Friday, February 1, 2013

A Review: The Church Planting Wife

I can cross book #1 off my reading list: The Church Planting Wife: Help and Hope for Her Heart, by Christine Hoover!

I have been eagerly anticipating the release of this book, ever since I heard it was coming out last July. As I have said before, there are not a ton of specific resources for church planting wives. So the idea of an entire book devoted to the concept was really important to me. And when I heard about the opportunity to sign up for Christine's book launch team, I couldn't pass it up!

So forgive me if you are tired of hearing about this book...ok, maybe I am not that sorry.  :)

But to be honest, I would be promoting it just as much even if I wasn't a part of the launch team. It's that good. I think all church planting and ministry wives (as well as their husbands) should read it. I think all who know a church planting wife should read it. It's that enlightening.

Suffice it to say, I really enjoyed this book. I will definitely read it again. I think part of why I loved it so much is because Christine is so authentic and practical. I so appreciated her transparent honesty in describing the challenges and joys of church planting; she does so in a way that made me nod my head and my heart say "yes, exactly." It is almost as if she had somehow heard my own thoughts. Which ended up being such an encouragement to me, because it means I am not alone. That other church planting wives have thought the same things, experienced the same things, struggled with the same things. As a newer church planting wife, it reminds me that other women have walked this unique road before me. And as the subtitle suggests, there is help and there is hope.

The other, probably more important, reason I loved the book so much is because Christine always brings the reader back to the Scriptures and to Jesus. While she offers practical advice on how to navigate the role of the church planting wife, she also offers encouragement on how to make the role of Christ-following woman our first priority. That cultivating our hearts in a relationship with Jesus is the key to our calling, as well as to perseverance and joy in ministry.

The title of my blog is "One Woman's Journey to the Heart of God." It was so named to remind me of the journey the Lord has me on to reshape my heart to have one that looks more like His. It is a reminder every time I blog that this life is about Him and the journey He has me on toward intimacy with my Savior. And I absolutely believe that my calling to be a church planting wife is a refining process in that journey. So I loved Christine's quote about our hearts and church planting:

"Your heart is vital to the mission. As you give God your heart, He will give you His. God's heart for you is that church planting be the soil in which you grow in Christlikeness. With His heart as your own, your role and the challenges of church planting become opportunities for growth and ministry, and church planting becomes an exciting adventure of radical faith." (p. 23)

So yeah...I'm a fan of this book. And I think you should read it too!  :)

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