8. What lessons did Cody learn in this book? Describe the characteristics that make Cody so willing to help.
9. Do you know anyone like Cody Coleman? Talk about how they love to be needed, and what that has looked like in their lives.
10. What lesson from your childhood made the most impact on you? Why? 11. There is a cost to pursuing dreams. Lessons must always be learned along the way. What dreams did you have when you were growing up or what dreams do you still have, and how did God teach you lessons about those dreams?
12. The story of the Lyle High football team coming together to earn prize money for a sick girl with cancer was one that touched Cody deeply. Talk about what this part of the story meant to you.
13. Have you ever seen people come together to help someone in your church or family or community? Tell about that time.
14. Brandon Paul learned that our lives are but a mist that appears for a little while. What does that mean to you?
15. Did you learn anything from the character of Brandon? Do you think there are real-life celebrities like him? Why or why not?
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
NO BOOK COMES TOGETHER WITHOUT A GREAT AND TALENTED team of people making it happen. For that reason, a special thanks to my friends at Zondervan who combined efforts with a number of people who were passionate about Life-Changing Fiction™ to make Learning all it could be. A special thanks to Moe Girkins — whose commitment to excellence at Zondervan was unparalleled, and to Steve Sammons, who may be one of the only execs in publishing who actually gets the big picture of what we’re doing for the kingdom. Also, of course, a special thanks to my dedicated editor, Sue Brower, and to Don Gates and Alicia Mey, my marketing team. Thanks also to the creative staff and to the sales force at Zondervan who work tirelessly to put this book in your hands.
Also, thanks to my amazing agent, Rick Christian, president of Alive Communications. Rick, you’ve always believed only the best for me. When we talk about the highest possible goals, you see them as doable, reachable. You are a brilliant manager of my career, and I thank God for you. But even with all you do for my ministry of writing, I am doubly grateful for your encouragement and prayers. Every time I finish a book, you send me a letter that deserves to be framed, and when something big happens, yours is the first call I receive. Thank you for that. But even more, the fact that you and Debbie are praying for me and my family keeps me confident every morning that God will continue to breathe life into the stories in my heart. Thank you for being so much more than a brilliant agent.
A special thank you to my husband, who puts up with me on deadline and doesn’t mind driving through Taco Bell after a football game if I’ve been editing all day. This wild ride wouldn’t be possible without you, Donald. Your love keeps me writing; your prayers keep me believing that God has a plan in this ministry of Life-Changing Fiction™. And thanks for the hours you put in working with the guestbook entries on my website. It’s a full-time job, and I am grateful for your concern for my reader friends. I look forward to that time every day when you read through them, sharing them with me and releasing them to the public, lifting up the prayer requests. Thank you, honey, and thanks to all my kids, who pull together, bringing me iced green tea, and understanding my sometimes crazy schedule. I love that you know you’re still first, before any deadline.
Thank you also to my mom, Anne Kingsbury, and to my sisters, Tricia and Sue. Mom, you are amazing as my assistant — working day and night sorting through the mail from my readers. I appreciate you more than you’ll ever know. Traveling with you these past years for Extraordinary Women and Women of Joy events has given us times together we will always treasure.
Tricia, you are the best executive assistant I could ever hope to have. I appreciate your loyalty and honesty, the way you include me in every decision, and the daily exciting website changes. My site has been a different place since you stepped in, and the hits have grown a hundredfold. Along the