I am not a write-or-die kind of writer. Even though I consider myself disciplined in some areas of my life, the act of writing is not one of them. For me, writing is difficult and quite a challenge. I struggle to just sit down and put pen to paper. So, imagine me trying to write an entire book!

When writing my first book, A Wild & Wonderful Life, only one person knew about it: my grown son, Jack. I started the book, but then life got in the way and I put it in the back of my filing cabinet to complete at a later date. However, Jack strongly encouraged me to finish it. So, when I finally showed him the very rough draft of the first manuscript he asked why I was stalling on finishing and publishing the book.

I shared with him, “Jack, Satan is sitting on my shoulder and telling me two things. The first is that I am not a good writer. The second is that no one will read my book.”

He responded, “Mom, what if you finished this book and had it published? And then, after publishing it, only one person read it. BUT… as a result… that one person began a new life with Jesus as their Savior. Would you still finish this book?”

Knowing the answer to his question, I gulped. Yes, of course, if the words I wrote would  make a difference to someone—for now and eternity—I would absolutely complete it.

It’s been several years since my first book was published. Happily, more than one person actually did read it! And along the way, the Lord placed other writers and editors in my life to help me become a better writer.

Recently, I launched my third book, a devotional called Immeasurably More. What I have learned on my book-writing journey is this: God uses not-so-perfect folks like me to accomplish his immeasurably more purposes.

Friend, our not-so-perfect lives matter a great deal to God. He delights in using all the details of our lives, including our insecurities, to accomplish the extraordinary. So whether it is a writing a book or more likely something else, would you be willing to trust God with the details of your life so he may also do the immeasurably more? What would that look like for you today?

About my newest book: Immeasurably More: Ponderings from a (not-so-perfect) Jesus Follower

In forty personal and heartfelt ponderings, Susan gently reminds you Jesus cares about every detail of your life. She shares that seeking Jesus—even in the most ordinary things—can open the way to an immeasurably more kind of life.

To help you discover your own immeasurably more, each reading offers a pondering, prayer, and praise activity with guided reflection.

To purchase the book go to: Immeasurably More Book

 

 

Every. Single. Day.

That is how often the sun sets. Yet, because it happens every day, we become numb to the wonder of it. Are we in danger of calling sunsets normal or ordinary? Because they are not. They are extraordinary.

In a similar way, I might be tempted to say my life is ordinary. I often lose the thrill of everyday living because I don’t see my actions mattering all that much. However, simple things like a trip to the grocery store or coffee with a friend can actually become some of God’s grandest gestures, if only I will notice.

The more I get to know God’s heart, the more I realize he doesn’t call me or my life ordinary at all. In fact, he thinks I’m extraordinary.

He doesn’t think you are ordinary either. He thinks you are extraordinary.

Here’s what God says about you:

You are fearfully and wonderfully made.

You are precious in God’s eyes.

You are engraved in the palm of God’s hands.

So even when we feel like our lives are ordinary, God—who thinks we are pretty great—is always working towards the extraordinary, if only we will notice.

Jesus did such a good job of noticing what some might think is ordinary:

• Instead of witnessing a widow give only a few pennies, Jesus saw a woman giving all she had.

• Instead of looking up to a short man sitting in a tree, Jesus saw someone to have dinner with.

• Instead of walking past an invalid man who others had cast aside, Jesus saw a person ready to be healed.

Jesus noticed something extraordinary in the ordinary.

Friend, the ordinary things you do, the simplest words you say, and the everyday life you model are often the most impactful way Jesus accomplishes his best in you. This is extraordinary!

In my recent devotional book; Immeasurably More (Ponderings from a not-so-perfect Jesus follower), I write a lot about ordinary things. I also give you the opportunity to ponder and write your own thoughts. If you do this, I believe you will see how your everyday life is truly extraordinary when Jesus joins you, if only you will notice.

You can purchase an autographed copy Immeasurably More here.

Do not worry. I’m going to live. Even though the diagnosis was unexpected, the prognosis is good. I’ll survive.

Here’s the story. My annual dermatology exam was a couple of weeks ago. (PSA: if you haven’t had a skin exam recently, please get one because skin cancer is the most common cancer in the USA). After giving me a clean bill of health, the Physician’s Assistant (PA) who examined me, she asked if I had any concerns.

“Yes, I have one,” I replied. “Would you mind looking at my big toe and tell me if it looks normal?” She got out her magnifying glass and examined closely. After a few moments, she looked up and, as serious as one can be about a toenail, she gave me the diagnosis.

“Toenail trauma.”

“Toenail trauma?” I asked. “What in the world is that?”

“It’s when your toenail is involved in injury, perhaps from impact or repetitive friction.”

Well there you have it. Toenail trauma is really a thing. Before I went in to the doctor’s office, I didn’t even know I had trauma. Now I’m wondering if my toenail, or even my toe,  is going to fall off! Should I be worried or full of anxiety?

The PA assured me the treatment for healing my toe was simply time.

This blog post is an attempt to make you smile because at the beginning of every year, we get bombarded with every kind of self help idea and betterment tips. My aim is to simply remind you of one reliable truth: nothing happens in your life that is hidden from God.

Before I walked into the doctor’s office, I didn’t even know I had a trauma. It was during the visit I became aware of something unexpected. The Bible assures me of this: “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight” (Hebrews 4:13). So even though something was once hidden from me, it was never hidden from God.

Fortunately for me, there wasn’t anything to fix. God was showing me that becoming aware may not be about fixing what is broken. Instead, it could simply be an invitation to trust Him with what He already knows.

Perhaps this year God will reveal a new discovery to you. If He does, trust Him to walk the journey with you.

 

My third book—Immeasurably More, Ponderings from a (not-so-perfect) Jesus follower—is now available!

Jesus cares about every detail of our lives—and our not-so-perfect lives are exactly the ones He seeks. Our words and actions can become powerful ways Jesus carries out His best purposes through us because He is able to take even the most ordinary things and open the way to an immeasurably more kind of life.

What might a picture of immeasurably more look like ?

(Below is an excerpt from the book):
Each person will see it differently. For me, it looks like the pasture outside of my office window. A few years ago, my husband planted a field of wildflowers at our ranch. When the flowers are in full bloom, it makes the view from my upstairs

office window spectacular. However, from inside, I can only dream about how those flowers might actually feel or smell. To experience them, I must venture downstairs and outside to a rock path that guides me into the pasture. When I do this, I can touch and feel the actual flowers.

While the view from my office offers the promise of what could be, walking on the path to the pasture allows me to fully experience the flowers by touching, feeling, and smelling them.

Dreams may seem far away and untouchable, but when we are willing to join what God is doing—they canbecome immeasurably more. It’s the difference between looking out a window and seeing flowers in a wildflower field versus walking amongst them and experiencing the beauty first hand.

What’s amazing is how God uses something as ordinary as wildflower in order to experience the extraordinary.

You might look at one of the flowers resting in a vase on my kitchen table and think it’s kind of ordinary. Perhaps it is. But for me, that single flower represents all the other flowers I originally saw from my office window.

And this is what immeasurably more means to me… to believe something as simple and ordinary as one single flower, can be part of an extraordinary landscape. One single flower reminds me that one ordinary thing, one ordinary action, one ordinary word can make all the difference.

I know my life will never be perfect this side of heaven, but trusting Jesus with my hopes, my dreams, my plans, and my life, I can experience his peace in the midst of chaos, his joy among strife, and his love instead of loneliness.

 

Forty personal interactive ponderings  to help you discover your immeasurably more.

Find it on Amazon or More Than You Imagine Website.

I get asked this question a lot.

After the completion of my first book, A Wild & Wonderful Life (released in 2017), I knew there would be a second book coming. However, the storyline never came. I was in a quandary because I knew the Lord was calling me to write.

So, seven years later, on a cold day in early January 2025, I packed up my computer and my dog Buddy, and drove to the beach for two weeks of solitude and (hopefully) discovery.

I brought with me three years of blogposts written for the purposes of keeping in touch with friends and to remind me that Jesus shows up in my life everyday often in the most ordinary ways.

These sweet blogposts—shared from me to readers like you—were the beginning of Immeasurably More, the devotional book I will be releasing on January 14, 2026.

I asked a couple of friends to join in the book writing and share their stories too. So you will read from seven friends who I believe model a life with Jesus—maybe not perfectly—but intentionally. They are role models to me mostly through their examples of ordinary, yet immeasurably more living.

So how long does it take to write a book? The long answer is a lifetime. But the short answer is from start to finish of the actual book Immeasurably More, it took one year. Today as I write, it’s a cold December day and Buddy is asleep at my side. Not much has changed since a year ago. Yet, in a way, everything has changed because this book changed me. I hope, in a small way it does the same for you.

Immeasurably More… sounds wonderful, doesn’t it? This is the kind of life Jesus desires for you. On January 14, 2026, I will be releasing Immeasurably More, a devotional book to encourage and remind you of this: Even if your life feels ordinary or wildly crazy, Jesus loves to use your hopes and dreams along with simple moments and mountaintop experiences to accomplish his extraordinary purposes in your life. Your job is to simply take notice and allow him to do more than you ever imagined.

This is a very special day. I could not be more excited to share with you a sneak peek of the cover of my book.

September 4^th will be our 44^th wedding anniversary. Both Gordon and I would say at least 35 of those years have been good, although we might disagree on which years.

In 1985, we bought our first home, and were DINKS (Double Income, No Kids), so extra money usually went toward furnishing our house or activities we enjoyed. In 1985 Gordon’s dad gave him the proceeds of a life insurance policy, bought at Gordon’s birth. It was a modest sum, but I had ideas on how best to use the money and couldn’t wait for us to discuss the possibilities.

Except Gordon wouldn’t talk about it.

Early in our marriage, we agreed to always pool our resources and never spend over X amount of money without discussion. We were always able to come to an agreement. But every time I broached the subject of this money, Gordon shut me down. Finally one day, Gordon emphatically said, “Becky, it’s my money and I’ll spend it any way I want to.”

I was hurt. I was angry. But mostly I was puzzled. Why would my loving husband take that attitude? He had always wanted what was best for us. We were usually able to talk things out, but now there was a painful silence between us.

Days went by and the hurt only grew. Until one day Gordon gave me an explanation. He wanted to use the money to buy me a diamond wedding band for our anniversary. Since we decided to get married when he was fresh out of the military, practically broke, and going to school on the GI Bill, there had been no engagement ring. So now he wanted to rectify the situation, and together we picked out a ring I’ve always loved.

This past year I’ve been in a wilderness of sorts. It was undeniably God’s plan that we move here, yet I felt He “benched” me the moment we arrived. Gordon has faced some serious health issues, I’ve struggled with mobility from this persistent ankle problem, and I’ve not been able to find “my people.”

I’ve been hurt. I’ve been angry. But mostly I’ve been puzzled. Why would my loving Heavenly Father do this? He has always known what is best for us. My Father has seemed silent, and it’s been painful to have no answers to “why.”

Last weekend I saw a glimpse of “why” that both humbled and strengthened me. Dr. David Jeremiah says, “God’s plan for us is like reading Hebrew–you have to read it backwards.” After tough times in your life, haven’t you usually been able to look back and say, “So that’s why God allowed that to happen”?

David modeled a right attitude when we don’t have answers in Psalm 63:1-3, written when he was in the desert of Judah:

“You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water. I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory. Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you” (NIV, emphasis mine).

How about you? Are you struggling to understand? Does it seem God’s plan for you is “lost in the mail?” If so, I encourage us all to “read Hebrew”—to look back on all the times His plan became clear in retrospect. And “when you cannot see His Hand, trust His Heart.”

Guest writer Becky Jones had a wild and wonderful career in the medical field, planning and implementing programs to help people all over the country learn how best to manage their chronic illnesses. However, her most important jobs are wife to Gordon, mother to Zac, and child of God. Her greatest desire is to share with others what she’s been privileged to learn—and continue to learn—about growing to be more like Jesus.”