Living Hope: Giving Birth to Death Brought Life
Testimonial Book by Christina Varvel
On the way to Louisville, I started one of my favorite books I’ve ever read! This book is special to me, though, in a different kind of way. That is because Living Hope is written by Christina Varvel, who just so happens to be my aunt (I promise, she didn’t pay me or tell me to write anything below). Since she is my aunt, that may influence me to say that this is one of my favorite books, but I don’t think that should discredit my recommendation of this book. Hear me out...
Through Living Hope, Christina Varvel writes about her journey through grief after her two miscarriages. She talks about how her miscarriages brought her hope and life. She processes her grief and asks God hard questions like why He would allow this to happen to her boys. Even though she isn’t able to answer some of those questions, she is able to find hope in the grief. She puts her trust in The Living Hope, a hope that doesn’t fade away or end. A Hope that is with us in the midst of grief, sorrow, and hardship! What I like most about this book is how honest and raw it is. My aunt writes the book in a very conversational way and pours out her heart in this book. She is extremely honest about how she is feeling and what she is going through. She doesn’t hold anything back, but lets her readers experience the grief and the hardship with her. Because of how honest she is, it makes the book encouraging at the same time. It is encouraging to know that other people go through the same things too and that we aren’t alone in our trials. While not everyone has experienced a miscarriage, everyone (yes, all of us) go through hard times in our lives at some point. It is also encouraging because through this grief, my aunt learned to lean on God and trust Him in the midst of all of the waves of grief that were crashing down on her. I really appreciate how honest and open she was in her book, and I think anyone who reads this book will agree.
This story really impacted me, but not only because it is my aunt writing a book about the loss of two of my cousins. No, it is because through this book, she wrestles through grief, and it is a really encouraging book! I would definitely recommend reading this book (and again, not just because she is my aunt, but for that reason too)! This is a great book for teens and adults, but since it is a really heavy book, I wouldn’t recommend it for younger kids (those younger than 13). You can buy the book on Amazon. My Aunt Christina also has a blog where she continues to write about how God is changing her life and the lives of those around her. You can check that out and/or buy her book at Christinavarvel.com.