For anyone frustrated with God: A Book

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When my friend Christy announced she was writing a book, I knew I’d buy a copy. She’s so funny and smart that it didn’t matter if it was a nonfiction book on house cats or a dystopian middle grade novel — I’d buy it, no questions.

The real book, however, is the opposite of a fluffy read about cats or an adventure for tweens. It’s still funny and smart, just like I expected. But it also made me cry some ugly tears.

The mile-long title gives a pretty good overview: Awakening at Lourdes: How an Unanswered Prayer Healed Our Family and Restored Our Faith.

“Bearing suffering well is one of the surest paths to heaven. This is the story of how I learned to bear mine.”

That weighty introduction drops the reader off at the start of a parent’s worst nightmare: the inexplicable, overwhelming suffering of a child.

There we find Christy, trying to keep all the plates of motherhood spinning while becoming a medical expert on her son Oscar’s very specific condition.

Christy’s story is compelling, her honesty refreshing as she describes the details of her trip to Lourdes with her husband and young son, Oscar. She doesn’t pull any punches as she describes Lourdes as a final test of God’s love. I’m not giving away any spoilers, because it’s already in the title. They hoped for complete physical healing for Oscar, but what they took home was much more.

Avoiding the common pitfalls of the saccharin spiritual cliche where everything gets easy as soon as the main character turns to Jesus, Christy’s story is for the rest of us– those of us who cling to faith even when life is hard.

Jennifer Fulwiler’s quote on the front cover, “You will recognize your own story in these pages” is spot on. Awakening at Lourdes would benefit anyone who has ever doubted God’s love, struggled with reconciling the suffering of the world with a loving God, or prayed seemingly without an answer.

Personally, reading Christy’s story gave me insight into my own spiritual journey as well as a deeper understanding into how to help others suffering around me.

You should read this book. Here it is on Amazon, but Thriftbooks has it for a little less. When you do, I’d love to hear what you think.