So, it’s Friday. I was supposed to be in the Solgohachia, Arkansas today. But here I am in Chicago, gazing out my office window at a pewter November sky. The low clouds that have hung here all week seem not to have moved. As long as I”m here, I thought I’d give away some books!

The retreat I was supposed to speak at was cancelled, due to low enrollment. This is hardly a boost to my self esteem. I’m disappointed. As the “guest speaker,” I didn’t have a chance to get involved in the marketing of the event, or planning. Turns out several local competing events drew participants away from the retreat.

At the retreat, I was planning to share several talks from my new book, Deeply Loved. I’d planned to remind the women in Arkansas that Jesus loves them, not because of what they’ve done, but because they exist. They are his precious daughters, and he doesn’t just put up with them, he adores them. I planned to teach them some spiritual practices that would help them embrace that reality. I’d hoped we could get real about the spiritual loneliness each of us experiences at some point, and how to let Jesus ease that ache.

But I’m here, writing to you all instead. Which I’m delighted to do, of course. So I wanted to at least give my book (which has similar content to what I’d be teaching at the retreat) to a couple of you. If you’d like to read the first chapter, my publisher, Abingdon Press, has it available on their website. (click on their name to read the first chapter for free). But if you’d like to read the whole book, for free, it’s again our featured Friday free book.

I wrote Deeply Loved for days like this one: when you feel disappointed, and lonely, and wonder if you’re loved. Sure, intellectually, I know Jesus loves me. But when speaking gigs get cancelled, or people let you down, embracing that truth in my heart (not just my head) is challenging.

How about you? What barriers get in the way of knowing you’re deeply loved? What keeps you from experiencing the love of Jesus in a personal and profound way? Answer with a comment by midnight Saturday, and you’ll be entered in a drawing to win a free copy of Deeply Loved. If you want to put your name in the drawing twice (doubling your odds of winning), go “like” our Deeply Loved Facebook page  as well. It’s at: https://www.facebook.com/deeplylovedbook  Just leave me a comment letting me know you “liked” it, and you’ll be entered twice.

We’ll give away two copies. So leave your comment below, answering this question: What barriers get in the way of knowing you’re deeply loved? What keeps you from experiencing the love of Jesus in a personal and profound way?