Still: Notes on a mid-faith crisis by Lauren Winner is an
engaging and thoughtful book. I love it for the author's faithfulness and
honesty in the midst of doubt and loss.
Winner offers a series of reflections from the years following
several crises in the author's life. Her mother dies, her marriage dissolves.
This book is not a memoir in the traditional sense; there is
no linear narrative that leads to a tidy conclusion. Rather, Still is a
journal; notes and ruminations in which Winner is struggling to find a way back
to closeness with God.
Winner doesn’t give platitudes or comfort that one might
expect from a book about a crisis of faith. Rather, Still is a journal; notes
and ruminations in which Winner is struggling to find a way back to closeness
with God
I have been reading Lauren Winner’s books since “Girl MeetsGod” (2004) and have found her writing style and how she conveys the way she “lives
in her head”. It is strange, I identify
and empathise with Lauren Winner much more as an author than I have with any
other author.
I picked up the book because I love Winner’s books. I chose
to read it before most other books I bought (I went on a mini spending spree
for books for my Kindle), because I identified with the thought of a mid-faith
crisis.
I have not lost a parent, my marriage is still intact, yet I
find myself in a similar position to Winner. I feel like I am in the darkness
alone. That God made Himself absent at the same time He took away the ground
under my feet.
I am having another bought of serious depression. Mostly, it
is manageable (never gone) but lately, not quite as manageable.
Part of the depression (whether a cause or effect, I cannot tell) is a falling away. I have stopped praying (mostly) and reading the bible (again, mostly). I attend church, but Rona keeps me from being able to listen to a sermon, or participate properly in the services. Lots of excuses; all resulting in my feeling the absence of God.
Part of the depression (whether a cause or effect, I cannot tell) is a falling away. I have stopped praying (mostly) and reading the bible (again, mostly). I attend church, but Rona keeps me from being able to listen to a sermon, or participate properly in the services. Lots of excuses; all resulting in my feeling the absence of God.
Anyway, really this is a very good book, one I would
recommend.
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