Blessed in the Mess: How to Experience God’s Goodness in the Midst of Life’s Pain

Bestseller Meyer (The Confident Woman) delivers a solid guide to overcoming life’s challenges through faith. Framing hardships as opportunities to grasp the breadth of God’s love—periods of sickness illustrate his ability to heal, sinful moments show his capacity to forgive—Meyer argues that if believers endure challenges rather than run from them, they will come out on the other side more spiritually mature. To get through the “mess,” readers should affirm their faith (by literally speaking aloud to their problems); pray; and cultivate a positive attitude by reminding themselves that the difficulty won’t last forever. If they can help it, readers should also refrain from making big life decisions in such moments. Enduring hardship helps believers better understand Jesus’s suffering on earth, according to Meyer, and build the type of “godly” character that allows one to better serve God. Meyer’s competent prose serves as an effective vehicle for her matter-of-fact instruction and frequent reassurances that tough times don’t mean God has left one behind, even if many such points are recycled from her previous books. The author’s fans will get what they came for. (July)