Books For Navigating The Hard Season

Boundaries by Dr. Henry Cloud and & Dr. John Townsend

This is the first book I picked up when my life completely fell apart. The cover literally says “when to say yes how to say no to take control of your life”. That is exactly what I needed in that season. As someone starting from scratch, I needed every piece of this book – what are boundaries, boundary conflicts, and developing healthy boundaries. Understanding the laws of boundaries and what was actually within my boundaries to control began to give me so much clarity as I began to move forward in cultivating a beautiful, vibrant life I deeply desired. This book quickly became a crucial piece in determining how I would take responsibility for my own boundaries and emotional health and how I would show up in relationships. (Grab your copy here.)

The Broken Way by Ann Voskamp

Ann Voskamp writes in such a deep, beautiful, meaningful way. Her words literally touch your soul with such gentleness and honesty that you can’t help but read the next page. This book is no different. I have marked or highlighted it on almost every single page because it is just that good. She writes the following,

 “I had wanted someone to reach over to me at eighteen, sit in that church pew next to me, someone to touch my shoulder, to steady things and say: ‘Shame is a bully but grace is a shield. You are safe here.’

What if the busted and broken hearts could feel there’s a grace that holds us and calls us Beloved and says we belong and no brokenness ever has the power to break us away from being safe? What if we experienced the miracle of grace that can touch all our wounds?” 

Ann does that in the book. She comes to sit next to you, shares her experience, and reminds you that there is a grace that holds you when everything falls apart around you and inside of you. This is a book I go back to over and over because you can feel the love through her honest words. (Grab your copy here.)

The Best of You by Dr. Allison Cook

The subtitle of this book reads “break free from painful patterns, mend your past, and discover your true self in God”. It’s me. Hi, I’m the problem. Okay, but seriously, this book got me right from the start with that title. In the introduction she says,

“What I want at the core of my being is to teach you how to do the hard, beautiful work of becoming – and trusting – your truest, deepest self, in partnership with the God who made you.”

This book does just that. It’s a guidebook to help you as you navigate painful patterns that keep popping up, to help you learn how to speak up and have a voice, and learn how to trust yourself to make wise decisions as you create the life and relationships that God designed for you. She continues to say in her introduction “Developing a strong sense of self is paramount to living the life God has for us. It’s essential to healthy relationships with other people. It involves a deep understanding of your strengths, needs, values, and purpose.” And I have to agree because building healthy relationships with others feels next to impossible when you’re trapped in the cycle of codependency. (Grab your copy here.)

Forgiving What You Can’t Forget by Lysa Terkeurst

The subtitle reads “discover how to move on, make peace with painful memories, and create a life that’s beautiful again”. Again, with a title that fits so well, how could I not get lost in the pages of this book.  I love where she writes,

“Healing is yours for the taking and yours for the keeping. Emotional healing is not so much a level to reach as it is a new way of thinking you choose.”

She goes on to write, “When you let the hurt go and the grudges all leave, PERSPECTIVE – a really great gift – is what you’ll receive.” She reminds us that forgiveness is yes, a decision we make, but also forgiveness is a process we work out because “forgiveness isn’t just about what’s in front of us. Sometimes, a bigger part of the journey is uncovering what is informing us from long ago.” There is so much to be said about this book, so if the title fits your story too, well, I’ll just encourage you to read the whole book! (Grab your copy here.)

Get Out Of Your Head by Jennie Allen

I’m a deep thinker, probably an over thinker, and oftentimes it can lead to a spiral of negativity and anxiousness. This book is transformative. Jennies reminds us of the impact of our thinking on our lives and she dives in right from the start writing, 

“It’s incredible, if you think about it: How can something we can’t see control so much of who we are, determine what we feel and what we do and what we say or don’t, dictate how we move or sleep, and inform what we want, what we hate, and what we love?

How can the thing that houses all those thoughts – just a bunch of folded tissue – contain so much of what makes us who we are?

Learning to capture our thoughts matters. Because how we think shapes how we live.”

This book walks us through the progress of emotions, thoughts, behaviors, relationships, and consequences and reminds us of the importance of saturating our minds with truth because how we think shapes how we live. On her podcast, Made for This, in season three, Jennie dives into discussion of this book, and I couldn’t recommend these resources more if you, like me, find yourself often struggling with spiraling toxic thoughts. (Grab your copy here.)