Book Review: Daring to Hope

Last year, I read a great book called Kisses for Katie, about an 18 year old girl who moved to Uganda and, by the time she was 23, had adopted 13 girls. I was moved and challenged by that book, and so I was thrilled to be able to review her second book, Daring to Hope.

Whereas the first book told the story of how she arrived at Uganda and how she ended up adopting all her daughters, this book tells of what her life was like after all the excitement settled down. She began to face many difficult things, encountering illness and death and loss, which is why the subtitle of this book is "Finding God's Goodness in the Broken and the Beautiful."

Reflecting on these challenges, Katie writes, "And I did not know that in the middle of much pain and grief and loss, I would experience a joy and a peace that far surpassed human understanding... The Lord would take the darkness and make it my secret place, the place where I knew Him more intimately and deeply than I had ever fathomed possible. In the middle of the hurricane that surrounded me, I would experience a true Comfort so deep, so clear, that it simply could not be denied. It was Jesus. He was near... No, He didn't make the pain easy. But He made it beautiful."

Katie's writing, once again, challenges and inspires me. I see myself in her words, as I wrestle with many of the same things. For instance, later in the book, as she is helping an addict, she is struck by a realization of her own insufficiency as God brings conviction to her heart: "I am the addict and doubt is my drug, this ugly lack of trust, the place I turn when I am weak. It is my lifelong Jacob wrestle, my unwillingness to lay a dear one on the altar and trust that the Lord will provide." Through her beautiful illustrations and openness in sharing her struggles, Katie continually points the reader to the Answer to our problems, the Source of our joy. I look forward to watching what God has for her future.

You may learn more about the author HERE.

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.