Friday, July 2, 2021

About the Book

Book: Going South

Author: Marsha Moston

Genre: Christian nonfiction—humorous, inspirational, Christian-living memoir

Release date: January 2021

When Bob and Marcia Moston told their friends they were moving south, they meant it as a geographical move. They didn’t expect their plans to go south too.

Trusting his wife’s previously sound judgment, Bob agrees to have Marcia go ahead of him and pick out a house—an efficient, low-maintenance one. It was a good plan. If only Marcia had stuck to it.

But when she veers from the plan, the couple find themselves overwhelmed with the consequences of a seemingly bad decision. Marcia looks for encouragement in the story of Jacob—the patriarchal bad boy, remembered more for the predicaments he got himself into than for his commendable deeds—and the God who is not deterred by our plots, plans, stratagems, and side trips.

Written with heart, humor, and biblical insight, Going South—with the God of Jacob’s and My Mistakes offers hope and encouragement to those who find their lives upturned by a geographical move, a chaotic economy, a backfired dream, or just a plain bad choice.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Marcia Moston, the award-winning author of Call of a Coward—the God of Moses and the Middle-Class Housewife, has contributed to several magazines, anthologies, and newspaper columns. She loves to write about the possibilities of life in the hands of a very real God. Marcia teaches workshops in narrative nonfiction and makes home in South Carolina with her Bob.

More from Marcia

We were no superstar, sledgehammer-wielding, Fixer Upper Chip and Joanna Gaines. But I was confident my husband and I could handle the repairs that the house I had bought needed. After all, we were handy—solid do-it-yourselfers, excited about starting a new phase of life in a part of the country we’d never lived.

Armed with enthusiasm, experience, and degrees, we didn’t anticipate any problems finding jobs or making friends. And I certainly didn’t anticipate I’d be hanging telephone directories on doorknobs or stuffing vending machines to make ends meet. But our ravenous little fixer-upper had a bigger appetite than we expected and was devouring our funds in record time.

Before long we began to realize we’d left life as we knew it somewhere north of the Mason-Dixon Line. I wondered if, instead of running strong to the finish line of our lives, we would be crawling across it, covered in sheetrock dust and regrets.

It’s one thing to suffer for a noble cause, but quite another when you find yourself in messes and muddles of your own making time and time again. Like Jacob, some of us have to wrestle an angel of the Lord all night before we get to the end of ourselves and trust that the Lord can and will orchestrate all he’s appointed for us.

I wrote about our southern saga foibles in Going South with the God of Jacob’s and My Mistakes as an entertaining reminder for all of us trying to find our way home, that even when we make bad decisions and big mistakes, the Carpenter of Nazareth can fashion something beautiful from the dust and debris we trail behind.

MY REVIEW

I have read the scripture many times where it talks about the plans God has for us. We make decisions praying we are going in the right direction. I liked this book because it is candid, personal, mixed with humor and God’s Word. The author takes us on a trip where mistakes are made but with it comes wisdom. I’m not big on change and get anxiety when faced with it. I laughed when the author saw actual billboards that were directed at her. Well I’m thinking , He is definitely trying to get her attention. I got comfortable and buckled in to travel with our author as she navigates life and change.

I loved how the author weaved the story of Jacob throughout the book. In the midst of everything Jacob was doing wrong, God showed him grace. How many times have we wanted to give up? As the author continues her journey through restoring a sad looking house to owning vending machine we sense God working and reminding her that He is in control.

Each chapter is filled with wonderful accounts of a journey that teaches us to trust God, never give up and thank Him for His grace that surrounds us daily. I enjoyed the book and found it refreshing to read. I appreciate how the author shared her struggles and rejoiced when lessons were learned. This would be a great book to give to someone needing encouragement and a reminder that change doesn’t have to be a burden.

“God is in charge of your future, don’t fear change.”

I received a copy of this book from Celebrate Lit. The review is my own opinion.