I Love You to God and Back by Amanda Lamb

Give you and your kiddos a step in the right direction with this inspirational book!

I Love You to God and Back by Amanda Lamb
Published by Thomas Nelson April 17, 2012
Spiritual Growth & Christian Thought
Paperback, 272 pages
978-1400203918
Review copy provided by Thomas Nelson, thank you!
Burton Book Review Rating: 4 stars

A Mother and Child Can Find Faith and Love Through Bedtime Prayers

Whimisical. Simple. Thankful. Profound.

One day at a time, one prayer at a time, a busy working mother and playful six-year-old daughter transformed their bedtime prayers. They started rushed and tired. Distracted, "It's late. Let's go."

And then, gradually, something happened. A thank you here. A vulnerable moment there. The perfunctory prayers became . . . opportunities.

"What did you do today? What did you learn? Anything else?"

Like a window into their relationship their prayers and reflections let us witness the growth, enjoy the childlikeness, and learn from their winsome faith. Discover how you and your child can find connection, humor, and a deeper understanding of God in the quiet last few minutes of each day.

This inspirational book by Amanda Lamb captured my interest with the description of a harried mother that is quite similar to myself. Busy, Distracted and Frustrated. Time to sit back and smell the roses and instill some peace into my family life. What better way than to bring God into a young child's routine with prayers, love and compassion. And to some, just doing that might seem like a chore. But taking baby steps, like starting with this book, you can achieve a brighter outlook.

At first glance, I had hoped this was a book I could share with one of my children, but instead it is a more of a self-help book that details the author's journey. And as one that shies away from self-help, I was disappointed. However, the author's non-condescending tone quickly drew me in. She writes simply, as she writes in diary fashion of her youngest daughter's prayer. It is heartwarming, and makes you wish you could hug young Chloe. She is an inspiration...to the reader and to the author, as the author thinks about the words her daughter is saying and spins them into a small lesson learned. She uses this quiet time with her daughter as a glimpse into her daughter's world, seeing the world through her eyes, and sharing with us the encouraging experience. And quite frankly, I feel like Amanda is my new best friend, she writes honestly and without overdoing the finer points on parenting.

As a working mother myself, I know I don't take enough time to fully comprehend the magnitude of the little things that occur in my children's lives. This book is an easy refresher course on how to take it one day at a time and incorporate the love of God into your routine in small ways, and you will be rewarded with a sense of well-being. I never really thought of the importance of daily prayers for my children, and because of this book I have mended my ways. I feel more in touch with myself, and now my children pray to God and Jesus just like Chloe does. I especially loved the format of the book, knowing that I can easily jump around from one entry to another and bookmark those of Chloe's prayers that were the most inspiring so I could go back to it and read for five minutes and take in that breath of fresh air. The book definitely exceeded its purpose to  create a brighter spark of meaning into this thing we call life.

Thank you to Thomas Nelson and for the first BookSneeze book that I requested in a few years!