Ashley Akers

Even though my grandmother had taken me to church since I was 2 years old, I lived in a broken home with many hardships. Though I attended church my whole life, it wasn’t until my early 20's that I finally accepted Jesus into my heart. After a Sunday sermon, I was convicted about my sin and felt like I had been carrying a heavy weight all week. I knew that if I were to die that day, I would not go to Heaven, and for the first time it really scared me. I had known about God all my life, but I had never put my complete faith in Him. I didn’t really know Him and I did not have a personal relationship with Him. What I had in exchange was a God-shaped void in my life, and an emptiness that was never able to be filled. Being the “good” wife I thought I needed to be, I was sitting on my bed at about 10:00 p.m. that Friday night, waiting for my husband to come home from a late shift, and I finally surrendered my life completely to Jesus. It was easily the best decision I ever made!

No! What Now? was written to help restore people that aren't in the faith, new to the faith, or have been in the faith for a long time. Scripture never turns void, no matter where you are or aren't in your personal walk with the Lord.

Since this study was birthed while teaching at a local PRC, the format of it would be ideal for this setting. The 52 devotionals conveniently provide a year’s worth of material per client. What Now? is an easy read and written on a level that the average client could understand and can relate to. The goal is to take their brokenness and give it to Jesus. The questions at the end of each devotional are thought provoking, and with the leader’s guidance, can help each young lady to overcome her hardships. PRC’s have the opportunity to purchase a license for a one time low price and will have the ability to make as many copies as needed for their clients.

My hope and prayer is that they really dig into the Word of God and understand both who God is and who God says they are. It is easy to get caught up in life and listen to the lies the enemy tells us, but God IS truth, He IS faithful, and every one of us IS loved! I hope the reader realized that the Lord really wants to change their hearts and restore them. We weren’t mean to live broken lives, but fulfilling lives in Christ Jesus. Then, WORSHIP Him!

What Now? can be done individually OR in a group setting. If a group study is desired, participants will share their questions, if comfortable. A group setting can be a great way to form connections with others to promote accountability and healing.

When writing this, my target audience was considered to be young girls and women. It is obviously written from a female perspective to females, BUT, scripture does not target a specific audience; it targets all audiences. I believe that men go through a lot of the same hardships, and can easily benefit from the program as well.

While teaching at a local pregnancy resource center, the Lord called me to write this as I was cooking lunch one day. He told me that I would be writing on the hardships of life based upon certain topics, and that everything I needed was in the Bible that the girls receive from the PRC. To my amazement, in the back were topics with only scripture. While fear did come over me, He assured me that it would be HIM writing this and not me. After fully surrendering to the calling, the Lord began to give me the format of the study, down to the stories I shared.