Book Review

I'm a reader.

If we've been friends for long, you know that about me. It's in my gene's.  My grandmother was a reader.  I have Aunt's and cousins who are avid readers.  My mom and sister are readers.

Some of the guys get into it too. My son is inheriting the 'love for reading' gene, and that's really cool to me.

Grandma would be so proud.

No matter how a book begins, unless the content is truly terrible, I feel compelled to continue reading the book until I get to the end. There is no skipping around for me, no jumping past the dull parts to see how the author manages to wrap it all up. Even if it's not that interesting, I feel like I have to finish it. I can only remember shutting a book and never finishing it, a handful of times.  I really try and give the author a shot at turning a boring beginning into something truly worthwhile. So in the course of my reading history be they fiction or non-fiction, I have read good books, boring books, terribly written books, moderately good books, funny books, books that make me cry, and every once in awhile, I have the privilege of reading a book that is truly amazing.

A book I would actually read again.

This is that kind of book.

Kisses From Katie is written by Katie Davis

Her writing is interesting and clear but it's her heart that spills out on the page before you. She gives you a real inside view of her thoughts and feelings as she embarks on a huge journey of faith to live with, love and minister to the people of Uganda.  

It left me humbled, inspired, and amazed.

The way this young woman has turned her faith in Jesus Christ into selfless action is too good to be true. No one is this selfless, this perfect, this humble. As you read the book, you find out why Katie is able to do what she does. 

Katie Davis's motivation is not about herself, or about what she can accomplish or the good deeds she can do for others.  She isn't trying to do enough good stuff here on earth to secure her place in heaven. Her motivation is simply to obey God. She truly understands her security in Christ, what Christ has accomplished for her, by his death on the cross, and what her response to his love should look like.

Because of her understanding, she lives out love in the name of Jesus.

She sets a great example for the rest of us who call ourselves Christians.

One of the points she makes in the book, that I really appreciated, was this: (I won't quote directly, I'll paraphrase)

We don't all have to move to Uganda and start a ministry in order to be serving God and following his call on your life.  Not everyone is called to go to Africa, but as a Christian, we are all called to love others for Jesus. That's what the gospel is all about.  That's what serving God is all about.

There was a part in the book that really touched my heart and convicted me about my life.

Katie was talking about her daughters.  I won't tell you the specifics and ruin the story for you but the point was this:

Katie has adopted young orphaned girls, who have come from living conditions we cannot even imagine.  Children on the brink of death becasue of malnutrition, children living in a shed, no running water, no clean bedding, no food, they've lost their parents - the list goes on and on.  After being adopted by Katie, their life is radically different. Clean beds, a roof over their heads, school, food, security.  Yet when there is a need for another child - these girls do not selfishly keep this 'stuff' for themselves. They are eager to spread out, give what they have, and make room for one more.

 

 They learned this selfless giving from Katie.  It was the example she has set before them with her life actions.  This is the fruit of her actions. She loves others as a result of Jesus' selfless sacrifice on the cross for her, for me, for you.  Now her children are learning to love others and they know that the reason we are to love others is because Christ first loved us. This is the kind of love I want to share with my children.

Katie Davis is not perfect.  She's not a saint.  She messes up. She will make mistakes. But her heart is for God to use her in every aspect of her life.  Her desire is to glorify God with everything she says and does.  So I believe God has done some amazing things through this young woman because she knows it is not about her, it's about Him.

Read this book.

You will not regret the time spent.

Katie has a ministry called Amazima.

 

She feeds and helps school the children in her area of Uganda.  Follow the link and check it out.

Then, go live your life out loud for Jesus, the one who gave His life for you.