BILLY GOAT HILL

FACT, FICTION & FORGIVENESS, A Poignant Coming of Age Story
By Cindy Solomon, Editorial Coordinator
Christian Advance Magazine

Mark Stanleigh Morris was born and raised in Southern California. A former corporate executive, Mark has also worked in Christian broadcasting. He is the founder of Fallbrook Ministries, a support service for frontline ministries. His passion is writing on the theme of forgiveness. He currently lives in Central Oregon with his wife, Karen, and has three grown children. 

Imagine for a moment that you are eight-year-old Wade Parker. Your infant brother, Matthew, has recently died. Your alcoholic father, Earl, has just run off with a woman named Trudy.  And your mother, Lucinda, works such long hours you can’t remember the last time she was home in time to tuck you into bed. Now, suppose you’re facing the problem of a lifetime and you can’t bring yourself to confide in the only adult in the world you trust, because he’s a cop. Worse yet, your younger brother Luke witnessed what happened and you know he couldn’t keep a secret for a truckload of Abba-Zaba’s.

Told from the first person point of view, Billy Goat Hill chronicles the lonely struggle of a boy desperately trying to cope with his belief that he is a murderer. Befuddled by circumstances, his life entangled in a paradox, Wade Parker stumbles into manhood desperately in need of the forgiveness that eludes him. God has always reached out to him, but only when Wade finally surrenders his heart to Jesus does he find the trusted mentor God always wanted him to know. Encapsulated in a powerfully imaginative mystery and seasoned with hooligan humor, Billy Goat Hill is an inspiring account of a young man’s quest for God. Culminating with a surprise climax, the reader is embraced by the themes of trust, love, forgiveness, prayer and salvation that can only come from a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. 

From Billy Goat Hill:

“I never thought I’d live to see my fortieth birthday. I consider it a miracle that I survived past the age of ten, much less that I am here now about to tell you my story. My memories of my childhood, vivid and detailed as they are, rise up from a deep and well-guarded place where innocence once dwelled. The thing is, innocence is like a hard shell surrounding a vulnerable yolk—eventually the shell must break. I don’t mean to second guess God, but some shells seem to break early, before we are prepared to deal with things profound and complex.

I have learned a thing or two; most important that we are born into this troubled world to learn about forgiveness—how to receive it and how to give it. I think this is the great opportunity of life.

I have come to know this, in part, because of a man I once knew. He was a Los Angeles city cop who gave me the best and worst of all that he was. For a long time I tried to forget him, but he wouldn’t let me. Something about falling face first into the open eyes of a dead man stays with you, no matter how hard you try to forget. Some things cannot be forgotten, but they can be forgiven. This is the hope of my heart. It is the reason I tell my story.

My name is Wade Parker, and I come from a place called Billy Goat Hill.” 

Recently Christian Advance caught up with Mark and asked him about Billy Goat Hill:

Q: Every story has a story. How did the story Billy Goat Hill come to be?

A: Writing this novel was an incredible experience that culminated with my acknowledgement of God’s hand on my life. Billy Goat Hill is a semi-biographical story.  Where I grew up in the 1950’s, the Highland Park area of northeast Los Angeles, there was a special place known as Billy Goat Hill, a steep, grass-covered slope where kids hung out and made mischief. As my life moved forward through some dark times, I gradually shaped my memories of my early childhood into an idealized remembrance of those better days. Billy Goat Hill became a powerful metaphor, a symbol of the cherished wonder, innocence and vulnerability of my early childhood, which I kept locked in a vault deep within me. Forty years later, with the grace of God, those memories and emotions poured out in a story that hopefully inspires and informs my readers. 

Q: How and when did you start writing Christian fiction?

A: I surrendered my heart to Jesus in 1998.  I had been a serious secular writer for nearly ten years, but not long after I began my walk with Jesus God made it clear He had a specific plan for me. First, He had me spend time in the proverbial desert learning about His way and His will, and for five years I did very little writing. When He decided it was time to put me to work for Him, He presented the opportunity to team up with Multnomah Publishers. Billy Goat Hill is our first project. 

Q: One of the overriding messages of Billy Goat Hill—and one of your passions as a writer—centers around the theme of forgiveness. How or why did this become such an important theme for you?

A: In answer to prayer, the Lord called me to communicate on the fundamental importance of forgiveness.  Forgiveness is the essence of Christ, and it is He, the great Forgiver, who is the key to a world reunited with God. My entire life has been about learning to forgive. In Christ we are both the forgiven and the forgiver, and with this duality of understanding comes the incredible gift of peace. I believe the peace that is obtainable in this life is proportional to one’s understanding, acceptance, and practice of forgiveness.  To convey this essential message through story is my passion. 

Q: For whom is Billy Goat Hill written?

A: I think God first wanted me to write this novel for myself. Certainly, the experience of writing it turned out to be an incredible gift. The story begins in 1958, though it could have been set in any time period, and the themes explored are universal and non-generational, so they appeal to men, women and young adults. The message of forgiveness is for believers and non-believers alike, but my heart yearns most for the unsaved reader. If Billy Goat Hill helps just one person turn toward God and seek the Lord Jesus then I will have fulfilled His plan for my gift as a storyteller.

Q: What advice might you give to a person who is struggling to forgive someone else?

A: As it is with all who live outside of Gods ways, my life was a hopeless continuum of struggle.  I was caught in a trap constructed of fear and deceit.  I was without God and unable to comprehend the dual power of forgiveness. Only when I stepped forward in faith and responded to the invitation and promise of Christ, and accepted what He had done for me and for the world, was I able to fully appreciate the profound purity and beauty of forgiveness. When I made my decision to choose Jesus, when I got down on my knees and surrendered to him, I understood for the very first time what freedom really is. Truth is the only advice worth giving...and my advice to anyone who is struggling to forgive someone else is this: Truly and completely accept the forgiveness of Christ and you will no longer struggle to forgive. 

Q: Portions of Billy Goat Hill were very touching (I used a tissue or two!). How did this book impact you while you were writing it?

A: Perhaps each copy should come with one of those little pocket packs of tissue. (He grins.) Hopefully you laughed at all the right places, too. I think novel writing is inherently cathartic, but this book is especially personal for me. At times, telling Wade Parker’s story was like performing surgery on myself...with a dull scalpel and no anesthesia. Some days I wept, and some days were as fun as a VIP visit to Disneyland. By the time I finished the book, Wade’s voice and witness had moved me to turn to God and accept His blessing.  Impact? Writing Billy Goat Hill changed my life.  

Q: What’s next for you?

A: I am working on two more books for Multnomah. I maintain a busy appearance schedule on behalf of my writing and Fallbrook Ministries, a ministry of encouragement and support for frontline ministries including Christian missions, pastor care programs, pro-life, pro-family and pro-marriage efforts, pregnancy resource centers, youth ministries, Christian arts, and church projects. I seek to apply the entire depth and breadth of my gift and calling as a writer to serve and glorify God. It is a privilege to lift up and encourage others and sow resources back into the Kingdom.