I want to tell you about a book that is very near and dear to my heart. It’s a beautiful, heart-warming story that I think any reader would appreciate and enjoy. Some of you might have already read it, but if you haven’t this is a book worth picking up – Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers.
Redeeming Love is a moving retelling of the Biblical story of the prophet Hosea and his wife, Gomar, set in the 1800s in gold mining California. As some of you might know, Gomar was a prostitute and Hosea married her because the Lord told him to. Quintessentially, Redeeming Love follows this storyline but there are a few twists and turns that are different from the Biblical account. It’s about a young woman named Angel who is sold into prostitution at the tender age of eight and her journey to freedom from prostitution as well as freedom from her past and the enemy’s lies.
When Michael Hosea, a humble farmer, sees Angel for the first time he’s intrigued by her and with God’s guidance, he decides to pursue and marry her. Angel isn’t much for men’s intentions, but there’s something about Michael that (eventually) catches her interest. He’s not like the other men. After a series of unfortunate events, she marries him and goes to live with him on his farm – but their relationship has a long way to go
Can they make their marriage work? Can Michael truly win Angel’s heart? And can Angel finally learn to see herself for who she really is – not what she’s done? Well, you’ll just have to read it to find out, but here’s a few of my thoughts that I hope you will find helpful . . .
I first read this book when I was in college and I absolutely fell in love with it because it’s ultimately a story of grace. God’s grace and the grace that we can extend to those around us. It touched me all those years ago – so much so that I found myself thinking about it even when I put it down. I read it again at the end of 2021 in preparation for the film adaptation that comes to theaters January 21, 2022 (if you haven’t seen the trailer by now are you even living) and I fell in love with it all over again.
Angel is a very relatable character in the sense that she longs to be loved – even if she doesn’t always realize it. And even though she starts out hopeful in the beginning of the book and then grows hard and cold because of the situation she’s forced into, I found it really inspiring to see her find her way back to hopefulness.
Francine Rivers did an excellent job of weaving the different characters’ points of view together. You get to read the story from multiple characters’ perspective and I’m still amazed at how seamlessly she accomplished this – that’s talented writing. I also thoroughly enjoyed seeing how each character changed and grew throughout the book. Not only does Angel go on a soul-searching journey of sorts – so does Michael. I really related to that and how sometimes God’s plan for you or someone you love isn’t the plan that you have for you or them. This book paints a very realistic picture of exercising your faith and putting your trust in God even when you don’t understand what He’s doing. All in all, if you’ve been searching for a good book to read that will encourage and inspire you – that has well-written characters that you will root for – then Redeeming Love is the book for you.
5 out of 5 Daisies!
Here’s a few pics of the movie that will hit theaters on Friday, January 21, 2022. All pictures are from @redeeminglovemovie Instagram page.
Verse of the Day: Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away, behold, all things have become new. – 2 Corinthians 5:17
