Do any of you hide who you really are from the rest of the world? Does being someone else get tiring after awhile? Do you instantly feel relief when you are able to be yourself at the end of each day when you are no longer interacting with others? Emily P. Freeman discusses all of these questions in her book, "Grace for the Good Girl." Freeman's book is great to read alone or to use in a small group. There is a small group leader's guide included in the back of the book.
Near the beginning of her book, Freeman compares how so many of us live our lives - hiding ourselves from the world as if we are wearing a mask. She shares a story of wearing a Barbie mask while she was little, it was fun, but after awhile it grew old and she was relieved to take it off, breathe fresh air and able to be herself. We may find relief like that when we step into our homes at the end of the day and feel like we can finally be ourselves instead of hiding behind a front/shell/facade that we maintain around others. There are three sections of the book, the first addressing "the hiding." Tied into this section is the reputation that one may be trying to maintain, following the rules, always showing that everything is fine. The second section focuses on "the finding" and the third section on feeling free from being found. Each of us are able to live loving God and receiving God's love and not constantly hiding behind the "good girl" mask.
I enjoyed reading this book and I would love to go back and read through it taking my time and also even working through it with a small group as great discussions are sure to come from reading this. Freeman includes personal stories through the book and also Biblical references. Overall, the book is well-written and would be a great small group study!
“Available September 2011 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.”
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