The Coping Series is the recipient of the Mom’s Choice Award

Buttermilk Falls inspired Jeanne Gehret

to launch The Coping Series.

Inspiration for The Coping Series

If you have found hope and healing in these books, it is only right that you should know the source. Publishing this series is one of the most challenging things I have ever done, and God has inspired and sustained me at every junction. I, in turn, have found strength that I never before had to explore, to believe, and to persevere.

After almost 20 years in print, The Don’t-give-up Kid and Eagle Eyes were a nice source of steady, effortless income. The books almost sold themselves. I felt an unwelcome nudge to make them more appealing for the next generation of kids and, after talking to several experts in the book business, satisfied myself that updates were unnecessary. Nevertheless, one day when I was hiking, God seemed to be speaking to me under the roar of the nearby waterfall. “I have many hurting children with ADD and learning disabilities. If I asked you to redo your books for them, would you do it for Me?” How could I say anything but yes?

And so began the journey of reviving a publishing company that was formed before email, cellphones, and the Internet. Not only the book industry, but our very way of communicating had changed; how would I ever get up to speed again? To redo the books in color, I could not rely upon the black-and-white book manufacturer I’d used for 15 years. In addition, my former artists were all doing other work and could not take on this job. I almost abandoned the project entirely when several advisors in the book trade insisted that I would have to have the books printed overseas. I felt that would just add another layer of difficulty. And where would I find an artist?

I told God that if He wanted me to redo the books, He would simply have to provide the artist and printing manufacturer. Within two hours of that prayer, I found both artist and printer online, within the United States, at a price I could afford. As I was pondering how to update Eagle Eyes, God gave me another book to write, Houdini’s Gift.

What a time to invest in the risky business of publishing! As the economy took a downturn, my husband prepared to retire. To the logical, business side of me, the whole project seemed like folly, but God kept calling through the voice of the waterfall.

Through it all, He has provided the advisors, the funding, the talent, and the strength to see this project to completion. I can only conclude that He must have a powerful desire for these books to reach another generation of children with His message of love and hope. To God be the glory! May you be blessed by these simple stories and know how powerfully you are loved by the Almighty.

“To hear with my heart, to see with my soul,

To be guided by a hand I cannot hold,

To trust in a way that I cannot see,

That’s what faith must be.”

“That’s What Faith Must Be,” by Michael Card