Heart Made Whole - Book Review

Another book review :) I may be one of the few people on the planet that doesn't know the name Christa Gifford. I got the book because the title was interesting to me ... "Heart Made Whole - Turning your unhealed pain into your greatest strength."

Christa is an amazing writer with the ability to put words together that captures what you are feeling without skipping a beat. Sometimes I find it hard to put words to how my heart feels but she hit the nail on the head several times. Though I haven't had the loss of a child as she has been through which brought her to write the book, pain is pain and a lot of times we walk through life with unhealed pain. At least I know I do and so I could be the only one ... But I don't think I am.

This book isn't just for those who have trauma in their lives. Its a great resource on learning how to tune into the ache of your heart and giving it a place to speak into your everyday world. Learning how to tune into the heart can be a hard thing - at least for me.

SO grab this book and give it a read ... You'll be better for it.

Book Description

In Heart Made Whole, Christa Black Gifford shares her own stories of loss, betrayal, and personal tragedy, chronicling clear steps to redemption to help those in pain invite the true Healer into the tangled mess of their broken hearts. Gifford reminds readers that pain is not their enemy, however, unhealed pain can become their greatest foe if it’s not taken to Jesus.

Growing up as a preacher's kid, Gifford had been submerged in Christian culture for decades when she uncovered the truth—that there were broken parts of her heart that weren't on friendly terms with the God who lived inside. Through disappointments and traumas, she had learned to guard her heart from God, keeping her angry, entrapped, and disconnected. As struggles and hardships continued, she finally learned to run towards her relationship with God when things got hard, instead of running away from Him like she had in the past. The more that she did this—building her heart's capacity for intimacy and deep relationship—the more her heart began to heal from the inside-out. She teaches the reader to access the solution that's already living inside of them—the God who forever made their heart a home.

When trials and tragedy hit our lives in a fallen world, our hearts can get smashed to bits, and we end up putting God on trial and blaming Him for the mess. But Christa helps readers understand that they don’t have to live controlled by their circumstances—or angry with God. Instead, she provides powerful insight and practical steps to turn the painful fire that comes to destroy us into an unexpected friend that can produce our greatest healing.

The condition of the heart determines the condition of life—and the heart can be bound up and healed, producing freedom and abundant life. With personal workbook sections for each chapter Christa helps readers experience steps to turn their pain into the healing and wholeness available to every believer.

WOW! It's been a long time since I read a book that literally had me on the edge of my seat wanting to know how it ended. This story is raw and real and inspiring. It is a beautiful story of hope and a story of a husband who loved well when many would have given up and walked away. A story of a wife with so much bold determination to heal and be used in whatever way she could. Their pain is real and raw and at times you feel like you are in the room with them watching as a fly on the wall as they walk through a horrific time in their lives. It is a powerful story that will not leave you unchanged as you turn the last page. It is a story of hope and how hope healed the overwhelming loss they faced but also one of a overwhelming love of a husband for his wife and a wife for her family ... ah it will leave you inspired. Pick up this powerful book and walk with them through their story of how Hope Heals!

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

When all seems lost, where can hope be found?

Katherine and Jay married right after college and sought adventure far from home in Los Angeles, CA. As they pursued their dreams, they planted their lives in the city and in their church community. Their son, James, came along unexpectedly in the fall of 2007, and just 6 months later, everything changed in a moment for this young family.

On April 21, 2008, as James slept in the other room, Katherine collapsed, suffering a massive brain stem stroke without warning. Miraculously, Jay came home in time and called for help. Katherine was immediately rushed into micro-brain surgery, though her chance of survival was slim. As the sun rose the next morning, the surgeon proclaimed that Katherine had survived the removal of part of her brain, though her future recovery was completely uncertain. Yet in that moment, there was a spark of hope. Through 40 days on life support in the ICU and nearly 2 years in full-time brain rehab, that spark of hope was fanned into flame.

Defying every prognosis, with grit and grace, Katherine and Jay, side by side, struggled to regain a life for Katherine as she re-learned to talk and eat and walk. Returning home with a severely disabled body but a completely renewed purpose, they committed to celebrate this gift of a second chanceby embracing life fully, even though that life looked very different than they could have ever imagined. In the midst of continuing hardships and struggles, both in body and mind, Katherine and Jay found what we all long to find...hope, hope that heals the most broken place, our souls.

An excruciating yet beautiful road to recovery has led the Wolf family to their new normal, in which almost every moment of life is marked with the scars of that fateful April day in 2008. Now, eight years later, Katherine and Jay are stewarding their story of suffering, restoration, and Christ-centered hope in this broken world through their ministry Hope Heals.