Monday, April 30, 2007

Stronger Than You Think

I decided to start working on my summer reading list this weekend. I was reading the review of books in Today's Christian Woman and I came across an excerpt from Stronger Than You Think by Kim Gaines. Here is the excerpt.

"Our hope is that, despite our messy lives and our inability to live perfectly, we have a Savior who has already made us whole. In Christ, we are being restored and healed. And even though we may not feel whole, wholeness is ultimately not about our feelings. Isn't that a relief? If I rely on my feelings to tell me whether or not I am whole, then my 'wholeness' is likely to change with each success and failure. But wholeness is not based on subjective feelings. Rather, wholeness begins and ends with our hope in Christ and who we are in him. The reality is that, even if our feelings lead us to believe otherwise, Christ has already restored and healed us in relationship to himself - so at the root of our very being he has already made us whole."

That passage struck me. I had been talking to friend about my walk with God and how I wasn't feeling very whole. I thought that if I spent more time in the Word and more quiet time with God, the wholeness would come back. Then I realized the truth of the idea that the feeling of wholeness will change based on the point in my walk. Needless to say, Stronger Than You Think is now on my summer reading list. Any other suggestions for my list? I would like to finish Blue Like Jazz as well. I have a horrible habit of starting several books and only finishing a couple of them.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I'm reading "What is the What" which is a powerful composite telling of the Lost Boys of Sudan. Strange title, but very readable, and it's winning awards.

Anne Lamott's essays are really good spiritual writing. She draws out the holy in everyday things and outlines her walk as a single mother, an unlikely Sunday School teacher, and an even unliklier Christian. I'm just starting her newest: "Grace Eventually: thoughts on faith." There's also "Bird by Bird: some instructions on writing and life" and the first two "thoughts on faith" books: "Traveling Mercies: some thoughts on faith" and "Plan B: further thoughts on faith." Her novels don't really grab me, but her essay collections are wonderful and inspiring without being sappy or too "Chicken-Soupy."

You may also like Schott Russel Sanders. Start with "Staying Put: Making a Home in a Restless World."