The day has finally arrived! My book, The Grace of Enough: Pursuing Less and Living More in a Throwaway Culture, is officially available! LAUNCH DAY IS HERE.
The writing process to publishing date took about 18 months, but it’s been much longer in the making because it’s the result of life-changing experiences and many, many late night conversations with my husband Daniel and dear friends.
And it never would have happened without YOU. I really mean that. My readers encouragement and support has been everything. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!
So this book. What’s it about?
It’s the story of how my family made the radical decision to leave a secure life in the city, sell our house, get rid of most of our possessions, and move halfway across the country with three small children for a year long internship on a farm with no flushing toilets. We went from being the owners of a lovely little home in Florida to living in a 650 square foot apartment on a farm in Texas.
This book is about the lessons we learned along the way. It’s about seeing the unsatisfying “throwaway” culture of consumerism for what it is (comfortable lies that can distract us from what really matters: pursuing the Gospel).
Brandon Vogt of Word on Fire, a kindred spirit who I asked to write the foreword to my book, calls it, “An antidote to throwaway culture, a blueprint to living a fulfilling life.”
Paula Huston, the author of One Ordinary Sunday gave this endorsement: “Prophets wake us to our true state, call upon us to be better than we are, and demand that we think hard about the life we are living. And thus we shy away from prophets. Haley Stewart, however, won’t let us escape so easily. Hers is a genuinely prophetic voice, but one so full of fun and the sheer joy of living that she thoroughly charmed and convinced me. A wonderfully wise book for our confusing and misguided era.”
- The Grace of Enough is about seeing the joy in the call to simplicity and no longer being owned by our possessions.
- It’s about learning to view God’s creation with wonder so that we can preserve his world as an act of worship for the Creator.
- It’s about pausing to take a breath and let beauty point us to God.
- It’s about centering our lives around family, relationships, and prayer in a way that will strengthen our sense of home.
- It’s about slowing down to do things that remind us that we are human beings like preparing food and sharing it with people we love around the sacred space of our kitchen tables.
- It’s about opening our homes, despite imperfections in our housekeeping and culinary skills, in our commitment to revolutionary acts of hospitality.
- It’s about building small but significant habits that nurture community in a world in which we are increasingly disconnected from each other.
- It’s about living out generous and inconvenient love in a culture that prizes convenience and comfort above all else.
- It’s about doing what’s best for your family and your soul even when it means going without what everyone else says you must have in order to be happy.
- It’s about clinging to the hope that we can have a part to play in God’s redemption of this dark world.
This is a dark hour for the Church. And I may be foolishly optimistic, but I think in the midst of these horrors, there is a wake up call to become the saints that are needed in the time God has placed us in. And I think He will raise up many saints.
How do we begin? By taking off the lens of the throwaway culture with which we’ve been viewing the world around us and putting on the mind of Christ. By embracing what Flannery O’Connor wrote: “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you odd.”
Are you ready to be odd in this throwaway culture because of your radical pursuit of the Gospel?
It’s my prayer that The Grace of Enough will inspire you and bring you hope. I truly can’t wait for it to arrive on your doorstep!
This post contains Amazon affiliate links.
You can order today on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or at my publisher Ave Maria Press.
(For some reason, Amazon is being glitchy and says they’ll ship out on the 14th but my publisher said to ignore that date and that they should be sending out copies already so….it’s a mystery. But hopefully will be resolved ASAP.)
And yes! There’s a kindle version!
If you pre-ordered, first of all, bless you! I would love to see you with your book and hear some of YOUR story! If you want to make my heart sing, please…
1. Share a selfie with your book on social media with the hashtag #graceofenough
2. Share part of your story of pursuing what truly matters even though you had critics or it went against the grain.
I can’t wait to see your faces and hear your stories!
So grab your copy today on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or at my publisher Ave Maria Press!
(And if you want to help a girl out and leave a review on Amazon, I won’t stop ya!)
Jennifer Wilmot says
Congrats Haley — such an impressive thing. Can’t wait to read it. Always love your writing.
Justina says
Got my email from book depository a few days ago saying this sucker is on its way—girl, so happy and excited for you! A baby and a book. 2018 is a heck of a year for you Mrs. Carrots 🙂
Clara says
Congratulations Haley! I received your book, which I had preordered from Amazon, today, and I’m already through the first 2 chapters. I wish I’d had this book 20 years ago, but I’m happy to have it now. I hope it changes lives.