The Gift of Limitations
Finding Beauty in Your Boundaries
- Christian Living
- Publisher: Zondervan
- Published: 2024
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Publisher's Description
"It's all too much." (You can't do everything. And you weren't made to do everything.) For anyone who feels overwhelmed and unfulfilled. For anyone buried under mountains of laundry and fielding too many bills. For those with too many appointments and too many open tabs in your browser. For those of us who go to bed exhausted, too tired to enjoy a few minutes with our thoughts, and resenting our limitations, bestselling author Sara Hagerty offers a lifeline of hope and the possibility of peace. What if your greatest weaknesses are your doorway to rich intimacy with God? What if your limitations are, in fact, your greatest gift? With poetic voice, gentle validation, and deep spiritual insights, Sara will help you see how the boundaries of your life circumstances—your limitations—can bring about spiritual growth and satisfaction you'd never experience otherwise. The Gift of Limitations will help you explore how to: Recognize when you are pushing yourself too far and find your way back to realistic expectations of yourself. Discover how God sees weakness, in His Word, and how He has used the weaknesses of His people throughout all of time. Understand what embracing your limits looks like in everyday life. Dream again while remaining tethered to God's best story for you. Learn how to see the beauty and peace God provides amid all your life circumstances, and find the deep spiritual growth you can experience through your limitations--the ones that aren’t changing (the ones you once thought held you back).
Endorsements (12)
“I couldn’t put this book down. I found myself squeezing in a chapter or a page as often as I could throughout my days, feeling as though it were water in a desert, feeling my heart rate slow and my mind rest and my soul become renewed. Sara beautifully reflects God’s heart throughout these pages, calling us to come, to be curious, to be gentle with ourselves as we learn to settle into God’s pace and His goodness in our lives, no matter our story or pains. This is a must-read for any believer.”
“After reading part 1 of Sara’s book I sat and wept. Finally—words to feelings that I have not been able to describe. This book has been healing, eye opening, and such a blessing to my life. We all need to read this book.”
“Written with vulnerable honesty and hard-won wisdom, Sara Hagerty’s beautiful book unpacks the hopeful reality that our hearts can rest, and even come alive, within the boundaries around them. Sara unpacks the uncomfortable truth that all of us have limitations, and it is within them that we are invited to come to God honestly and there flourish in His love. I love this book and am so deeply encouraged by what it unveils.”
“This book is a lyrical masterpiece. Every paragraph reads like a poem, captivating in its truth and beauty. So many books tell us we can do more and be more; Sara suggests spiritual health may be found when we accept less and perhaps even do less. Rather than seeing our limitations as something to overcome, she eloquently makes the case that our limitations aren’t just gifts from God but a reflection of God in the flesh. Beautiful.”
“If you find yourself wishing things were like they used to be, longing for what could have been, or hoping for a change in what lies ahead, Sara’s is the voice you need. She puts words to the inner cry of a burdened heart, articulating what we all know but can’t accept: we are limited, and we wish we weren’t. This book will lift your eyes to the goodness of the boundaries we didn’t choose and show you how to live fully behind your fences.”
“God has a purpose in our limits.” As a woman called to share the gospel in the “get better, faster, and stronger” world of health and fitness, I wish someone had taught me this kind of head-scratching, wonderful truth. My aging body wishes it knew then, when it was younger, what Sara is teaching us now. In this book, Sara does what she does best: give us cause to see a limitless God and His wonderous ways while feeling normal when constrained by endless piles of laundry, missing socks, and lost dreams. By the time your fingers turn the last page, you will know God’s kindness in what appears to be weak and out of reach.”
“Even before I read the first word of this book, I began recommending it, because I know Sara. Her vocabulary reminds me of my mentor and hero, Elisabeth Elliot, who also used the words surrender, loss, and gift. Like her, Sara has walked through deep waters and, by not rushing ahead, has discovered more of God in the murky darkness. This book is an invitation to live in the messiness of losses and to find there the surprising joy of Immanuel, God with you, giving you gifts in your limitations. Like Sara, this book is a rich, deep well. Be fed. Be nourished.”
“Sarah has the rare gift of sharing, with brutal honesty, her own struggles while leading us gently into both the mystery and the surprising joy that limitations can bring into our lives. Her book brought me into a new place of resting in God’s arms. I treasured every word.”
“Through masterful storytelling, Sara helps us see how a limitation is actually an invitation to experience God’s presence and provision in a profound way. After reading this beautiful book, you will no longer see the constraints in your life as things that grievously hold you back but rather as gifts that graciously hold you within the boundary lines of God’s best for you. Sara shows us it is truly possible to embrace our limitations and live freely and fully in God’s love within them.”
“With a deft and discerning hand, Sara Hagerty uses beautiful prose to paint for us the landscape of our lives. Which of us can honestly say that our days are not filled with stuff we would never choose for ourselves? And yet Sara gently helps us view life’s roadblocks, setbacks, heartbreaks, and hardships—our limitations—from the divine perspective. No matter your challenges or season of life, I believe you’ll find new hope and genuine encouragement throughout this book. It certainly deeply impacted me.”
“What would it look like to believe—truly believe—that the boundary lines of your life have fallen in pleasant places? With the wisdom of a seasoned tour guide and the empathy of a trusted friend, Sara Hagerty takes us by the hand and shows us how to exchange our thoughts and ideals for God’s so that, instead of being a burden, our limitations limitations become a wonder—a wonder-full part of our stories. Sara is one of the most gifted writers of our day, and this is the transformational book your soul has been longing to read.”
“dreamers, the fixers, the goal setters. This one is for the ever-hopeful and the cynic alike. This one is for all of us who are longing for a deeper look at His face and His heart. Sara gently asks the prodding questions that my heart needed to be drawn closer to Him. She is a wise guide on our journey deeper into His heart.”
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