Rachel Hauck

Jul 1

10 min read ⭑

“My hope is for readers to encounter Jesus, not the church foyer. With each book, I ask, ‘God, how do you want to show up?’”

Rachel Hauck is an award-winning author, writing coach, mentor and workshop presenter. Her writing has been on the New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestseller lists. Rachel is a worship leader and a runner who loves the outdoors, and on many mornings you can catch her riding her bike to her favorite diner for breakfast.

In this interview, Rachel opens up about how the Word of God is her superpower against bouts of anxiety she faces from time to time. She reveals that writing can be a lonely pursuit, but she’s found that giving back is her “gold at the end of the rainbow.” Continue reading to hear her share how encounters with God have influenced her fiction writing and how she has laid down every other dream for the ultimate prize of knowing Jesus more deeply.

QUESTION #1: ACQUAINT

There’s much more to food than palate and preference. How does a go-to meal at your favorite hometown restaurant reveal the true you behind the web bio?

In my corporate days before I was married, before I became a full-time author, I traveled to newspapers around the world installing computer systems and training end-users. The only thing those computers and I had in common, in the beginning, was journalism. I attended journalism school at Ohio State where I took one computer class. My take away? Garbage in, garbage out. (Read 1980s.)

Yet the job gave me post-college opportunity and a chance to see the world. One year before Thanksgiving, I shipped off to Ireland. I’d been on the road for about three years and travel-for-work was losing its glamor. Halfway through the training, I learned the trip had been extended a few days. I was disappointed. I was ready to go home. That Friday, the distributor invited me to a classic fish-and-chips dinner with his family. His wife and sons welcomed me as a long-lost friend. We laughed and talked over the best fish and chips I’ve ever eaten. That evening, their home in Dublin became a home in my heart — just like growing up with my parents and grandparents. When your life is on the road and people share their home and food, you quickly realize we are all so very much the same under the skin and behind the accents.

QUESTION #2: REVEAL

We’ve all got quirky proclivities and out-of-the-way interests. So what are yours? What so-called “nonspiritual” activities do you love and help you find spiritual renewal?

I’m a Florida girl with the blood of my Ohio, Oklahoma and Kentucky ancestors flowing through my veins. I spent my childhood days running through the woods and splashing through the creeks around my grandmother’s home in southern Ohio’s Shawnee State Forest. Those carefree days instilled in me a lifelong love for the outdoors. Going outside gets me out of myself!

While I’ve grown accustomed to the heat, sun, and beaches of my Florida hometown, there’s a part of me that resonates with the Midwest. I have to touch base with my home away from home every now and then to refresh.

A few years ago, my husband and I traveled to Indiana for his class reunion. We bunked with his sister and her husband on their palatial five acres. I found myself wanting to be outside more than inside. While they talked around the kitchen island, I escaped to a picnic table under a shade tree. As I sat there journaling — a writer has to write! — it was like I’d come home, like I’d touched base with the little girl in me who ran through the woods and splashed in the creek without a care in the world. I stretched out on the soft bed of cool grass. For all Florida’s perks, lying in St. Augustine grass isn’t one of them. I’d gone to ground, literally, and refreshed my soul by remembering my roots, my family, and that God knew me from the foundation of the world.

QUESTION #3: CONFESS

Every superhero has a weakness. Every human, too. We’re just good at faking it. But who are we kidding? We’re broken and in this thing together. So what’s your kryptonite and how do you hide it?

I’m not good at hiding my kryptonite. I process verbally. If something is bothering me, I talk about it. (I have a patient husband!)

I’ve dealt with anxiety off and on since my early twenties. I can cite various reasons why, but in the end, one thing remained my superpower: the Word of God.

I’ve been anxious over deadlines, success as an author, the lack of book sales, relationships and don’t get me started on menopause. But in every situation, the Word of God brought me stability and peace.

It’s incredible to experience God and who he says he is. His promises are true.

A few years ago, anxiety hit again out of the blue. It started as a thought, which I rejected, but the apprehension found a place to land. About once a week for the next few months, I battled anxiety triggered by the smallest thing. Finally, I’d had enough. I downloaded a counter app on my phone and loaded it up with Scripture — some confronting anxiety and others about exalting the Lord. Every time I had an anxious thought, I quoted a verse and counted it. I did this dozens of times a day for months. In the midst of the battle, the Lord met me time and time again. I cried good tears every day for a year. Anxiety is no longer my kryptonite. I may have an off day, or a blitz here and there, but in the Lord, the battle is won!

QUESTION #4: FIRE UP

Tell us about your toil. How are you investing your professional time right now? What’s your obsession? And why should it be ours?

When I was a girl, my father told me, “Rachel, you’re a writer. Be a writer.” He spoke into my destiny after observing my love of books and words. As a kid, when asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, I’d answer, “A writer.”

I love how stories impact our hearts. When the disciples asked Jesus, “What do you mean?” He often replied, “Let me tell you a story.” My first book was published in 2004, and I’ve been writing full time ever since. My novel, “The Wedding Dress,” landed on the New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestseller lists. Another book, “Once Upon A Prince,” premiered as a Hallmark movie. While I love those milestone moments, which are elements I can’t control, the greater value is touching readers and helping others.

Awards, bestseller lists, and even a movie deal wouldn’t have happened without my agent, editors, friends and mentors walking with me.

One of my favorite memories on my writing journey was when a debut author friend won the American Christian Fiction (ACFW) Carol Award. Goodness! Everyone at our Gala table shot to their feet, cheering, hooting and hollering. What joy! I was so thrilled for her.

Writing for a living is a solitary business, even in the world of social media, and it’s sometimes fraught with insecurity. Giving back, helping other writers, is the gold at the end of our rainbow.

QUESTION #5: BOOST

Cashiers, CEOs, contractors, or customer service reps, we all need grace flowing into us and back out into the world. How does the Holy Spirit invigorate your work? And how do you know it’s God when it happens?

Writing novels with characters that only live in one’s head can be a challenge for any author, but for me, storytelling from a biblical worldview without being preachy is even more challenging.

I decided early in my career to let the supernatural break into the natural to tell the spiritual thread. My hope is for readers to encounter Jesus, not the church foyer.

With each book, I ask, “God, how do you want to show up?” In the past, characters have seen feathers or sensed a fragrance.

Creativity comes in many ways but frequently after a day of writing! Seems weird, but I’m empty at that point, having poured out words all day. In the quiet of making dinner or getting ready for bed, maybe taking a short walk, I’ll discover “next-scene inspiration.”

I’ve also found inspiration during worship and prayer and, on several occasions, encountered the Lord’s tangible presence.

One example happened when I’d gone into the church sanctuary for some alone time. Immediately I sensed the Lord’s presence. Weeping, I dropped to my knees and soon knew the end journey of one of my characters.

More recently, the electric guitar player hit a cool lick during Sunday worship, and I saw the Lord speaking with the hero of my work-in-progress. Tears. The good kind!

I’ll be honest — this doesn’t always happen. Finding the spiritual thread in my last book was like pulling teeth. Even then, I’m confident the omnipresent Lord was with me.

QUESTION #6: inspire

Scripture and tradition beckon us into the rich and varied actions that open our hearts to the presence of God. So spill it, which spiritual practice is workin’ best for you right now?

During my corporate days, our CEO had employees take the Myers-Briggs Personality Test. As expected, I tested as an extrovert. But am I? Really?

While I love talking to people at social gatherings, when it comes time for restoration, this girl needs quiet.

Before I was married, whenever my roommate-of-the-day was out for the evening, I’d order a pizza and watch reruns on TBS. I found those old 1950s movie scenes comforting. As I’ve gotten older — something I can’t stop no matter how many anti-aging products I buy — the more I find renewal in the Lord.

David’s declaration in Psalm 23, “You restore my soul,” is timelessly true. The Lord absolutely knows what I need. To practically live this out, I go for walks or relax on our back deck, listening to the birds and watching the squirrels. I also love instrumental worship music as I clean up after dinner. I’ve discovered amazing AI scenes on Youtube with soft jazz playing, allowing me to sit in a New York City coffee shop reading, as a soft rain falls and music plays in the background.

One of my most favorite things to do is sit at the piano, play my favorite four chords and sing to the Lord. Sing from my heart, sing from scripture. Invariably, I sense his presence and peace.

QUESTION #7: FOCUS

Our email subscribers get free ebooks featuring our favorite resources — lots of things that have truly impacted our faith lives. But you know about some really great stuff, too. What are three resources that have impacted you?

Growing up in a Christian home, I was surrounded by stalwart believers, starting with my parents. My dad attended seminary and read books by Watchman Nee and DeVern Fromke. While I was fascinated by these men and their wisdom, reading a theological book never captured me. I'm like, “Can you just give me the CliffsNotes?”

I’d much rather read the Bible and talk about it with others. However, stories always captured me. In my early twenties, Ellen Gunderson Traylor’s biblical fiction “Song of Abraham” had a profound impact on me. It’s been a few minutes and a few sleeps since then, but Traylor’s portrayal of Abraham as a friend of God marked me. I wanted to be a friend of God, and that desire has fashioned my journey in the Lord.

Since I landed in my neck of Florida many moons ago, the greatest source of growth and inspiration in Jesus has been my brothers and sisters in the Lord. Yes, there have been many nationally renowned teachers and preachers, worship leaders and podcasters who taught me well. But sitting around after a prayer meeting, a local conference or at the dinner table with friends sharing our hearts and what we’ve gleaned from the Word rooted me and deepened my love for the Lord and others like nothing else. A friend calls it “coffee table discipleship.” I think he's got something there.

We all have things we cling to to survive (or thrive) in tough times. Name one resource you’ve found indispensable in this current season — and tell us what it’s done for you.

One of my go-to apps is YouVersion. I absolutely love their Verse of the Day, the short inspirational video and devotional, and the prepared prayers. For the past four years, I’ve read the Bible with Nicky and Pippa Gumbel’s plan on YouVersion.

I’ve always loved reading the Word, but I’d get busy and not read every day or only read the New Testament, Psalms or Proverbs. Engaging a “read-through-the-Bible plan” set me up for a daily routine to read the whole Bible. I’ve especially come to love the book of Deuteronomy. I love this in Deuteronomy 30:14: “But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may observe it.”

I also love the Notes app on my phone. As I read-pray through scripture, I copy the verses that speak to me and paste them into Notes under titles like “Scripture to Pray” or “Scripture to Memorize.” I often save the YouVersion prayers in Notes to pray later or to be inspired to write my own.

Sometimes the struggle with reading the Bible and engaging God in prayer is because we make it too mystical. All we have to do is open the book he wrote for us, ask the Holy Spirit to reveal him, and go! He is so faithful. He wants us to know him! I’m trying to dig deeper into this reality every day.

QUESTION #8: dream

God is continually stirring new things in each of us. So, give us the scoop! What’s beginning to stir in you but not yet fully awakened? What can we expect from you in the future?

Okay, so you saved the hardest question for last! Well done. (Insert smiley face.) To be honest, yet to not sound pious, my dream at this stage in my life is to know Jesus more.

When I first started publishing, the dream was success. To be escorted through trade shows flanked by my agent and publisher. To win awards and sell lots of units. To impact thousands, if not millions, of readers. To appear on talk shows and even have a movie or two. I mean, I’m a writer — I dream up things for a living.

When those things didn’t happen, at least not on the scale I imagined, I had a little come-to-Jesus meeting. Reality set in. Expectations adjusted. Eyes opened to the business of publishing. I had to answer the question, “Why am I really doing this?” Because the Lord gifted and called me. Also, it’s my job. I had to let go of the things I couldn’t control and write for him. Plenty of good things have happened, like a four-year-old book hitting the New York Times list for nine weeks. #God #miracle

Then a few years ago, while in hand-to-hand combat with anxiety, my dream changed again. Through every victory, I felt stripped of myself and wanted nothing more than to “leave it all on the field” in pursuit of Jesus. Ephesians 1:17,18. How much of God can I know, love and live on this side of eternity?

I’m not there yet, but I’ll keep dreaming.

Rachel believes that the reason so many of us struggle to spend time in the Word and in prayer is that we “make it too mystical.” She reminds us that our job is to show up and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal himself to us, and he is always faithful to meet us. God desires to reveal himself to us even more than we want him to reveal himself. Spend some time today meditating on this reality. How would your time in prayer change if you fully believed that his love was chasing after you to reveal his goodness every time you opened the Word or paused to pray? Ask yourself, just as Rachel asks, “How much of God can I know, love and live on this side of eternity?”

Rachel Hauck is an award winning, New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author. She is a writing coach and mentor, and workshop presenter. Hauck is also a worship leader, runner (mostly in her head and maybe outside) and semi-enthusiastic gym rat. She loves riding her bike to a local diner for breakfast. A graduate of Ohio State University (Go Bucks!) with a degree in Journalism, she’s a former sorority girl and a devoted Ohio State football fan. Her bucket list (more like impossible list) is to stand on the sidelines with Coach Ryan Day. She and her husband — who joins her for those diner breakfasts — live in sunny east coast Florida.