Book Review - Freefall to Fly

There are no words to adequately describe how beautiful this book is. It's raw and honest and hopeful--in the midst of the unknown. I read it at a time of change and it was such an affirmation that following what God calls you to may not be easy, but it is good--even in the hard.

My favorite quote from the book:
"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented fabulous? Actually, who are you NOT to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world...We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same."

Some of my other faves:

"If we ignore the yearning of our souls, we atrophy, and our dreams die.  Sadly, many of us choose this descent bc we believe it's safer.  If we don't hope, we won't be let down.  If we don't imagine, reality won't disappoint.  Either way, we avoid pain."

"Do we pressure our children to reach their potential bc we aren't living up to our own?"

"Too often, we live with our talents hidden in the desk drawer.  Just out of reach.  We've tucked them away.  Refusing to listen.  It hurts too much to hope.  So we go on with our lives, not allowing ourselves to go near that drawer." 

"Most of my adult life, I'd been searching for the wrong treasure.  As a result, I'd lost touch with who I was designed to be,  I'd abandoned my natural bent somewhere along the way due to the pressure of responsibility and pressure from others.  I traded in my desire to use the gifts God gave me and instead became the person everyone else expected me to be.  I had grasped for what the world told me was valuable.  And somewhere along the way, I'd stopped believing that true treasure--God's intended responsibility for me--even existed in the first place."

"Our bruises don't have to make us ugly.  They make us who we are.  They add texture and color to our lives.  They strengthen bonds that might otherwise break."

"When we spend a lifetime trying to distance ourselves from all the parts of our lives that don't fit with who we think we're supposed to be, we stand outside of our story and hustle for our worthiness by constantly performing, perfecting, pleasing and proving."

"For we are shaped by our pasts--our passions, struggles, joys, sorrows, pain--but we need not be defined by it."

"We often think calling comes from following our bliss, but it actually comes from following our greatest fear."

"Facing our fears opens the way forward."

"Many times our truest calling in life comes where our talents and burdens collide."

"Once we know what we're good at, we must match those things with a deep need in this world.  This need is what makes your heart break.  That memory that makes you weep on quiet nights, that creeps up on you when no one else is around.  When you discover this, you will know your deepest burden.  It's tricky to find a suitable match in a world that's broken in so many places."

"Deriving one's identity from another person is a short road to resentment."

"God intended for me to contribute my birthrights to the world."