Always on My Mind (34 page)

W
HAT DO YOU
do when you love someone who seems bent on self-destruction? Worse, when they seem incapable of listening to reason?

Pray. Hope. Love anyway.

I came upon this story idea after hearing about a woman who had inadvertently walked into an abusive relationship. She didn’t exactly know how she got there
 
—just that one day she opened her eyes to the truth. But she’d told herself so many lies that tracing her path toward this abuser seemed almost natural. She accepted abuse because of her inability to believe she was worthy of anything else.

Those outside the horror warned her. Wanted
 
—tried
 
—to wave her off. And watched with torn hearts as she entwined herself in a situation that nearly cost her and her children their lives.

Eventually the abuser hurt someone else
 
—someone less afraid, less intimidated, less willing to believe lies
 
—and was imprisoned. Justice finally.

So often, believers are like this woman: we stand in our mistakes, our sins, our regrets, and determine that we don’t deserve
love. So we accept less
 
—even abuse
 
—because we can’t lift our eyes off ourselves and onto truth.

Jesus stands outside the lies, waving at us to stop our self-destruction, to believe Him for freedom, to reach out for His love, to trust His justice. And He asks us, as Christians, to stand in the darkened pathways and shed light.

I wanted to write a story about a man who couldn’t escape the pull of love God had for the broken, the lost
 
—and yet depict the agony of seeing them run away into destruction. Just as God must feel when we push Him away and stubbornly head into darkness. Casper seemed exactly the right person to shoulder this task . . . even though it could have cost him so much.

That kind of love cost Jesus even more . . . cost Him everything.

But Jesus, like Casper, is a treasure hunter who has come to seek and save the lost. I love the fact that He believes we are worth the search.

And Raina
 
—who lived always looking behind her
 
—had to learn to look ahead, outside her comfort zone, into faith. I love the message that when we look at ourselves, we get afraid. After all, it’s true: how can such a wretch be redeemed? We can’t if we depend on ourselves. But if we depend on God . . .

Well, as John Christiansen says, “What does love do? Forgives. Comforts. Protects. Saves. Renews.
Loves.
”

Friends, look forward, your face to the wind, and live large in God’s love. Jesus says you are worth the search, worth His outrageous, unwavering love for you, despite the cost.

Thank you for reading Raina and Casper’s story. With Casper off to find Owen . . . well, it’s time for Amelia to come up with an answer, don’t you think? Can she forgive the man who broke her
heart? More, will she choose her high school sweetheart, Seth, or this European blue blood? Which would you choose?

In His grace,

Susan May Warren

S
USAN
M
AY
W
ARREN
is the bestselling, Christy and RITA Award–winning author of more than forty novels whose compelling plots and unforgettable characters have won acclaim with readers and reviewers alike. She served with her husband and four children as a missionary in Russia for eight years before she and her family returned home to the States. She now writes full-time as her husband runs a resort on Lake Superior in northern Minnesota, where many of her books are set.

Susan holds a BA in mass communications from the University of Minnesota. Several of her critically acclaimed novels have been ECPA and CBA bestsellers, were chosen as Top Picks by
Romantic Times
, and have won the RWA’s Inspirational Reader’s Choice contest and the American Christian Fiction Writers’ prestigious Carol Award. Her novels
You Don’t Know Me
and
Take a Chance on Me
were Christy Award winners, and five of her other books have also been finalists. In addition to her writing, Susan loves to teach and speak at women’s events about God’s amazing grace in our lives.

For exciting updates on her new releases, previous books, and more, visit her website at
www.susanmaywarren.com
.

1. Ingrid describes Casper, a middle child, as “the one who is neither the oldest
    
   —the responsible legacy bearer
    
   —nor the youngest, pampered and cherished just because he is the last.” How does his role as the middle son affect how Casper sees himself? Where do you fall in your family’s birth order? How might that define your role?
   
2. Though Casper feels like a failure in comparison to his siblings, each Christiansen struggles with his or her own inadequacies and failures. Why does Casper set such high and perhaps unrealistic standards for himself? Do you ever find yourself comparing your strengths and weaknesses to those of your siblings, friends, coworkers, etc.? Is it more often helpful or damaging?
   
3. As her due date grows closer and even after her baby is born, Raina agonizes over whether to keep her daughter or give her up for adoption. Do you think she ultimately makes the right decision? What would you have said if she’d come to you for advice?
   
4. Darek faces enormous pressure to keep Evergreen Resort afloat and maintain the Christiansen legacy. How does this affect his relationships with Ivy and Tiger? When faced with a big responsibility, do you ask for help or shoulder the burden yourself?
   
5. When Casper suggests that Raina turn to God for help, she argues, “God doesn’t love everybody, despite what Sunday school says. . . . He doesn’t love me.” What brought her to this conclusion? Have you ever questioned whether God loves everyone
    
   —or whether He loves you?
   
6. Even though Raina tried to keep her baby a secret from the Christiansens, several family members eventually find out. Did they deserve to know from the beginning? Did the siblings do the right thing in keeping the news from John and Ingrid for so long? Have you been asked to keep a secret when you weren’t sure it was right? What did you do?
   
7. Casper and Raina are both intrigued by “undiscovered treasures,” whether found on an archaeological dig, among the historical society’s donations, or in Aggie Wilder’s abandoned home. Do you share their love for antiques or relics from the past? What are some of your “treasures”
    
   —whether family heirlooms or just great finds?
   
8. Once she finds Aggie Wilder’s diary, Raina gets caught up in her story. Why does it hold such fascination for her? In what ways does Raina relate to Aggie, even without realizing it?
   
9. Darek challenges Casper on his relationship with Raina, saying, “The fact is, when God brings Christians into the lives of the hurting, it’s because He intends to use us to be
   truth and light to them. Not fix their problems but point them to the One who can.” How does this change Casper’s perspective on Raina? When someone in your life is hurting, do you find yourself wanting to fix their problems? How could you bring truth and light to those situations?
   
10. Raina continues dating Monte despite some twinges of doubt along the way. What red flags did you see in Monte’s behavior? Why do you think Raina stayed blind to them for so long? Have you ever continued a relationship you knew was unhealthy? What was the result?
    
11. In her journal, Aggie records Thor’s belief that “a small life is lived by staring inward, but a large one is lived by diving into God’s love.” How did Aggie “live large” once she believed this to be true?
    
12. When Casper questions how he can continue loving Raina, John answers, “How do you keep loving someone who doesn’t love you back? Like Jesus did, Son. Faithfully praying, faithfully abiding, faithfully loving anyway.” Has God called you to love someone this way? Where does that relationship stand now?
    
13. As the resort continues to struggle, Darek seizes an opportunity to rejoin his hotshot firefighting team. Did you agree with his decision? When have you been tempted to run away
     
    —literally or figuratively
     
    —from a stressful situation? What did you do?
    
14. Near the end of the story, Casper and Raina bring their secrets into the light and arrive at a plan for their future. If you were a member of the Christiansen family, how would
    you have responded? What do you think the future holds for Casper and Raina? For Owen?
    
15. Do parents’ roles change as their children reach adulthood? If so, what life events typically signal that transition, and how should children and parents go about establishing new boundaries? Do you think John and Ingrid have managed this transition well?