Book Review: The Waiting Place

The Waiting Place; Learning to Appreciate Life's Little Delays
by Eileen Button

This book is a collection of personal essays written by Eileen Button throughout her life, as she experienced various delays, interruptions and struggles. It's a quick read, and she is transparently honest in how she faces each delay. Her life as a Methodist pastor's wife, mother, adjunct college professor and finally newspaper columnist is filled with disappointments, unfulfilled dreams, a seriously ill child and a busy and often distracted pastor/husband.

I was drawn quickly into this book, enjoying the honesty and sweetness of her writing. After a while, though, I found myself longing to read of her dependence on God and His unavoidable wooing. I was hoping to read about how God is great in the good times, and just as great in the bad times. So I guess I finally closed the book feeling a little disappointed. I wanted a glimpse into the life of someone so enamored with God that the waiting places throughout life became meeting places with God. Instead it was basically just a biography done in essay format. Well done, if that's what you want to read.

I received this book for free from Thomas Nelson publishing for the purpose of this review.

Life gets in the way

So many times there are things I'd rather be doing, but life gets in the way. I'd rather be writing, but I have a Monday through Friday job. I'd rather be traveling, but there are bills to pay and not much money leftover. I'd rather be a stay-at-home mom, but, well, you get the picture. It's easy for the necessary things to become embittering and mundane. I think that's happening to me a lot lately. And so I need to desire the great gain in godliness that comes from contentment (1 Tim 6). It's true that I never, ever have a surplus of godliness! The question is how much to I desire godliness? Enough to press on in my Monday through Friday job, paying bills, staying at home with my family? Enough to say, "Thank you, Father, for everything that I have that has come from Your hand, and thank you for the things You withhold?" For therin lies true contentment.
So today I will pray for the desire to desire godliness above other things. I pray God will work His will in my heart, so that I will be willing to be content in what I have - after all, I have a Father who flung the stars into space and holds creation together through Jesus (Col 1:17). What more could I really ask for?

Book Review

Life, In Spite of Me, by Kristen Jane Anderson

Just three hours...that's how much time it took me to read this book. The story of Kristen Anderson is an amazing story of God's sovereignty over every part of our lives - even attempted suicide! At the end of her rope and in the pit of despair, Kristen suddenly decides to end her life when she hears the whistle of an oncoming train. Sure that death would be a much better alternative than continuing to live her painful and disappointing life, she lies down on the tracks, expecting that her life would be over in a matter of minutes. Apparently God had a different plan for her life.
Conscious throughout the events of that night, Kristen recounts the years leading up to her decision to end her life, as well as the terrifying moments after the train rain over her body when she realized that she was alive and that her legs were no longer part of her body. And if she thought her life was bad before, it was much worse now that she was confined to a wheelchair and dependant on those closest to her. And then...the question of faith. A woman from her family's church met her in the foyer her first Sunday back, and told her that it was a good thing she lived through her suicide, because she would have gone to hell if she had died. Of course her parents assured her she would have gone to Heaven; she was a good person, after all. But this woman's simple, careless statement left Kristen wondering - Heaven or hell? And how could she be sure? Little by little, using different people along the way, God revealed Himself to Kristen. And Kristen surrendered her life to Him - the one who held her down on those tracks the night rather than allowing her body to be sucked up into the train, the One who loved her enough to send His Son to die on the cross for her sin. He saved her life, her soul, and now has given her an amazing story. A story that thousands have heard in many venues, including the Oprah Winfrey show. Because of what God allowed in her life, she has been able to bring the gospel of hope to many teens who understood her despair and needed to hear her story of hope.
In Chapter 21, Kristen writes: "What if it (the botched suicide attempt) had never happened? I shuddered, thinking of where I could be. Losing my legs showed me how big and real God is. For the first time I realized losing my legs was worth it. I wouldn't go back, even if I could."
I highly recommend this book! Especially if you are at the end of your rope or know someone who is; if you're living with pain and disappointment, or know someone who is; if you're wondering what the point of your life is, or know someone who is. In other words, we can all benefit from the message of this book. God is in control. It's all about Him.
Read it.
I received this book from Waterbrook Multnomah for free, for the purpose of writing this review. I am not required to write a positive review.

Book Review: Praying for Your Future Husband

Robin Jones Gunn and Tricia Goyer do a wonderful job presenting the reader with reasons and encouragement for praying for a future husband, in a devotion-type book. There are personal journal entries, stories and testimonies from women that they have interviewed for this book. Both women present their pre-marriage times honestly and transparently. They expose their own sinful backgrounds to us as they tell us of premarital relationships and even abortion - something most Christian authors might not be willing to admit to in order to preserve credibility.

I applaud both women for caring enough about the current population of unmarried Christian young women to write a book as real as this one. As Christians, we are called to "bear one anothers burdens". The burden on young women to find a mate is a heavy one. Teaching young women to pray for their future mates is one way to lighten that load. I plan to go through this book very soon with my "almost a teen" daughter, and would strongly encourage other moms to do the same. It's never to early to cast our cares upon the Lord, because He cares for us. He cares for our purity, our future and our joy. Christian marriage is a picture of Christ and His Bride, the church. Christ prays for His Bride (Hebrews 7:25), so of course we should pray for our future husband.

Book Review: 90 Days of God's Goodness

In Randy Alcorn's devotional book, 90 Days of God's Goodness, Randy gives the soul a powerful tool: a flashlight. But it's not a flashlight to shine on our own soul. We don't need to look more closely at ourselves during a trial. He gives us a flashlight to shine onto the nature and character of God, so that when we have been kicked in the soul, we can find His goodness in the trial, through the trial, and even because of the trial. We can see Him as the author and perfector of our faith.

On day 6, Randy quotes Pastor James Montgomery Boice as he stood before his congregation in Philedelphia in May of 2000, to explain that he'd been diagnosed with liver cancer. He quotes, "...God is in charge. When things like this come into our lives, they are not accidental. It's not as if God somehow forgot what was going on, and something bad slipped by...God is not only the one who is in charge; God is also good. Everything He does is good...If God does something in your life, would you change it? If you'd change it, you'd make it worse. It wouldn't be as good."
Suffering happens to every child of God. Jesus promised that in this world, we would have trouble. Randy Alcorn realizes this, and his book 90 Days of God's Goodness equips the saints to see God's goodness in the trouble, and to trust Him for the outcome.

I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review

Settling...

...into the new normal. Or the new, new normal I suppose I should say. I don't know how many diseases are cured by giving the patient an entirely new disease. I hope not too many. When I had cancer, I didn't feel sick at all. In fact, my only complaint was that I wasn't swallowing food easily. That would have made it easy to lose 50 or 60pounds! My thyroid cancer is "cured" for now, and I feel terrible most of the time! Insomnia, fatigue, irritability...and would somebody please turn down the heat!! And these are things that I'm told for the most part will be my companions for the rest of my life. I liked the cancer better.

Scars

I have lots of them. I’ve had many surgeries over my lifetime. Fortunately, most of the scars have been in areas that aren’t visible. But recently I had to have open chest surgery to remove my large and cancerous thyroid gland. Those scars are easily visible across my neck and down the center of my chest. They are red, angry looking scars, even though my surgery was almost a year ago.

Initially, I was self-conscious about the scars. I often had complete strangers asking me about my health issues, which I felt were none of their business. I would become indignant if someone asked me about them. One of my doctors has also been quite focused on the appearance of the scars, even though I had not been complaining about them. He’s even suggested that I consider having them surgically (are you kidding me?!) removed, and having the subsequent scar irradiated to prevent the red angriness from returning. Hmm…sounds a bit extreme to me!

Lately though, God has been changing the way I think about my scars. After all, they are a reminder of the grace and mercy that He has shown me through a difficult time in my life. He carried me through cancer and surgeries and treatments, caring for me in ways He would not have needed to had I not been ill. My family, my church family, my neighbors and co-workers all ministered to me by providing meals, help and emotional support - they were Jesus “with skin on” to me and my family during those long months.

I’ve also realized that Jesus Himself bears scars - the scars from the nails that were brutally pounded into His hands and feet, the wound pierced in His side from the soldier’s sword to make sure that He was really dead. Those scars are evidence of hideous torture and intense agony. But they are also evidence of His deep love for His people. His scars exist because God the Father planned before the world was formed that He would send His Son Jesus into the world to redeem His people and save us from our sinfulness. The scars on Jesus’ body exist to glorify God the Father.

After his resurrection when Jesus appeared to His friends, they saw the nail prints on His hands and the wound in His side. They proved to them that He really was Jesus, risen from the dead. His body still bears the scars of crucifixion - they are evidence of His great love for His people. I know that when I see Him one day, I will look at those scars and remember what He has done for me. Through His sacrifice, I have peace with God.

I’m thankful for my restored health. I am thankful for all that God has done for me, sending His Son Jesus to die on the cross for my sin. And I am thankful for the scars. Instead of being something embarrassing and unwelcome, I’ve decided to look at each scar as a
Sacred Call to Always Remember. They will forever be reminders of God’s love and mercy. And those are things I don’t want to ever forget.