For years I carried around an idea and a title: The Forgotten. I wanted to write the book, but I wasn’t convinced I was capable of writing a novel, so the idea stayed on a shelf.

During a prayer group one evening, we spent time asking the Holy Spirit to speak to us. A man I’d never met before shared the only words he felt impressed to say:

“Write the book.”

He admitted he had no idea what it meant.

Everyone else in the room said it wasn’t for them.

I knew it was for me.

That night I began writing.

Before every writing session, I prayed for the Holy Spirit’s guidance. Time and again, scenes unfolded with a clarity I hadn’t expected. Along the way, memories from nearly three decades of ministry resurfaced—stories of ordinary people, quiet faith, forgiveness, grief, redemption, and hope. Many of those experiences found their way into the novel.

The Forgotten ultimately became more than a story I wanted to tell. It became a reminder to me that God has always delighted in working through ordinary people who simply say yes.