Praying Through Hard Times: Finding Strength in God's Presence

Title: Praying Through Hard Times: Finding Strength in God’s Presence

Author: Linda Evans Shepherd

Pages: 192

Year: 2014

Publisher: Revell

Note: I received a free copy of this book through The Book Club Network in exchange for my honest opinion.

     I had a little trouble getting started on reading this book. I don’t read very many non-fiction titles. When I agreed to read this one it was because God wouldn’t let me let go of the thought that I needed to read it. I finally picked it up about 6 weeks after it arrived in the mail and read the first chapter. The very next day I had a mammogram. It showed an area of unusual cells and I was scheduled for a needle biopsy. I am still working my way through doctor appointments and testing to find out what exactly what those cells are. God knew what I was going to be going through and that I was going to need to read this book.

About the book:

     No matter what the hurt, there is always, always hope.

     The storms of life visit us all, and at times we find ourselves ill-prepared to weather them. Where is God when everything comes crashing down? Where is he when a job is lost? When a child goes astray? When the diagnosis is cancer? Does he truly care?

     In Praying through Hard Times, Linda Evans Shepherd shows you how to see God in times of trouble. With compassion born from her own experiences with tragedy, Shepherd offers you practical strategies for surviving difficult times, giving your worries and sadness to God, praying through the pain, and finding peace, hope, and joy once more. In fact, she even shows you how the tough times can draw you closer to God than ever before.

     God’s answers to prayer may not come packaged in the ways we would expect, but they do come in ways that will transform our lives.

My review:

     Great directions for finding strength in God’s presence.

     Each chapter in this book was very well presented. They were full of wonderful points and insights. I liked the fact that a lot of scripture was used to support the points that were made. I also enjoyed the examples from the author’s life, as well as other women she had contact with. The one downside for me in this book is that some of the chapters did not seem to fit together very well. At times this was a distraction that I had to struggle to get past.

     I do recommend this book to anyone that has ever had to, or will have to, go through hard times of any kind. Since we are all humans living in an imperfect world this should include all of us. I give this book 4 stars.