Whether it’s a relationship not working out the way you thought it would, losing a loved one, a negative test report, or not getting the job opportunity you wish you could have; no one enjoys being disappointed and yet it is something we all have encountered in life.

In her latest book, “It’s Not Supposed to Be This Way: Finding unexpected strength when disappointments leave you shattered,” Lysa Terkeurst navigates through how to handle disappointment in a realistic way with her readers.

This book was a recent read for the Voice’s Book Club Cadence (Monday Nights at 7PM.) In the past, I have read a few books by Terkeust, and (hopefully other readers of her books would agree) her writing style leaves you feeling like she’s one of your close friends. She is able to describe the little moments in life, both awkward and sacred in a way that is extremely relatable.

“It’s Not Supposed to Be This Way,” is by far her most transparent yet as she talks about being disappointed in one of her most treasured relationships; her marriage.

Despite facing hard circumstances, sharing about how God got her through her own disappointment is how anyone who reads this book is able to find healing and a step forward in their own disappointment.

Here are a few favorite quotes:

” Remember, while God converts with truth, the enemy perverts the truth. God wants us transformed, but Satan wants us paralyzed. So when we hear thoughts like I’m not good enough that cause us to shrink away, we must keep in mind that the enemy will do anything he can to prevent us from moving closer to God or connecting people more deeply with other people. This “truth” we think we hear is not truth at all.”

“When you suffer, slow becomes necessary. Slow becomes good. One of the best parts about this season of suffering for me was a life that doesn’t require shoes. When you wear no shoes the sun has access to your feet. And on a spiritual level it seemed to have some sort of parallel meaning. When you live slow for a season, the Son has access to the parts of you normally covered up by everyday put-ons. We put on impressive job titles to show the world that we’ve got something big going on. We put on humble brags to covertly prove how great we are, but in that quiet, God- did-it-all-but-so-did-I- kind- of way. We put on “one up” comments to compete with others, but all with sly comparison innuendos. We put on God theories and higher- than- thou opinions about others to cover up our own desperate and depraved areas in need of attention.

We just aren’t into taking our shoes off long enough for our feet to get tan. We just aren’t into being exposed. When life blew completely apart for me, not only did my greatest fear come true but my private devastation was publicly exposed. “

This book was Romans 8:28 exemplified and no matter your disappointments, “big” or “small” it teaches you how to look it at it with wisdom. Highly recommended.

Ligia Forbes