One of the things he said in class was that if you want to be a writer, you should study

human nature in a bar.

And that thought was in my mind when I took that job.

And it turned out to be very bad advice.

I'm Paul Hastings, and you're listening to be a very bad advice.

I'm Paul Hastings, and you're listening to Compelled,

a weekly podcast with unique stories from the kingdom of God told by the people compelled to live for him.

In the last two episodes, we've heard the story of Kathy Brace,

who spent much of her life chasing after love and acceptance,

but only found bitterness and rejection. She became pregnant at age 15 and ended up adopting

out two of her children and aborted another amid many other trials in her life.

But then we heard how God saved her, redeemed her broken life, and miraculously reunited

her with both of her children that she had

adopted out. Today, Kathy is a midwife who uses the terrible experiences she had as a younger

woman to help other women as they deliver their babies. Just an incredible story of redemption.

You can hear all of that by listening to our last two episodes on compelledpodcast.com or wherever else you listen to

podcast. Our guest today, though, is John Erickson, the author of the popular children's book series,

Hank the Cowdog, which is sold over 10 million copies. John has a lighthearted approach

in the way that he writes, and much of it has to do with the Christian worldview that it carries. But before he became an acclaimed author, John would have

to understand that God had a plan for him that was very different than his own. That story

coming up right after word from today's sponsor.

Before we jump into today's story, let me just clarify that this is definitely a change of pace from our last two episodes.

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