Hey Friend,
I know you’ve had some hard days this summer. We all do.
So today I want to encourage you with a recommendation for a book that will surely help make your days brighter.
I met the author, Holley Gerth, several years ago when she represented DaySprings during a workshop at our Northwest Christian Writer’s Association Conference. I immediately connected with Holley’s grace-filled personality, her precious southern accent and her winning smile.
Over the years I’ve watched her grow into a best-selling author who writes life changing books. I love her writing style. She speaks to the deepest places of my heart.
As a life coach, Holley brings real issues into each book and presents an uplifting strategy to nourish your soul. I’ve given several of her books as gifts to friends who needed a boost.
Holley’s latest book, What Your Heart Needs for the Hard Days – 52 Encouraging Truths to Hold On To, is definitely on my gift idea list for the coming Christmas season.
I was given a copy of this book by Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group. I couldn’t have been happier to offer to read and review this little jewel.
God knew the exact timing of when I might need some encouragement. One devotional after another became my favorite as it spoke directly to my soul that day.
With 52 devotionals, this book can be used for a once weekly study or you can gobble it up in one quick read. I chose to take my time through each entry and study the recommended chapters in the Book of Psalms.
My word for 2014 is STAND.
So naturally one of my favorite devotions in this book is #7 – God Will Help You Stand Tall through It All. It is based on two different Psalms containing the word STAND.
Psalm 20:7-8 7 Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. They are brought to their knees and fall, but we rise up and stand firm.
So many times over the last several years I focused on the difficulties before me rather than getting on my knees and asking the Lord to help me rise up and stand firm. When my perspective was off, it was easy to have false beliefs that prevented me from acting upon what God was calling me to do. Even when He was showing me to stand up for myself, I didn’t believe I could.
When I finally fell to my knees and cried out for help, He put in place the help that was there all along. There were people ready to reach out and help me stand tall again.
Psalm 40: 1-2 I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.
Last April and May, I spent six weeks of intense counseling during my stay at The Center – A Place of Hope. There I found help for areas where I’d struggled for years. In dealing with my “stuff,” my new friends and counselors were able to point me to a whole body approach to healing.
I had the courage to stand and ask for help when trying to do it on my own didn’t work.
I moved from insecurity and discouragement to stand for the healthy family relationships God has called us to.
The Lord indeed heard my cry. He lifted me out of a dark place. He set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.
Holley’s uplifting book has been a great reminder how God has just what we need for those hard days. I hope you’ll order a copy for yourself and another for a friend.
Bless you today with what your heart needs for the hard days.
Gigi
*****
When you buy Holley’s books from Givingtons, a percentage will go to Saving Grace, the organization God used to connect her with her 21 year-old adopted daughter.
There’s a link to Givingtons below each book on the link to Holley’s website.
