As a family, we decided then and there to adopt it as a mantra for living.

Most of us question our ability to discern God’s voice. For our family, “Go until you know” became a practical prayer, a way to move forward in faith while staying open to being redirected. It’s been several years now, and we still lean on it.

Recently, we faced one of those decisions that tests a person’s ability to discern. As we’ve moved closer to our retirement years, my husband and I have been searching for a second home, somewhere near the water, a place to invite our grandchildren, to host family gatherings, to make new memories. But my husband was full of fear and doubt. It felt like a big step, and neither of us wanted to get ahead of God.

So I prayed. Exhaustively. I asked God to bring the whole thing to a hard stop if this wasn’t the path we were meant to take. We were all in on “Go until you know,” trusting Him for provision and clarity, and willing to stop the moment He said so.

And then something wonderful happened. Our prayers were answered in a way we never could have scripted.

Out of the blue, our youngest daughter’s significant other knocked on our door, having driven four hours to reach us. He had come to ask for our blessing, to ask for our daughter’s hand in marriage. And in nearly the same breath, he said he wanted to share the engagement celebration with his own parents, and asked whether we might host that gathering at our new potential second home.

I knew, right then, that this was God’s plan. Not just a house, but a home for our growing family. A place for joy. A place to write. A place to grow closer to my Creator.

“Go until you know” can be your window into discernment, too. Keep moving forward in faith, but stay ready to put on the brakes the moment He says stop. That’s the hardest part.

I have a special treat for followers and an opportunity to be a founding member on a new platform created by my publisher, Kharis. I’m launching a reading circle on a new platform called Koinita — think of it as a book club where readers and authors actually talk to each other. It’s a space to gather, share what we’re reading, and build a little circle of friends around the books we love.

To kick it off: my first book, In the Garden: A 40-Day Journey of Hope and Healing, will be free on Kindle until November 1st — the very month my next book releases. I can’t think of a better way to start this journey together.

Koinita is still growing, and authors like me are helping build it from the ground up. I’d be so glad to have you there as one of the first. Come join my circle, grab the book, and let’s talk about it together.

On Koinita there are free books, and you actually talk to the authors who wrote them. It’s invitation-only right now and I’ve got a spot for you. Join me and we’ll read together in the same circle: https://koinita.club/?invite=nichole148.

If you’ve already read In the Garden, then search for other new books. They are all free for a limited time and will be placed on your Kindle. Im going to start reading Soul Weathered: Devotions Forged in the Fire of Real Life by by Mark Folk. If you have any issues, let me know. This is a new platform and their will be kinks in the beginning, so let me know so I can pass it along.

Have a great a lovely week!!

And what a couple of weeks it’s been to get here. I survived COVID in August, got stranded in an airport for thirty hours somewhere between Texas and Oklahoma, and still came out the other side with the best news I’ve had all year.

As I prepare for this exciting event, I wanted to share two things with you: what the book is going to look like, and a special assessment tool I created to go along with it.

The cover brings me so much joy — and not only because of how beautiful it is. My oldest daughter, Hayley, asked if she could design it. I was thrilled. We asked my publisher, and they were happy to oblige. So here’s a sneak peek at a cover made by the graphic designer in our family.

I also created a special assessment tool to go alongside the book. It grew out of a love for understanding how to best help you grow closer to God. The techniques I’ll be teaching in the book are like meditation for your soul — and one of the very first steps is coming to understand your soul’s language. Think of it the way you’d think about a love language: once you know how you most naturally give and receive love, your relationships deepen. The same is true here. Once you understand how your soul most naturally draws close to God in contemplative prayer, everything that follows comes easier.

Right now, my paid subscribers get the first sneak peek. Soon I’ll share this resource with the whole world.

If you’ve been walking with me through this process, I am so grateful. Truly. And I’ll be honest with you about what comes next: putting a book into the world isn’t magic. People don’t just stumble across it and add it to their cart. It takes word of mouth — real people telling real people. So in the months ahead, I’ll be asking for your help: reviews, shout-outs, and any love you can give. Every bit of it matters more than you know.

More soon. It’s really happening.

Here’s the Assessment Tool. I can’t wait to see your results. Please share with me in your comments. I really want to know. My soul is a “Sensory Soul”.

My Soul’s Language Assessment

*A short quiz to help you discover how you most naturally draw close to God*

In my new book, I will be helping you better understand contemplative prayer. It’s a technique used by the early christians and still used today. Through my research I have discovered that contemplative prayer does not look the same for all of us. When we experience this type of prayer, is like a meditation for our soul, our soul resting in the presence of it’s Creator. Wouldn’t you like to experience this type of rest?

Some souls come alive with an open book in hand. Others are carried straight into God’s presence by a piece of music, a fragrance, the flicker of a candle. Still others meet their Creator best outdoors, beneath the open sky. None of these ways is better than the others. They are simply different doorways — and most of us have never stopped to ask which doorway is our own.

That is what this little quiz is for. In just a few minutes, it will help you discover your soul’s language — the way you most naturally draw close to God. Answer honestly, choosing the response that first draws your heart, not the one you think you *should* choose. Keep track of your A, B, and C answers as you go. When you finish, add them up and read what your soul’s language reveals.

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