Five years ago I saw my silhouette reflected in the eyes of a blind horse. That night, as the setting sun transformed the evening sky, I gazed into almond shaped eyes set into the face of a black and white horse. A horse who could see nothing but darkness.
I stood before the animal, transfixed.
Captivated by his story.
Heartbroken by his pain.
Uplifted by his purpose.
Eventually he walked away, sure-footed and confident. Within minutes his polka-dotted body becoming one with the encroaching darkness. The horse was gone. But his story—his eyes—would haunt me for weeks to come.
One day, desperate to put words to feelings, I began to type.
And type.
And type.
I had no idea what I was doing, or why I was bothering to do it. I couldn’t see where my writing was going or how I was supposed to get there. All I could see were the horse’s eyes. And my own image reflected in them.
I had no idea (how could I have) that five years later those words would morph into my first book, or that the book would be in development to become a film.
And now, today as we launch a new site and gear up for the official launch in two weeks, I am supposed to tell you things about the book: numbers and sales, stats and how well it is doing in Amazon. And I know all of that is important and awesome and amazing. But you guys, today I just can’t get past the memory of standing before Joey and feeling as though he could see into my very soul.
I just cannot get over all that God has done to bring forth this story. Or that He allowed me to tell it!
Over the next several weeks you are going to hear a lot about a horse named Joey, a girl named Jen, and a ministry named Hope Reins. But please know this, please, please know this, that none of us…not the horse, nor myself, nor the ministry…are the reason for any of this. We are not the point.
God is.
He is the creator of the horse.
The words behind the writer.
The anchor of the ministry.
He is our hope.
Anything worthy of praise belongs to Him, and Him alone.
And so today, as I launch my new website…
As I reveal a brand new site dedicated to all things JOEY…(see joeythebook.com)
And as I share with you an incredibly moving video…
All I can do is raise my hands in worship and praise.
And reflect upon that moment….
That sacred, precious moment when God drew me close, and spoke to my heart through the almond-shaped eyes of a blind horse named Joey….
Things I'm supposed to tell you and things I want to say
