How do you juggle faith, insecurities and family life?
Are you overly self-critical?
A light-hearted look at the challenges of being a parent and a follower of Jesus
Seen through the fictional diary of Becky Hudson, mum to three young children
Parenthood: Nothing can prepare you for it! The broken nights, the dirty nappies, the endless interruptions, the loss of a social life – and on top of it all, the guilt that, surely, everyone else must be doing it better.
Having faith can help, but it does not always make parenthood easier because we can feel like we have failed both as Christians and as parents when our children misbehave. And what happens to all the dreams we had of changing the world for God when it’s all we can do to keep our patience potty-training a toddler or getting the kids to school on time?
Author Fiona Lloyd, writes, ‘When my children were small I was very self-critical. I thought they were the only ones who had tantrums in the supermarket and that everyone else had parenthood cracked. Looking back, I wish there had been someone to explain that I was being too hard on myself. My hope is that mums of young children – and maybe dads too – will realise that they’re not alone in finding parenthood difficult at times. And that they will experience lots of “me too!” moments.’
Meet Becky Hudson, 39, devoted mother to Jennifer (9), Adam (5) and Ellie (2) – and queen of self-doubt. Becky’s diary records how God meets her in the marvellous muddle that motherhood can be as she tries to balance faith, fears and family life, and her marriage to science teacher, Dave.
Becky loves her family, but spends a lot of her time worrying that she is not a good enough mother – or Christian. Linda, her interfering mother-in-law, has very fixed views about raising children too, which only serves to make Becky feel worse.
Convinced that, if she tries harder, she will be a better Christian and mother and might actually know what God’s purpose is for her life and where she is to fit in at church, Becky also believes that she is the only one who struggles with these issues.
When a missionary couple, Liz and Rupert Strachan, visit the church, Becky feels inadequate and does her best to avoid them. But what happens next turns Becky’s world upside down and takes her on a path of self-discovery and adventure she could not have dreamed of.
Anyone who spends a lot of time with small children will find this lively book both encouraging and entertaining.
‘What an engaging novel! Friendly, chaotic Becky is a busy mother with a strong urge to do something incredible for God. Her efforts appear to be frustrated as she tries to rise above the constant stream of distractions and everyday “disasters” perpetuated by her wonderful, creative children. With realistic acuity, Fiona Lloyd’s sensitive, humorous writing captures Becky’s struggles, causing me to recollect similar instances from my own child-rearing years. A wonderful, thought-provoking read – I wanted more!’
Angela Hobday MA, Chair of the Association of Christian Writers
‘This is such a friendly, encouraging book. With passion, honesty and occasional frustration, Fiona captures the struggles many of us have as we try to cope with the reality of children’s parties, two-year-olds’ tantrums and other children’s perfect parents while desperately trying to follow Jesus.’
Bridget Plass, writer and speaker