Truly Inspirational
I am RE lead in a C of E infant school. Every 5 years we are inspected by the diocese and have to prove our effectiveness as a church school. A couple of months ago we received ‘The Call’ to say that we would be inspected. That was nerve racking in itself but we were also informed that the diocese were bringing in one of the top inspectors in the country to carry out the inspection.
As RE lead I was expected to prove our effectiveness at teaching this. I went into panic mode convincing myself that I couldn’t do this. That evening I sat down and read Enough. The words “Can you thank Me for trusting you with this even if I never tell you why?” jumped out at me. The Lord God had put me in a situation I didn’t like to give me the opportunity to honour Him. From that point I saw this experience in a totally different way, as a way of showing that He was centre at our school. Throughout the 12 hour inspection I found myself again and again thanking God for putting me there and in the end we were able to show that the school was outstanding.
I read again Dr Roseveare’s work and found her message truly inspirational, that even in the darkest of times she was able to trust and Thank God for these experiences. I have had quite a challenging couple of years and reading this book has given me a fresh outlook on these struggles, knowing that God has given me these for a reason (even if I never know why). I now find myself beginning to thank God for trusting me with these things instead of demanding to know why.
Can I just take this opportunity to thank you for providing this book.
Sarah
Great Little Book
I got this book whilst at week 1 of (New) Word Alive 2013. It is a great little book which you can read in around an hour.
In it Helen speaks openly and frankly of the times in her life when she has doubted that God's grace is really enough, the times when she wondered what she needs to do to add to it and the times when she had to learn to trust that God's physical provisions were enough, even during times of great suffering in the Congo.
Samuel Baker
Excellent
This book is perfect for that friend you are thinking of at says I don't read books, especially not Christian ones. It's short and snappy and Helen's writing hits you smack between the eyes. You'll be able to read it in an hour, but you'll remember it for much longer.
This book is packed with scripture and stories, and as Helen reflects on her life and the faithfulness of God it's a challenging and Encouraging read.
I finished the book and thought that wasn't enough, I wanted to hear and learn more, which probably leads you to reading her fuller biographies.
This is excellent to give to
- people who are suffering
- people whose life hasn't turned out as they had hoped
- those going to missions
- those who don't quite get grace, and those like me who think we do but need to learn more
Keith mcIl
Enough
While at Week 1 of the 2011 Keswick Convention in July, I was privileged to have sat with around 3000 other people listening to the remarkably inspiring Dr Helen Roseveare. <br />
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Born in England in September 1925, she accepted Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord as a first year medical student in Cambridge University in 1945. She joined WEC International missionary society in 1952, sailing for the then Belgian Congo in 1953 where as a single medical missionary she served others and pioneered vital medical work in the rainforests of what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo. The courage of this faithful Christian lady is remarkable as she experienced deeply difficult trials of life including being taken hostage, being falsely accused, loneliness away from family and UK friends, being raped, feeling physically weak and experiencing frequent illness around her as a medical doctor. But despite all of this she still has a strong and pulsating love for Jesus Christ and this was very clear as she spoke (aged 85) from the main platform at the Convention. Since returning to the UK in 1973, she has served on the UK home-end of WEC, challenging young people, university students, Church youth groups, and women’s groups, to consider God’s claims on their lives for full-time missionary service in the UK or wherever God calls them.<br />
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Helen Roseveare has a library of stories that cause the hairs to stick up at the back of your neck and when she is asked if it was all worth it… a resounding “yes!†is exclaimed everytime! <br />
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Many of us may likely say “enough’s enough!†We perhaps say this in our minds or out loud during everyday life in our homes and workplaces when difficultsituations present themselves to us. <br />
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I heartily recommend Helen’s latest book entitled “Enoughâ€, which also has the biblical words from Philippians 4: 11-13 revealed on the front cover. I recommend you look up and read these verses now in a Bible. <br />
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The word “enough†has several different English nuances but Helen believes that all the different words and phrases used can be summed up in the one word: “sufficiencyâ€. With this, there are many different ways of understanding “sufficiency†as Christians or as someone who may be reading this article who is exploring what it means to put one’s trust in God through Jesus Christ in a confusing and riotous twenty first century world. <br />
Helen reveals and reminds us, with reference to Paul’s letter to the Galatians, that wealth, health and worldly prosperity do not bring us ultimate satisfaction towards a life well lived. But instead to have fullness in Jesus Christ is to know that God is really enough. In Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians chapter 12 and verse 9 he says that’s God’s grace is sufficient. God’s grace is the wonderful truth of Christianity and without it we are nothing and don’t have any firm foundation of belief to stand on or progress in purposeful life. Indeed, Helen recalls the well-known John Newton hymn “Amazing Grace!†She says that while alive on earth we can wholeheartedly sing the first three verses of this hymn. She then goes on to say: “But then, when we arrive in glory (Heaven), we will truly experience that of which we sing in verse 4, the glorious freedom of worship – the enough-ness of time!â€<br />
God is enough. He is enough for our salvation, assurance, emotional support, happiness and contentment, and how to please God as people who naturally turn away from good things. Our sufficiency is of God and Helen’s short book (80 pages) is a must read for anyone and everyone, whether facing frightening attacks in a place where one is trying to help others, whether facing a painful illness, whether finding it difficult to fit in to a community, whether struggling to know which career path to take, whether struggling to understand why bad things happen in your and your friends’ lives, whether trying to understand why life is good for you and not so for other loved ones… the list is endless but in the end, enough is enough with God – not just reading or saying it but believing its’ truth in faith. If you do read this book please share your thoughts with others and pass the book on. <br />
Gregor Innes
