Two weeks ago (almost exactly a year after signing my book contract), I handed over the final proofs of the book I have been quietly and wholeheartedly pouring myself into over the last year.
I have heard it said that before a creative work does anything in the world, it must first do its work in the creator. And goodness, it’s true. Writing has reached down into corners of my soul and shined a light into crevices I did not even know existed. Despite all the preconceived ideas I brought into the writing process, this book has challenged and changed me. Even last week, I told Ben, “You know, I’ve read these words so many times at this point, but every time, I need them. I wrote a book my heart needs to return to.”
My deepest hope is that it will be the same for you.
Because now, it is time for this book to stretch its own legs and make its way toward other people who, like me, crave a deeper kind of connection with God and each other. To people who are weary of life at the surface or lonely or wondering, “What in the world do I have to do to belong?” To people who are tired of trying to be everything for everybody but still question how much of themselves they can bring into the room. To people who want to love well amidst complication and difference.
To people like me. To people like you.
So with open hands (that are only a tad sweaty), I’d love to give you a sneak peek at what I have been working on.
Let me tell you right now: The Way of Belonging is not a prescription or five-step program for solving all your relational woes. Like so many things in life, our sense of belonging shifts with time and situation (maybe even what we had for breakfast). But I think what you’ll find in The Way of Belonging is a companion, a hand to hold and a place of returning for when you find yourself asking (perhaps time and time again), “What does it look like to belong?”
Because belonging is not about finding the right place or the right people, but a way of being in the world. It is part of who we are becoming as we embrace and extend the welcome of God himself. Right here. Right now. In the middle of our everyday lives.
The official release date for The Way of Belonging is June 11, 2024, so more details will be on the way about how you can help me usher this book into the world. But for now, with a heart bursting out of my chest with gratitude, I simply want to linger in this moment. I could not be more full of thanks.
grace + peace,
Sarah
PS: You can preorder The Way of Belonging in a few places now, which is weird and wild and wonderful. I’ll include a few links below, in case you’re the early bird type.
more about the book
We often think about belonging as where we fit in, a perfect place or perfect people where connection comes quick and easy. But that recipe is rare, and even when we find it, relationships remain complex. People change. Life changes. Situations, opinions, and problems make human-ing together hard, leaving us to wonder whether we are more outside than in.
But belonging is not dependent on particular places or people. It is not a mold we must pour ourselves into, hoping we will fit. Belonging is a welcome we carry with us. It is folded into our personhood like a divine inheritance, tucked into the unseen corners of the soul but firmer than the bones in our bodies. We belong because we have breath, and every exhale is an echo of the love of God, setting us free to hold and be held.
The Way of Belonging is an invitation to embrace a gentle-but-sturdy approach to belonging—not as something "out there" to attain, but as part of who we are and who we are becoming. By weaving together personal narrative with research, Scripture, and spiritual practices, this book provides a framework for how to see ourselves through the lens of God's welcome and to become an extension of that embrace as we are formed to be more and more like the Father.
I’m so excited for you, and proud of you. I just preordered my copy! Your words are always a gift, and I can’t wait to hold your book in my hands!
Sarah, I’m so excited for you!! Congratulations! I promptly pre-ordered your book and can’t wait to read it! 💕