C. J. Hitz

C. J. Hitz has compiled, in 21 Stories of Generosity: Real Stories to Inspire a Full Life (A Life of Generosity)(Volume 2), stories of people who have been the recipients and those who have been the bearers of generosity and the amazing results of those acts. These acts come in many forms.

For Darlene Shortridge, it is watching her daughter’s giving of her only Barbie doll to a stranger become a huge box “filled to the top with Barbie dolls, clothes, … furniture and so much more.”

For Carol Freed, a lifetime of generosity started when a retired couple who invited her to be a part of their Christmas Eve and Christmas morning when she was far away from home, a simple act of caring.

Carol Round’s learned a lesson about judging others when she, in an act of impatience, paid for someone else’s ice cream.

For Graham Roberts, half–a-world away, from the realization of the self-sacrificial act of Jesus on a cross another half-a-world away learned when fighting demons of despair “a bruised reed He will not break.”

Through all the gifts, all the lives, all he stories, run the thread established early on in the scriptures. In Genesis 18, God decides Abraham will be the father of a strong nation through whom all nations would be blessed. According to Eugene Peterson in The Message says God “settled on him as the one to train his children and future family to observe God’s way of life, [to] live kindly and generously and fairly.”

C. J. Hitz has compiled twenty-one stories that reveal, in words, thoughts, acts of random- and not-so-random kindness that individual lives and the world can be changed for the better. As Hitz says, they are ”unique snapshots of God’s generosity as He uses people.”

By the end of the first story, each reader will be searching out ways to be a blessing, a “powerful tool in the hands of God,” inspired to become their own stories of inspiration by living lives of kindness, fairness, and generosity in giving of their time, money, attention, service, and words of blessing.

Contributing authors include CJ Hitz, Darlene Shortridge, Laura J. Marshall, Krystal Kuehn, Carol Freed, Carol Round, Joy DeKok, Victoria Pitts Caine, Ruth O'Neil, Lisa Belcastro, Graham Roberts, Marilynn Dawson, Brenda McGraw, Beth Willis Miller, Gerald Bergeron, Brad Francis, Charles W. Page, Ann Musico, Corine Hyman, Marriott Cole, Suzanne Doyle-Ingram, and Debbie Rivers.

CJ is an author, speaker and entrepreneur. In his downtime, he enjoys spending time outdoors running, hiking and exploring God's beautiful creation.… (mais)

A poor, down-trodden drug addict. An abandoned child. A motherless child. Victims of pedophilia. The list goes on...

Abuse. Physical, mental, emotional, and sexual abuse is all around us.
We live in an imperfect world filled with imperfect human beings. And those imperfect human beings have a tendency to act, well, human. To be hurt by someone is a fact of life. It's going to happen, one way or the other. People are going to let you down. People are going to break your heart. At one point in your life, you will suffer at the hand of someone else.

It's what you do with the pieces that are left that counts.

Offering testimonies from the down-trodden, the unloved, or heartbroken people, this book gives you a glimpse into a Masterpiece that most people refuse to embrace. Forgiveness. Asking for forgiveness from a Holy God. Forgiving yourself. Because forgiveness is where miracles start. And this book offers a powerful voice of help to those seeking to let go of the past and press toward a better future. Because we are forgiven and because God doesn't only love those that deserve it.

Warning:
The principles in this book aren't easy to apply. If you do apply them to your life, you may be changed. For the better.

"Unforgiveness as a Christian is not an option."
"When faith and forgiveness collide, it's beautiful."
… (mais)

I got this book through the member-giveaway program, but maybe I didn't read the description very carefully or misread it somehow, either way, the book wasn't what I had expected. I had expected more of a focus on pratical advice; though the stories are examples of how forgiveness has helped people move on with their lives, it doesn't really say much about how we can achieve this forgiveness.
Also, it was way too Christian for my taste. Again, maybe I just didn't read the description very well, but the book is really focused on Christian faith and has very little to offer for people who are less religious.
All in all, it was a disappointment for me and I didn't like it at all. However, if you are a very religious Christian, it might be a good book for you and might give you some stories to support you.… (mais)