Topeka native pens book on A Redesigned Life – The Topeka Capital-Journal

When Tracy Steel was a teenager in the mid-1990s and working at her parents' Christian bookstore at West Ridge Mall in Topeka, she likely had no idea that she one day would be the author of a book that would be sold at similar stores across the nation.

But that is exactly what happened with the release of her book"A Redesigned Life: Uncovering Gods Purpose When Life Doesnt Go As Planned," which was released this past August by Revell Books, a subsidiary of Grand Rapids, Mich.-based Baker Publishing Group.

"This book is a great fit for any woman, age 18 and older, who is living a life that hasnt gone as she planned," Steel said, "and who is wondering if God is there and if he cares, or for anyone who wants to go deeper in their faith."

Steel said her parents, Wayne and Roxie Davis, owned the Lemstone Bookstore from 1995 to 1998 at West Ridge Mall. The store was located in the lower level of the mall near the Dillard's store entrance.

Steel recalls those days with fondness, remembering how her parents enjoyed interacting with the people who came into their small store.

"They enjoyed talking with their customers," she said, "and considered it an honor to sell paper-backed messages of hope and inspiration to all who came into their store."

Steel said she came from a family of "book lovers," yet never thought of herself as a writer.

She was born and raised in Topeka, attending Berryton Elementary School and graduating in 1994 from Shawnee Heights High School. She then attended Kansas State University in Manhattan, where she graduated with a bachelor's degree in interior design in 1998.

She said she graduated in May 2019 from Phoenix Seminary with a master of arts degree in biblical and theological studies.

After she graduated from K-State, she said, she had "dreams of owning her own interior design firm, moving to New York City and making millions of dollars. But as I mention in the book, none of that happened. Ive never lived in New York City or made anywhere close to $1 million, in ministry or now as a writer. And that is fine by me. As God continues to redesign my life, Ive come to discover that his plans for me have far exceeded what I always thought to be best. I trust him completely and will continue to follow him wherever he leads me next."

Over the past several years, Steel said, she has "had the privilege of traveling and speaking at various conferences. Ive met with women of differing ages and stages of life across the nation and listened to their frustrations and heartaches. All of them, who identify as Christian women, were surprised by their lives because they werent turning out the way they had planned. They wondered where God was in the midst of their shock, surprise or grief.

"I wanted to come up with a fresh, encouraging and creative way to encourage them and help them to see the purposes of God whenever life doesnt go as planned. For my own life, along with the Bible itself, has taught me that God is with us and that he is moving in the middle of the mayhem and mess."

Before going into the ministry, Steel said she worked in the corporate world of interior design for several years. Then, she said, God called her into a different kind of interior design.

"This type of interior design entailed me taking the words of the Bible and redesigning the hearts and minds of women with its truths and hope," she said. "As I remembered the set of 'design principles' that I used as a human interior designer to create functional and beautiful spaces for my clients, I thought about God, who is our master architect or designer. I wondered if he uses similar principles as the ones I used as he is redesigning our lives."

Steel said she found that to be the case, as God "uses the principles of movement, emphasis, pattern, contrast, balance and space to tell us something about himself or what he desires for us whenever life doesnt go as planned. I dive into these more deeply in the book, showing how we can apply them in our own faith walk, while combining them with real-life stories from other women who have been shocked or surprised by life, as well."

In her book, Steel shares the story of her mother, Roxie Davis, who died at age 61 in October 2012. Steel said her mother was a "devoted teacher" at Berryton Elementary School just southeast of Topeka.

"I also write about her death and battle with breast cancer in the book, and know that if she were still here, shed be so proud, but that if she was still here, the book would not have touched as many lives as it already has," Steel said. "Her death was not in vain, and God has used her story in 'A Redesigned Life' to redeem much of what she suffered. I am incredibly grateful to him for doing so."

Steel and her husband, Chad, who is a pilot in the U.S. Air Force, have two children ages 9 and 11. Steel noted she has moved six times during the first 12 years of marriage, "making me a professional mover and Walmart and Starbucks locator."

At present, her husband is stationed in Washington, D.C., "but I still make it back to Topeka to visit my father, Wayne Davis, and his wife, Kathy, my grandparents Dale Davis and Betty Crouch, and my sister Jamie Cooper."

"A Redesigned Life: Uncovering Gods Purpose When Life Doesnt Go As Planned" is available online at Amazon, Christian Book Distributors, Barnes & Noble and Target. Steel said the Barnes & Noble store in Topeka also has copies on its shelves.

To read Steel's blogs, reach her via email, or subscribe to her newsletter, visit http://www.tracymsteel.com. Steel said she enjoys interacting with readers on Facebook @TracyMSteelMinistries or on Instagram @tracymsteel.

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Topeka native pens book on A Redesigned Life - The Topeka Capital-Journal