Grace for the Good Girl

Title: GRACE FOR THE GOOD GIRL
Author: Emily P. Freeman
Publisher: Revell
September 2011
ISBN: 978-0-8007-1984-5
Genre: Inspirational/Christian living/women’s issues

You’re strong. You’re responsible. You’re good. But…

In GRACE FOR THE GOOD GIRL Ms. Freeman addresses several issues. Like in chapter one, she addresses the issues of hiding. We want to be perfect, we want to be accepted, we want to be capable, or whatever, so we hide behind whatever façade we have. For instance, the pastor’s wife (and I know, I am one) has a public face – the one that is always smiling, always happy, always encouraging, and always put together, so no one would know that the two year old couldn’t find his shoes, that the teenagers had a rip-roaring fight over the bathrooms, and that your husband was growling at everyone. We have to be the perfect family. So, there is that mask.

In another chapter, the topic is expectations. Which really could be the same as hiding—we have the expectations that we must strive to meet. We must meet those or we’re a failure.

GRACE FOR THE GOOD GIRL attempts to draw us back to God, to admit to our short comings (what? you’d rather read People magazine than the Bible?) and then turn to God and lean our weight on into the love of Jesus. To turn our impossible expectations over to the God who has graciously, miraculously, and lovingly, found you…

GRACE FOR THE GOOD GIRL is written in a conversational style that encourages the reader to let go and let God. It is perfect for group studies, and does include a few discussion questions at the end of each chapter, a small group leader’s guide, and extensive notes. $13.99. 257 pages.

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Are You Tired of Trying Harder?
Emily Freeman Invites Women to Stop Trying to Impress God and Rest In Him

She’ll always volunteer to teach Sunday School. If a family needs a casserole, she’s on the list to bring one. She’s seen as dependable, organized, and capable. And she likes it that way. But deep inside she struggles. Is her quiet time long enough? Why does it feel like everyone else in her women’s Bible Study is getting more out of it than she is? What more could God want from her?

In Grace for the Good Girl (ISBN: 978-0-8007-1984-5, $13.99, September, 272 pages), Emily Freeman invites women to let go of the try-hard life and realize that Christ gives us freedom to receive from God rather than constantly trying to achieve for him. As “good girls,” we focus on the things we can handle, our disciplined lives and our unshakable good moods. When we fail to measure up to our own impossible standards, we hide behind our good girl masks, determined to keep our weakness a secret.

“We may have learned to hold our tongue, to raise our hands in worship, to be kind when we feel unkind. We may have learned to act right,” Freeman writes. “But the unseen mind is an unruly battlefield. Even though I know that my spirit has now been united with God’s Spirit and my true identity is found there, my soul still has muscle memory.”

With an open hand and a whimsical style, Freeman uncovers the truth about the hiding, encouraging women to move from hiding behind girl-made masks and do-good performances to a life hidden with Christ.

Chapter by chapter, Grace for the Good Girl helps readers:
 Learn how to stop hiding behind performance and reputation
 Let go of the try-hard life
 Rest in God’s grace instead of trying to impress Him
Emily Freeman is a writer who loves to read and a speaker who would rather listen. She writes for DaySpring (a division of Hallmark) and has also traveled as a writer with Compassion International to raise awareness for the needs of children in poverty around the world. She received degrees from both Columbia International University and The University of North Carolina Greensboro. She is married to John, a student ministries pastor, and together they live in North Carolina with their three children. Emily extends a daily invitation on her blog for women to create space for their souls to breathe. Come join the community of grace dwellers at www.ChattingAtTheSky.com.

Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group, offers practical books that bring the Christian faith to everyday life.
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