It’s taken me awhile to figure out what I want to say regarding this book. Not because of the book itself, but because there are some things going on with loved ones that this book hit to close to home with and I just don’t know what I want to say or how much to say. I will say that there is a lot of truth to this book. I think this book is unique in that it speaks to singles, dating/engaged, and married people groups. Not many relationship type books can claim to be applicable to three different levels of people.
I enjoyed how open, honest, and real this book was. Jeff and Alyssa wrote very vulnerably and openly about struggles they have been through in their relationship journeys, past and current, and how they have learned that what a love needs to last is to put God first and foremost not only in the relationship itself, but also in the individual’s life. It was very thought-provoking and gave me a lot to think about in my own marriage and how there are things/goals that my spouse and I need to talk about and work towards together. I really enjoyed how Jeff and Alyssa took turns writing different chapters in the book and you were able to see a relationship from both viewpoints…a man’s point of view and a woman’s side of things. It is true that men and women think differently and there is a lot of miscommunication that takes place because of this. This book touched on numerous topics such as self-worth, singleness, sex inside and outside of marriage, marriage, struggles in marriage, etc…there are many different things I took away from this book, but there is one in particular I want to share with you.
(from Chapter 8 – Bleeding Love)
“I’ve learned that there can be beauty in any relationship. When we are choosing Jesus and following Him, nothing is in vain. Any relationship you are in, any breakup you go through, is not in vain. It wasn’t a failure. God, in His might and goodness, can use it to mature you and make you more whole and holy. It can teach you what things are important in a relationship and how to relate to the opposite sex. It can give you communication skills and teach you how to truly love, to be patient, to have hope to seek the good of someone else, to forgive.”
This paragraph I feel like is not only applicable to a marriage type relationship but can also be applicable to any type of relationship you have (i.e. friends, co-workers, family, etc…). All through life there will be hard relationships and times you wonder why you had to go through that and I think this is a great reminder that there was a purpose to it. It might not have turned out the way you wanted it to, but there is a reason you went through that hard time. I know this has happened to me in friendships in the past and now looking back I can see where God used those times to grow me as a person and help mold me to be a better friend because of it. Just wanted to share that encouraging paragraph with you.
I enjoyed being a part of this book’s launch team and enjoyed reading this book a lot. This book will be one I will encourage my daughters to read when they get older and begin navigating the tricky waters of single/dating/marriage relationships. I want to stress to my daughters the importance of keeping God first in their lives because He will never fail them.
Until next time…keep it simple!
Lindsey
**This book was sent to me free of charge for my honest review from the publisher. All opinions are my own.**
