Lisa Cleary: Her New Children's Book "God's Wondering Beauty" and a Book Giveaway
I have known Lisa Cleary for several years and am honored to share her story here on A Beautiful Grace, along with a giveaway for her new children's book, "God's Wondering Beauty". A special thank you to Lisa. To enter the book giveaway, please click on the giveaway box below and complete the form. A random drawing will be held on Valentine's Day, Friday, February 14th.
Written by Lisa Cleary
Hey, I am Lisa Cleary and I was born and raised in Western North Carolina. I have lived in NC all of my life and have been happily married for 24 years to Terry Cleary. We have two boys, Matthew age 16, and Luke age 10. I currently work for our local school system and love working with teachers and children. I am a member of Little Stone Mtn. Baptist Church and enjoy being active in my church. I love spending time with my family. We love to go to the mountains and hike the trails. In the fall we love to go to our local apple orchard and pumpkin patch with a corn maze. In most of my spare time I enjoy reading my Bible, scrapbooking, doing crafts, photography, gardening and cooking.
I love spending time with my dad too. My mom passed away two years ago, as time with our aging parents is time well spent. I actually dedicated my book “God’s Wondering Beauty” in honor of my dad who is a preacher, my two boys, which are my world, and in memory of my mother. My mother had a daycare in her home most of her career where she basically helped to raise most of them from a baby to their teenage years. She taught and nourished them like her own. She had the patience of Job. Also, my Pen name is Edwina Gail. Edwina was my grandmother’s name and Gail is my middle name.
I have always wanted to write my own book. Ever since I was a young child, the idea of writing a book has been a dream that has never let go of me. For as long as I can remember, I’ve dreamed of writing a book—of bringing stories to life with words that would inspire someone. The one obstacle standing in my way was the cost of illustrations. As much as I’ve poured my heart into writing, the reality of not being able to afford an illustrator has often held me back from fully pursuing my dream. Then I was watching a YouTube video on how you could create your own images through Canva and bring your book to life. So with a lot of research and hard work my dream came true.
I created the book “God’s Wondering Beauty” because I wanted to reach young readers on how big our God is and how he created this world. The decision to write a book about God’s creation came from a deep place in my heart. From the earliest moments of my life, I’ve been amazed by the beauty and wonder of the world around me. The stars, the trees, the animals, the oceans—everything in nature speaks to me of God’s greatness and His love. As I grew, I realized that His creation isn’t just a backdrop to our lives; it’s a reflection of His character and a powerful reminder of His presence.
I wanted children to look at the world with wonder and gratitude, to see the beauty of God's creation and understand the deep purpose behind it. I wanted them to realize that they are a part of something bigger, something beautiful and intentional. By learning about how God created the world, I hope they come to see the love He has for them as well. Through Bible verses, illustrations, and simple truths, I wanted to show how God’s creation isn’t just something to admire from afar—it’s something to cherish and care for. From the tiniest insect to the tallest mountain, every part of creation reflects God’s glory. My hope is that this book will inspire children to love and appreciate the world they live in and help them understand that they, too, are part of God’s wonderful plan. When we look at the world with eyes of faith, we can see God’s fingerprints in every detail, and I wanted to share that with others, especially children.
My book includes 10 Bible questions and an answer page. Also, I included Bible verses on pages throughout and at the end two pages have the whole verses written out. My prayer is that a child might read and memorize those verses.
I also have written a more simple book before “God’s Wondering Beauty” which was my first book that I created using Canva. My son Luke has autism and I wanted a book that could help him with basic colors and illustrations, so I created a book about all the colors of different fruits. The title of the book is “Let’s Learn Colors of Fruits: Real Fruit Pictures.” As a parent of a child with autism, I’ve always been on the lookout for ways to make learning more engaging and accessible for him. That’s when the idea for a book about fruit colors came to me. Fruits are vivid, diverse, and relatable—elements that are easy to introduce into a child’s daily life. I used real fruit pictures because I feel he can relate to that better than a drawn image. Ultimately, this book was born out of love for my son and a desire to support other families who may face similar challenges. My hope is that the book serves as a bridge, not only helping children on the autism spectrum but also any young child who is just starting to explore the colorful world around them.
I also have a blog about our autism journey. If you're interested in learning more about our experiences and the journey we’ve been on as a family, I invite you to check out my blog. https://amazingautismgrace.com/
Writing about my son’s autism journey has been incredibly therapeutic for me, and it has allowed me to reflect on the many blessings and challenges we've faced together. Although recently I have not had much time to devote to my blog I hope what I have shared can be helpful to someone out there.
In my blog, I share insights into the ups and downs of parenting a child with autism, including the unique ways we've approached learning, communication, and everyday life. I share about our son’s diagnosis and the long journey to getting the help he deserved. My goal is to offer support, share personal stories, and provide resources that might help others going through similar experiences. Whether you're a parent, a caregiver, or someone who simply wants to learn more about autism, I hope my blog serves as a source of connection and encouragement.
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