The Repurposed & Upcycled Life by Michelle Rayburn - REVIEWED

About the Book: (from the back cover)

Are there experiences you'd rather toss in the dumpster?

Discover the repurposed and upcycled life. With her laugh-out-loud Erma Bombeck way of looking at life, Michelle will help you see how some of your greatest disappointments, mistakes, and hurts can be beautiful treasures from God. Part memoir, part inspiration and self-help, this book will help you:

• Unpack emotional baggage and deal with the past
• Confront perfectionism and negative attitudes
• Change your perspective on your circumstances
• Let go of regret and shame
• Build positive healthy relationships
• Dream big and live with purpose

Through inspiration from God's Word and examples from everyday life, you'll discover the joy-filled, hope-rich way of viewing your past, present, and future.

My Thoughts:

“What if we were real:  What if we were as honest about our failures as we are about our successes?” (p. 2)

Michelle Rayburn explores this question from every possible angle throughout her book, The Repurposed & Upcycled Life. She walks the reader through a myriad of situations, some from personal experience, some from the experience of others.  Michelle takes the Scripture and teaches transforming truths about successfully navigating life in a fallen world.  She uses her unique talent of repurposing “junk” and applies the practical truths of the Bible to each step of a transformational journey.  She wants everyone to walk in the freedom and purpose of God’s plan for their lives, and her book equips folks to do this!

Each chapter packed with things you will want to remember, so please read with your highlighter at the ready!  At the end of the chapter Michelle offers a section called Getting Personal.  Here you will find a section entitled Faith where she asks purpose-filled questions of self-examination.  She follows this with a section entitled Creativity where she offers ideas of creative activities that give your situation a concrete re-purposing.   The last section is entitled Everyday Life gives practical ways to put what you’ve learned into action.

This is a book that will bring healing and hope to many people in a variety of situations.  Don’t rush through this.  Take time to absorb what God has for you in these pages.  This book has been a love note from God in my life!!  How I praise Him for Michelle Rayburn’s ministry!

About the Author:

Michelle wants to help you connect the dots between faith, creativity, and everyday life and discover the joy of finding God in the most unexpected places. Years ago, she left her career as a registered nurse to raise her family, and along the way, she discovered her true passion for writing, speaking, and singing.

Along that path of discovery, she tried many side ventures, including: a wedding coordinator, rubber stamp demonstrator, custom painter and decorator, craft instructor, craft seller, and web designer. Pile on her hobbies as a quilter, scrapbooker, and avid reader, and that's a lot of dots to connect! For the sake of sanity, she has exchanged most of those roles for the thrill of putting words on paper.