FAITH & INSPIRATION / STORYTELLING FAITH, FICTION AND THE POWER OF STORY Changing lives <strong>on</strong>e novel at a time BY JERRY B. JENKINS ILLUSTRATIONS BY KIRK DOUPONCE CREDIT TK 28 FOCUS ON THE FAMILY CANADA DEC <strong>2023</strong> / JAN <strong>2024</strong>
STORYTELLING / FAITH & INSPIRATION THE CHOSEN: AND I WILL GIVE YOU REST by Jerry B. Jenkins Based <strong>on</strong> <strong>the</strong> third seas<strong>on</strong> of <strong>the</strong> TV series “The Chosen,” this novel c<strong>on</strong>tinues to follow <strong>the</strong> ministry of Jesus. Shop.<str<strong>on</strong>g>Focus</str<strong>on</strong>g>OnThe<strong>Family</strong>.ca CREDIT ADOBE TK STOCK - JAMES THEW WHEN I WAS A CHILD, my parents read to me every night before bed, expanding my imaginati<strong>on</strong> and developing in me a love for reading—even before I was old enough to go to school. By first grade, I was reading at a fourth-grade level, and <strong>the</strong> joke in our family was that in college, I was still reading at a fourth-grade level. But seriously, what that bedtime reading instilled in me was a sense of w<strong>on</strong>der and curiosity that remains to this day. It exposed me to varied cultures, time periods and perspectives, enlarging my understanding of <strong>the</strong> world. I became a lifel<strong>on</strong>g learner, following my late mo<strong>the</strong>r’s c<strong>on</strong>victing example. Into her 80s, she was still not <strong>on</strong>ly a piano teacher but a piano student as well. So <strong>on</strong>e of <strong>the</strong> reas<strong>on</strong>s I believe ficti<strong>on</strong> is important is that it offers readers access to <strong>the</strong> same sense of w<strong>on</strong>der I felt as a child. Ano<strong>the</strong>r reas<strong>on</strong> is that it helps us c<strong>on</strong>nect with o<strong>the</strong>rs <strong>on</strong> a deeper level. When we read a novel, we in essence c<strong>on</strong>tract, or agree, with <strong>the</strong> author to temporarily suspend disbelief and enter <strong>the</strong> world and <strong>the</strong> scenarios he or she has created. We c<strong>on</strong>nect with fictitious characters viscerally, empathizing with <strong>the</strong>ir struggles and feeling <strong>the</strong>ir pain and joy. Ficti<strong>on</strong> has <strong>the</strong> power to build bridges between people, even those vastly different from <strong>on</strong>e ano<strong>the</strong>r. Access to w<strong>on</strong>der Writing ficti<strong>on</strong> has allowed me to rub shoulders with some of <strong>the</strong> great novelists of our day, including many who ply <strong>the</strong>ir trade in <strong>the</strong> general market as opposed to <strong>the</strong> inspirati<strong>on</strong>al, where I’m most known (primarily for my “Left Behind” series and “The Chosen” series). I’ve found that many of my colleagues enjoy, as I do, hearing from fans who say things like, “Reading your novel changed my life.” I’m not entirely sure what that means to a general-market novelist, but my readers are often more specific. They’ll menti<strong>on</strong> moving from darkness to light, or even from death to life. They’ll tell me <strong>the</strong>y came to faith after reading something I created. Imagine impacting o<strong>the</strong>rs in a way so meaningful and transformative. One reader said that a prodigal s<strong>on</strong> came back to his faith after reading <strong>the</strong> first “Left Behind” title. He told his parents he was going to buy copies for <strong>the</strong> sketchy friends he’d been running with, but before he could, he died in a car wreck. His parents told us <strong>the</strong>y bought books for those friends who attended <strong>the</strong> funeral, and that several came to faith in Christ after reading <strong>the</strong>m. Ano<strong>the</strong>r letter was from a man in his 90s who said his eyes were so weak that he had to read Left Behind with a magnifying glass. He came to trust Christ for salvati<strong>on</strong> “not because of what I saw through <strong>the</strong> glass but what I saw through my heart.” Such letters trump any bestseller list or royalty check! A new writing adventure That ministry through words is partly why I was h<strong>on</strong>ored to be asked to hand-pick three Christian authors to write novels for <str<strong>on</strong>g>Focus</str<strong>on</strong>g> <strong>on</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Family</strong> that would help readers think deeply about modern issues from a biblical worldview. I chose three of my favorite writer friends, all of whom are celebrated novelists with stellar reputati<strong>on</strong>s for <strong>the</strong>ir abilities to move readers’ hearts and minds. Angela Hunt, Tamera Alexander and Chris Fabry exceeded even my greatest hopes, DEC <strong>2023</strong> / JAN <strong>2024</strong> FOCUS ON THE FAMILY CANADA 29