Friends
Exciting News! The audiobook version of my personal memoir, “Rough Places Smooth: Moments In A Journey Through Blindness,” is now available on Audible, iTunes, and Amazon! Yay! I am so thrilled!
My book was published in August 2022 as a softcover, Kindle eBook, and on Kindle Unlimited. To date, wee have sold more than 500 copies across those formats, not to mention all the times the book has been shared among friends. I stand amazed by how God is using this book to encourage others as they journey through their own rough places.
I give thanks for how the book has opened doors to numerous speaking opportunities at churches, book clubs, and community groups. It has been such a privilege to personally share my story of God’s faithfulness with so many, and in turn, I have been blessed to hear their stories of triumph and resiliency. Again and again, I have been reminded that “Everybody has something.” We each have our own hard things, our rough places, and when we share our stories, we bear one another’s burdens and build each other up.
While I pray that my book will encourage anyone struggling through hard things, I especially want to reach out to those suffering through vision loss. It is my hope that this audiobook format will offer easy access to the blind and visually impaired, allowing them to receive my story and be encouraged in their own challenging journeys.
I am thrilled to introduce my fabulous narrator, Connie deVeer, to all of you and invite you to check out the audio sample on my Amazon book page. I searched for a narrator with a mild Southern accent and an engaging, storytelling style, and I know you will agree that I found a perfect match in Connie deVeer. It has been an amazing collaboration, and I am quite clear that God sent Connie as an answer to prayer!
Special thanks to Doug and Tami Northup, my Northup house Publishing Team, and my husband Eric for helping me navigate the audiobook publishing process. Please join me in celebrating this next step in my publishing journey and pass along this good news to anyone who might benefit from the audiobook format. Will you please join me in prayer that God will continue to use this book for our good and His glory?
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“Don’t be afraid,” he said, “for you are very precious to God. Peace! Be encouraged! Be strong!” As he spoke these words to me, I suddenly felt stronger and said to him, “Please speak to me, my lord, for you have strengthened me.”
Daniel 10:19 – NLT
One of my favorite motherhood activities was reading to my little boy. Nap time and bedtime were all about stories. What book would we read today? What message did I want to convey?
I spent hours in the bookstore flipping through the books, trying to find just the right story. I searched for books with vivid colors that would captivate Jonathan’s attention, but I also evaluated the story line. What could he learn from this story? Did it share our values? Did it offer a life lesson?
Often, I returned to books I enjoyed as a child, smiling at the memory of my parents reading those words to me. Of course, Jonathan had his favorites, books we read so often that I could quote the words without even looking at the page. Those stories were committed to my memory bank, and to his.
Stories are powerful. Words have weight.
Through stories, we share our hopes, our dreams, our joys. Through stories, we share our heartache, our losses, our disappointments.
With our words, we teach, we treasure, we testify. With our words, we pass on wisdom. Through our words, we convey what matters to us.
Certainly, some of us have more words than others. Some of us find it easier to share our thoughts. But each of us has a story to share.
Our lives are a collection of stories, some that can be used to encourage and support, others that can be used to teach and to testify. As I look back over the events of my life, what I remember are the stories. I remember the stories of God’s faithfulness. I recall the moments when I felt God’s presence. When the storms of this life roll in, I take refuge in those stories, reminding myself that God will see me through this rough place as He has all the others.
Listening to the stories of others brings me encouragement, reminding me that I am not the only one to experience heartache and loss. When I hear the story of someone’s triumph over adversity, I am moved to soldier on. When I hear a story of kindness and generosity, I am reminded that goodness matters, that light overcomes darkness.
Everyone has a story. What’s yours? How has God shown up in your life? Is there someone who needs to hear about a God-moment in your life? Can your story of God’s faithfulness encourage someone else who is struggling?
No, you don’t have to be a public speaker or write a book or a blog. You just need to be open to your opportunities, and when the time is right, share your story.
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Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose.
Philippians 2:1-2 – NLT
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PRAYER
O Lord God, You are so faithful. You are always working for good in our lives, even when we can’t see it. You take the successes and struggles of our lives and weave them together into a story that speaks of Your presence, Your purpose, Your faithfulness. Help us share our stories to encourage our fellow sojourners along the way. For our stories are Your story, and in sharing them, we glorify You.
In the Faithful Name of Jesus, we pray,
Amen
Blessings,
Anita
-APS 6/2/2025
Now Available as an audiobook on Audible and iTunes!
Want to read more of Anita’s story?
GRAB A COPY OF
Rough Places Smooth:
Moments in a Journey Through Blindness
by Anita Peden Sherer
NOW AVAILABLE ON AMAZON
AS PAPERBACK AND KINDLE EBOOK!
Faith Beyond Sight 