You and Me, God
Proverbs 15:29 KJV tell us that “The Lord is far from the wicked” but he heareth the prayer of the righteous.”
That’s the good thing about the Word of God, Jean says, “It gives you everything that you need in order to fix the problems in your life.” Jean’s memoirs are true stories of victory directed by God, written with the best of her memory, to encourage others to no longer be victims.
This 298-page book is a riveting saga of a young girl’s walk with God during her early, formative and adult years. Being a long time domestic abuse survivor, she can give the readers testimony to what it takes to bounce back, pursue, overcome and survive. Jean describes her life herself as a “paradox.” I imagine by that she means she was born with conflicted emotions and suffered from depression and paranoia.
Even as a child, she was always worried and nervous. She lived her life wondering, “Was she a good girl, blessed with a telephone line straight to God? Or, was she really the child of the devil, who her family feared, hated and taunted on a regular basis?
Jean’s parents were stoic farmers, the ultimate cliché couple, who possibly regretted her birth from the beginning. What her mom and dad needed was a boy/man who would and could do the hard farm work to keep the family afloat financially. However, what they birthed was an over-emotional child/woman, who had special innate gifts and powers, that they were afraid of.
Because of their fear of the unexplained, she was not treated as a beloved daughter, but an estranged child bent on destroying the family. Jean never gave up on her family. Her God was her nucleus but her family was her lifeline in a cold, cruel world, that kept knocking her down time after time.
No one can really say when domestic abuse begins or ends. It is like a snake crawling around the hearts of a family, causing pain, maltreatment and evil attacks on each other. No one escapes the after-effects of domestic abuse. We just live with the horror of beatings, yelling, emotional and physical pain. Jean was blamed as the troublemaker of the family possibly due to her jealous sister.
She hated that despite her attempts to alienate Jean from the family and the world, Jean was popular, made many friends and managed a small flower business, giving Jean a way to financially take care of herself and help her family. Her sister grew up with none of Jean’s talents with few real goals or skills, suffering from an antisocial personality learned from her parents.
Jean loves her horses, dogs and flowers and all that is mother nature. She especially likes to celebrate which is apparent from her aspiring fireworks business. She earns a good living despite the constant bidding for her time and obedience from her family who need her more than she needs them. She is married now and has two partners in her life, her loving husband, and her savior God. I especially liked the Bible verses strewn between the pages. One I especially enjoyed was, “I alone know the plans I have for you, plans to bring you prosperity and not disaster, plans to bring about the future you hope for.” Jeremiah 29:11 GNT.
Reviewed by
Sculpting the Heart Book Reviews
Joyce White
www.youandmegod.com
www.jeanquirinfrierdich.com
