“Captivating,” by John and Stasi Eldredge

In the wee hours of the morning this morning, I finished reading Captivating: Unveiling the Mystery of a Woman’s Soul, by John and Stasi Eldredge. What an incredible book!

I have to confess that I had actually read this one before. I borrowed a copy from a friend a few years ago and loved it so much that I subsequently bought copies as gifts for a number of ladies in my life. Unfortunately, I never got a copy for myself and, since this one is a “revised and expanded” edition, I jumped at the chance to get a free copy from the publisher.

This is a fantastic book. The husband and wife team of writers is terrific at revealing the heart of a woman: why we were made the way we’re made, why we feel the way we feel, why we long for the things we long for, and why we struggle the way that we do. Through Biblical example and everyday accounts of women just like us, the authors show that while every woman is unique and special, no woman has or will suffer alone. We’re all in this together, and while the world has worked steadily throughout history to silence women and stifle all that we were created to be, God has a special and powerful plan for our lives. He made us to fulfill a specific purpose, and everything in us points us to that.

It isn’t a feminist “women rule!” kind of book, though. It is open and honest about the things that women struggle with and have failed at, and helps me to see that nothing that has happened in my life has been random or arbitrary. God has a plan for my life, but so does my enemy; everything in life can be used for one side or the other.

I highly recommend this book to the women in your life. Young women just starting out and trying to find their place in the world….women with grown children who are finding themselves in a new place…..older women who feel like most of their story has already been written. It is an empowering book that encourages soul searching and introspection, self-evaluation and assessment.