Tag Archive | Brenda Anderson

Pieces Of Granite by Brenda Anderson

Oct7

In God’s Arms

Pieces Of Granite by Brenda Anderson is a most delightful Christian contemporary novel about families. It is part of the Coming Home and the Mosaic Collection series.

I originally read Pieces Of Granite in 2014 and was blown away by it. Reading it again in 2020 I found it equally powerful.

God is the glue who holds our lives together. Sometimes we try to do everything ourselves and we burn out. “God’s not asking us to be strong.” It is when we are weak that we learn to rely on Him. God longs to do life in partnership with us.

Our pasts influence the person we become. Sometimes we are overcome with fear of the past repeating itself in the present. Trying to ignore our fears will never work. We need to face our fears, lift them up to God in prayer and seek help from others.

God never leaves us. “Life had taught [him], sometimes God was absent.” Sometimes we just cannot see, feel or sense God. “Sometimes it’s hard for me to believe that God doesn’t leave us… I don’t see Him in this. I can’t feel Him, hear Him. Nothing.” We may feel abandoned in the valley but the God of the mountaintop is the God of the valley and He will guide us through.

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Song Of Mercy by Brenda Anderson

Jul7

Truth And Grace

Song Of Mercy by Brenda Anderson is a most delightful Christian contemporary novel that is grounded in God. It is part of the Potter’s House series but can be read as a stand-alone.

Once again Brenda Anderson has created a charming set of characters, all very realistic with flaws that are so easy to identify with.

Worshipping God should be as natural as breathing but it should not be a public display. Our motivation for worship should always be to glorify God and not to magnify ourselves.

Prayer is important. We all need prayer warriors in our lives who can lift us up at times of need. Prayer builds our relationship with God. “’Pray about it’…’as if God will listen to me.’” We may have walked away from God but He is still waiting to hear from us.

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Hands Of Grace by Brenda Anderson

Feb15

Redemption And Restoration

Hands Of Grace by Brenda Anderson is a delightful contemporary Christian novel surrounding grace, forgiveness and second chances. It is part of the Potter’s House series of books but can be read as a stand-alone.

A focus of the novel is dementia. Brenda Anderson has sensitively portrayed this whilst showing the difficulties faced daily by those caring for their loved ones. “Nothing was tougher than watching your loved ones lose themselves.” Patience and love radiates throughout.

Forgiveness and grace are major themes. “I’ve done too much to be forgiven.” No one is ever so far from God that He casts them out. No matter where we’ve been, no matter what we’ve done, God longs for each and every one of us to return to Him. He longs to welcome us home. In Him we can have a new beginning because of His free gift of grace.

There is the theme of trust. We develop trust issues when people let us down. “One more person lying to her, building up her bank of mistrust.” We do need to open ourselves up to trusting others again. Not everyone we meet is out to deceive us. Some huge characters give out of the goodness of their hearts.

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A Beautiful Christ-Mess by Brenda Anderson

Dec4

A New Beginning

A Beautiful Christ-Mess by Brenda Anderson is a delightful Christian contemporary tale and features in Hope Is Born: A Mosaic Christmas Anthology. The story follows on from A Beautiful Mess.

God is at the heart of the story. He is our good, good Father who is waiting for each and every one of us to hear and respond to His voice. “It had taken years, but [he] had at last seen God’s light and run to it.” God is a patient God. Running to Him is the best decision we will ever make.

Prayer is important. It is our lifeline. “God was always ready with a listening ear.” God hears all our prayers. If we have a difficult situation, we need to take it to God first. “Before they talked… he needed to be all prayed up.”

Life competes for our attention. “Somehow being back in the states, God’s voice had lost its clarity.” We need to make sure we make God our priority.

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