Inside Out & Backwards: Stories of Humor & Hope for Life’s Journey

By Walker Moore

Stories that tickle your funny bone—and touch your heart.
Following the wild success of Chicken Lips, Snake Legs, & Jesus, Walker Moore has pulled together a second heaping helping of laughter and hope. Inside Out & Backwards draws on Walker’s adventures across the globe, spiced with his unique blend of homespun humor and wisdom. His stories of mishaps in the gym to vacations “somewhere” in America will leave you with a smile and a prayer.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Walker Moore
• Release date: Oct 13, 2018
• ISBN: 9781943140497

Walker Moore

Walker Moore, founder and president of Awe Star Ministries and of Back 40 Ministries, is an internationally known youth culture expert, Bible teacher, author, and conference speaker who has worked with families for more than four decades. Since 1992, he has led Awe Star to network with thousands of churches worldwide to provide students with global missions opportunities. In his new venture, Back 40 Ministries, he is helping to strengthen and refocus churches throughout the United States and around the world. Walker holds both a B.S. and honorary doctorate in sacred theology from Hannibal-LaGrange University. He is the author of several books, including Chicken Lips, Snake Legs, & Jesus, Escape the Lie: Journey to Freedom from the Orphan Heart and Rite of Passage Parenting: Four Essential Experiences to Equip Your Kids for Life (book and workbook). He and his wife, Cathy, have two adult sons and the two most adorable grandsons in the world.

Book preview

Overheard in the LockerRoom

I was so excited when I learned another book by Walker Moore was in the making! I absolutely love the stories, the memories, and the way in which each story glorifies God. My mom has loved and laughed at Walker’s articles for years, so of course I bought her a book too. —Sherri Wann

I could not put the book down once I got started (kinda like chips; you can’t eat just one). It is hard to pick out just a few favorites, because I found myself laughing out loud at so many. I can’t wait until the next book comes out! —Billie Armlovich

I wanted to read one story a day but consumed the book in a few days. My daughter was supposed to be doing homework, and I heard her laughing—she was reading this instead! —Jennifer Poole Hill

I laughed; I cried; I laughed till I cried some more. I cannot wait until the next book comes out! —Karen Hess Dill

My wife and I loved Walker’s book so much that I loaned it to my brother, and he shared some stories with his wife. She would not let him return it till she read it too. My wife said, We can’t keep this to ourselves, so we ordered enough to give one to each of our church families. —Dr. Perry Wolfe

Walker is a guy who knows how to turn the ordinary into the extraordinary just by walking with Jesus. If you want to be compelled to reach the next level in your faith, follow him. —Becky Dietz, Double Honor Ministries

Walker Moore has been on mission adventures for four decades. In this book, you will go with him on a journey dotting the globe to experience the unusual, the humorous, and the inspiring. Walker will show you how doing ‘Jesus ministry’ is the adventure of a lifetime that echoes into eternity. —Timbo Fowler, pastor, Church by the Fort, Killeen, Texas

Walker uses his unique blend of humor through real-life-stories to produce handles from which we can understand, apply, and carry truth. —Brent Higgins, associate pastor, Parkview Baptist Church, Tulsa, Oklahoma

Through the entertaining adventures of Walker Moore, this book shares the power and truth of a life lived for Jesus. As you read these stories, enjoy a laugh and see a love where lives are impacted for eternity. —Angela Hudgins, minister to youth, Highland Terrace Baptist Church, Greenville, Texas

Jesus ministry is intentional and is 24/7—two of the many thing I have learned from Walker Moore. Through his life, you will see these elements live through this book that will challenge, equip, and encourage you to join in God’s great adventures. —Mike Lehew, executive director, Mobile Missions Network, Sapulpa, Oklahoma

Walker Moore always reaches into his pantry of heartwarming anecdotes, illustrations, and wisdom to create the perfect recipe to delight, challenge, and inspire the reader. —Bob Nigh, Historical Secretary, Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma

The teachings of Walker Moore have impacted me to have a heartbeat of obedience. —Greg Sweatt, pastor, Phoenix Community, Buford, Georgia

Walker is the best at using humor, wisdom, and insights in a compelling way that will change your life and the lives of those you love the most. —Corey Webb, executive/community pastor, Crosspoint Fellowship, San Antonio, Texas

Copyright © 2018 by Walker Moore

Published by DustJacket

P.O. Box 721243 Oklahoma City, OK

www.dustjacket.com

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other means—except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Moore, Walker.

Inside Out and Backwards

p. cm.

e-book ISBN: 978-1-943140-49-7

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture marked NASB is taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®. Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1972, 19, 1975, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Scripture marked KJV is taken from the King James Version of the Bible, public domain.

Published by Dust Jacket at Smashwords

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Dedicated to Titus the Honorable and Cohen the Goodhearted, the only two boys who call me Poppy.

Contents

Cover

Title Page

Overheard in the Locker Room (Endorsements)

Copyrights

Dedication

Acknowledgments

Foreword - Marti Pieper

Inside Out and Backwards

Camp Memories

What Goes Up

Reunions and Relationships

It Be Bad

Seven Reasons I Love Christmas

Kids Are Smart

The Right Fit

The Scent of Love

In the Picture—or Not?

Eleven Guarantees

Generic Man

What a Friend We Have in Jesus

Unexpected Blessing

Close Encounter of the God Kind

Baptismal Chaos

Chuck Roast

Christmas Gold

The Safe Side

Fighting, Food, and a New Kind of Love

Seven Things They Didn’t Tell You About Having Children

God’s Pet Peeves

What the World Needs Now

The Questionable Gift

Same-o, Same-o

My Friend Preston

M&M’s Wars

A Satisfied Keeper

Chicken Aid

What Does This Child Want?

Minus Forty

Crazy?

Fix It

Surprise Ending

Stilts, Cardboard Boxes, and Jesus

Lost, Lost, Found

Land of Somewhere

Seven Things Found Only at Grandma’s House

Lessons at Gunpoint

Poppy’s Christmas List

Acknowledgments

I love movies. Growing up, I became infatuated with the movie theater. From the first time sitting in front of the big screen as a third-grader until today, I have loved going to the theater. Where else do people from all walks of life gather in one room, waiting for the lights to dim? For a couple of hours, we are family. We laugh, we cry, we are caught off-guard together, and in the end, we walk away with a shared experience.

Many people get up and leave as the movie ends, but I sit through the credits. Credits are important; they tell you a lot about the film: the various locations where it was shot, the music used, and all the people who worked behind the scenes. Without them, the movie would still be a dream locked inside someone’s head. The list is long— from gaffers to set designers, production crews, stunt coordinators, and of course, the most important position of all: assistant to the assistant. But all their names go up on the same screen as the big stars.

If this book were a movie. this is the place where the credits would roll. The names listed below are important, and each one of them has contributed in some way to make the work possible.

Cast

I am grateful for my family: my wife, Cathy; my sons, Jeremiah and Caleb; my daughters-in-love, Erin and Adrian; and those two growing boys who call me Poppy, Titus the Honorable and Cohen the Goodhearted. When the movie is over and everyone is gone, you’re still there. I love you.

Production Manager

I am grateful to Marti Pieper who has turned my dyslexic messes into heart-transforming messages.

Through her incredible editing and guidance, lives have been touched around the world. Thanks for keeping the dream alive.

Artistic Director

I am grateful for Mark Combs, who for years has given me a visual presence in this world. Through his friendship, prayers, and wise counsel, we have walked out life together.

Assistant to the Assistant

I am grateful to Brian Hobbs and the staff at the Baptist Messenger who allow me to do Jesus ministry alongside them. Thanks for the kind words you send me on a regular basis.

Directors

Most of all, I am grateful to those who have become part of my extended family. To those of you who are first- time readers, I welcome you to our family. To those who are long- time readers, it is because of you that I continue to write. Thank you!

Your servant,

Walker Moore

Foreword

Can we talk? I’m usually behind the scenes in Walker’s books, but this time, he’s asked me to share a few thoughts.

Ever since I started working with Dr. Moore back in 2007, he’s given me credit for helping translate his dyslexic stories. In much the same way as we use translators on the mission field to take the gospel message into the heart language of the people, I have the privilege of taking Walker’s story or message and putting it into a form everyone can read and understand. He has thanked me multiple times for taking his work to the next level.

But here’s the secret: I receive much more than I give. For every one of the knee-slapping, heart-touching stories you’ll find here, I get to hear four or five more. For every incredible teaching Walker shares (don’t miss Escape the Lie or Rite of Passage Parenting), I get a front-row seat.

For every Bible verse he uses, I get to challenge him about why this applied or where he found that.

I get to listen. I get to learn. I get to laugh—a lot. But mostly, I get to have my life changed.

You see, the real reason I write and edit for Walker has little to do with his dyslexia and much more to do with his heart. He carries a unique anointing powered by a passion to carry the gospel to the nations and to equip the saints to take it there. His unique way of