Anyone familiar with Matthew West knows him as a contemporary Christian singer. I, however, recently became acquainted with him as an author, and I was impressed. I read Forgiveness: Overcoming the Impossible by Matthew West, published by Thomas Nelson.
In this book, West tells stories of people who have overcome the biggest obstacle for many Christians… forgiveness. Each story follows the victim’s path from hurt and pain to forgiveness and a stronger faith in God. After every story, West writes about how the story inspired him in his songwriting and in his personal life.
The first story, by a woman named Renee, immediately caught my attention. This woman had one of her twin daughters killed by a drunk driver, yet she was able to move on and forgive him. All the stories in this anthology portray amazing stories of people learning how to forgive those who hurt them deeply. What an inspiration this book was for me! There are many people in my life that I’ve had trouble forgiving… one being my birth mom, who gave me up for adoption. After reading this book, I was able to take a step towards letting go and giving my grief and hate to God. If a woman can take her husband back after he cheats on her, or a drug addict can forgive himself, why can’t I at least forgive the woman who chose drugs and partying over me and my sisters?
Anybody who struggles with letting God take control over their hearts and mind needs to read this book. The power of forgiveness is an incredible feeling. After all, God forgave us… so why not forgive others?
mommawriter 
[…] Forgiveness Book Review. […]