Yes I did.)Ī decade ago I wrote a historical account of the modern American idea that, with the right kind of faith, we can get what we deserve. (Did I recently see a bazillion dollar yacht christened with the name “2 Blessed 2 Be Stressed”? Yes. Christmas card professional photoshoot where the laughing family wearing matching chambray shirts is piled on a couch in the middle of a wheat field? #Blessed.

Reveal truth in love in the midst of seeming chaos.Įven if your chin has to be turned gently toward it.Partially nude bikini shot? #Blessed. Read 1 a day, 1 a month, 10 a day - use as needed. Can’t sleep? There’s a blessing for that, too. I love that this book is organized and searchable by the way I am feeling.

I can never keep up and get pissed off trying to read several days at once or the reading for that day doesn’t always match what I need. I have purchased countless daily devotionals. There is nothing preachy happening here, just wise, heartfelt words for your very ordinary life. There are blessings for your ordinary life and your lovely life but also for your garbage life and overwhelming life. It is exactly what the title suggests - daily meditations or blessings for your *actual life*. Thanks to #NetGalley and #ConvergentBooks for the ARC e-book. Would make a lovely gift! I'll certainly be adding it to my personal library. Also, Bowler's trademark humor makes an appearance from time to time, which is often welcome after some of the weightier sentiments. The format doesn't require cover-to-cover reading, so the reader can select what feels most relevant that day.

Still, I ended up bookmarking 20 of the 100 blessings that resonated especially deeply with me and highlighted at least one phrase in many of the remaining blessings. While none is lengthy, I slowed my usual reading pace in order to better savor and marinate in the delicious prose and thought-provoking expressions.īecause the range of verses encompasses such an expansive range of the human condition (i.e., 'Bless This Lovely Life' to 'Bless This Garbage Life'), not every blessing and not every stanza is going to resonate with everyone all the time. Bowler and her co-author, Jessica Richie, have divided the contents into eight sections, with each section containing 10-20 blessings. If Kate Bowler writes something, odds are better than good that I will read it.įirst, the design of this book of blessings for the lives we are actually living is lovely.

Blessed by Kate Bowler