God works through His child’s problems and He will use situations to teach us eternal lessons about ourselves and our siblings in Christ. After the process, He leaves a much tenderized heart with no holes or hard, unyielding scar tissue which is conditional upon us being willing to let go of it and let God handle it. God is mightier than our feelings, and mightier than our fears. We must trust that God is entirely capable of finishing the work He has begun in His children. Therefore He gives us hope which is an absolute must for healthy living. Without hope, there is despair. Without hope there is depression. Without hope, faith cannot survive. Without hope, love gasps for breath.
Refreshment in Refuge is a unique collection of stories and reflections of a Christian woman, just an everyday person dealing with those troubles which are common to mankind, and some that are not so common. With God she remained steadfast in a topsy-turvy world which isn’t easy to do. It's not the average non-fiction book; nor is it the average collection of short stories. The blend is radical, courageous, and straight from the heart: A devotional type of offering.
Some of the stories include a little dog revived with rain, a desperate woman comforted by warm arms, an intimate look at Mary Magdalene’s thoughts the morning Christ arose, and a woman’s unselfish desire are illustrate living the Christian life. They demonstrate some extraordinary paradigm breaks and parallels in living as Christ would have His Bride live.
Sometimes everyday living creates a fog over our spiritual enlightenment, dulling our understanding and even our relationship with God. Other times, we get entangled in the worries and cares of the world. Christ’s light will guide us to clear thinking, and He will burn off that fog, just like sunshine. Refreshment in Refuge is a collection of stories and studies of how to make Christ the ruler of your heart, allowing the Son to dissipate the fog of trials and troubles that invade our lives on a daily basis.
I am so passionate about touching hearts that have been hurt and betrayed by others. I hope and pray that the lessons I’ve learned will make it much easier for another to walk through that valley of shadows. Gina Burgess, 2011
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What people are saying about
Refreshment in Refuge
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Want a beautiful way to start or end your day? Get this book and simply read a chapter or
two from it as you awaken or lay down to rest.
Also, it would be a great book to carry close to you when you have a
time to invest in your spiritual growth.
It transcends time. One
chapter will have you back in the heart of a scripture based story as if you
were inside the mind of the person as they witness the events unfolding before
them. Then Gina brings you to a modern
day struggle with the same flair for “putting you there.”
Below are a few key relevant
points concerning Gina’s book.
- Gina reminds us that God is mightier than our feelings and mightier than our fears.
- She creates a freshness of the truth, “that in Him is our greatest hope, for He most assuredly keeps His promises.”
- She states, and brings to life throughout her book, “one thing I have learned during my years with my beloved Lord God – there is no faith where there is no hope.”
- Her chapter – “Come Rejoice With Me” Won the Editors Choice Award, October 2010, Fiction Writers Platform
- It seems that her book was written with women in mind but as a man, I found it enjoyable and insightful.
- Gina repeats a mantra throughout her book, which is summed up in her words, “Our greatest lessons are learned in the storms of life so that our greatest purpose can be fulfilled on the other side of the storm.”
- She also reminds us, “. . . that Satan has no power except that which God allows, or that which we give. Knowing this we are forewarned and forearmed against an evil foe.”
This book is a winner! The
only sticking point I had with it was that, as a man, I struggled to identify
with some of the issues Gina addresses.
Refreshment in Refuge, by Gina Burgess is a devotional with meat on it’s bones. The book contains 40 readings, some with short stories followed by practical application, some the sharing of personal lessons learned. The theology is sound and the lessons are enlightening and uplifting. If you are interested in refreshing and strengthening your walk with God, this book can help.
The first story in the book gave me pause. It really isn’t very well written, however, the lesson it imparts is outstanding. Happily, the odd story structure is an anomaly and the book is quite easy to engage in. I happily recommend it as your next devotional.
Andi Newberry, author of Radiant Light--a nice slice of book reviews.
My Thoughts: This book was written by a fellow blogger, which is exciting! I found the book to be interesting in idea. Some of the passages were good. Yet, transitioning from one to the other were choppy and didn't flow.
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Amber French, author of Snidbits -- all about tibits of life with book reviews thrown in.
My thoughts: While Burgess does make some good points, I wasn't overly impressed with the book. She said a few things I don't agree with but we're all allowed to have our own opinion. I highlighted a few lines that spoke to me, thus making the book worth reading. I didn't feel there was much flow between sections - it seemed choppy to me. Overall, a decent read.________________________________
Carlybird's Home -- a great place for insightful Christian book reviews.
My review of Refreshment in Refuge:
Gina Burgess is a woman who has a heart for Christ. She has experienced a great deal of pain in her life, but after reading Refreshment in Refuge it is easy to see that she has also experienced a great deal of joy and grace in the Lord. In this book, Gina has put her life experiences and her observations on paper in an open an honest way and shows us through Scripture how she has been able to heal and she shows us the things that God has shown her that have brought her comfort.
I have always enjoyed reading memoirs, especially if the memoir is written by an average, everyday person like me; a person who experiences all of lives joys and sorrows. Refreshment in Refuge
is much more than just a memoir. It is indeed a very personal and very honest look at Gina’s life and her faith. I had the distinct feeling while I read this book that Gina’s heart was being poured out onto the pages, which not only gave the book a deeply personal feeling, but also a very real look at a very real woman - a woman who has a passion for sharing her faith in Jesus.
I also felt very much like she was speaking directly to me. Gina has a gift for communicating and ministering through her writing, a gift that I embraced from the very start of this book. I loved her honesty and her strong Christian message. There were many times when I felt uplifted, and amused, but also humbled and amazed by God’s grace. Refreshment in Refuge is one of those books that I don’t want to just read once and put it down. I want to refer back to it again and again because there is much to learn and I have enjoyed learning from Gina. I highly recommend adding Refreshment in Refuge to your collection. It is full of Godly wisdom and comfort.
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Brenda Casto -- author of WV Stitcher -- a wonderful collection of book reviews, the topic of reading, and stitching.
"Refreshment In Refuge" will do just that, it will refresh your spirit and remind you of God's unwavering love.
A compilation of short stories, from the authors own life experiences make this book very easy to relate to.You can easily feel the authors emotions as she shares her inspirational and uplifting stories of faith.
I found myself completely drawn into this book after reading the first story titled The Refreshing, in this story an owner of a garage thinks that he has run over his beloved family pet Alfie, and unable to bear taking the animal home to bury he places it in a dumpster. He worries all day about how he will break the news to his family, especially his daughters, so when he blurts out the news, and as the family mourns, the heavens open up and rain begins to fall, it was as if God was sharing in their grief. When the man arrives at his garage the next day, a neighbor of the body shop informs him that his dog has been barking in the dumpster, what joy the man must have felt, and what a celebration his family must have had that night. What Alfie needed was a little reviving. Sometimes as Christians we also need a little reviving.
Their is also a chapter titled 10 things a christian must know, and eleven things one cannot live without, that I have found myself referring to several times even after finishing the book. I think because of the straightforward, clear way this book is presented it would be perfect for Bible study groups, but individuals would also find it a useful study tool as well. I feel like it would also make a great gift for anyone who needs a little encouragement or spiritual "refreshing" in their life.
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