THE NOVEL LOOK

 

Well apparently with taking and passing my COMLEX Step 1, planning a wedding, getting married and going on a honeymoon, I wasn't able to do much recreational reading this summer.  However, when life gives you lemons just wait until it's time to pick the apples.  Somehow between moving in with my husband,  learning how to manage my own home, and juggling the obligations of wife and third year medical student, I have been on a reading frenzy.  And what book did I choose?  Well, the one I have been promising for two years to read and review!  So enough about me... you're here to learn about Katie.

 

Kisses from Katie is a first person look into the life of Katie Davis mainly focused on her life between her 16th and 22nd birthdays. In fact she was 22 at the time of writing this book! The main themes of the book are Unconditional Love, True Faith, Deep Sacrifice, and Holy Joy.  These are all things that are not only expressed as a conglomeration of typed characters, but through her transparent writing style can actually be felt and better understood by the reader, if they are vulnerable enough to connect with Katie as she opens her heart to them through her pages.  Interspersed among the chapters are "hand written" journal entries, assumed to be from her personal journal, making this book an even more personal and heart-felt statement.  

 

The beginning of Katie's story is not very unique.  She grows up in a loving Christian family who encourages her to pursue Christ and her education.  She has a loving boyfriend. And, at this point in her life she is trying to figure out what God wants from her.  However, very quickly, she leaves most Christians behind.  Katie does what most Christians dream they could. She takes the difficult leap of faith in front of her to figure out what God is asking of her.  That choice changes the trajectory of her story; forever changing her life.  She will never be the same.  She will never have the same struggles.  She will always be set apart, because after that step, her passion for Christ and His desire for her life is truly priority number one.  

 

Katie's ministry in Africa and her pursuit for God and His heart allow her life to become a field of beautifully growing evidences of her walk with Christ: Through trials, her faith begins to grow.  Through faith, her ministry grows.  Through her ministry, her family grows.  Through her family, her love for others and God grows stronger.  Through her love for others, her testimony grows. Through her testimony, the Redeeming power of God is made known to everyone around her.  Just as it is hard to ignore a large bouquet in the center of a room, so those around her cannot deny these evidences of her personal, obedient, daily choices to choose Christ above all else and to choose Love. 

 

I'm not sure if it was just because for most of my life I lived a comfortable Christian life: content to simply go to church on Sunday and say evening prayers, but her story resonated with me.  As I read her story, my mind saw it as if it was being acted out on stage.  I connected emotionally with her as she had to choose between being with her family and doing what God was calling her to do.  As I read the book, I felt like I could laugh, cry and pray with Katie.  For me, that is the definition of a good book.  However, her story calls you, me, the reader, to more!  She calls you to stop living your life behind a church routine and, instead, out in the world where hurting people need Jesus.  She challenges you to find your strength solely in Christ.  She inspires you to deepen your relationship with the Savior.  She calls to you to desire to develop unconditional love and holy joy.  She encourages you to show relentless love.

 

Bottom Line: If you want a book to challenge you spiritually, to inspire you to a higher level of relationship with the One who made you, to equip you with real life examples of what this journey really looks like, then this is the book for you.  I know because this is what happened to me when I read it.

 

I would encourage you to read it!  Even if you are only slightly interested after reading this.  It's a smooth read and a peek into the life of a truly extraordinary person that may just show you to be extraordinary only requires obedience. 

 

Also if you are a serial reader like myself, Katie Davis Majors' second book: Daring to Hope: Finding God's Goodness in the Broken and Beautiful is released October 3, 2017- check it out!