And the Winner is…Announcing eBook cover design for Identity Crisis: Reclaim the True You
I started with a dream for a new book cover for the eBook version of Identity Crisis: Reclaim the True You. I’ve been partnering with Anne Thompson, an eBook publishing consultant (eBookAnnie.com) on this new project.
So Many Choices
Instead of working with one designer, we went with 99 Designs, www.99designs.com, which provides an opportunity for thousands of designers to submit ideas. At the end of the first stage, we had 426 designs from which to choose. Many were immediate rejects; but several options presented themselves, leaving us with six finalists to agonize over. This process is often called “shoot the puppies” because it is difficult to let go of five in order to keep one!
This is where many of you came in. I got feedback wherever I was over the weekend; whether on the phone, by text, email, Facebook, or even at our wine and dinner group we attended last night. It was fun to hear the different reasons for choosing one over another; some of them were very heart felt and carried strong emotions.
Letting the Lord Decide
But, in the end, it came down not even to what I would choose, but what my Heavenly Father was leading me to choose.After Anne and I prayed, we both felt we had heard our Father’s choice. It came down to dreams and visions we’ve both experienced which left a profound impact upon us.
Mine was during a trip to Mexico while I was in seminary. I spent an entire night up with the Lord, wrestling and listening to his heart for my next steps. At the end of the night, I saw God take a dried dandelion and blow it as the seeds went around the world. Then I heard him say, “It’s not going to look like a church.”
After that, he commanded me to take dried dandelions and blow them as a prophetic sign of his Kingdom expanding. I’ve been following his command for almost 15 years now. And when I walk, I look for the best dried dandelion, pick it, and blow with all my might, as I envision where the seeds may land!
What the Dried Dandelion Symbolizes
I have some other thoughts about how the dried dandelion seeds blowing in the wind symbolize identity. Here are just a few:
- The Wind: “So don’t be so surprised when I tell you that you have to be ‘born from above’—out of this world, so to speak. You know well enough how the wind blows this way and that. You hear it rustling through the trees, but you have no idea where it comes from or where it’s headed next. That’s the way it is with everyone ‘born from above’ by the wind of God, the Spirit of God.” (John 3:5-8)
- Seeds planting in fertile soil: Jesus told the parable of the different soils. Some fell on hard soil, rocky soil, and thorny soil and very little fruit grew, but for seeds which fell into fertile soil, the harvest was one hundred times greater than what was planted (Luke 8:5-8). Our ongoing prayers are for the identity message to fall onto fertile soil so the kingdom harvest takes place.
- The Upside Down Priority of the Kingdom: I was preparing for the next 40-Day 15-Minute to Focus Phone Calls this morning and I realized as I read Jesus’ teaching in the final week of his earthly life that they all had one theme: the upside down priority of his Kingdom. Instead of religious leaders, Jesus calls the sick and sinful. Instead of the rich, Jesus praises the offering from the poor widow who gives all she has. Instead of inviting the popular and famous guests to a party, Jesus encourages going out into the alleys and underpasses to find the lost, the lonely and the lame. Over and over the message came to me this morning that what may seem like annoying weeds to many, the dandelions, they are the delight to a young child who excitedly picks them as a beautiful bouquet to give to their mother.
So, it is with great delight that I present the book design for the next publication of Identity Crisis: Reclaim the True You!
More Identity eBooks in the Future
And, here’s the good news about the remaining book covers. My next writing steps include a series of shorter eBooks with just one identity focus in each. So, you just may see the book cover design you were most passionate about as cover to one of the many eBooks that together are in our future.
In the meantime, I value your prayers for Identity Crisis: Reclaim the True Youto reclaim its true inheritance with the prophetic statement of the dried dandelion on its cover….the ongoing prayer for an identity reclamation harvest to come forth so that God’s beloved children, his most glorious creation, know beyond a shadow of a doubt, who they were truly born to resemble: their Creator: Jesus, the King of the Universe.