Deep from the Heart
DEEP FROM THE HEART
Mary Lou Cheatham
Ava Molino, a thirty-year-old Methodist minister, brings kindness to an impoverished west Texas town.
Written for women who like to read books combining romance and suspense, Deep from the Heart shows a minister in a city park where gangs lurk, but her attacker is a man from her church.
Deep from the Heart shows oppressed groups of people who seek to overcome hardships. The community where the minister lives and works contains uprooted Hispanics, disabled veterans, and impoverished elderly people—all unwelcome in Grace and Peace Church.
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“The theme of the book is to follow your heart and always be open about your feelings.”
—Nancy Hutson
Retired Assistant Professor of English
Louisiana State University, Shreveport
“Woven with grace and sensitivity, Mary Lou Cheatham takes us on a journey with Ava Molina as she leaves the comfort of her hometown in Mississippi and travels to Texas to pastor a small-town church. The poignant plot will grip your heart from the beginning as she reaches out to the downtrodden and draws them to the church and to Christ. It was a blessing to see how the town changed from the inside out.
—Patricia Bradley
Author, Justice Delivered,
Memphis Cold Case Novels
Interview with Ava
How did the story Deep from the Heart come about?
It’s a memory of a year in my life. I would have named it Memoir in My Notebook. After I received my assignment as pastor of Grace and Peace Church, I traveled along the path of my life’s journey that changed me more than anything else before or since.
I used to go sit and gaze at Yellow House Canyon, one of the most beautiful places on earth. My notebook knew all my secret thoughts. The words flowed with tears deep from my heart onto the pages.
Were you afraid to sit there alone?
The coyotes and snakes didn’t frighten me. Instead I had two logical fears. One was the danger that a highly respected church member would find me in a vulnerable position. He could have murdered me and rolled my body down from the rim of the canyon. It would have looked like I fell. The other fear I had was that my tears would make the notebook illegible.
What happened?
You know I can’t spoil the story.
