If your life was a book, would you keep reading? For one literature professor, God's plan stopped making sense the day his son was diagnosed with autism. With honesty and insight, de Roulet explores those moments when we feel lost in a meaningless plot. Discover how authentic storytelling can help you comprehend the sometimes confusing chapters of life. 192 pages, softcover from Brazos.

http://www.christianbook.com/finding-plot-plotless-world-little-direction/daniel-de-roulet/9781587431203/pd/3120X

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Author: Daniel de Roulet
Located in: Tustin, CA
Submitted: April 29, 2007

    Tell us a little about yourself.  I'm a fan of open landscapes, French food, baseball, my doctor wife and my three boys--all of us have learned that being a Christian means in part being the individual God created us to be.

    What was your motivation behind this project?  My son, Eric, was diagnosed at a very young age with Autism. By God's grace he is doing extremely well, but the years around the diagnosis taught us a lot about living when life seems to be coming apart. At that point, I began to realize that the Bible is full of such stories--that part of God's decision to become incarnational meant entering into the difficulties of our lives and raising us up with him. Joseph, Jacob, David, Esther, Ruth, Job, Paul, and Jesus himself lived in these realities. God tells us these stories and we, through our own expression, be it prayer, writing, film, or art, tell Him our stories in return.

    What do you hope folks will gain from this project?  I have always hoped that readers would discover contemporary Christian literature as a means of comfort and reflection in a world that often doesn't make sense. The Bible is filled with stories of people whose lives seem to have taken wrong turns; these stories--God's stories--speak to our own lives in what seems sometimes like a plotless world.

    Who are your influences, sources of inspiration or favorite authors / artists?  I appreciate authors who approach the world and their spirituality with authenticity: Donald Miller, Anne Lamott, Leif Enger, Flannery O'Conner, and Lee Smith, to name a few. There are certain works that stand out for me as well as inspirations: John Irving's A Prayer for Owen Meany, Ron Hansen's Atticus, the film Babette's Feast, a short piece by J.R.R. Tolkien called Leaf by Niggle.

    Anything else you'd like readers / listeners to know:  This is a cliche to anyone who has been through it, but struggle is ultimately about deepening and experiencing grace. Finding others who experience this, and joining such a community where one can serve and receive love and grace, is a key to deepening and sometimes to just getting through. Christian literature can provide us with an entrance to such communities.

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