Book Review: Glimpses of Grace by Gloria Furman

As Christian women, we often feel a disconnect in our lives. We have our so-called Christian life—going to church, reading our Bibles, and prayer—and our ho-hum lives of laundry, meals, and work. Does Christ’s death and resurrection make a difference in our day-to-day lives? Is there a Christian way to mop a floor?

While there’s not a distinctly Christian way to mop a floor (otherwise I’ve been doing it wrong), being a Christian does affect how we approach our work. The gospel influences every aspect of our lives, even the most mundane. But how?

That’s the question Gloria Furman wanted to explore in her book, Glimpses of Grace: Treasuring the Gospel in Your Home. “What does the gospel have to do with our lives in the home? How does this grace change the way we live?” (page 17)

Using personal illustrations, Gloria thinks through how the gospel impacts our lives. But this book is much more than a series of fluffy vignettes. Gloria did some heavy digging for us. In doing so she shows us in an engaging, understandable way that theology is not a dry subject fit only for academics. We all need to understand who God is, who we are, and what life is all about. This is important for every Christian, but for the homemaker who feels that life is just a series of mundane tasks that are undone as soon as (if not before) they are finished, it is an especially needed breath of fresh air.

Gospel-centered has become something of a buzzword among books and blogs. Gloria is careful not to fall into Christianese. In one of my favorite chapters of the book, “Don’t Smurf the Gospel,” she encourages us not to let our Christian life become a series of clichés. She also explains how we can fact check what we hear, and sort the true from the false.

This is a personal book that contains much of Gloria’s personal story. Most of it is set in the context of the mother with small children at home. But even though my children are not so small, I was still blessed and encouraged by this book. We all need the reminder about the ways the gospel changes our everyday lives, whether our “babies” are 5 weeks or 50.

Many thanks to Crossway Books for providing a review copy of this book. This review reflects my honest opinion.