On Bended Knee (PB) (2011)

Nineteen-year-old Devon Torres has lived the past several years of his life dealing drugs and running the streets of South Atlanta. Separating himself from his family and clinging to his business, Devon recruits young teens throughout his neighborhood to help maintain order in the community. He seems to have everything figured out--until he meets Shaniece Simmons.

At first Devon sees Shaniece Simmons as just another high school girl, but he soon notices that something about her makes her stand out. Before they can establish a stable relationship, Devon gets caught in a drug bust and is imprisoned.

Shaniece doesn't know much at all about Devon. All she knows is that she feels drawn toward him, though she can't figure out why. When he is incarcerated, she visits him regularly and continues to pursue a relationship with him, even with her parents and friends insisting that she stay away from him. No one, not even Shaniece, can understand why she continues to see Devon, but she knows that there is a purpose behind their relationship, and she is not going to stop seeing him until that purpose is fulfilled. With love on her mind, Shaniece is only praying that Devon will change his life so they can be together, instead of asking God to save his soul for his sake.

Will Devon let go of the streets and allow Shaniece to guide him in the right direction before he gets into more trouble than he ever expected? Will Shaniece learn that a selfless prayer is what God desires of her? And when Devon seems not to want to change, will she give up all hope and declare her attempts to save him vain? Only prayer and perseverance will tell.