The Lonely Moon

By Rodney Peavy

The Lonely Moon is an adventure story that will appeal to readers of all ages. Anyone who has ever struggled with feelings of shame, doubt and loneliness will find themselves in this story. Follow the epic adventure of a rogue wolf as he searches for true meaning while navigating life under the lonely moon.

This story is an allegorical Christ

• Language: English
• Publisher: Gospelfoot Publishing
• Release date: Dec 1, 2022
• ISBN: 9798218096151

Rodney Peavy

Rev. Rodney Peavy is a native of the state of Georgia. He currently serves as Pastor of Macedonia Community Baptist Church of Braselton, GA. He and his wife Beverly have four grown children and several grandchildren. He has served in ministry since his youth. Rev. Peavy has a Master's Degree in Theological Studies from Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary and a Bachelor's Degree in Christian Education and an Associate's of Divinity from The Baptist College of Florida. He also has an Associate's Degree in Education from Truett McConnell College. In 2011, Rev. Peavy received an honorary Doctorate from Grace Bible Institute of Buford, GA. Other works include books titled Filling the Quiver: Is Adoption God's Will for My Family? and The Thin Place: 365 Daily Bible Encounters and Killing My Old Man: Becoming the Person God Sees in Me. All of these are available on Barnes and Noble, Amazon, and other major book retailers, or simply go to www.gospelfoot.com

Book preview

The Lonely Moon

The Lonely Moon

Rodney Peavy

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Gospelfoot Publishing

The Lonely Moon

Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The NIV and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™

Copyright © 2022 by Rodney Peavy and Gospelfoot Publishing

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

First Printing, 2022

For my grandchildren...

Stay on the path!

You make known to me the path of life;

you will fill me with joy in your presence,

with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

-Psalm 16:11

Contents

Preface

1 The Gray Day

2 The Life Domestic

3 The Wolf Song

4 The Hunt

5 The Gathering

6 The Narrow Path

7 The Valley of the Three Trees

8 The Golden Summit

About the Author

Other Works By The Author

Preface

I want to begin by stating that this book is something very different for me. It is definitely outside of my comfort zone. Ironically, it is the first complete book I ever wrote and the only work of fiction I have ever attempted. I actually wrote this story while still in college, over 25 years ago, as my early writing style definitely reflects. I have been sitting on it for all these years, not knowing whether I should ever do anything with it. It was such a personal endeavor for me that I struggled with sharing it with anyone. However, after much prayer and consideration, I have come to the conclusion that the story found within these pages is worth sharing, even if only with my children and grandchildren.

The Lonely Moon is my attempt at Christian allegorical fiction. In it, you will find symbols and characters that hopefully will bring to mind deeper spiritual truths found in the word of God. It is a simple story of adventure and courage. The main character is one to which each of us can relate. He is at times brave and at other times lonely, scared, and filled with doubts. It is his story of redemption, faith, and grace. It is my story as well.

I do not pretend to be a great novelist. Nevertheless, it is my prayer that God will use the symbolism of this simple story to remind you of the adventure of real-life faith and discovery. May it inspire you to never lose the spirit of exploration that comes when we surrender ourselves to something greater, …to someone greater. May the Holy Spirit use it to encourage you to step out of your comfort zone and follow the path God has opened before you.

                                                                                                                 -Rodney Peavy

1

The Gray Day

Courage is not the absence of fear.   It is not a willingness to fight.  True courage is found in surrender. 

It would be years before I would understand just how important these words would become for me.  It would be years before they would come to be my own.  Finally, I hear and feel them; they are mine to breathe and speak.  The Voice behind them is so clear and so piercing and yet still so different from what I had expected.  It is wild and free.  And now at long last, having set my feet upon the Golden Summit, I am qualified to tell the tale, my tale, a song of relentless redemption.   It is a song of reluctant courage.  And it is mine alone to tell...

The morning was gray on which my adventure began.  The ground was damp and there was a misty glow among the tall pines that I had known as home.  The others were completing their nightly routines and I was, as usual, curled up in the den with my brothers and sister at the feet of my mother.  I am not certain of my age, but I know that I was still a very young pup. My instincts were not well developed.  They consisted mainly of seeking the warmth and closeness of my mother and the nourishment her belly and her presence provided.  My coat was still clean and downy, perhaps due to the constant grooming of my mother.   And I was also still very clumsy. 

Oh, how I longed for the dexterity of the older wolves in my pack.  They were so graceful in their running and hunting. On the few occasions I was allowed to accompany them, I was always left behind, barely able to walk without tripping over my own paws.  But I was happy.  My siblings and I were content just to roll and nibble at one another and to bury our faces in our mother’s belly, understanding that one day life would grow more serious, and we would have to take our place among the pack and join the others in the hunt. 

I knew very little of life outside the den and even less of death at this point.  I knew nothing of the Voice of the Wind or the Golden Summit.  Life simply consisted of what I could see, taste, smell, and feel.  Until now it had been very simple.  Play.  Eat.  Sleep.  Then play some more.  The occasional swat from mother or father kept us in line and kept us close.  Even then, I could sense that close was good. 

This gray day seemed just like any other day, except for one exception.  It was eerily quiet.  The birds were silent, and it seemed as if even the sound of the wind whistling through the treetops was muffled.  The only distinguishable sound was the murmur of the distant stream and the breathing of my siblings as they slept, mingled with the thumping heartbeat of my mother.  All but she and I were asleep, and she wasn’t long to be awake herself.  It had been a long night for her; a night of feedings and motherly discipline and little to no sleep.  I alone was wide awake with no desire to give in to sleep, and I was bored. 

While staying close was comfortable and good, I wanted more than anything to be along on the hunt, to run with the rest of the wolves. I longed to watch my father track his prey.  But mother would not have it.  Seeing my restlessness, she raised her head.  Stay here, she said.  Do not leave the den.  As she spoke these words, she rather sternly pushed my head down into her belly, as if to say this discussion is over. 

But it was not over.  With my face buried in this breathing pile of fur, I made a choice that would forever change my life.  I decided to go on my own hunt. 

I nestled in close to her and waited until she too gave into the tiredness this long night had produced in her; and as soon as she succumbed, I made my move.  I slowly and carefully inched my way free of the mass of wolves filling our den and made my way for the opening.  I stepped out into the gray mist, raised my nose in the air, and breathed in the newfound freshness the open air provided.  I knew the others wouldn’t be far and would probably be returning soon; in that, the moon was