Be Who You Already Are - Book Review!

Whoops, and just like that I went over a month without a blog post!

This past month has been busy but we have had lots of fun.

Lots of people were interested in the book I posted on instagram/facebook a while back. It is called "You are Free, Be Who You Already Are."  I purchased the book on a whim after I saw another author post about it. Honestly - the cover alone sucked me in. SO PRETTY! But the title spoke to me too.  I have definitely been in a season of learning more and more how to be myself and feel so completely free in it. So I went on amazon and put in my pre-order.

This is the first book I have read by Rebekah Lyons and she is a good writer. It's a super easy read and I went through it very quickly, even though I wasn't reading it every day (ugh, life can get in the way of all the fun sometimes)

While I don't feel I had any huge or major revelations from this book it was a sweet confirmation of pages I have already been on in my heart. And I totally related to Rebekah. Through the book she talks some about her struggle with anxiety (been there, done that) and also her family transitions through several moves that they made (been there, currently doing that).

Here's just a few golden nuggets I got from her writings:

- She talks about some challenges she faced in one season of her life and she realized that those challenges led her "to adopt the belief that [her] faith grew best when life was difficult. Subconsciously, martydrom had become the foundation of [her] spiritual growth."

I have absolutely had that mindset in the past. And while I believe that God brings challenges into our life all the time to grow and shape us to become more like Christ, it doesn't mean that forced martyrdom is the only way to grow spiritually. We can make ourselves available to Jesus all the time, but that doesn't mean that His plan is always a path of some type of suffering in order to make us like Him. If we aren't careful we can take on unauthorized challenges and cause ourselves real harm instead of producing the growth we might crave.

- She also talked about learning to feel at home where you are, but the best part is the truth that "This is the beauty of our God. He is our home."

Yes, yes, and another yes. As our family continues to figure out our new "home" I need the constant reminder that because I have Jesus, I am always at home.

I think her chapter on grieving was one of my favorites. No one likes the idea of grieving. It's not fun, let's be honest. But there are super healthy ways to grieve loss, change, or just disappointment. Many times if we don't properly grieve we don't fully move on.

- She had an excellent point that "when we dull our pain, we dull our joy. When we numb or lows, we numb our highs."

Hello, Pot? This is the Kettle, just wanted to let you know that you are black. How many times have I curbed my excitement because I didn't want to feel the huge let down of disappointment? That is no way to go through life! We are more alive and more ourselves when we get excited about the things we love and we feel the pain of losing them or when plans just don't sort out as we hoped!

- She tied the importance of grieving altogether by reminding me, "Every time we express grief, we allow Jesus to absorb our pain. When we live out the freedom we have been given to grieve, Jesus takes our grief upon himself and replaces it with comfort. What a precious gift."

His comfort truly is a precious gift. If you can a remember a time when you maybe let yourself fall apart and experience God's comfort you will know that it is not a feeling you easily forget. It becomes an old friend you can turn to on the darkest and gloomiest of days, and sometimes even the happiest.

- Another beautiful little one liner gem she had, "Courage is meant to en-courage others."

What an awesome reminder. When any of us takes a courageous step it usually gives someone else the nudge to be brave. I love that! I have to remember that every time I feel fear knocking on my door! I'm always so much more brave when it isn't just about me, but how it might affect someone I know or love around me.

Those were just a few of my favorite little tidbits. She has lots of good stuff in there, no matter what season you are in. If you are interested in the book I definitely recommend giving it a read.

And just to add to all of that - in the last month or so I realized something very important. I pretty much know who I am and I'm not too shy to just be myself these days. Take me or leave me, it is what it is. I think starting to step into a new community and letting ourselves be known by some new people has made me realize more and more that I am pretty comfortable in my own skin.

There was a time and a place where that was not true. I struggled constantly wondering if I was good enough, wondering if people thought I was a fake, wondering if those around me would think that I wasn't all that and a bag of chips. If you have been through the same thing, you may know that the struggle was insecurity. That nasty ugly monster that lives inside your head.

Well I was talking to a near and dear friend of mine about how in the last year or so, it is like I just woke up one day and didn't have those thoughts anymore. I didn't care what others thought, because I loved being me. It was like insecurity just died. I had no questions about who I was or who God made me to be. I was marvelling at this phenomenon with her, and she shared a truth with me that I hadn't realized until she said it. I actually was never insecure. I was just in an insecure environment. The ground I was walking on wasn't sturdy - and its insecurity infected me. When freed from it, I was essentially finally free to be me.

Lots of you reading this will know much more what I am talking about when I say an insecure environment. If you know, then I hope you will take that truth and use it as needed in your own healing journey. If you have no idea what I am talking about but feel that you need to know more because you think it will unlock something for you, well then I'm not more than a phone call/text/email away.

I hope you all enjoyed this little random book review and personal insight post. I had fun mulling it all over in my heart for you :)