No Matter What Happens

Four words link the heart to the anchor of God’s steadfast love;
Four words acknowledge God’s goodness in the midst of difficulty:

No matter what happens.

Thanksgiving — no matter what happens — was the challenge facing Lauren Chandler during days in the desert, in the crucible of her husband’s cancer, riding the daily waves of parenting and ministry.  Gratitude is a current that runs through Steadfast Love,  Lauren’s lifeline to her readers.

A navigational map as well as a ship’s log, the truth of Psalm 107 fills the sails of a tale that, like the psalm, is also about worship in the desert, a chain-shattering God, the affliction that results from faithless foolishness, and finding sea legs on a storm-tossed ship.  Using Scripture to illuminate Scripture, Lauren traces the dots from Psalm 107 to passages as diverse as Israel’s wilderness wanderings, the tale of a prophet who marries a prostitute, and Jesus’ dealings with a thirsty woman, demonstrating the richness and depth, the commitment and jealous devotion of hesed, the Hebrew word for God’s steadfast love.

Another current running through Steadfast Love is the absolute necessity of community among those who believingly follow Christ.  Lauren speaks of the faithful wounds of a friend who “valued my good more than she valued her standing with me.”  She relates how a web of relationships in a community “made God tangible . . . put flesh on the unseen.”

Like the psalmist, we will find hope in the process of praising God for His continual deliverance and in remembering His response to our neediness.  “Let them thank the Lord for His steadfast love, for His wondrous works to the children of man!” is the theme of this thorough study of God’s Word, and it is Lauren Chandler’s testimony — a high view of God that trusts His leading and awaits His return.

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This book was provided by B&H Publishing group in exchange for my review.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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