What happens when you lose your religion? Kendra Fletcher, mom of eight, took pride in having it all together the right schooling, the right theology, the right church. Everything was right. Then it all fell apart. Three of their children were taken to the brink of death in a period of eighteen months. As wave after wave of crisis hit their family, they learned that getting religion right wasn't a good substitute for a living relationship with a loving God. As they learned about their misplaced identities and false hope, they found that religion couldn't save them only Jesus. Only Jesus gives the grace we need to survive and thrive. Only in Jesus will our lives overflow with his grace, love, and mercy spilling out over our families like the life-giving good news it is meant to be.
More than a memoir, Lost and Found is a call to give up those things that hold us in bondage and find the overwhelming grace and freedom of the cross. Woven through the life-changing stories that forever altered Kendra Fletcher s family is an encouragement to readers to find their value, worth, significance, hope, and identity in Christ alone.
Gripping true story of how God heals physically and spiritually. The difference between the gospel and merely being religious explained simply and clearly using one family s story. Clear direction on how to live with freedom and joy despite challenging circumstances.
My Thoughts:
“Had we know there would be healing in our future, we would have signed
up for the trials a long time before.” (p 50)
This is a statement that I
imagine very few people say out loud – much less write it in a book that will
be read by countless readers. Yet I
believe that when Kendra Fletcher penned these words, they were birthed in the
firm foundation of the truth of the gospel that was running from her heart like
the stream of living water promised to all Christ followers. Kendra Fletcher and her family walked through
a series of fiery trials, all of which she shares in her book Lost and Found. These details are not recorded to garner
praise for her strength nor pity for all that her family endured. This is a testament to God’s amazing grace
and mercy available to all who embrace the freedom of this gift He offers
through the shed blood of His Only Son
.
I have been in these places that
Kendra Fletcher records. Places of
religious bondage that slip around our hearts so quietly that we do not realize
how imprisoned we have become until we face a situation that causes us to lean
entirely upon God. This book resonated with me on a very deep and personal
level, because, like Kendra, I lived many years of my life in a religious
prison that kept me from embracing the truth of the gospel. To be set free from that prison has been a
very long and arduous process for me, but, like Kendra, I can recognize and say
that I would have signed up for these trials long ago if I knew the depth of
healing that lay before me.
I walk in healing and freedom
today because of the gospel of Christ. I
think many people who come to this book and read the truth it offers will have
their hearts changed for all eternity. I
know there were times as I read, that I stopped and wept at the love that Jesus
has lavished upon my life!
I will come back again and again
to this book. I will share it with
friends. I encourage you to lay down bondage and walk in freedom. Embrace the grace of God through Jesus
Christ. There is no other other way to
live!
On page 79 Fletcher states: “The
gospel doesn’t allow us the snobbish luxury of not sullying our hands because
we can’t stand the filth. We are clean
only because Christ is clean; they will be made clean only if we take Christ to
them.”
Can I hear a good AMEN?!
About the Author:
Kendra Fletcher is the mother of 8, speaker for groups and conferences around the country, author of several books, and podcaster on HomeschoolingIRL. Her articles have appeared in a variety of publications, including Crosswalk.com, Arizona Home Education Journal, The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, and Washington Family Magazine. Her newest book, Lost and Found: Losing Religion, Finding Grace, is published by New Growth Press and will be released in 2017.She blogs at www.kendrafletcher.com and www.homeschoolingIRL.com. Find her on Twitter: @KendraEFletcher
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