Prologue

Perhaps you are one of us—the quiet majority—who longs for a more profound experience of faith but resists, for her own good reasons, the effort of seeking one. Perhaps you are worried this book will land on the tottering pile on your nightstand, where you keep the stories you wish you could tell yourself. Perhaps you are seeking encouragement from strong, joyful companions who remind you of the holy treasure in your tired heart.

This book is for you. Yes, even you—the cautious, curious, weary, skeptical woman who can’t decide if she’s going to read the rest of this small paragraph. You.

Between the title page and the final page, you will open an immersive, imaginative journey into your spiritual life. You will read the stories of other women as your own story. You will be Morwenna, Kassiani, Ia, Nino, Piama, Margaret, and Casilda. You will find the stones you are carrying to build a church. You will hear the song you are writing and the emperor you are escaping. You will breathe the prayer that will topple idols. You will confront a prison cell and a dragon. You will hold your enemies frozen in their tracks and see danger transformed to fragrant roses in your hands.

You will read and write your own story. And, like us, you will find these seven beautiful women lingering with you after the stories are told and the book is closed.