and vulnerable… like I feel right NOW~! Thanks for prayer~!

 

Two More Wonderful Endorsements for My Book~!

I have received two more wonderful endorsements for my book, Fortify My Life~! These are both from amazing women whom I have the honor to know in my personal life. Smart compassionate women. Hard working, motivated, and very strong, but with kind hearts. I am so blessed to know these fabulous creatures. YAY~!

ENDORSEMENT ———————–

Motivated by her strong faith and a deep love, Laurie began to write a series of letters to dear “Dude” to entertain and encourage him as he was living through a very changing life experience.  “Dude” told me that a group of his friends would gather around to hear him read the letters he received from Laurie.  These thought-provoking letters were touching the lives of an unlikely group of people. 

I was honored to be there at the beginning to hear the first letters and am so excited to see these turned into a book that will touch many lives. Fortify My Life is a must read!!!

Patricia L. Chapman

Breeder/Owner of Smarty Jones, Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner in 2004

ENDORSEMENT ———————–

Thank you to Laurie Hayden Bergey for writing an empowering, challenging, life-changing book that is so necessary. From my experience as a counseling psychologist, I can tell you that Christians and non-Christians, alike, are crying out to know their place in the world, wondering why life can be so hard, and what all this heartache is for. They want to change but need help to do so.  FORTIFY MY LIFE provides the structure to work through these challenges and will leave the reader with a stronger sense of their own identity, potential and greatness.

Jennifer Crall, Ph.D. / Counseling Psychologist

 

Follow this link to read more about my writing updates~!