Are you a worrier?

Before I share today's part of the blog challenge, I'd like to share a quick prayer request with you all.  My little sister Amy just underwent surgery today for a detached labrum (hurt shoulder).  It was hard for me to be so far away while all of this was happening.  Not only did I want to be there for my sister, but I also wanted to be with my family during a time like this and I was stuck ten hours away.  That has been tough.

She made it out of surgery quickly and safely.  Although recovery is going to be tough (six weeks with little use of her right arm), she is okay.  If you could remember to say a few prayers for her over the next month and a half, that would be wonderful.

As for the blogging challenge...

Day 2: A book you love.

I haven't been reading many books outside of what I've had to read for school recently, so I had to think hard to come up with a good book to write about.  I finally settled on CRAZY LOVE by Francis Chan.  This book is phenomenal and changed my perspective on God's love and about something even more important that I've struggled with in my life: stress and worry.

One of my favorite quotes of all times comes from CRAZY LOVE.  I think about it all the time, almost every single day.  Check this out.  The first time I read it, I felt like I had been slapped... but in a good way.

Worry implies that we don't quite trust that God is big enough, powerful enough, or loving enough to take care of what's happening in our lives.  Stress says that the things we are involved in are important enough to merit our impatience, our lack of grace towards others, or our tight grip of control.

I am a worrier and I tend to stress out... a lot.  CRAZY LOVE helped me to get a grip on my focuses on life.  God loves me.  That's all that matters.  Everything else is so insignificant compared to His crazy, relentless love.  I would recommend for anyone to read CRAZY LOVE.  It is a quick read and somehow manages to fill you with both joy and conviction at the same time.

Here is the description on the back of the book:

God is love. Crazy, relentless, all-powerful love. Have you ever wondered if we're missing it? It's crazy, if you think about it. The God of the universe--the Creator of nitrogen and pine needles, galaxies and E-minor--loves us with a radical, unconditional, self-sacrificing love. And what is our typical response? We go to church, sing songs, and try not to cuss. Whether you've verbalized it yet or not... we all know something's wrong. Does something deep inside your heart long to break free from the status quo? Are you hungry for an authentic faith that addresses the problems of our world with tangible, even radical, solutions? God is calling you to a passionate love relationship with Himself. Because the answer to religious complacency isn't working harder at a list of do's and don'ts--it's falling in love with God. And once you encounter His love, as Francis Chan describes it, you will never be the same. Because when you're wildly in love with someone, it changes everything.

And that's a book I love.  CRAZY LOVE.  Francis Chan.  Check it out here.