ann kiemel: Excerpt: "I'm Out To Change My World" Ann Kiemel...: Excerpt: "I'm Out To Change My World" Ann Kiemel, 1974 June one day a girl came in on her bicycle. she had another frie..
I am sitting her crying after reading about Ann Kiemel Anderson's death. I started reading her books in 1975. As a young teenager, I wanted to be Ann. She was a simple young woman, with a simple message that she shared everywhere she went. She, like me, was a Nazarene PK who simply wanted to share Jesus. I read every book she ever wrote. I went to see Ann in Augusta, GA in 1978. I started my own Ann Kiemel/Jesus crusade, knocking on doors of young people and inviting them to know Jesus. At the time, our youth group went from 35 to about 50 in only a few months. I wrote her a couple of times and I got back hand-written notes. I followed her journey as she shared her desire to be married as she candidly shared her desire for intimacy and longing to be loved completely and all the temptations that come with those God-given desires. I followed her as she found Mr. Right. I followed her as she struggled to have children with one miscarriage after another and the depression and addiction that followed. I followed her as her mother faced Alzhiemer's Disease and she lost her preacher-daddy. Somewhere along the way, I lost touch. Tonight I couldn't sleep and I decided to look her up. She died last month. I am so saddened by this. If there every was a young woman who made a difference, it was Ann. She had a world of disappointments and heartaches and the Christian world was often harsh and condemning. I pray that she found peace, however I know that she knows REAL PEACE as she is now safe in the arms of Jesus.
Ann, I loved you. You were the first young woman that I desired to emulate. Thank you for making a difference in my life.
Bonnie
Her books can be found on Amazon. My favorite is I'm Out to Change My World. Others include Hi! I'm Ann, Stronger, I Love the Word Impossible (my other favorite), First Love (about her father's death and her struggle with addiction). There's another one about her infertility and miscarriages. I can't think of the name of that one.
Sad to hear about the death of a good writer!
ReplyDeleteI think I've got just about all of Ann's books, too. I looked her up a few years ago and started following her blog via facebook. So sad to see her passing. I wrote to Ann in the 1980s and have the sweet letters she sent. Many prayers for her children.
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear this, it is a sad day.
ReplyDeleteI'm sad to hear this too. I heard her speak at a young peoples convention when I was 16 or 17. I had her books too. She was a special lady!
ReplyDeleteWhat's sad for us is joy for the one who "graduates" to glory. I look forward to meeting Ann when I'm in Heaven too. In spite of the overcast skies, I hope your day looked a little brighter as it progressed. God bless. ~:)
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