Book Review: Mostly What God Does by Savannah Guthrie

 About the Book:

#1 New York Times Bestseller

Mostly what God does is love you.

If we could believe this, really believe this, how different would we be? How different would our lives be? How different would our world be?

If you ever struggle with your connection to God (or whether you even feel connected to a faith at all!), you're not alone. Especially in our modern world, with its relentless, never-ending news cycle, we can all grapple with such questions. Do we do that alone, with despair and resignation? Or do we make sense of it with God, and with hope? In these uncertain times, could believing in the power of divine love make the most sense?

In this collection of essays, Savannah Guthrie shares why she believes it does. Unspooling personal stories from her own joys and sorrows as a daughter, mother, wife, friend, and professional journalist, the award-winning TODAY show coanchor and New York Times bestselling author explores the place of faith in everyday life.

Sharing hard-won wisdom forged from mountaintop triumphs, crushing failures, and even the mundane moments of day-to-day living, Mostly What God Does reveals the transformative ways that belief in God helps us discover real hope for this life and beyond.

A perfect companion to your morning cup of coffee, this incisive volume—not a memoir but a beautiful tapestry of reflections crafted as a spiritual manual—includes:

• a fresh, biblically rooted look at six essentials of faith: love, presence, grace, hope, gratitude, and purpose;
• an honest exploration of questions, doubts, and fears about the love of God;
• a dose of encouragement for the faith-full, the faith-curious, and the faith-less; and
• …and much more.

This deeply personal collection is designed to engage the practical ways that God loves you—not just the world, but you—and to inspire you to venture down a path of faith that is authentic, hopeful, destiny-shaping, and ultimately life-changing.

Guthrie persuasively renders the evolution of a hard-won religious belief that makes room for imperfection and "does not require us to ignore... the sorrows we experience or the unjustness we see but to believe past it." This openhearted offering inspires. - Publishers Weekly

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My Thoughts:

I admit that I picked up Mostly What God Does by Savannah Guthrie because I recognized the author’s name. Right away, Guthrie correctly informs the reader that this book is not a memoir (though she shares some life experiences). The subtitle aptly describes the book: Reflections on Seeking and Finding His [God’s] Love Everywhere. It’s not a memoir. It’s not a typical devotional. It is thirty-one honest reflections written in a conversational manner.

In Mostly What God Does, Guthrie divides the book’s content into sections: love, presence, praise, grace, hope, and purpose. The positives of Christian faith (love, grace, heaven, community) are present, but the hard topics also appear. (Why does a good God allow suffering and evil? Is our view of God incorrect?) Guthrie admits to not understanding everything, which I appreciate because I can relate. However, she takes what she believes and exhorts readers to authentically practice the tenets of traditional Christian faith.

I liked the entry lengths in Mostly What God Does. At 3-5 pages long, the entries are substantially more than a single-page daily devotional, but less than a full chapter within a Christian living book. For me, this was an ideal length. Two entries that stood out to me were: Chapter 7: God’s Telephone Number and Chapter 20: He Reclined.

I found Mostly What God Does: Reflections on Seeking and Finding His Love Everywhere by Savannah Guthrie to be thoughtful and interesting. The book holds reminders of spiritual truths to uplift the reader while also encouraging the reader to intentionally practice his or her beliefs.

 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I was provided a copy of this book by the author or publisher. All opinions in this review are my own.

Author Interview: Captive Set Free by Valerie Limmer

 

Welcome to the Blog Tour for Captive Set Free by Valerie Limmer, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!

About the Book

Title: Captive Set Free 

Author: Valerie Limmer 

Publisher: Green Sap Publications 

Release Date: October 18, 2022 

Genre: Non-Fiction, Christian Living

Have you been hurt? Are you hounded by turbulent feelings and looping thoughts? Do you know you need to forgive but aren't sure where to begin?

Captive Set Free is a lamppost along the path of healing, offering engaging stories and examples, explaining how forgiveness fits into our spiritual DNA, and examining mindsets that make forgiving easier or harder. In this book, you'll learn how to

- take concrete steps to forgive; 

- be sure forgiveness has taken hold in your heart; and 

- guard your spirit from bitterness, both now and in the future. 

If you're tired of being imprisoned by pain and toxicity and want to step into the free and abundant life Jesus has planned for His children, this book is for you.

PURCHASE LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | BookDepository | IndieBound | BookBub

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About the Author

Valerie Limmer is a missionary in Japan. She is neither a therapist nor a theologian, but she has experienced severe abuse from a handful of people. In Captive Set Free, she shares the principles and techniques she's learned in her own life on her journeys towards forgiveness.

Connect with Valerie by visiting valerielimmer.com to follow her on social media or subscribe to email newsletter updates.

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Author Interview

Q: What prompted you to write Captive Set Free?

Valerie: If we are Christians, most of us have heard about the fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, and so on), and the gifts of the Spirit (e.g., pastor, prophet, evangelist). The Holy Spirit also seems to also choose certain life themes for each of us. One person might learn a lot about what it means to be His child, another person might continually learn more and more about God fulfilling His promises, and another might learn about the ways God provides for us. One of my major life themes is forgiveness.

Over the course of my life, I’ve been badly abused by half a dozen different people, starting in childhood. I started writing this book when I was healing from some horrific abuse I’d experienced as an adult. I realized that the things I was learning, the principles and techniques I was applying in my own journey of forgiveness, might be useful to people who might be struggling with the same issues. It’s a beautiful thing to witness God redeeming the horrors we’ve experienced and transforming them into something beautiful that can help other people.


Q: What do you hope readers take away from this book?

Valerie: Forgiving someone who has hurt you is possible! Not only is it possible, but the journey towards forgiveness will deepen you—both your faith, and your understanding of the forgiveness that Jesus offers to you. Forgiveness requires courage and endurance, but you don’t need to have it all at the start. Sometimes starting with a prayer (“Jesus, please help me want to forgive”) is all we can do, and God delights to honor this type of prayer. You will grow through the process, and as you do, Jesus will unlock doors to joy and peace in your heart that you might never have realized were there!


Q: Do you have a favorite quote from this book?

If I had to choose something, it would probably be the last line of the book. At the end of each section in Captive Set Free, there are a few questions and exercises to help the reader internalize the lessons of that section and examine his or her own life to help start the process of forgiving. Here’s the quote from the last question:

“Forgiveness frees our minds and spirits from the clutter and distraction of bitterness. With it gone, how will you ‘redecorate’ your mind and life? What will you do with your extra emotional, spiritual, and physical energy?”

I love this question because there’s so much hope in it. Forgiveness isn’t a journey whose end is despair and further hurt. It’s a journey that embraces hope and peace.


Q: How long did it take you to write Captive Set Free?

Valerie: Writing is a hobby, not my profession. So, I write for a few hours a week on my day off. Overall, it took about 5 years, from start to finish: one year for the first draft, three years to edit, and another year to publish.


Q: What do you wish you’d known when you were younger?

Valerie: That I wasn’t going to peak in high school, as I feared, but that as we use our gifts and talents, God honors our desire to honor Him.


Q: Would you share something about yourself that most readers wouldn’t know?

Valerie: I normally live in Japan as a missionary; it can be interesting to see how God prepares us to follow Him as He calls us to follow Him into ministry. For instance, I have double-jointed knees, ankles, and toes, which makes it easy to sit seiza (a special way of sitting in Japan, required of ladies in formal situations). This is usually quite painful, even for Japanese women. But not for me!


Q: What are you reading now?

Valerie: The Humans by Matt Haig. I’ve only read one other book by him, which was very good. This fictional story is about an alien who’s come to earth and is inhabiting a human body. He doesn’t understand anything about human culture or customs, and it’s ridiculously funny to see the world through his eyes.


Q: What do you like to do when you aren't writing?

Valerie: I like to read, cook, draw, learn new languages, and make Japanese wax food models.

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Tour Giveaway

(1) winner will receive a copy of Captive Set Free and a $25 Amazon gift card!

Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway begins at midnight January 9, 2023 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on January 16, 2023. Winner will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US/CAN only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.

Giveaway is subject to JustRead Publicity Tours Giveaway Policies.

Enter Giveaway

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Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!

Book Review: The Making of Biblical Womanhood by Beth Allison Barr

About the Book:

USA Today Bestseller
Christianity Today 2022 Book Award Finalist (History & Biography)

"A powerful work of skillful research and personal insight."--Publishers Weekly

Biblical womanhood--the belief that God designed women to be submissive wives, virtuous mothers, and joyful homemakers--pervades North American Christianity. From choices about careers to roles in local churches to relationship dynamics, this belief shapes the everyday lives of evangelical women. Yet biblical womanhood isn't biblical, says Baylor University historian Beth Allison Barr. It arose from a series of clearly definable historical moments.

This book moves the conversation about biblical womanhood beyond Greek grammar and into the realm of church history--ancient, medieval, and modern--to show that this belief is not divinely ordained but a product of human civilization that continues to creep into the church. Barr's historical insights provide context for contemporary teachings about women's roles in the church and help move the conversation forward.

Interweaving her story as a Baptist pastor's wife, Barr sheds light on the #ChurchToo movement and abuse scandals in Southern Baptist circles and the broader evangelical world, helping readers understand why biblical womanhood is more about human power structures than the message of Christ.

Contents:

Introduction
1. The Beginning of Patriarchy
2. What If Biblical Womanhood Doesn't Come from Paul?
3. Our Selective Medieval Memory
4. The Cost of the Reformation for Evangelical Women
5. Writing Women Out of the English Bible
6. Sanctifying Subordination
7. Making Biblical Womanhood Gospel Truth
8. Isn't It Time to Set Women Free?

Read an excerpt from The Making of Biblical Womanhoood: How the Subjugation of Women Became Gospel Truth by Beth Allison Barr on the publisher's website.

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My Thoughts:

I read through The Making of Biblical Womanhood by Beth Allison Barr quickly. The author’s education and expertise shined as she related historical context for traditions practiced in the modern church. I found learning about the past highly interesting, but my favorite parts of the book were the first few chapters where she dives into canonized Scripture.

Beth Allison Barr, unlike some authors, does not deny the divinity of Scripture or attempt to minimize the Apostle Paul’s letters. Rather, she draws on her education as a college professor of history and offers alternative interpretations to misogynistic church traditions. She backs up her interpretations with highly convincing evidence, perhaps better than any other author I’ve read on this subject. I am not a Biblical scholar, but I have steeped in church tradition for at least 30 years, and I was amazed how many legitimate interpretations there can be for a passage.

The Making of Biblical Womanhood: How the Subjugation of Women Became Gospel Truth by Beth Allison Barr is a fantastic read that I recommend to any Believer interested in this topic, male or female. The author’s tone is not political and lacks the angry smears and cheap shots that often appear in books dealing with hot topics. I appreciated the educational and kind tone of the author and will read any other book she writes.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I was provided a copy of this book by the author or publisher. All opinions in this review are my own.