Breaking Busy // My Review
I received this book for free from BookLook Bloggers in exchange for my review. I'll never be anything but totally honest with you about the books I read and review, you can trust me on that!
This book is a practical, applicable guide to finding peace in a world that encourages us to relentlessly go, go, go. It's a quick, light, and easy read that I read cover to cover in one sitting (it's just about 200 pages!) It starts with a humorous and oh-so-relatable anecdote that makes you instantly feel like this girl gets it, and she gets me, too. She's a mom of five boys (that alone would make you busy) plus a blogger, a speaker, a former owner of a big women's conference, a coach and consultant...etc. She really gets the whole BUSY thing, believe me.
We are all busy. We are all stressed. We are all trying to cram too much into days that always seem to short... and the madness must stop.
This book is a powerful reminder of that, and a really helpful guide to doing something about it-- breaking busy. When we really get down into it (not a comfortable process, admittedly) we realize we are trying to do so much and be so much and achieve so much because we are afraid and we aren't trusting God.
“And then he whispered to my spirit, ‘Get up and live like you believe that I am going to take care of you.’
Oh.
Wait.
What?
Sure enough, God did what God does. In just a few words, he straightened me out and made me realize what was probably clear to anyone around me but was a revelation to me.
I was miserable because I didn’t trust him.”
See what I'm saying? She gets it. This book doesn't read like a boring how-to guide or a pretentious preachy message, but instead it seems so genuinely like a conversation with one of your girls, and I loved that.
My favorite part about this book was the "Action Steps" sections at the end of every chapter. Because she weaves her anecdotes and message so well together throughout the chapters, it's easy to read and just follow along with the trains of thought, but this section made me stop and really apply the thoughts to my own life. Not that I really wanted to answer these questions about the state of my life... but it was really good to be challenged to do so and to apply what I was reading right away, chapter by chapter.
You know how lots of people love to tell you the things you need to cut out of your life to be a better person? Magzines are great at this -- cut out this one food and change your life! 5 toxic habits to break today! stop doing this one thing and everything in the world will be amazing forever! You get the point. Alli touches on some things like that (setting boundaries, make a stop-doing list, learn to say no to self and others), but what I loved even more was that she talked about things to add in to our lives. Things like adding in time to stay connected to God through prayer and Scripture, adding in time to connect with others, adding in time to take care of ourselves...etc. That's good stuff.
Overall, this book didn't really blow me away or shock me with new thoughts or theories, but it was a fun read and a great reminder to slow down, break busy, and build better rhythms in my life. (I keep coming back to that little word of the year, rhythm! I guess I picked well.)