The Story Behind the Story | Rhinestone Jesus

Back in the fall, I joined up with other bloggers to assist in a grassroots fundraising campaign for Mercy House Kenya. I was floored by how God used moms, daughters, sisters, women—bloggers!—to raise over $74,000 to provide a new van, generator, classrooms, computer lab, and a second house for theses precious moms and babies.

Kristen Welch, founder of Mercy House Kenya, has written a book called Rhinestone Jesus and it releases today! I wanted to share some of what she recently shared on her blog about why she wrote this book. You know, the story behind the story.

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I wrote Rhinestone Jesus because I want you to know the whole story. 

It’s funny how easy it is to look at someone’s life and even their God-sized dream and think, “I could never do that, be that, have that sort of faith or courage or success  or fill in the blank.”

I’m pulling back the curtains, revealing the dirt under the rug, and I’m telling it all…the good and the bad, the beautiful and the ugly, the shattered and redeemed chapters of my life. I want you to meet the awkward teen who wore a sparkly Jesus pin to high school because I was too afraid to do the talking myself. I want you to understand I was a dreamer. But instead of chasing dreams, I mostly ran from them.

I want you to identify with me as a mother –weary and overwhelmed and not always realizing I was seeing the face of God every time I wiped a small smudged one. I want you to see just how damaged my marriage was and how we fought hell itself to love again. I want to show you the ugly places, the unwilling heart, the times I said no–you must see this to get a clear picture of who is really telling this story.

I want you to see past these gorgeous faces full of hope and a future and understand how against all odds, a broken girl with a broken past said yes to God in a most unlikely place. I want you to see that your small every day yes matters so much more than you think it does.

And most of all, when you read about my sometimes chaotic, troubled and imperfect life, I pray it inspires you to look at yours and instead of seeing a mess, you discover the perfect place for God’s glory.

I’ve spent the last year spilling my story onto the pages of this book. It’s not for “just moms” because there’s no such thing. It’s for everyone who has a yes inside them. It’s for women who would like to get their life just right before they feel like they can do something for God. It’s for those who are sick of stuff and the weight of the American Dream. It’s for those who wonder if Jesus is enough. It’s for those who have stopped dreaming. It’s for the broken.

But mostly, it’s for Jesus, not the sparkly one, but the one who rescued me, the Savior who urged me out of my comfort zone into wild obedience. I wrote it for His glory and for all those brave enough to say yes with me.

* Originally posted on We Are THAT Family. Re-posted with permission.  

About the Book
In high school, Kristen Welch wore a big, sparkly rhinestone “Jesus” pin to school every day and carried her Bible wherever she went. (Yes, she was that girl.) But she didn’t realize her faith, though sincere, was shallow; much like her artificial accessory, it would one day tarnish, no longer a true fit for who she was. As real life catapulted Kristen into places and situations she’d never imagined, there came a day when she stood shocked in the slums of Africa and realized in one desperate moment that Jesus wasn’t enough for her. At least . . . she wasn’t living like He was. On the brink of a risk bigger than any she’d ever taken, Kristen knew she didn’t stand a chance—unless she was willing to put aside the rhinestones and get branded by the real thing. Rhinestone Jesus is the story of one woman’s journey from comfortably living a safe, “good-girl” faith that didn’t cost much, to realizing that God was daring her to say yes to a bolder, more authentic, more dangerous way. This story of spiritual adventure throws the doors wide open for any woman who’s ever thought of herself as “just a mom.” Kristen will inspire and empower you to say yes to God right where you are—and stand amazed at how your life will shine.