I’m so excited to share today’s review with you! We all know how hard motherhood is and in today’s book, “The End of Me” by Liz Wann, we find a comforting friend who comes alongside us and helps us to see the daily sacrifices of motherhood in a new light.
A bit about the author…
I first met Liz through a writing group on Facebook. I really loved Liz’s quiet wisdom; any time she spoke it was thoughtful and encouraging. I knew she had a heart for moms and was not surprised when I heard that she and another member of this group, Katie Tumino, were launching a blog for moms called MorningbyMorning.org. (They actually published my first ever article and several subsequent articles!) In addition to this new book, Liz has written many articles for DesiringGod.org. She and her husband, Josh, live with their three kiddos in Philadelphia.
What I loved about it…
My favorite thing about this book is how honest and open Liz is about her own shattered expectations of motherhood. She frankly shares her struggles with anger and impatience, but she doesn’t leave it there. Instead, she reminds us that in the kingdom of God, the path to life is through death. The daily struggles of motherhood are there to teach us to die to ourselves so we can live through Christ. I can’t think of anything more encouraging than that message.
I particularly liked the chapter on suffering, where she highlighted the stories of four women living out challenging circumstances. Throughout these stories a common chorus resounds: This is not what I wanted for my life, but if it’s God’s will then I’m all in. These stories show us how mamas can suffer as Christ and bring glory to His name.
Liz also provides a space for practical application at the end of each of her chapters. She gives the reader a simple action step to take, as well as several journaling pages for us to pray and process.
Finally, I loved how short the book was. That might sound funny to say, but as a busy mama, I don’t have a ton of reading time. At 123 pages long, this book was the perfect length, with short, page-turning chapters that seemed to fly by. I read this entire book in a total of 2 hours (over the course of several days, because #motherhood.)
A few of my favorite quotes…
“You don’t need to be a tough, strong, supermom but just a humble mom who knows her true place. When you begin to humbly rely on the strength of the Spirit and not your own strength, you will find the peace you were always meant to have.”
“Deep everlasting joy is developed over time from submitting to and embracing hardship, from wrestling with suffering, and from the willingness to sacrifice and be inconvenienced. It’s good to remember these truths when motherhood is hard: that if we yield to the spiritual discipline motherhood brings, we’ll reap a harvest of fruit. Jesus went this way, and he calls you to follow him. When everyone wants the easy and comfortable road, Jesus says to take the difficult one.”
“As moms, we can freely admit our weakness instead of hiding who are, because of the grace of God. After all, grace is made available to the humble. Until we recognize that we’re needy, we won’t see our need for grace.”
“Our failures are just another opportunity to boast in the Lord. As a mom, I can use my failures of anger and impatience to point my children to the one who is perfect for them: one who will never fail them because he died for them. Jesus is my children’s ultimate hope in this life. Though I am his representative to them, I am an imperfect one. So my prayer is that my children will see me for who I really am and look to Christ as one who is greater. I can tell them that he is the one who nailed my failures to a tree and can do the same for them.”
You should read “The End of Me” if…
If you are struggling to adjust to motherhood as it is (versus what you expected it to be) this book is for you!
Cheering you on, Mama!
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