Lisa Harper (2) (1963–)

Throughout the first half of this book, my overarching opinion was that this was simply not memorable – not bad, not good – and I would have given it three stars at that point.

Then in the second half of the book, Harper started to get on my nerves.

For starters, she writes. Like. This. All. The. Time.

She tended to make herself either the hero or the victim in her stories, and she had a habit of projecting her own thoughts and feelings onto other people. She seemed to view anyone who thought differently than her as "bad." (I think she would benefit from studying the MBTI.)

I think what pushed me over the edge, though, was her account of Penninah and Hannah, whose story originates in 1 Samuel. The Biblical account states that Penninah "taunted" Hannah over her infertility. That's as much insight as we get into Penninah's character; yet Harper spends three paragraphs imagining Penninah as inept trailer trash (she has a "high, nasally voice," can't control her children, smokes two packs a day, etc.). I found it very petty, not to mention ironic, that Harper resorted to mocking Penninah for mocking Hannah.

Harper had some really funny stories in the book, but they did detract from her message a bit. That is, I can remember a couple of the stories, but not the "lessons" that supposedly correlated with them. There is some truth in this book, but it's overshadowed by humor and snark.

I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley.… (lisätietoja)

**I received a digital copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.**

Introduction
Lisa Harper is back with another engaging, hilariously relatable book that reads like a fond missive between friends. Can Christians be truly, deeply happy? What does the Bible have to say about happiness? Spoiler alert: it is not only permissible, but actually encouraged! God wants his people to be happy!

The story
Lisa has certainly faced some trials in her life, a fact about which she is consistently honest and vulnerable. The amazing thing about her is that every time you see her, she has a million-watt smile that could probably be seen for miles in the Tennessee wilderness where she resides. How is she always so happy?! She's human, which means she leads an imperfect life just like the rest of us. Lisa Harper has, however, stumbled on a very simple, foundational Biblical secret: that is that God desires for all His people to know true and lasting happiness. This does not mean life will be perfect, that we'll get every material thing we desire, or that we'll never know suffering. On the contrary, we are promised suffering and even persecution. In her typical light-hearted but heavy hitting way, Lisa mixes personal (and often hilarious) anecdotes with Biblical truths that are life-changing. This book gives practical advice and examples of how to be truly happy in Christ.

Literary analysis
This book occasionally felt a little disjointed, but I honestly didn't mind. I am not ashamed to admit: I love and admire Lisa Harper for the wonderful, exuberant woman of God that she is. Her spirit is one of encouragement, her heart is bigger than a Montana sky, and her joy is infectious. Some people are put off by her story-telling; I love it. I enjoy the way in which Lisa manages to stay true to herself while seeking to lead others to Christ. Her books so far have had wonderful nuggets of truth sprinkled in among stories and conversation that often make you feel as though you're sitting right next to her, sharing a cup of coffee and a heart hug or two.

I did not find any grammatical or spelling errors in this first reading.

Conclusion
I recommend this book to anyone looking for a quick, encouraging, Biblically sound read!… (lisätietoja)

I love Lisa Harper! Our Bible study has done all of her studies that I am aware of. For our group, this study was a bit of a challenge in that it seems to be aimed at people who are going through or have gone through, something horrific. Most of us don't fall into that category. The video sessions were great. I think we all learned how to be a better friend to someone who is dealing with something terrible. The challenge for us was in trying to do the homework. I found I didn't really have answers for many questions since nothing that big was going on. Praise God for that, but it did make the homework less useful.… (lisätietoja)