The Diaries of a Teenage Pilgrim: The Early Journey: A Coming-of-Age Story of How God Called Me to Run After Him By Lydia Friend

"Honest, heartfelt, and spiritually rich, The Diaries of a Teenage Pilgrim is a powerful coming-of-age memoir that invites readers into one girl's cross-cultural journey of faith, identity, and divine calling—perfect for anyone seeking purpose in the unexpected paths God carves." – NewInBooks.com

Christian Memoir, Biographies of Christianity, Historical Middle Eastern Biographies, Third Culture Kid, Israel, Spiritual Biography, Mystical Bridal Poetry Tradition

When thirteen-year-old Lydia's father announces they're leaving their cozy Wisconsin parsonage for Israel in just forty days, her world turns upside down. What follows is an extraordinary coming-of-age journey that spans continents and transforms a reluctant teenager into a young woman discovering her divine calling.

From the "Little House in the Big Woods" of Wisconsin to the ancient stones of Jerusalem, from the hockey rinks and speed skating ovals of northern Israel to the quiet hills of the Missouri Ozarks, this memoir chronicles one girl's pilgrimage through cross-cultural challenges, spiritual awakening, and the complex realities of growing up as a pastor's kid in extraordinary circumstances.

Through candid diary excerpts and vivid memoir, witness Lydia's transformation as she navigates:

• The shock of leaving everything familiar for life in Jerusalem, then on to life in a war-torn border town, then on to Missouri's Ozarks for a life-altering experience
• Finding her identity on the ice first as a hockey skater, then as a speed skater, while rockets fall nearby
• Facing false accusations, betrayal, and the fortress mentalities that exclude
• Wrestling with prophetic dreams and spiritual gifts
• A life-changing accident

More than a sports memoir or coming-of-age story—this is the raw, honest account of a "Stranger Lovely" learning to find home not in geography but in God's purposes.

From Wisconsin's woods to Galilee's ancient hills, from hockey battles to speed skating grace, from teenage heartache to surrendered discipleship, Lydia's journey reveals how God transforms our displacement into His appointment, our brokenness into His commission.