Uncover The Fight To Flourish: Engaging In The Struggle To Cultivate The Life You Were Born To Live Penned By Jennie Lusko Categorized In Printable Format
of focusing on blooming where you are planted, focus on pruning, watering, and weeding where you are planted, In this deeply personal memoir, pastors wife Jennie Lusko shares hardwon wisdom about enduring through unimaginable hardship to still flourish in relationships and grow in Christ, In December, her fiveyearold daughter, Lenya, died in a sudden, traumatic way, Lusko writes about how this loss has affected her and her family, and shares insights into how she has held onto her faith in God even in this darkness, She shares excerpts from her old journal entries, reflects from her current vantage point, and writes about how she has fought back against guilt, selfblame, and shame over having not been a good enough mother to Lenya.
This book could be very triggering to others who have lost children, but it is also incredibly encouraging and helpful, because it shows how a family can endure this kind of pain without falling apart.
Lusko is incredibly vulnerable and honest about her own struggles, even mentioning the suicidal thoughts that she had after losing her daughter, but she also shows that it is possible to flourish even in the darkest circumstances.
These life lessons apply to other forms of loss and suffering as well, and Lusko consistently points her readers to Christ, showing that it is possible to grow spiritually even in the midst of doubts, questions, and pain.
The Fight to Flourish: Engaging in the Struggle to Cultivate the Life You Were Born to Live is a deeply personal, encouraging book, It is full of good advice and biblical teaching, and because Jennie Lusko is so honest about her own struggles, pain, and insecurity, she is able to write about spiritual realities in a vivid, personal way.
This book can deeply encourage other women who are in various difficult circumstances, and is a strong testimony to Gods work in the authors life,
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review, I can not get over how much I enjoyed this book, Jennie was so real, raw, vulnerable, and yet encouraging as she shared her story that is so powerful, I feel like I was just having coffee with my bestfriend while also experiencing the powerful preaching of a strong and bold communicator, yet simultaneously, I was moved to tears multiple times in this book, but also laughed, felt anger, and rejoiced, Jennie teaches that through the range of emotions that come with life, God is still good, The words of this book JUMPED off the page and into my heart, Her story is powerful and she models how to stand back up and fight to flourish when the trials of life come our way, It is powerful, vibrant, and relatable, Whether you areor, this book is one you will always remember and never regret reading! Thank you Kindle and Goodreads for giving me the option to show my highlights, allof them!!! I remember after reading Levi Lusko's sitelinkThrough the Eyes of a Lion: Facing Impossible Pain, Finding Incredible Power I wished I knew more about how his wife, Jennie Lusko, handled her grief and grew through it.
So as soon as I heard about this book I downloaded it, and highlighted it like crazy, Thank you, Luskos, for sharing your stories, Thank you, thank you. Wow, what an incredible book! I loved every word of this book and will definitely read it again which is very rare, Jennie shares her story of incredible loss so vulnerably, I so appreciated her insight into walking through grief and learning how to really fight to flourish, This is a book I would definitely recommend!! With raw emotion splashed across every page, Jennie Lusko shares her struggle with grief over losing a child,
Jennie and her husband Levi are the pastors of Fresh Life Church headquartered in Kalispell, Montana with campus across Montana, Utah, and Wyoming, They stay busy but enjoyed the life they were living with their four daughters, One fateful day before Christmas, their fiveyearold daughter Lenya suffered a severe asthma attack that ended in a tragic loss, After that day, nothing felt the same anymore, Everything became a struggle. Family vacations werent the same, Relationships changed. Even now, several years later and the addition of a boy to the family, there are still times that Jennie misses Lenya fiercely and struggles to return to any kind of routine.
But God never changes, and she knows that she can rely on him,
Jennie shares several entries of her personal journals on days that she severely struggled with grief, Everybody struggles with something, whether its day to day tasks, being in the middle of a large project, or relationships, I have not experienced the loss of a child, but I almost did after a freak accident left my son with a skull fracture as I watched him be airlifted away.
Ironically, this occurred in Monterey, California which is Jennies hometown, The struggle to forgive oneself is the hardest of all, There are thoughts of “If Id done this” or “Why didnt I, . ” These dont make it any easier to move on through the process of grief,
Jennie does a tremendous job laying out thoughts and ideas for people that are struggling to flourish in their life, Her emotion is raw and displayed for everyone to read, showing how vulnerable she truly is, She talks about how she may look like she has it together, but underneath she is a mess, I think we all feel that way at some point in our lives and Im glad that someone with the courage to share her story with everyone,
I received a complimentary copy of this title from the publisher, The views and opinions expressed within are my own,
Jennie's journey of losing her daughter and sharing their story has brought healing to my own grief, I laughed and cried listening to the tender and fun moments of her walk, This is a book I will be forever grateful for, Beautiful
This book was so timely for me! Jennie's words are so real and relatable, Her story is proof that there can be beauty in the midst of pain, This book was hard. One that made me stop after every chapter and sit, Sit in the hurt. Sit in the honesty. But most importantly, sit with the Spirit, So much of fighting to flourish and fighting forward is knowing that it is a fight I cannot win, will not win on my own merit, But it is a fight that has already been won for me on the cross, This book is a gift in my life, and Im so thankful for the vulnerability and wisdom that Jennie Lusko shared, and the testimony of living through pain that she brings.
There is so much hope in her words,
Lord, may I fight forward, fight with your Spirit, and fight to flourish, May I shake the hindrances and weights in my life and make room for the new, for the more, you are bringing, May I spend everyday with you, being shaped into the woman you have called me to be a woman that reflects Jesus in all things, Before you read this review: This book deals with the death of the authors five year old daughter, If thats a trigger for you, please skip the rest of this review,
I think it took courage for Jennie Lusko to share her story, Her honesty in this book was refreshing and encouraging, She didnt mind sharing the pain of her journey of losing her child, I was impressed with her determination to embrace her emotional and spiritual journey to push through the hard times and her determination to still be an encouragement to her family and her church.
She talks of the impact of her daughters death has had in their family, Although she looks at their loss in a realistic way, theres a message of hope that shines through in every chapter, The message of this book embraces this quote “I dont have to understand God in order to trust Him, ” I know Ill be returning to this book for practical encouragement during difficult times,
There are a couple of things mentioned about which I would not share the same opinion as the author, However, those things do not take away from the tremendous message of this book,
I received a copy of this book from the publisher, All opinions are my own, The week I read this book, I couldn't help but notice how Jennie Lusko's story and her biblical references were dovetailing nicely with my current Bible study on faith:
"The righteous person may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all.
" Psalm:
"So do not be afraid, for I am with you, Do not be dismayed, for I am your God, I will strengthen you and help you I will uphold you with my righteous right hand, " Isaiah:
"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace, In this world you will have trouble, But take heart! I have overcome the world, " John:
If you guessed that I have been studying the chapter about when faith is hard, then you are correct, Faith is never easy in this world, and there are times when it seems impossible to believe in a divine God who always has your best interests at heart, However, He is always with us, and his love for us never changes, Jennie reminds us early in her book that since God exists out of time, he is also in the past with us, comforting us still in our darkest moments,
In The Fight to Flourish, Jennie shares how to not only survive the heartbreaking times, but how to flourish, I feel like I know Jennie now, and I enjoyed how she uses boxing analogies to make a point, I also appreciated how she bravely shares excerpts from her journal, These entries are so raw: They will break your heart! And yet I can see God's grace and love for Jennie as she struggles with the loss of her daughter as well as the mundane, everyday aggravations, like getting four children ready for the day and out the door.
Each chapter offers insight into how to depend on God and his fighting for you in order to flourish, Of the seventeen chapters, my favorites are: "Born to Shine," "You Can't Hug a Porcupine," and "Stir Up the Sweetness, " In "Stir Up the Sweetness," Jennie shares her struggle with how her face reveals what she's thinking, I, too, have an easily readable face, and although it might briefly reflect my thoughts, it isn't a reflection of my heart, Jennie encourages us to cultivate kind eyes: "This happens on the inside, It's a heart issue. Kind eyes get their running start from the soul, "
If we are to have kind eyes towards others, we need to first look to the One who looks at us this way, This is where sweetness begins, . . Before we were saved Forgiveness was
our biggest need because sin was our biggest problem, If we can fully receive God's forgiveness, then forgiveness will flow from us, and from that well we will be kind and tenderhearted to those around us,
Stirring up the sweetness through kindness by making people feel welcomed, invited, loved, and appreciated helps those around us flourish, Clearly this book isn't just for people who have suffered incredible loss: It's for anyone who wants to live a more fruitful, meaningful life, and encourage others to do the same.
Disclosure: I received a copy of the book from the publisher via TLC Book Tours in exchange for a fair and honest review, Thank you!.