Meet Lisa M. Prysock

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Lisa M. Prysock a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Lisa M., so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?

What a great question! From the age of thirteen, I knew I wanted to be a mother and a writer. And I’ve now authored more than fifty titles and raised three beautiful children. But finding my way to becoming an author after my three children were about ready to graduate wasn’t easy. In fact, my dream of becoming a writer had died. I thought it was dead, until an evangelist came to our church and in his sermon, spoke over the congregation to let us know the Lord was going to revive some of our dreams. I took that to heart. His words jumped out at me and reignited my dream.

It all started with a seed and a desire the Lord had planted inside me as a child and later as a teen, giving me a love for all things books. I had a natural love for creative writing. But I hadn’t connected the dots yet to know that Jesus was leading me to share my faith in Him through my writing.

Being plugged in at a spirit-filled, theologically sound church was a huge step in the right direction. And, growing up as a latch-key kid, it made sense that I had a strong pull toward books, writing, and reading literature. As a youth, I was constantly penning stories.

At about the same time as the evangelist came to visit our church, I had been seeking the Lord a lot in prayer for many months, asking Him to lead me through some challenging times. He found a way in my journey of deep prayer and soul-searching moments to show me that He could use my talent and gift for writing to share Him with others. When I first stepped out, I was wary. I didn’t want to step out into something if God wasn’t in it. But He convinced me He would be with me. He wouldn’t leave me or forsake me.

If I had to summarize how I found my purpose, it would look something like this–: 1) What dreams, gifts, and talents do you have inside you, perhaps hidden from a young age?

2) Stay connected to Christians and plugged into a Biblically sound church.

3) Spend time with the Lord in prayer and in seeking Him. He’ll make it clear to you. Don’t give up on spending time with Him until you know that you know what He wants you to know. It may take a few months of seeking Him before you are confident about what He wants you to do, and even then, you may have a few doubts.

4) Step out in faith anyways, despite the fears, misgivings, naysayers, and your own doubts. Have enough faith to overcome all of the fears and voices in your head. You’ll think of a hundred reasons NOT to give it a go, but don’t be afraid to get out of the boat and walk on the water. Test it out. There is no rule that says you can’t try something out for a while. Be bold and step out. Give it a chance to bloom. I did and I don’t regret a single moment of it.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

The most exciting part of my journey happens each time I “pick up a pen” and begin writing another novel. And then when I see the cover from the artist. And again, when the book releases. And it gets exciting as the first few reviews start coming in and the readers let me know how the storyline impacted them. And when I receive a personal note from a reader about how much they loved a particular book and why or how it helped them through a difficult time.

I think every Christian can and should have a book. We all have a testimony or a story to share. Put some of your thoughts, ideas, experiences, and notes down on paper. Eventually you’ll find something that resonates with you. When you do, create an outline, and then take some steps to see your book begin to materialize. If you need to take a class (or several) to brush up on your writing skills, do that. Make it happen! Your story could impact someone else for the better. It’s such an exciting journey, all the way through.

For example, my latest series, “Kentucky Debutantes of the Gilded Age,” is the result of a Kentucky writer dreaming about writing a series that had to do with horse farms and Kentucky horseracing history. I kept toying with the idea until it came to me. I did a ton of research on all things Kentucky Derby. I spent time developing my characters and plots. I intertwined some personal experience with much from my imagination. And now, it’s out there selling. People are reading the books and loving them.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

I think the three most important qualities or skills to have are perseverance, hope, and a strong desire to share the message of faith in Jesus with a lost and hurting world.

First, you have to persevere through whatever ups and downs you’ve experienced in your own life and not see yourself as a victim but an overcomer through Christ.

And secondly, deep down, you can’t give up hope that the Lord has an inheritance or a dream for you that He will bring to pass…some way that you can make a difference, whether it’s building wells in places that need clean drinking water, serving in your local church as a teacher, or believing that there is something out there that only you can do…don’t give up hope in finding it. The Lord loves to make our dreams come true.

And thirdly, you need to have a desire that aligns with the will of God. His heart is in leading people to find Him. If your heart is aligned with His heart, you can’t go wrong if you get the timing right. He did postpone becoming an author for me until my children were nearly full-grown adults. He knows what He’s doing. In retrospect, I can see that He wanted me to focus on being a mother first, heal from any wounds of the past next, develop my writing gifts by learning how to be more succinct through some blog writing along the way, and then after all of that, He allowed me to embark on my new journey as a writer.

I published my debut novel, “To Find a Duchess,” back in 2011. My children were all in their teens by then and well on their way to independence. And the Lord knew I would need a dream of my own when they started their own new chapters. Incidentally, the message of the book was about finding one’s true identity in Christ.

Who has been most helpful in helping you overcome challenges or build and develop the essential skills, qualities or knowledge you needed to be successful?

There have been so many people who have inspired or helped me in my journey as an author, from pastors, evangelists, missionary friends, teachers, to friends from other areas of my life, writing friends, church family, and especially members of my own family, but I have to say the Lord was my greatest helper. It’s amazing what He did and continues to do for me as I spend time with Him in reading His word, in prayer, and in those quiet moments when we simply take a little moment away from the busy times of life to lean in and listen.

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