Amy Peterson lives with her husband and two children on a couple of acres of Indiana farmland. She teaches and works with the Honors program at Taylor University. With a B.A. in English Literature from Texas A&M and an M.A. in Intercultural Studies from Wheaton College, Amy taught ESL for two years in Southeast Asia before returning stateside to teach in CA, AR, and WA. Amy has written for print and online publications about faith and culture. Her first book, Dangerous Territory: My Misguided Quest to Save the World, released on Feb 1, 2017.
IF YOU HAVE EVER HAD A DREAM THAT RESULTED IN DISAPPOINTMENT, THIS IS THE EPISODE FOR YOU.
In our conversation, Amy gives us a sneak peek into the story from her book about serving as a missionary in Southeast Asia and how that experience eventually broke her heart. She confesses the beliefs and attitudes she had as a young woman that resulted in the disappointment and disillusionment she felt about God after her dream fell apart. I so appreciated hearing how she recovered and, ultimately, how she has allowed God to use the experience to inform her next steps.
Amy also reminds us that Jesus has a very different measure of “success” compared to what the world deems successful, and she shares how that truth has impacted her dreaming. Amy returns to scripture again and again to inform our conversation, and I’m grateful for her perspective on how we can hold our dreams loosely and keep God at the forefront of our dreaming.
AMY’S RECOMMENDATIONS:
SCRIPTURE:
...make it your ambition to lead a quiet life and attend to your own business and work with your hands, just as we commanded you…
~ 1 Thessalonians 4:11
Listen to me, you islands;
hear this, you distant nations:
Before I was born the Lord called me;
from my mother’s womb he has spoken my name.
He made my mouth like a sharpened sword,
in the shadow of his hand he hid me;
he made me into a polished arrow
and concealed me in his quiver.
~ Isaiah 49:1-2
Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires if your heart.
~ Psalm 37:4
"And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God."
~ Ephesians 3:17b-19
BOOKS:
Shadow of the Almighty: The Life and Testament of Jim Elliot (Lives of Faith) by Elisabeth Elliot
It is Not Death to Die: A New Biography of Hudson Taylor by Jim Cromarty
A Chance to Die: The Life and Legacy of Amy Carmichael by Elisabeth Elliot
Assimilate or Go Home: Notes from a Failed Missionary on Rediscovering Faith by Danielle Mayfield
Dangerous Territory: My Misguided Quest to Save the World by Amy Peterson
CONNECT WITH AMY:
Website || Twitter || Instagram || Facebook
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The Devoted Dreamers Podcast is produced by Jonathan R. Clauson.
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