“In I Don’t Wait Anymore, Grace Thornton challenges readers to find their calling and purpose from God and go after it with completely committed hearts.“

I Don’t Wait Anymore: Letting Go of Expectations and Grasping God’s Adventure for You by Grace Thornton

About this book: (from the publisher) Have you been waiting for life to turn out the way you expected?

You’re not alone.

There are lots of us out there who feel that way. Grace Thornton is one. She had dreams, plans, and ideas for what life should look like. For one, she thought she’d be married. She thought she’d have kids. She thought God would bring her the life she’d been waiting for because she knew He was good and she tried to be obedient.

But that’s not what happened. Not at all.

So she found herself wrestling with God. Who is He if He doesn’t bring along the life, husband, and 2.5 kids she thought He was supposed to? And where should she go from there?

When she got brutally honest with herself and asked the hard question, “Why do I think the world has more to offer than God does?” the answer was stunning. Her honesty led to the path God had for her. One that would write a story for her life that was even better than the one she had dreamed for herself.

This positive and encouraging book offers inspiration to anyone who wants to live a fulfilling life rightnow. Grace decided to let go of her expectations of the way life “should be” and grasp God’s hand for the adventure He had for her.

You can too.

About the author: Grace Thornton loves a good story. She believes that God writes the best stories, even when our lives may not look anything like what we imagined. As a storyteller and blogger, Grace has found her narrative taking her all over the world. She’s passionate about knowing God through His Word and encouraging others to discover Him and let Him write the story of their lives too. Her blog, gracefortheroad.com, received more than 2 million visits after her post “I Don’t Wait Anymore,” on living fully as a single person, went viral in 2012.

Genre: Non-fiction/Christian Living/General

Will especially appeal to: anyone who’s been disappointed when life’s dreams have not materialized as expected; and while this might apply to anyone at any age, this book will find particular resonance with women in their 30s and 40s, and those who are single but would like to be married.

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Reflection: The irony did not escape me: a book entitled I Don’t Wait Anymore coming to me at precisely the moment I’d committed to do just that. To wait, I mean — or I should say, to wait well. After years of impatience as I’ve waited for God to make a particular dream come true, I have settled in my heart to instead wait for His timing…or His “no.” Which means I have committed not rush ahead of Him to make my dream come true under my own steam. I certainly could. There are ways. But I’ve lived long enough (and tried often enough in other scenarios) to know that’s not a good idea. And so I wait.

And then along comes this book, which in its very title encourages me not to.

So are we completely at odds, Grace Thornton and I? Not at all. In fact, once I delved into the subtleties of her message, I realized her intent and mine dovetail perfectly.

Yes, even as I’ve committed to a new kind of patient waiting, I can still say alongside Grace Thornton, I don’t wait anymore. How? Because when she writes of not waiting, she’s writing about living life to the fullest with all that she has, without waiting for that thing/dream-come-true/or whatever to make life complete. Instead (and the instead part is important), she’s thrown herself into knowing God, and loving Him, and making Him the End…not merely the Means to an end. Thereby rendering life full, abundant, and perfectly complete…with or without that thing.

This book is about surrendering to God by learning to know God and to love Him for Himself, not for what He can give us. And in that to find freedom…

“Freedom to live without waiting for something to start. Freedom to love Him and hold things here with a very loose grip. Freedom to dream new dreams…” (p. 94)

Besides all of the above, I have to comment on what a lovely little book this is — a sleek hardback with a ribbon bookmark and pleasing fonts — a pleasure to keep at the ready for another chapter’s worth of transformative reading. It reads like an artfully crafted memoir, bursting with compelling imagery. In tone, it’s upbeat; in style, contemporary and accessible, authentic without being the least bit angsty.

Other takeaways:

• We learn to love God by cultivating a love for His Word. We’ve all heard it before, and it really is that simple — though that doesn’t mean it’s easy.
• Transformation doesn’t happen overnight. It begins as a process.
• But when it finally happens, it feels amazing. Things align for real. And it’s better than anything else.

Not that I can speak personally yet to that last point — right now I’m still wrapping my arms around #1 & 2 — but I’m getting there.

I’ll let you know how it goes.

Thanks to The Blog Spot and Zondervan for providing me a free copy to review. All opinions are mine.

Curious? Want more? Start by reading the first chapter here.

And for your chance to win a giveaway copy, click here. (U.S. residents only.) a Rafflecopter giveaway

After words: How would you fill in these blanks? I will not wait for life: I don’t wait for _______ so I am pursuing _____.