Employed by God

Title: EMPLOYED BY GOD: Benefits Packaged with Grace

Author: Tracy S. Deitz

Publisher: Self

December 2011

ISBN: 978-1466370821

Genre: memoir

In fall of 2009, Tracy S. Deitz abruptly joins the nation’s ranks of 14 million unemployed workers, and the event immediately challenges the very core of her Christian beliefs. In whom does she really trust? After struggling with pride and despair for many months, she finally faces her worst fears.

This is when her greatest adventures begin as she encounters unsung heroes and reflects on situations that range from her taking part in a medical mission to Mongolia to working in a maximum-security prison. What happens when our ideas of destiny collide with God’s invitation to serve?

Throughout the whole process of rediscovering God, Deitz comes to a new understanding of how he calls us and what it means to trust in him. Based on the structure of Psalm 23, the chapters in Employed by God: Benefits Packaged with Faith combine her personal story with Bible passages and include study questions for small-group discussions. How would an unexpected job loss affect your faith? Adults who have faced unemployment, the death of a loved one, or adversity of any kind will be filled with hope as they read examples of how God works in the lives of ordinary people. This truly inspiring book will help renew our gratitude, teach us how to forgive mistakes, and guide us toward personal fulfillment.  Employed by God: Benefits Packaged with Faith won the religious non-fiction category in the national 2012 Next Generation Indie Book contest and is a finalist in the 2012 Readers Favorite Contest. 

EMPLOYED BY GOD is a kind of memoir taking us through the history and soul-searching of Ms. Deitz losing her job and then finding her calling as “employed by God.”  The book is very well-written and cleanly edited (which is good, as Ms. Deitz is a former-editor!) and it is interesting reading.

When marketed to me as a potential reviewer, I was told it was a devotional.  It kind of failed miserably when promoted as that, as the chapters are long and focused more on Tracy and her learning than on God. There are some scripture included, as well as discussion questions, to help you see what God might have in store for you in the reading of the book.

Since it’s not really a devotional as I was told, I put memoir, but it really isn’t a memoir either. It’s kind of a cross between memoir and self-help, I guess. This is one of those books that doesn’t have a clear pigeon-hole to put it in.

It is an interesting read, and could be beneficial to someone struggling as to the why something might have happened, like losing a job. And maybe you’ll find yourself employed by God as well. $10.99. 160 pages. 3 stars