ESSENCE MUSIC FESTIVAL/SARAH JAKES ROBERTS WOMAN EVOLVE 2026 ADVANCE NATIONAL COVERAGE: St. Louis Visionary Author Adrienne Reed’s long-awaited anthology is massive must-read
Andre Johnson 
For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. (Romans 8:18/KJV)
THE 1 PETER 5:7 FACTOR
Some nine years ago, Evangelist Adrienne Reed’s heart was crushed to pieces.
For starters, her beloved husband had departed this earthly life, bound for his heavenly home.
As if that wasn’t enough to alter the overall landscape of her life, Reed’s father passed away in 2022 followed by the sudden demise of her mother approximately two years later.
But God…
SALUTING WOMEN WHO SHAPE OUR WORLD
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As Reed vividly recalls, while she sensed she had endured what she describes as “the worst of the storms” amid what could be appropriately labeled arguably the darkest season of her life, this devout woman of faith never placed her faith by the wayside.
If nothing else, she was destined to glorify Almighty God earnestly in the wake of her dreaded season of suffering — so much so that she deemed it essential to chronicle her rash of life-altering testimonies in a by way of a new book.
“I was ready to share my story,” Reed, a St. Louis faith-based writer, told Making Headline News as part of its 2026 Essence Music Festival and Sarah Jakes Roberts Woman Evolve Conference advance national coverage.
To her credit, Reed diligently sought God for a divine sense of direction by emerging as the Visionary Author for This Is My Story, her highly-anticipated anthology that figures to help enrich and advance the kingdom for years to come.
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A riveting, 127-page spiritually-empowering collaborative written work, Reed’s This Is My Story is comprised of six co-authors, each of whom vividly disclose powerful testimonies of brokenness, transformed by divine grace, according to a thorough breakdown of this author’s book via Amazon.com.
Generally, each author opens their heart to reveal what it means to encounter God in the middle of trauma, thus ultimately rise again with purpose.
“From the woman who walked away from the grip of drugs, alcohol, and destructive living to embrace freedom in Christ, to the young boy who survived the fire that claimed his entire family at just eight years old, every story is a reminder that even in ashes, God breathes life,” said an Amazon spokesperson for Reed’s This Is My Story.
That’s not all.
A survivor of domestic violence then testifies of God’s protection and deliverance from a relationship that nearly cost her peace and also her life while another writer tells of how she had gone from one of the city’s biggest drug dealers to a powerful prayer warrior.
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Then there’s this pastor who dauntlessly testifies of how he survived a fire that claimed all of his immediate family at six years of age, not to mention this one voice — the Visionary — who rises from deep sorrow after losing her parents, husband, and best friend while enduring abuse and yet she stands today as a living witness of God’s sustaining power.
Meanwhile, another writer tells of how she overcame sexual addiction while a brave survivor who endured years of abuse beginning at age 12 now speaks wholeness and victory over others walking the same road.
“Together, these stories form a tapestry of restoration — a ministry of healing for every reader who has ever been wounded, silenced, or forgotten,” said an Amazon spokesperson for Reed’s This Is My Story. “They remind us that trauma does not have the final word. God does.”
Said Reed, explaining the reason she deemed it necessary to spearhead the anthology:
“I was motivated and had a great collaborative team of six people but then tragedy hit. My best friend, Debbie Riddlespriger, who was like a sister to me called and said what would be her last words to me, ‘I can’t breathe.’”
As Reed recalls, such a shocking development was “the straw that broke the camel’s back,” she explains.
“I fell into a state of deep depression and sadness,” Reed said. “I was like, ‘God, first You took my husband, then my dad, then my mom, now my best friend and sister. How am I supposed to keep living? How am I supposed to keep testifying of Your goodness when I’ve lost hope?’ This is when the book dropped in my spirit a second time.”
Casting her rash of anxieties upon God amongst the things Reed had come to discover was “the Lord told me that my healing was through sharing my story,” she acknowledged.
And the rest, as they say, was history.
“I kept hearing of how others had overcome and how compelling their stories were and decided that it was time for their stories to be heard as well,” Reed told MHN.
Despite a slew of obstacles during the book’s production phase, Reed’s long-awaited anthology had finally come full circle by year’s end in 2025, her third book to date (she authored Black Butterfly A Heavenly Story in 2014 and Shut Up, God Is Talkin’ in 2017).
HE WAS THERE ALL THE TIME
Having hosted two previous book launches for This Is My Story, a third one is slated for this fall, Reed announced.
“Each time we’ve launched the book signing, many were touched, healed, and delivered just through hearing each of the authors present their stories,” Reed said. “There is never a dry eye or unmoved heart after we tell our stories.
“I have since been busy with speaking engagements and mini revivals. When I told God, ‘Yes,’ He released healing in my hands and deliverance as a gift to each life I’ve had the opportunity to touch through ministry and song.”
Yep.
That’s just like God.
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A RELATED STORY
For more information about St. Louis Businesswoman/Author Evangelist Adrienne Reed, to inquire about her books, her ministry, a public appearance or speaking engagement, connect with her via social media at Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100011632460174; Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eduk8ted1/. Also, send email to shutupgodistalkin@gmail.com.
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WHAT’S YOUR STORY? If you are an entrepreneur, business owner, producer, author, athlete, musician, barber, life coach, motivational speaker, cosmetologist, tax preparer, model, or pastor/minister who is seeking exposure and would like to share your story with an in-depth news feature, call Reporter Andre Johnson at 901-690-6587 or Facebook message him under “Andre T. Johnson” for details.
Andre Johnson is the award-winning Founder and Publisher for Making Headline News. A 2000 graduate of the University of Memphis School of Journalism and a former staff reporter of sports for the Memphis Commercial Appeal newspaper, Johnson covers the NBA, NFL, and NCAA sports from Dallas, Texas. To reach Johnson, send email to makingheadlinenews@gmail.com or to memphisgraduate@yahoo.com. Also, follow him on Twitter @AJ_Journalist or Instagram at @makingheadlinenews.
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