Downs - Lets all be brave : living life with everything you have

Praise for lets all be brave.

I first met Annie Downs the summer she moved to Nashville, and I remember thinking she was the bravest person I knew. Its no easy thing to leave all that is familiar and comfortable to venture into the unknown. But I have watched God honor that decision and do more through Annie than Im sure she could have ever imagined. Her willingness to follow where God leads is all over the pages of Lets All Be Brave. You will be inspired, challenged, and, hopefully, led to step out in faith to new places in your life as you read Annies words and feel her cheering you on and reassuring you that God will meet you at every turn.

MELANIE SHANKLE, New York Times bestselling author of Sparkly Green Earrings and The Antelope in the Living Room

For years Ive said that part of our job is to be brave and go first so that we give other people the gift of going second. In this book Annie did exactly that. Its your turn now.

JON ACUFF, New York Times bestselling author of Start

There are certain types of people who are capable of nudging us toward courage without making us feel small or insignificant, and Annie is at the front of the line. She is your favorite friend, the one who laughs at every dang thing, who tells stories you think must surely be invented (and yet they are not), and in the midst of it all, you discover you are dreaming new dreams. She has done that with Lets All Be Brave, and before you even mean to, you are putting your YES on the table.

JEN HATMAKER, author of Interrupted and 7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess

My friend Annie is a treasure, and her book is full of love, warmth, and courage. I cant wait to share it with so many friends so we can cheer each other on to the kind of bravery Annie is calling us to.

SHAUNA NIEQUIST, author of Bread & Wine

Annie is everyones best friend. Imagine sharing coffee, amidst outbursts of laughter, as she stirs your heart to be brave. Youll walk away with new vision, someone cheering you on, and a skip in your step.

REBEKAH LYONS, author of Freefall to Fly

Ive never associated myself with the word bravery. But as I read Annies poetic, riveting words, it occurred to me that Ive misunderstood the concept. For me, it was always BIG and DRAMATIC and FILLED WITH EXCITEMENT. It was jumping from a cliff into the water, conquering the heights and sometimes thats what it is. But its also learning to say no, and recognizing the way Jesus has gifted you uniquely for the journey you walk today. Its listening for His voice and stepping out in obedience and faith, even before you know the details of whats to come. Only a few chapters in, Annie had convinced me of something radically comforting that being brave looks different for everyone, and there is every reason to believe I can do it right here where God has planted me.

ANGIE SMITH, bestselling author of What Women Fear and Chasing God

Annie Downs is a comedic artist, a relational genius, and basically one of the bravest women I know. Her words sound like friendship and feel like courage, offering hope for those of us who want to live free instead of scared. Lets All Be Brave is fresh, relatable, and life-giving her best book yet.

EMILY P. FREEMAN, author of A Million Little Ways: Uncover the Art You Were Made to Live

I am so grateful for Annies voice and her courageous story in Lets All Be Brave. Authentic, moving, and completely relatable, Annie has done an amazing job of encouraging others to cast off fear and embrace an adventurous life of faith, bravery, and vulnerability.

NISH WEISETH, author of Speak: How Your Story Can Change the World and editor in chief of deeperstory.com

This is the book so many of us need to read. Finding courage right where we are is what will change the world. Annie Downs writes what she lives and believes, and we can feel it on every page. Anyone looking to grow in courage will be braver for reading this.

JEREMY COWART, celebrity photographer and founder of the OKDOTHIS mobile app and Help-Portrait

Annie Downs tells the truth better than just about anybody I know. In Lets All Be Brave, she weaves Gods truth in and through her own true stories to make us think about what real bravery looks like. And while the whole notion of bravery seems to conjure up images of fairy tales or superheroes, Annie shows that real-life bravery is really a matter of whispering yes to whatever prompting God puts on your heart. Annies beautifully written words, which are filled with humor, tenderness, and godly wisdom, will remind you that while responding to Gods call requires courage, living a brave life is worth the sacrifice. He is worth the sacrifice. Every single time.

SOPHIE HUDSON, author of A Little Salty to Cut the Sweet and blogger at BooMama.net

ZONDERVAN

Lets All Be Brave

Copyright 2014 by Annie F. Downs

ePub Edition May 2014: ISBN 978-0-310-33793-5

Requests for information should be addressed to:

Zondervan, 3900 Sparks Dr. SE, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49546

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Downs, Annie F., 1980

Lets all be brave : living life with everything you have / Annie F. Downs.

pages cm

ISBN 978-0-310-33795-9 (softcover)

1. Christian life. I. Title.

BV4501.3.D697 2014

248.4 dc23

2014004153

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, 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 MSG are taken from The Message. Copyright 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

Any Internet addresses (websites, blogs, etc.) and telephone numbers in this book are offered as a resource. They are not intended in any way to be or imply an endorsement by Zondervan, nor does Zondervan vouch for the content of these sites and numbers for the life of this book.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.

Cover design: hand-lettering and illustration: Kristi SmithJuicebox Designs

Interior illustration: Kristi SmithJuicebox Designs

Interior design: Beth Shagene

First Printing June 2014

For Nashville

contents

This is another day, O Lord.

I know not what it will bring forth,

but make me ready, Lord, for whatever it may be.

If I am to stand up, help me to stand bravely.

If I am to sit still, help me to sit quietly.

If I am to lie low, help me to do it patiently.

And if I am to do nothing, let me do it gallantly.

Make these words more than words,

and give me the Spirit of Jesus.

Amen.

BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER

I love writing in coffee shops. I love the hubbub of drinks being made and customers passing through, the conversations all around, and the smell of hot drinks and baked goods. So for each essay in this book, Ive included the location where I wrote a portion, if not all, of that particular chapter. Think of me the next time you stop in at one of the coffee shops mentioned.