Monday, January 17, 2011

You are a Lioness

I am so excited to finally write this first book review. See I read a lot of books...I have somewhat of a book obsession. I  have stacks of books that have yet to have been read because I have such a passion for the art of writing that the moment I read a description and it grabs me, I must have it! I guess it is a pretty good obsession to have :O)

Needless to say, this obsession is one of the reasons it has taken me so long to figure out where to start. I have read so many wonderful authors that have captured the heart of Her Voice Is and that have been rocking world changers.  I recently read a book buy amazing author/speaker Lisa Bevere (Fight Like a Girl, Kissed the Girls and Made them Cry), called Lioness Arising. I can truly say that this is a book that belongs in every woman's library, no matter what race, class, religion or ethnicity you are. I began to read the book and was instantly captivated by the encouragement and wisdom I found in Lisa's words. Every page has wisdom in it so bare with me as I try to encompass just how much I LOVED Lisa Bevere's book.

_________________________________________________

The cover of Lioness Arising says it best: "Wake up and Change Your World." That is exactly what Lisa Bevere's book is all about. When she was pregnant with her last son she had a vision of a Lioness and God spoke to her and said "with the birth of a son you will awaken a Lioness." Lisa describes how this concept was foreign to her because she herself at the time was timid and quite and just NOT what she envisioned as a Lioness. Time went on and Lisa became a fierce voice in the world fighting for change and for the fair treatment of women. It is then when God spoke to her and said "I never said your were the only Lioness, but you would awaken a Lioness." Lisa took that as her charge to encourage and uplift women to awaken and arise and become the strong, powerful women God has called each of us to be.

The book is very interesting filled with personal stories and Lisa draws from other voices as well.  She quotes often a favorite book of ours: Half the Sky and also quotes many literary wonders and poets. By doing this I understood that the need for women to have a voice is vital and most importantly the need for women to realize they are answers NOT a problem is something that has been desired throughout time. In fact Lisa Bevere makes it clear that we can be an answer to the world's problems. In Lioness she frequently visits the horrifying problem of human sex trafficking and shows how we can make a difference and the importance of not ignoring these issues.  The word "Lioness" means different things to different women, however, it is clear that a Lioness is not timid, but rather is fierce and driven and has a purpose.

The book ends with a favorite poem of mine which I think explains the tone and charge of Lisa Bevere's marvelous book:

Rise like Lions after slumber
in unvanquishable number,
Shake your chains to earth like dew
Which in sleep had fallen on you-
Ye are many-they are few.

-Percy Bysshe Shelley

I encourage you to read this book. I can honestly say that it changed my life. I am so blessed that Lisa Bevere used her voice and shared her story. Awaken and Arise and be the Lioness you were called to be. There is a link to amazon if you would like to purchase the book from there or you can find it on Messenger Internationals website which is John and Lisa Bevere's ministry website.

No comments:

Post a Comment