ann kiemel

Monday, February 17

Below is one of the earlier stories from Ann's books. Enjoy!

Excerpt from "I'm Out To Change My World" Ann Kiemel, 1974

Taxi Driver

it was in the summer and i got up into a
beat up old cab in miami beach
and asked the old cab driver to take me
to another hotel.
it was hot and every window was rolled down.

and i asked him,
"what is the one word that describes your life?"

"can i give you two?"

he said.

he was old and gnarled
about as beat up as his cab.
"yes," i said.
"what are they?"

"bored and unhappy."

"sir, why are those the two words that
describe your life?"

"i don't know. i guess 'cause i got
nobody in the world."

"nobody, sir?
no wife, no children, no family?
no one in the whole world for you?"

"no."

"tell me, sir,
how did you get to be an old man and
have nobody?"

"cause i never got a good job and
no woman wanted me."

"sir, can i sing you a song?"

"sing?"

"i don't have a very good voice,
but i know you'd like my song."

"just a minute, please."
he rolled up his window. then he nodded at me.

and i began to sing:

something beautiful,

something good,

all my confusion,

He understood.

all i had to offer Him

was brokenness and and strife.

but He's making something beautiful

out of my life.

"sir, do you know who i'm

singing about?

Jesus Christ, He's the Lord of my life.

he laughs with me and cries with me..."

"i'm a Jew."

"sir, He'll walk with you.

He'll laugh with you.

He'll be your friend."

and just then we pulled under the portico of the next hotel

and i was fumbling in my purse for my money

when i saw this old hand reach out

and i let loose of the money in my purse.

i reached out and took his hand

almost afraid to look him in the eye

because i didn't know what he would say.

i lifted my eyes to his and he was crying.

"lady, when i got in this old cab tonight

i was the loneliest person in the whole world.

i never heard anyone talk like you talked tonight

and i want your God.

He and i could ride together."

and i crawled out of that old cab

knowing that somewhere in miami beach

an old, gnarled, wrinkled man

drives a beat up cab.

but he doesn't drive alone.

and i can hardly help but sing

when i know that the eternal God

is willing to invade an old cabbie's life

and love him.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)

Ann passed away on March 1, 2014.
A few words about our dear friend:

Ann Kiemel began her ministry as an ordinary girl who was determined to reach her neighborhood for Jesus. She penned her first book, I’m Out to Change My World, while still in her twenties. Millions of readers were moved by her simple faith and her desire to share Jesus in everyday, divine appointments. Despite the lack of any formal publicity, her first book became a bestseller through word-of-mouth.
Ann went on to Author several best-selling books, speaking in coliseums across the country and appearing as a guest speaker on Christian television programs such as the 700 Club, PTL, TBN, and Robert Schuller’s Hour of Power. Ann has been featured numerous times on Dr. Dobson’s Focus on the Family radio broadcasts, most recently as an expert on single parenting.

Although Ann shared the stage with some of the most well-known and influential Authors and Speakers in the world, she is remembered most by her humble presentation. Quietly seated on a stool in the middle of a large platform, she would begin…“Hi, I’m Ann. I am one simple woman in the world. I have never shaken hands with the President. I cry. Sometimes I am insecure. I am only one, but I have come tonight to tell you I am one… and Jesus and I and love are out to change the world.” Thousands of attentive fans sat on the edge of their seats, hanging onto her every word, laughing and crying together as Ann declared her love for a personal Lord…One who walked with her and talked with her on lonely days. She ran marathons, singing simple little songs to fellow runners with one overwhelming hope in mind – to win others to Jesus by building bridges to them. Her rare vulnerability and genuine faith in brighter tomorrows inspired others to dream big and believe that with God, they too, could make a difference in their world.

Some people consider Ann Kiemel to be one of the most authentic voices in the Christian community. Others refer to her as a best-selling Author of seventeen books, many of which have been passed on as inspirational classics over the past three decades. Bottom line: Ann was a gifted Author and Speaker who had a pure heart and a vision for what an extraordinary God can do in the lives of ordinary people.

After many years as a successful Speaker and Author, God answered Ann’s yearning for a husband at the age of thirty-five. Several years and many miscarriages later, Ann became the mother of four adopted sons, revolutionizing the way that many viewed open adoption. Soon thereafter, Ann realized that she had become addicted to pain medication. She entered a thirty-day secular rehab program and discovered that her addiction ran even deeper - she had become addicted to the praise and approval of others. She recounts the loneliness, pain, and ultimate deliverance in her seventeenth book, Seduced by Success – No Longer Addicted to Praise, Pills and Performance.

After offering her inadequacies to the Lord and praying for wholeness, Ann had found her way back to her first love. The heart of her ministry had changed, and Jesus was now the star. Her husband, Will Anderson, would battle cancer for eighteen months, and Ann would become a single mother of four priceless treasures. She held a deep conviction that she, alone, needed to be fully present with her children. With this is mind, she quietly walked away from the stage.

In the fall of 2008, Ann’s youngest last son left home. At the same time, a renewed interest in Ann’s ministry began to develop. Hundreds of thousands of loyal readers began searching for her, longing to hear how God had been working in her life, wanting her message to be heard by the next generation. In response to the interest of her fans, a simple blog was created. People from all over the world began chiming in, supporting one of their favorite best-selling Authors from the 1970’s and 1980’s.

Many of her books are available for purchase on Amazon.com and other places.

Ann was the mother of four boys and lived on the West coast in close proximity to her children and her twin sister, Jan.