The Passionate Mom: Book 19

The Passionate Mom was the 19th book I read this year.  This book by Susan Merrill is filled with inspiration she gained when reading the book of Nehemiah in the Old Testament.   So often we read the stories of the Old Testament and think about how they were great stories from a time long ago, but rarely do we really study them to see what we can gain from them on a personal level.  In her study of the book she discovered that we can learn a lot about parenting from Nehemiah's example. 
She discussed to begin with the question we as  Mom's ask a lot, "am I doing this right?" (location 99 in my Kindle app). This is a question that I know plagues us, often finding us feeling like a failure.  I don't remember where I read it, or who said it, but I know that I did not come up with this myself.  The saying that "God made you the Mom of these children, or this child, and while you might not be perfect, you are the perfect Mom for them". Sometimes this thought helps me get through those tough days when I feel like I'm failing on every level.

So what did Nehemiah do that helps us as parents.  According to the study she did he "perceived the situation, he pondered every task, he was driven with passion to search for solutions, he prayed for direction, he patiently waited for opportunities, he methodically prepared to take action, he maintained his purpose, he developed the plan, and he persevered through problems to the end".(location 151 in Kindle app)

Susan then goes through each of the above words in italics and explained how we can follow Nehemiah's example and become truly passionate for our kids, and thus make an impact on them and the generations that will follow.  Each chapter talks about these different areas with clarity and examples from Susan's own life that then would allow them to be implemented into the reader's life. I was impressed with her understanding of Nehemiah and her desire to help her children reach the goals she has set for them in this world that doesn't always cooperate with our way of thinking. 

I highly recommend this book for any parent who is wanting to be more passionate and more intentional in how they parent. I'd give this book 5 stars.