Lydia Mclaughlin - Beyond Orange County: A Housewives Guide to Faith & Happiness

I read this book cover to cover in two and a half daysI just couldnt put it down! Beyond Orange County is very inspirational and enlightening. Lydia helped ignite my fire to seek my current purpose! I learned so much about myself through her stories and the scriptures she chose to relate to her experiences.

Alexis Bellino, The Real Housewives of Orange County

Lydias book really hit home with the struggles I dealt with while being a part of the entertainment business. It is a real and raw depiction of everyday struggles we go through as Christians. She gives great advice founded in Scripture. This is a book I will refer to over and over to help keep me grounded in my own walk with Christ.

Gretchen Rossi, The Real Housewives of Orange County

Beyond Orange County gives us an inside peek into the exciting yet often toxic world of reality TV while bringing home powerful, life-changing truths about walking victoriously with Christ. A must read for anyone who struggles with finding her way in our materialistic, sexualized, media-sapped culture.

Kim Tapfer, author of I AmTransformed in Him
and womens teaching leader at
Mariners Church, Irvine, CA

Lydia has written a book for women that is honest and real, speaking to the heart of a womans life in all its complexities, joys, heartaches, and victories. Candid and refreshingly open, Lydia takes you way beyond the OC by plunging straight into halls of meaning where family and faith are the key and central elements of a life lived well.

Noelle Cablay, author of Pieces of Sky: a memoir

In Beyond Orange County, Lydia captivates with her personal stories filled with struggle and conflict in overcoming the allure of fame and fortune. Her stories are real, her vulnerability is real, and her faith is real. This is a must read for anyone struggling with the trappings of fame and fortune, or really anyone for that matter!

Bob Schrimpf, director of
The Gathering Youth Ministry, La Jolla, CA

Lydia has a genuine heart to live out her faith. In this book she vulnerably tells her story of following Jesus in a way that will inspire others to do the same.

Phil Wood, pastor of Redemption Church
of Costa Mesa, CA

A Housewives Guide
to Faith and Happiness

Lydia McLaughlin

Copyright 2015 by Lydia McLaughlin

Published by Worthy Books, an imprint of Worthy Publishing Group, a division of Worthy Media, Inc., 134 Franklin Road, Suite 200, Brentwood, Tennessee 37027.

WORTHY is a registered trademark of Worthy Media, Inc.

HELPING PEOPLE EXPERIENCE THE HEART OF GOD

eBook available wherever digital books are sold.

Library of Congress Control Number: 2015930267

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or otherexcept for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, NIV Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Scripture quotations marked NASB are taken from NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE, Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. Scripture quotations marked ESV are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2011. The ESV text has been reproduced in cooperation with and by permission of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked MSG are taken from The Message. Copyright 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group. Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the New Living Translation Holy Bible, copyright 1996, 2004, 2007, 2013 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Italics added to direct Scripture quotations are the authors emphasis.

Some names and identifying details have been changed to protect the privacy of the individuals involved.

For foreign and subsidiary rights, contact

ISBN: 978-1-61795-423-8

Cover Image: Rod Foster

Cover Design: brandnavigation.com

Interior Design and Typesetting: Christopher D. Hudson & Associates, Inc.

Printed in the United States of America

15 16 17 18 19 WOR 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

To Doug. You have my heart.

Forever.

I WOULD LIKE TO express my gratitude and thanks to the many people who saw me through this book, to all those who provided support and walked with me through this journey.

I am so grateful for the tribe of people who encourage, love, and inspire me. From my Young Life mentors to my grandparents, so many people have left their fingerprints on my heart.

My mother, Judy, is constantly sprinkling the world with fairy dust and demonstrating selfless motherly love daily to me. My father, Scott, always believes and encourages me and ignited my journey of faith. My two brothers, Jesse and Geoff, have taught me so much about the Lord.

Thank you to my mentor, Noelle, who in the desert never wondered why I was building a boat but held the hammer for me.

My heartfelt thanks to Emily, Kristin, Sarah, Christine, Amber, Nicole, Jenny, Jen, Kelly, Brittney, Nikki, Virginia, Lauren, Amanda, and all my girls who have prayed for me, walked with me, and supported the dream of this book.

I am grateful for my castmates on The Real Housewives of Orange County. I would like to thank Bravo, Evolution, and all the people I met during my experience on the show. I am thankful for the friendships with Alexis, Jim, Gretchen, and Slade that continue to grow.

I would like to thank Worthy Publishing, my agent Elissa, my literary agent Mollie, and my amazing editor Jen for making this book a reality.

I would like to shout out to Mackenzie, who made hot cocoa and played endless amounts of LEGOs with my boys so I could focus and get my thoughts down on paper.

I would like to thank my three sons, who have made me into a mom and are my greatest sources of joy and inspiration.

Lastly, my heartfelt love and gratitude to my husband, Doug. You are my rock and anchor. Your support and belief in me has made this book not just a dream but reality. Your pursuit for perfection always pushes me, and you have made me the happiest girl I know. I love doing life with you.

Whatever you are, try to be a good one.

William Makepeace Thackeray

MY FRIEND WENT to hear her favorite author, Jen Hatmaker, speak at a conference where we live, in Orange County, California. Afterward, she shared with me some insights she had learned from the weekend.

Jen had asked the conference attendees to picture Jesus walking on the dusty roads and His disciples walking alongside Him. She invited her listeners to envision Jesus and all the disciples walking from village to village and to imagine how dusty they must have gotten while traveling along dirt roads with only sandals on their feet.

The image in your mind reminds us of what our walks with Jesus should be like. We want to follow Jesus so closely that the dust from His feet is all over us.