Why Did I Write This?

That’s a better question than you might recognize initially.

In fact, when I first sat down to consider writing a book about the battle between the flesh and the Spirit, I concluded there wasn’t a pressing need. At the time, I had a publisher asking me to write on the subject. I declined. “There are already enough books on this,” I said.

It’s not that the subject doesn’t need to be addressed. It does. The battle is pressing in and our souls are endangered. The detritus of warfare litter the fields as far as we can see, think, and feel.

But what good is another book if it is merely stacked on top of the book that preceded it? What good is it to duplicate the recipe today that didn’t work yesterday?

You’ve no doubt read a book or two about overcoming. Question: Are you, in fact, winning the day? Most folks, after they’ve quoted the verses about the victory that is supposed to be theirs, cite more candidly Paul’s lament, “I do the very things I don’t want to do and I’m unhappy about this.”

It is hard work to write a book. If I’m going to do the hard labor of writing, I want to write something that matters. I want to create a piece of literature that transports you from where you are to where you want to be. If I didn’t believe this is what Battle for the Round Tower, and its predecessor No Mercy, do then I wouldn’t have published them. Like I told the publisher some years ago, I’m not interested in writing another book. I’m interested in creating something that matters.

You’ve heard it said, a picture is worth a thousand words. You know the drill: Show me, don’t tell me. Take me, don’t just send me or advise me.

Battle for the Round Tower and No Mercy are novels, meaning they are fictional adventures, portraits on pages illustrated with words. But here’s the bottom line: They are rooted in what is true.

In the main character, Hank Henderson, there is a man who lets you into his head and heart. In the pages of his story, Hank includes you in his battles, let’s you touch his disappointments, and hugs you with his victories. Hank takes you with him. You eat what he eats and drink what he drinks. You walk with him in the rain and sweat with him in the moment. Hank shows you how the battle works. He demonstrates how to win, how to rebound, how to redeem, how to recover. He paints a picture upon the canvas of his life that portrays what life in the Spirit looks like.

But not only this. Hank introduces you to the players in life. As those who walk with Jesus Christ, we know we are engaged in a great cause. We talk about following Christ, trusting Him, and walking with Him. But who else is on the path? What roles do they play?

If you can’t answer those last two questions—definitively and confidently—you will find yourself ambushed, with disconcerting frequency, and not understand what happened. This mystery is not necessary.

I wrote these books to paint a picture, to show you—or more precisely, let Hank show you—how to live like the man or woman God says you are. Hank doesn’t tell you to go and do anything. Hank takes you with him, shows you how, and includes you in his journey.

We don’t need another book. We need a guide, a mentor, someone to shepherd us. This we need, and we need this is in a format we can follow. For this, a new book was required.

You can order Battle for the Round Tower here. If you want to know more about the book before you purchase, you can read more here.

You can order No Mercy here. And if you want to know more, it’s located here.

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