2023-08-29 19:36:25
Christian writer Sarah Young, author of the devotional The Call of Jesusis facing serious health issues that have worsened “quickly”, according to reports.
Publisher Thomas Nelson, responsible for publishing Sarah Young’s books, issued a statement stating that the writer’s health is “weakened” and getting worse, adding a request for prayer.
“We have received the harsh news that Sarah’s health is rapidly deteriorating,” editor Thomas Nelson wrote on social media. “We know that Sarah truly believes in the power of prayer and prays for her readers every morning. Now we have the precious privilege of interceding for Sarah and her family. Please join us in prayer,” says the text posted on social media.
The book The Call of Jesuspublished in the United States in 2004 (with the Brazilian printed version hitting stores in 2019 in a translation by the journalist Paul Polzonoff Jr.), brings 365 devotionals, one for each day of the year. With more than 35 million copies sold worldwide, it received the title of “Christian Book of the Year” in 2013 and 2018 in international awards.
The author spoke about her book in a recent interview, saying that it was the result of “a long and prayerful journey”, and that the habits acquired during production became permanent: “Since its publication, I have prayed daily for the people who are reading The Call of Jesus or any of my subsequent books. I consider it an incredible privilege and God-given responsibility to pray for readers.”
According to information from the portal The Christian Post, Sarah Young is a Master of Biblical Studies and Counseling at Covenant Theological Seminary, and describes herself as “biblically conservative in her faith and Reformed in her doctrine.” Married to Stephen Young, a Presbyterian missionary, the writer has two children and two grandchildren.
Discretion is one of the writer’s hallmarks. In 2013, the newspaper The New York Times did a story with a profile about her saying that Sarah is self-contained due to “Lyme disease and other health problems”, and emphasized that “there are almost no public photos of her and she does not talk on the phone”.
In a rare interview with Gloria Gaither and Phil Newman, Sarah Young stated that before writing any book, she undergoes a period of prayer, “including prayers for the protection of my mind from distractions, distortions, and deceptions.”
“I ask God to guide my mind as I focus on Him and His Word. So I just pray, ‘Help me, Holy Spirit,’ and I wait. I was strongly influenced by the Bible verse, ‘Be still and know that I am God’. I want to make it clear that I have no audible conversation with Jesus. Rather, it is a quiet, personal time of prayer, pondering the Scriptures, and seeking the guidance of the Holy Spirit,” he explained.
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