Well. This was a tear jerker and a deep look at how we hold on to our faith as Christ followers when God totally shakes our world and our lives are disrupted. What led me to read this??
1. I love Tony Evans and his theology.
2. I love Priscilla Shirer and have done or led 5 of her small group Bible studies.
3. I needed a good discussion book that doesn't have a workbook or study questions/homework for my Sept-November small group.
4. I don't know much about the Evans' children other than Priscilla.
BOOK SUMMARY
We all have had dreams....plans...and most of us have seen some of them...or all of them....shatter. Sometimes even our scars have scars. We may feel "broken".
This book delves into conversations (we hear from all 4 Evans' kids plus their dad Tony) about the following:
- recognizing God's presence in tough times
- dealign with devastating loss (including the death of their beloved wife and mother Lois)
- revealing how to keep moving forward in faith when it feels as though your world has stopped.
"This is a powerful tribute to God's ability to bring beauty from ashes." It reminds us that "even in our most painful moments, healing can begin." (taken from the back cover).
It's about holding onto our faith, as Believers, when life breaks our hearts.
There are 2 Parts to this book with several short chapters in each part.
Part One : Good God, Hard Times
- Wynter in July
- God knows what He's doing
- A New Normal
- Move a little closer
- Between expectancy and reality
- She never lost her smile
- Stones of Remembrance
- Tomorrow has been cancelled
- My mom told me to tell you
Part Two: Resolve, Rebuild, Retrofit
10. Is He God or Not?
11. Getting Our Attention
12. Good news on Good Friday
13. Strength in your struggles
14. Faith over fear
15. The Right thing along the way
16. Dwell
17. The Art of Surrender
18. Divine Reset
19. What Matters Most
20. Legacy Lives On
The book also begins with a chapter called Life Interrupted and we hear from Anthony Evans, Jr for this. Then there's another chapter titled Before We Begin and we hear from all four children of Dr Tony Evans.
Scripture is included at the beginning of each chapter and through out the chapters.
MY THOUGHTS
Once again Priscilla has wowed me with her conversation in this book and I love that I heard from her siblings and dad. This is a book that's like just sitting around a table with coffee mugs in hand and listening to each member of Tony's family...himself included.....converse with us. They share openly and honestly.
I needed tissues through some of the parts dealing with their mom's illness and death.
The section about their thoughts and feelings during the Pandemic/Covid19 were just inspiring in many ways and also so real.
I also loved that we learn about each family member (a short biographical sketch) in the back of the book. There are also photos throughout the book, highlighted points and so many good Scriptures.
I appreciate that this is going to make for a good discussion book come September for my women's small group.
I underlined parts that I will go back and re-read and highlight to discuss while my group reads this book. I wanted to read it this summer mainly because there aren't any questions to get a discussion going so as a small group leader, I wanted to at least have a sense of what the book contains. Now I will go back and we will discuss during our weekly meetings, the parts I have highlighted. I hope to have each member look up the various Scriptures too and explain what it means to them.
There are so many great quotes in this book. Here's one of my faves:
" You can be assured that a mist in the pulpit will always create a fog in the pew. When pastors and leaders fail to point people to the uncompromising truth of God, the natural outcome will be that the culture will become confused, and the society will begin to decline." (Tony's voice) (pg 126 Divine Disruption by Dr Tony Evans et al c. 2021)
"The world has gotten so far from God that He's allowed these calamities to interrupt the world and get our attention. But, perhaps what's most important, this is something to wake up the church. In Acts 8, God allowed trouble to come to the church because they had become too comfortable. the church today is too complacent, and now it's time for a wake-up call. God does not skip the church house to fix the White House." (Tony's voice) (pg.144)
In my opinion, this book is appropriate for any Christ follower or even one who is seeking, over the age of 14.
On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the highest, I rate this a 10.
I'm so excited to be discussing this book this Autumn with my small group of ladies. HIGHLY recommend this!!
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