Let’s get personal: A little peek into my world!

Hey y’all!

I am so glad you're here! I will start by saying that I'm not quite as southern as my greeting implies. I landed in a suburb of Atlanta, Georgia as a teenager, but due to negative stereotypes I learned from watching Gone with the Wind, I resisted falling prey to its charms for quite a while. Even still, as a mature (some would argue) adult, I find myself mixing a few "you guys" in with my "y'alls" to avoid being labeled.

Okay, what you need to know about me: I love Jesus, teaching, words, and fun. But, if I'm being honest, all this social media stuff makes me a little nervous-crazy-rebellious.

What's my why? (a question I ask myself a lot)
In searching my heart, I've determined that I'm an extroverted-introvert, which means I like to engage with people but need down time to re-fill my social "tank." I enjoy being out front to teach, act, and/or lead social events or teams, but I don't like being the center of attention. I'm an oxymoron (funny word).

Here’s the thing

I have something (A LOT) I want to say, but I'd rather you and I meet for coffee and a bagel (or donut when I'm not counting calories). I'd rather have a relationship with you than an audience. BUT, I live in truth and understand that would be an impossibility if I want to reach THE MANY rather than THE FEW. So, here I am to offer what I have in hopes of helping you discover what I've discovered over many, many years of walking with Jesus.

My name is Kelly Whitehead, and I LOVE God's Word! That wasn't always the case, but it quickly became my reality. As a young follower of Jesus, I was told that the Bible is my guidebook for living a life worthy of His calling. If that was true, I had to read it. I had to study it. But, more than that, I had to apply it.

If the Bible is my guidebook for living a life worthy of God’s calling…

I must read it. I must study it. More than that, I must apply it!

So, with limited knowledge, I asked God to give me a supernatural hunger for His Word. HE DID! I didn't know it then, but what I know now is that the Bible is the spiritual food and nourishment required to fuel our souls.

The Bible is the spiritual food and nourishment required to fuel our souls.

Since becoming a Christian in 1987, I’ve had the privilege of experiencing the transforming power of the Bible in many different ways: personally; as a public, private, and home school teacher; on local and global mission fields; as a Bible teacher in churches, women's shelters, and one minimum security transition facility; in Biblical counseling; and in doing life with family and friends.

Does that mean life has been easy since trusting Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior? Absolutely not! But through it all, there is one thing of which I am certain. Without God's truth and hope strengthening me for the inevitable trials of life, I would have struggled and possibly crumbled under its weight.

Just the facts :

I live in Marietta, Georgia with my husband, Kevin, of 32 years. We have raised three (almost perfect) sons, two (absolutely perfect) Havanese pups, and are completely in love with our brave (read crazy) daughter-in-law.

I have three siblings, an older sister and two younger brothers. Our parents divorced when I was in college. My dad remarried twice before he died in 2015, and my mom married a childhood friend. Just like everyone, our lives have been full of ups and downs, joy and sorrow, victories and defeats. But EVERYTHING changed for me in November of 1987 when I trusted Jesus as my Lord and Savior.

I grew up in a non-Christian/Christian home. Some of you understand what I mean. Right? We called ourselves Christians, but we had no understanding of the gospel or what it meant to live in relationship with Jesus Christ.

Then God . . .

God created my brother, Jim, with a longing to know him. From a young age, he had a heart that desired to worship, but it wasn’t until his first year of college that he found the only rightful recipient of that worship. Upon finding God, Jim's life was transformed, and his new pursuit was to share the message of the Gospel with others.

I start with Jim's story because that is the beginning of my faith journey. I came home from college in November of 1987 to celebrate Thanksgiving with my family. That Wednesday, unbeknownst to me, Jim and his friend, Trey, were on a mission to share the message of salvation with someone -- anyone.

They jumped in their car and drove toward First Baptist Atlanta (FBA), hoping to meet a stranger along the way and, afterward, attend Wednesday night activities. They were, after all, young men with big appetites for both spiritual and physical food. And though neither was affiliated with FBA, they understood all good Baptist churches have Wednesday night Bible study and Wednesday night supper.

According to my brother, the streets of Atlanta were empty, and the church was closed. It was the day before Thanksgiving, after all. So, Jim and Trey trekked back home hungry and defeated but found unsuspecting me in the basement of our house. That is when Jim started a life-changing conversation as only he would. "Kelly," he asked with great intent, "do you believe in the Neo-Orthodox Barthian View of Inspiration?"

“Do you believe in the Neo-Orthodox Barthian View of Inspiration?”

Not one to be intimidated by my little brother, I simply, "Nope."

Jim, not one to be intimidated by his older sister, happily responded, “Good! Do you know why you don’t believe in the Neo-Orthodox Barthian View of Inspiration?” I confessed I didn't, which was the springboard he needed to launch into a conversation about man's inherited sin nature and our desperate need for a savior.

I'd like to tell you that my challenges were deep and philosophical, drawn from a well of intellectual aptitude, but the truth is, they weren't. So, after three days of Q&A (Jim and Trey disappearing many times to “phone-a-friend”), I submitted my life to God through Jesus Christ. Like a little child I came to Him, believing by faith—and that faith has sustained me my entire adult life. PRAISE THE LORD!

So, here I am !

Thirty-six years in and still excited at the ever-changing ways God allows me to use the gifts He has given me to encourage those who desire to know Him and understand the transforming power of His Word… YES, even if it means using social media!

If you're spiritually hungry and want to feast with me on the powerful, incomparable, transforming WORD of GOD, you have come to the right place!

My book is available now

When Light breaks through the Darkness and goes to battle for one lost soul, Bolanle (boh-LAHN-lee) Anderson has a decision to make. Will she accept the Shepherd’s grace-filled freedom, or will she remain chained to her familiar world of brokenness, rejection, and heartache?

A peculiar teenage beauty from a small town in South Georgia, Bolanle becomes a primary target of evil when she tries to escape the unrelenting dysfunction of her self-centered mother and perverted stepfather. On the run, she comes face-to-face with Lemrich, an ex-convict who insists that the mysterious journal in his possession is meant for her.

Daily conflicts are heightened at home, at school, and within her heart as the desires of her flesh become a playground for the enemy. The Shepherd’s Journal is her springboard into a reality she hadn’t known was possible and leads her to wrestle with the most critical decision of her life.

Order your copy today!