My friend, Joy McMillan, released a book last month and I am thankful to be able to read it and write a review on it. It's called "XES: Why church girls tend to get it backwards...and how to get it right."
First of all, let me tell you a little story:
During the summer following my sophomore year of college I did my internship at a Christian radio station in Lansing called The Light. The program director at the time was the fantastic Mike Couchman, whom you may have heard before either in Lansing or Grand Rapids or Las Vegas or now in St. Louis. All summer I heard about another intern at the station who was home in South Africa visiting her family. Sadly, I only had a few short weeks at the end of the summer with a bubbly, friendly, warm young woman named Joy.
There is a strong memory I have of the two of us sitting on the floor in one of the offices after everyone else had left for the day. We were probably working on something volunteer related, and as we chatted, the conversation turned to relationships and somehow my ugly past came spilling out. Parts of her own past spilled out as well, although not all of what she reveals in the book.
Sitting there that night with Joy and sharing my guilt and shame and frustration and the fear that I still held, she helped me see God's forgiveness and the opportunity for redemption in making beauty from ashes. My heart was light as I left the station that night.
Fast forward many years later and imagine my excitement when I heard she was publishing a book. I had a feeling she would be open and raw on the topic and I was not wrong! In fact, when I first started reading, I found myself blushing at some parts and thinking, "Well, I'm not sure if I can recommend this to________."
Here's the thing, though. Joy's real writing is what the women who read this book are going to need. She says things like they are, not tip toe-ing around topics and even tackling issues like pornography and romance novels in the chapter "Fifty Shades of Counterfeit."
I needed "The Joy Thief" chapter and could relate 100% to chapters like "Honey, I Have A {Life.}" I laughed throughout the book and cried at parts as well. It got to a point where I had a hard time putting it down and was staying up late to keep reading.
Another great thing Joy did in the book was put "Reflection & Action" questions at the end of the chapters. This lets you dive in deeper and make it personal, not just an opportunity to read and maybe retain some of it the next day.
I would recommend this book both to married women and to singles. You can learn more about Joy and the book "XES" at her website simplybloom.org. While you're there, check out the recipes section. Her Easy Baked Oatmeal has been one of our family favorites over the past few years.
