Posted in Book Reviews
Lord, Please Meet Me in the Laundry Room: Heavenly Help for Earthly Momsby Barbara Curtis
Published by Beacon Hill Press
I must admit that this book was not what I anticipated from the title. I assumed, wrongly, that it was a book on prayer and spending time with God as a mother of many children. Oh, don't get me wrong, Mrs. Curtis touched on those things but this book was so much more than that. It was a book full of testimony to the very real and present God that is in Barbara Curtis deepest spirit. I was continually blessed as I read about her adventures with 12 children and the way God pulled her into His family in such a tender and loving way. I was blessed by the way Barbara looked back on her life before Christ and could see the very fingerprints of God all over it. I was also very touched by the whole chapter called A Mommy's Life for Me in which she shared from 1 Samuel 15:22 "To obey is better than sacrifice." ...and she continues..."But surrender is better than both. To do the right thing in the right spirit - that's what it's really all about." That whole chapter convicted me at a very deep level. She also went on to say...
"Surrender doesn't mean saying, OK, if I have to, then gritting my teeth and clenching my fists and willing myself to be obedient. As a mom, I have so many things that elicit that response - things like muddy shoes and dirty bathtubs and getting up in the middle of the night to change a wet bed. And I could go through the motions and do them without ever saying YES! I could do them and be bitter, not better. I could be obedient and never feel God's pleasure. Surrendering means saying yes wiht a smile, actively embracing whatever life sends my way each day and each night. Yes, God, I'll do that!"
This is something I will be wrestling with in my brain for years to come. It will have to be a daily surrender.
Later in that same chapter she shared something that I have experienced in my own home many times that made me laugh out loud. She says...
"You mothers of preschoolers need to know that no matter what kind of godly home you have, no matter how tastefully decorated, no matter how firm your rules, it is a genetic thing with boys that they shed rolled up socks all day all over the house. If you have more than one boy, of course, you can never identify who the particular shedder of each pair is, but no matter who picks them up, your laundry time is increased 50 percent because of having to unroll each little sock ball before inserting it in the machine."
If you are a Christian and a mother you will enjoy this book very much. It will make you cry. It will make you laugh. You will be able to relate to something in this book and it will inspire and convict you all the way through. Barbara Curtis has a way about her that just makes you want to invite her for coffee and give her a big hug to boot. This is a delightful book. Five stars for Barbara Curtis!!!
Reviewed for Active Christian Media
Posted by eph2810
