“When I was a junior at Hillsboro High School my mother encouraged me to enter the national Guideposts writing contest.  The winners received a scholarship as well as a fancy new typewriter.  Other than helping my parents financially with the scholarship, I had little interest in her suggestion. 

After all, what would I write about?  

Soon after, sitting outside for lunch on a cool autumn day, my thoughts were on that night’s football game. I was an undersized offensive guard on the team and the game was a big deal for my school. I was anxious.

Opening my lunch bag I hardly took note of what my mom had packed until a hard boiled egg appeared. There was a message penciled on its shell: “Go Brock.” A touch typical of my mom.

The game was tough, and the final score was worse.

When I got home, my dad, mom and sister Keri were waiting to console me. I was surprised at how much that lifted my spirits. Soon after I realized I had something very real to write about – the importance of a family that wraps itself around your disappointments. I wrote my entry in the contest.

Amazingly, I was a winner.  An editor flew down from New York to interview me. I was featured on the local nightly news and I made both papers.  My 30 seconds of fame…and a well-deserved “thank you” for my mom.

Two years later, while a sophomore in college, Guideposts reached out and invited me to begin submitting to their annual “Daily Devotions” book.  My work was accepted and more than thirty years later, I’m still writing devotions for the book. 

I have heard from folks all over the world about my posts, have met countless interesting people, made some important contacts. Even my wife Corinne was a fan before we met.

I wrote that first story with my mom in mind. But as often happens when we do something for someone else, we are the ultimate beneficiary.”