By Stephen Copeland
An Authentic Journey Through Spiritual Doubt and Despair…and a Beautiful Arrival at Hope
As the subtitle suggests, this book is Stephen Copeland’s six-year personal pilgrimage through mountains of questions, valleys of shadows, streams of discovery, trails of transformation, and vistas of hope. It is a book that moves slowly through Copeland’s experiences with a church softball tournament, changes in his personal life, and encounters with missionaries from Paraguay. Along the way, he encounters God living in the messy corners, faith forged in the faces of the wounded, and grace filling up the broken places.
As I read about Copeland’s faith wanderings, I found myself thoroughly identifying with them. For despite very different life experiences, we were coming to the same conclusions. Or perhaps I shouldn’t call them conclusions, but ongoing seeking and discovery. For, as Copeland says, “It’s no longer a journey if you think you’ve arrived.” Doubts were leading to renewal. Questioning was leading to greater belief in a loving and trustworthy God. Skepticism of religion was leading to belief in Love. As Copeland wrote, “The fullness of Love was at my core – not sinfulness. Oneness was at my core; not incompleteness. I began to rest in God, rather than exhausting myself trying to please Him.” This book is about learning to rest, learning to find God daily in those “thin places” between heaven and earth, and learning what it means to have a living faith.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the author and/or publisher through the Speakeasy blogging book review network. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR,Part 255.
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