Jerin of Yarholm- When dreams exceed capabilities

In the White Road Chronicles, one of the first human characters Alyra comes upon is a farm boy name Jerin who lives in the town of Yarholm.

Jerin has a big problem. Or rather, his problems are small little things, but there are a lot of them and they can be quite vicious when angered. Yes, I'm talking about the invasion of okbolds that have overrun his town and nearly taken it over. 

Jerin has big aspirations for his life. 
He is no puny little guy. He is built for war, though most of his strength was built by pushing a plow and digging in the dirt. 

However, one big thing that Jerin has going for him was that he is full of determination.

So much determination, that even though I wanted to only use him to get Alyra to the Alburnium Army, he ended up sticking with her to the very end of the series.

Honestly, he was only supposed to be a bit player. 

Jerin, it seems, respectfully disagreed with my decision and the story found a way to keep him. And I'm so glad that it did.
Keep reading to learn more about this farmer boy with a warrior's heart....

Our First Meeting With Jerin is one of my Favorite Scenes:

Let us set the scene. Alyra, still known as Princess, literally stumbled across the okbold, DezPierre. The okbold promises to take her somewhere safe. He also tells her how foolish her wish is to find the fabled White Road. 

As Princess/ Alyra begins to meet more of DezPierre's friends, she realizes that she's once again fallen in with the wrong group of people. Just when she decides that it's time to make her exit, Jerin makes his entrance. 

​DezPierre patted her arm. “Miss, is you ill?” He explained to his friends. “The poor child was lost in the woods. Lucky DezPierre found her, yes? I help and bring her here.” He leaned closer to Striphen and whispered rather loudly, “But she is sorely misguided about finding that White Road. We all know no such thing exist anymore.”

Striphen’s dark eyes narrowed on her.

Wanting to run, she leapt to her feet. The other Okbolds surrounding the table blocked her retreat. If she did bolt, they would most certainly suspect her. She remained frozen her mind racing for a plausible excuse to get away from them.

DezPierre studied her for a second, and as he opened his mouth to speak, the doors to the inn burst open. A burly youth with an angry scowl stood in the entrance. He held a three-foot log in his upraised hand and a loaded slingshot that swayed like a pendulum in the other. His pale blue eyes scanned the now quiet room.

“I’ve had enough!” His voice rumbled like a snowy avalanche. “Enough of you blasted little pests planting weeds in my crops! Enough of you spoiling my milk and everything else I try to do! Okbold heads are about to roll. I swear it!” 

---

A Few Facts About Jerin

Biological Sex
Male
Eyes
pale blue
Hair
short and blond
Skin Tone
tanned from working in the sun
Height
6'2"
Weight
240
Weapon of Choice: 
his slingshot

Jerin of Yarholm

Started off as a young man with big aspirations. His dreams were much larger than his abilities. Who can relate to our warrior-wanna-be? He often takes matters into his own hands which lead him into big messes. 

Kingdom Life Application

Everyone has a part to play in helping to build the Kingdom of God. He has given each of us talents that are suited to our temperaments and capabilities. 

Not all talents are big ones like Paul mentions in Romans 12:3-8. Some as as simple as having a servant's heart, or having an ability to really listen to others. 

Jerin wanted to be a great warrior. He knew, deep down, that he had what it took to become a great warrior. But he wanted to take short cuts and manage his own timing in getting there. 

God has a plan and purpose for each of us. (Jeremiah 29:11)
He wants us to use our talents to bless others. (1 Peter 4:10)
Our gifts take time to develop and grow, but we need God to help them flourish. (1 Cor. 12:5-6)

Time To Grow...

It is so easy to rush ahead, when we think that we know what we want. 
But the Lord has his own time clock and desires that we walk by his side instead of at our own pace. 

In my own life, I sometimes get discouraged when my dreams don't come to fruition in the time I believe they should. I know God has his own timing. However... you know? It's easy to get impatient at times. 

There are often reasons that our dreams get delayed. I'm going to share a few of those reasons that I've learned through experience, or from others. Maybe this will help you to stand strong and not give up when it seems you will never reach your life goals. 

3 Reasons For Delays:
1. Building patience.
You are not in this club alone. Consider how long bible heroes waited, such as: Moses for the Promised Land, Jacob to Rule, Noah for the flood (100years) and David to be King. 

2. For building faith  (Psalm 25:4-5) 
I think Moses needed to see God in action so that his faith would be strong enough when they were out in the wilderness. For the people, I think the young who grew up seeing God actively leading and helping them boosted their faith so they were able to march into the Promised land and take it over. Know what I mean?

3. To shape our character
Joseph was arrogant and a braggart. Let's be honest. I think he needed the prison years to humble his spirit so that he could serve God and the people that would need him when the famine hit. Use the waiting times wisely. Look for areas in your spirit that need building up and retraining. (Jerin needed the white path journey to show him how important friendships and working as a team are. A warrior will never survive for long if fighting alone, right?)

If you find yourself waiting, wishing, wanting for more, maybe this will help you in that time. If you want to read more about Jerin of Yarholm, he appears in the White Road Chronicles series books 1-6. 

Find out more HERE.