God Is Just Not Fair: Finding Hope When Life Doesn’t Make Sense

by Jennifer Rothschild

Do you believe God is just not fair?
If you're like Jennifer Rothschild, you wrestle with questions when you experience painful circumstances.
Does God care? Does he hear my prayers? Is he even there?
Blinded as a teenager, Jennifer overcame daunting obstacles, found strength in God, and launched a successful speaking and writing ministry.
Then in her 40's, everything changed.
Jennifer hit a wall of depression and discontent that shook her to her core, undermining many of her past assumptions about her faith. Jennifer wondered who God was and why he continued to allow her to struggle and doubt.
Where, Jennifer pleaded,is his hand of healing and hope in my life now?
This is a book about finding more than just answers. It's for anyone who needs hope when life doesn't make sense---for all who reach for a God who feels distant.
As Jennifer tackles the six big questions of faith, she will help you:
Trust God more than your feelings.
Strengthen your faith when you feel beat up by life.
Embrace your obstacles and start experiencing their purpose.
Face your disappointment and grow stronger from your loss.

Genres: Christian, Faith, Nonfiction, Christian Living, Religion, Christianity

240 pages, Paperback

First published March 25, 2014

About the author

Jennifer Rothschild is a recovering perfectionist who has learned to live beyond limits ever since her life drastically changed at the age of fifteen, when she lost her sight. Now, more than 30 years later, she boldly and compassionately teaches women how to find contentment, walk with endurance, and celebrate the ordinary.

She's the author of ten books, including the best-selling Lessons I Learned in the Dark, Self Talk, Soul Talk, the popular Me, Myself and Lies Bible study, and her soon to be released, God Is Just Not Fair.

As a speaker, author and accomplished singer-songwriter she travels internationally, offering fresh, sensible, Biblical advice to audiences who, like her, are determined to pursue healthy and fulfilling lives in spite of their circumstances. She has shared her practical and inspiring messages to arena-sized audiences across the country, and media outlets including Dr. Phil, Good Morning America, Life Today, The Learning Channel and The Billy Graham Television Special.

Jennifer is an avid listener of audio books, a C.S. Lewis junkie, and has a weakness for dark chocolate and robust coffee. She and her Dr. Phil live in Springfield, Missouri, and have two sons Connor and Clayton and a lovely daughter-in-law, Caroline. When she is not traveling, Jennifer enjoys nature walks, and riding a bicycle built for two.

Reviews

[Nathan Albright · Rating 5 out of 5]

[Note: This book was provided for free by HarperCollins Publishing in exchange for an honest review.]

The author of this book sensibly assumes that someone reading this book has some sort of practical interest in theodicy (the justice and fairness of God), which usually implies some sort of serious sort of questions that one would have for God about one’s life. As someone who often reads and writes about this sort of matter, I am often attuned to what makes books distinctive given the fact that it is very common for people to wrestle with the question of God’s fairness and justice to humanity, given that life is difficult and we all have many struggles and we have the lamentable tendency to compare ourselves with others and to feel discontented about our lot in life and with the difficulties that we have to face, sometimes for a very long time.

This particular book belongs with the family of those books that (wisely) choose a confessional and personal approach to these questions, showing credibility by discussing their own personal struggles and those of others. This book is full of reflective “threads” to help bolster one’s faith during trials, as well as personal stories that include comments on family disagreements, the deaths of friends (including one horrible rape-murder of a young lady), and a variety of physical and psychological ailments, including many references to the author’s struggles with blindness and depression. As someone who has had my own rather open and serious and lengthy struggles, I could definitely identify with the author’s struggles, and the warm and intimate writing of the author would likely make many other readers comfortable as well with a difficult subject given the author’s openness and candor.

Within this context of a warm and friendly and intimate style of writing, the author in 30 fairly short chapters tackles six big questions of faith in God during trials, repeating some matters and some stories for emphasis, and making a firm contrast between different approaches Christian faith and practice including the vital question of attitude. Helpfully, the six big questions all rhyme: God, are you fair? God, do you err? God, do you hear prayer? God, do you care? God, are you aware? God, are you there? These six questions are answered with an approach that combines personal stories, an examination of scripture that is thoughtful and profound, as well as the use quotes from other theologians (like C.S. Lewis) who wrote thoughtfully about such matters. This approach shows a great deal of sophistication and increases its appeal to a wide audience, managing to straddle the divide between those who are swayed by intellectual appeals and those who need emotionally-based encouragement, as this book manages to combine the virtues of the head and the heart.

Ultimately, this book is like the voice of a warm and encouraging friend comforting those in trial to remain faithful and persistent in trials and to look at struggles in a spirit of gratitude for the growth that we can from them. We may never understand the reasons why we suffer in the ways that we do, or as much as we do, but we have to remember that God has a fair longer time frame than we do, and a far deeper perspective of what to give us and what to withhold from us for His purposes. Although there are some minor quibbles that one could have with this book, the book succeeds wonderfully in its purpose to simultaneously encourage people in questioning God as well as remaining faithful in the face of their questions and their doubts. Such a wonderful balance is a substantial achievement, and therefore any who are struggling with understanding God’s justice would find much to appreciate here. This is a book to be read, shared, and applied with enthusiasm and tenderness.

[Barbara Harper · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Jennifer Rothschild was 15 years old, she was blinded by Retinitis Pigmentosa, effectively killing her dreams of becoming an artist and cartoonist. Then, several years later, she experienced a time of deep depression which, as she put it, tore holes in her blanket of faith.

In God Is Just Not Fair: Finding Hope When Life Doesn’t Make Sense, Jennifer Rothschild explores from her Bible study and personal experiences the questions that often come up when experiencing some sort of trial or trauma: Does God care? Why did He allow this? Why did this person experience healing but I didn’t?

That last question, not only of unanswered prayer on my part, but of the very same prayer being answered in someone’s else’s life, can bring up questions of God’s fairness. Fairness doesn’t mean He does the exact same thing in every person’s life. We’re not robots or cookie cutter Christians: God works in our lives individually according to what He wants to do in us and how He wants to grow us and show Himself forth in our own circumstances and sphere of influence. And Jennifer turns this around to ask if it’s fair that we receive mercy and blessings instead of wrath for our sin. If we got what we truly deserved, we’d all be in trouble.

But Jennifer doesn’t tell us to therefore stifle our questions. She encourages us to bring them to light. We might not find answers to all of them, but we will for a few, and for the rest we can trust Him. Where He doesn’t give answers, He gives Himself.

There is so much good teaching here, it’s hard to sum it up. But I’ll give you a few examples:

If God allows you to wrestle with him, it is not so there will be a winner and a loser. He doesn’t need to prove he is stronger and you are weaker. No. The point of wrestling with God is to give you an opportunity to cling to him. God wants you to hang on to him no matter what — and the result will be blessing. You are blessed when you bring your hurts and questions to God and struggle with them in his presence. In that divine wrestling match, you may feel wounded, but you will also receive a blessing you couldn’t have received any other way.

He sometimes allows something bad in our lives to prevent something far worse in our lives. That is a wondrous work of God I cannot even see, because sometimes I have no idea how God is working on my behalf.

Being willing to thank God doesn’t mean you ignore what bothers you. It just means you are willing to look beyond what bothers you and see the good in a situation also.

Paul positioned gratitude as a choice, not a feeling. My friend, even when we don’t feel grateful, we can still be grateful.

Your difficulty can be hard enough, but the resentment or anger you drag along with it can be even more debilitating than the difficulty itself.

When we are enduring hardship, perhaps the better questions to focus on are not about the whom of suffering but about the how: • How will God use this redemptively in my life? • How will he use this loss for my gain? • How can I cooperate with my loving God’s master plan through this current suffering? • How can this possibly help me grow or change? The why of suffering is sometimes never answered. But to ask the how of suffering allows us to begin to see the beautiful redemption of what God can do in and through our suffering.

God’s ways may seem strange to us, but his ways do not have to live up to our standards or our analysis. He is who he is, and we are who we are. He is beyond error, perfect in all his ways. If his ways confuse or disappoint you, guard against the temptation to re-create him into a god you like better. You and I are to humble ourselves before him and seek to conform to his standard, not the other way around. He is sovereign and good, compassionate and merciful. If we do not accept God in his wholeness, we will never experience our own.

Ultimately, I trust God’s will to be best. He knows more, sees more, and loves more than I do.

Faith is the evidence of things unseen; instant response is not the evidence.

Unanswered prayers and prayers with disappointing answers can be greater gifts that getting what we thought we wanted.

He may allow your suffering to remain because he is using that hard thing to protect you from something far worse, preserve you for something far better, or provide for you what you don’t even realize you need. His apparent inactivity is not a sign that he is forgetful or lacks compassion, but rather an indication of his deep compassion and higher purpose for you.

God allows you to struggle, even though his power could prevent it, because his wise and compassionate authority knows that the benefit of your struggle far outweighs the comfort you may experience from his rescue.

God delivers us in different ways. Sometimes he protects us from awful things so we never have to endure them. Other times God delivers us by rescuing us or healing us. Sometimes God brings us through hard things —that’s also a form of God’s deliverance. But then there are the times that God, out of his great care for his children, delivers us out of the horror and into glory.

Thomas’s questions and doubts could have led him away from the Christ he loved and away from his friends who followed the Christ. But what a loss that would have been. Your questions and doubt can take you many places if you let them. They can take you down a road of cynicism, despair, or loneliness. But, my friend, what a waste of your doubts and questions! When you are full of questions and doubt, might you respond like Thomas? Might you stay connected with your friends who follow Christ? Will you take whatever faith or curiosity you have and channel it toward Christ himself? He welcomes questions, and he welcomes the questioner. He already knows your questions, but ask him anyway. Jesus won’t just give you the lesser gift of an answer; Jesus will give you himself because he is the answer…It was in the midst of Thomas’s honest struggles that Jesus revealed himself to Thomas. He will do that for you, too.

Being too self-focused makes every sorrow deeper, every problem bigger, and every slight more personal. It harms us and makes us forget God and others.

Never stop seeking; never stop walking with and toward him. Jesus invites us to keep taking steps toward him, even if every stepping-stone is in the shape of a question mark. As you continue to seek, don’t let theological information become a substitute for faith. Don’t let knowledge become a substitute for wisdom. And don’t seek God only for the answers he gives —seek God himself. Pursue an encounter with the God who loves you. Don’t settle for mere answers, my friend. Be satisfied with nothing less than God himself.

Every difficult, confusing season in life offers a choice. You can either surrender your questions and sorrow to God so he can use them, or you can surrender to bitterness and the enemy of your soul, who will use them against you. Don’t give him the weapons to hurt you.

The only quibble I noted or can remember is one phrase near the end of the book about “forgiving God if you need to.” God does no wrong, so He has no need of our forgiveness, and whenever I see that thought, it strikes me as a little pretentious. But what I think Jennifer is getting at is, don’t hold whatever God has permitted in our lives against Him. She speaks in the rest of this paragraph of trusting Him, being patient, and humbling ourselves before Him. As Jesus said, “And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me” (Matthew 11:6).

Because Jennifer has gone to the mat with these questions and wrestlings in her own life, her words are authentic rather than empty platitudes. And because she has sought the Scriptures and bases what she shares there, she can offer the only real hope we have: that God loves us, has a reason for everything He allows, will use it to develop us, and will give us the grace to go through it.

[RA Stone · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overview/Summary


God Is Just Not Fair is partly a personal memoir and partly a motivational book. The author was diagnosed with a degenerative eye disease in her teens. She is legally blind, and has a public ministry where she travels and speaks about her experiences. This book was inspired by her struggle with clinical depression. It wrestles with hard questions and resists the platitudes one might expect from a contemporary Christian text. In each chapter, the author begins by sharing some of her own questions and doubts. I expected the rest of each section to be full of neat packaged "lessons" regurgitated from a standard collection of things I've heard in church sermons for years. I was pleasantly surprised. The author combines examples from the Bible and stories about her own life, and then poses some more questions to her audience, but the book never feels like a tired church workshop or a Bible study.

What I Liked
• Rothschild never shies away from giving her audience the down and dirty, "real" picture of how she feels and what she struggles with.
• Her writing is genuine, straightforward and engaging.
• There are no easy answers in this book. Sometimes there aren't any answers at all, but Rothschild is good at helping her reader navigate the confusion and pain that come with needing an answer that doesn't come.
• As a person with a physical disability who has also struggled with depression, it was fantastic to read the affirming perspective of a woman with similar experiences. Mrs. Rothschild believes —like I do —that God can heal anyone but that doesn't always mean he will. She's also quite frank in her discussions about the ways in which depression affects a person's self-perception and perception of God.


What I Didn't Like

• The author interrupts her own narrative to "invite" her audience to accept Christ as savior. In the first place, the writer in me is still cringing. On a more serious note, though, I'm uncomfortable with proselytizing or trying to "recruit" people into a religion while they are in a place of deep vulnerability. It's one thing to express God's love and encourage the reader to learn more about him — even by giving additional Scripture references or suggesting other books to read. I think it's commendable that Rothschild says her audience can email her directly. I'm still very uncomfortable with the idea of putting a "trust Jesus now if you haven't already" speech right at a point where the reader is likely to be off balance.

If you want to read this book but don't want to be ambushed, the paragraph is in chapter 9 under the heading "A Question of Righteousness"

• Circular logic when making statements about God's character or any other teaching point where the author wanted to illustrate that a Bible quote could be trusted. The clearest example I can point to is in chapter 14 where the book discusses Job.

"Job’s story tells us a lot about human suffering and the character of God. Job was considered by all to be an upright man. He was faithful to God, his family, his work, and his community...Yet, he endured years of heartache and what seemed to be senseless tragedies..."

Rothschild goes on to detail Job's suffering and comment on how she would react in Job's situation, then she says,

"But despite everything he suffered, Job doesn’t accuse God of not caring. Instead, he makes this astonishing statement: “You have granted me life and lovingkindness; and Your care has preserved my spirit” (Job 10:12 NASB). Even though Job’s body was covered with sores and his soul covered with questions, he still affirmed God’s care for him..."

This quote and the larger section it comes from tell me a lot about Job's character and who Job believes God to be, but it doesn't actually tell me anything about God's character.

Circular logic like this:

"The Bible says this. And we know it's true because the Bible also says this, this, and this. Here is some analysis of the original Hebrew and Greek to show you what the words mean in their proper context."

doesn't actually mean anything outside of church culture.

I am a Christian and I share Rothschild's beliefs about God's character and the Bible as his inerrant revelation.

But since the book is addressed to a wider audience, it has to be effective for people who haven't been indoctrinated in church culture. That means circular arguments aren't going to fly.


Overall

I really like this book. I think it's a worthwhile read despite its weaknesses. I enjoyed the author's writing style, I could relate to her experiences, and I would have given the book a five star rating if not for the two problems I had with it.

If you're a Christian, neither of those things should be a dealbreaker for you. If you aren't, and you're still interested enough to read this book, you're probably already wrestling with a lot of the questions and problems that the book deals with. I'd encourage you to check it out, but do your own research if anything feels odd to you.



Disclaimer: I received a free e-book copy of this text from publisher through the BookLook Bloggers in exchange for my honest review.

[Carlin Nasiatka · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is like an honest friend sitting down with you and chatting over a cup of coffee while giving you the depth of theology that is on par with CS Lewis. The book is both comforting and challenging... If you, or someone you love has had to walk through suffering without visible answers from God, this book is one you won’t be able to put down or forget. Jennifer shares of her personal struggle with blindness, depression and doubt, and the hard won faith in her Heavenly Father.

[Kimberly Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Truly an inspiration!!

[James Pate · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jennifer Rothschild. God Is Just Not Fair: Finding Hope When Life Doesn’t Make Sense. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2013. (ePub: February 2014.)

Jennifer Rothschild is blind. She is also a Christian. This book is about her journey to cope spiritually with her blindness. She has wondered why others have been healed of their diseases, whereas God has not healed her of her blindness. She has felt guilt, thinking that she was a burden to others. She is learning to trust in God’s sovereignty and to focus on others. Because of her experience and her honesty, what she has to say does not come across as a pat answer, not in the least. This book contains advice that one can probably encounter elsewhere, but this book is still unique, on account of her stories, her humor, her likable personality, and her application of the Bible. (For the last one, I think particularly of her application of the Queen of Sheba story to the search for God.)

I’d like to highlight three things that I especially liked about this book. First of all, the book is praised and recommended by conservative Christians like Kirk Cameron and Kay Arthur, yet Jennifer Rothschild herself opens a chapter with a quotation of progressive evangelical Rachel Held Evans. That is meaningful to me, perhaps because of my affinity for both sides.

Second, I appreciate what Jennifer Rothschild says on page 79: “My friend, what you most long for is not proof of Jesus’ reality, but rather, the reality of Jesus’ presence.” That caught my attention, as one who has been reading Christian apologetics.

Third, I liked Jennifer Rothschild’s suggestions on how one can change one’s mindset from focusing on oneself to focusing on God and others. I do not cope with the challenges that Jennifer Rothschild does, but I do struggle with self-pity. Ordinarily, talk about reaching out to others turns me off, since I am a shy introvert. Jennifer Rothschild talked, however, about trying to orient one’s thoughts towards God and others and being available for service when called upon. That can be challenging, but at least it is fairly manageable to me.

I have been reading a chapter of this book for thirty days, one chapter per day. I will miss it somewhat, since it has been part of my life for about a month!

Note: I received a complimentary review copy of this book (as an e-book) through the BookLook Bloggers (http://booklookbloggers.com/) book review bloggers program. The program does not require for my review to be positive, and my review reflects my honest reaction to the book.

[Sally · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everyone asks tough questions of God. God are you there? God do you hear me pray? God have you forgotten I’m your child? Have you ever asked those questions? In Jennifer Rothschild’s book “God Is Just Not Fair”. These questions and many more will be explored and answered Biblically.

Being a fan of MS Rothschild’s Bible Study programs, I was eager to read this book. I have to say I think this would be a great addition to the Bible Study, “Missing Pieces”. In my opinion it goes hand and hand with that study. As MS Rothschild explores the questions we may ask God, the answers may not be what we want, but they are Biblically based. Human nature wants us to have answers immediately and what we want, but she shows us by the scripture that God always answers in his time and his answers are perfect.

She also shows that when you are hurting it is ok to. 1. Cry, 2. Trust God more than your feelings and 3. Choose loyalty over logic. I love that it’s ok to CRY! For me it seems to bring a cleansing to my soul. She also teaches when we are angry we should ask questions of our anger such as does it serve me well? Does it change my situation? Does it enhance my relationship with God? Who does my anger really hurt? As you turn the pages of this book you will find the answers to those questions.

“God Is Just Not Fair” will take you on a journey such as you have never been on before and once you finish the book, you will realize that sometimes prayer doesn’t change life….it will change your heart. You will also learn there is nothing in life that you can face that Jesus has not already experienced when He gave His life on the cross.

Caution: This book will cause deep soul searching, tears, a longing for a closer walk with God and maybe even a revelation of the person you really are and definitely whom you could become with God in control.

Disclosure: I was given a copy of this eBook by, NetGalley blogger review program for an honest review. I was not required to write a favorable review nor was I compensated for my review. The opinions in this review are my own.

[Jennifer Donovan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jennifer Rothschild lost her sight over time, starting as a teenager. That is the basis of her story about finding hope and working through her doubts. She also shares about a period of extreme depression, and brings in stories from others who have suffered other trials such as illness, loss of a loved one, job or relationship disappointments.

I generally am not one to question God. I trust His sovereignty, and I know that I do not "deserve" an easy life, so this isn't necessarily a book I would have picked up. I don't think it's wrong to question, but I just usually don't. If you do, Jennifer R. is very honest with her own times of questioning and working through them, and you'll find great encouragement.

The reason I decided to buy it is because I read two excerpts and they were both excellent, and so encouraging. I'm glad I did, because I learned more about God than I have in a long time.

This is an incredible book, and I'm recommending it to everyone I know right now, especially those who are going through some sort of trial.

[Stephanie Mccall · Rating 4 out of 5]

I often choose books because I can relate to something in them. In the case of Christian nonfiction, I often choose books because they speak to something I am going through or want to know more about. In this case, both were true.

Jennifer and I have both felt that God isn't fair. For her, it was because she lost her sight to retinitis pigmentosa. For me, it was because I have mild CP, and because, mild as my disability is, people have constantly underestimated, belittled, and judged me for it. Just reading the chapter headings gave me fresh hope, because I realized I wasn't the only one saying things like, "God, if you're listening, make a move!" "Do you still see and care about me?" Jennifer convicted me and showed me important truths but didn't make me feel like I was being disrespectful or whining. Instead, she acknowledges that at times, we will feel God is not fair. She also makes a great distinction between fairness and justice that, months later, I still keep in mind. I would recommend this book to anyone going through anything unfair, and anyone working daily to determine where Christian faith fits in.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an amazing book! We all have times in our lives where we feel God is just not fair or we don't even think he's paying attention, but he is! This book spoke to my heart because doubt is always creeping up in my thoughts that I always wondered where was God when I needed him most. This book makes you think. It makes your heart beat again with faith. This is a must read.

[Lydia Broadus · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dare I say my favorite book I’ve ever read. I want to recommend it to everyone in my life who’s going through something, has questions, or needs encouragement. This is the safest book to be sad, mad, disheartened, scared, literally every emotion. Truly feels like the author gets it and puts into words things I have never heard anyone else do. 10/10 recomend x1000.

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent book on gaining a better perspective on suffering and what God’s greater purposes may be in and through it. I have read several books on suffering and I would put this at the top of my recommended list.

[Hannah Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is phenomenal. Would recommend to anyone who has struggled with the lord during the hard times (aka everyone) and people who have questions as to god’s provisions for us. What a wise woman, and a bomb af Ollie’s find

[Kaitlyn Marie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book didn’t do a lot for me. As someone with grew up Christian, and has had doubts in my adult life (mainly due to traumas that occurred in my adulthood), I was hopeful this book would speak to me more. I’m glad it has resonated with so many other people, though!!

[Lora Barnett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

Reading books by Jennifer is like talking with a friend. She’s endured her share of hardships but makes hardships understandable. She is a wonderful teacher who brings me closer to God.

[Jacqlyn Hewell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. Learning to shift our focus from our perception to God's reality is the key to overcoming every situation we face.

[Lynette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thought provoking and easy to read. A good reminder that God is with me in all I face in life, I just need to seek him.

[A.C. Cuddy · Rating 5 out of 5]

God Is Just Not Fair by Jennifer Rothschild

“Do you believe God is just not fair? If you’re like Jennifer Rothschild, you wrestle with question when you experience painful circumstances. Does God care? Does he hear my prayers? Is he even there? Having become blind as a teenager, Jennifer overcame daunting obstacles, found strength in God and launched a successful speaking and writing ministry. Then in her forties, everything changed.

This is a book about finding more than just answers; it’s for anyone who needs hope when life doesn’t make sense – for all who reach for a God who feels distant.”

You’ve heard it, I’ve heard it… gosh I’ve even said it myself and you probably have too. Why does God let bad things happen? Where was God when we got that cancer diagnosis? Why didn’t He heal him? With all the injustice in the world, so much pain and suffering… God where are you? Do you not care? Are you really there God? These are the huge questions that we all wonder and sometime ask out loud. These are the questions that people of faith rarely have an answer to.

In this book, God is Just Not Fair, we are privy to the author’s yearlong battle with a deep depression. It is on the other side of that season that she opens her journal for us and gives us an unvarnished look at her darkest time and the lessons she learned along the way.

Using her own life experiences, the author probes six big questions of faith – God … are you fair? Did you err? Do you hear prayer? Do you care? Are you aware? Are you there? While every difficult, confusing season in life offers a choice, you can either surrender your questions and sorrow to God so he can use then, or you can surrender to bitterness and the enemy of your soul, who will use them against you. The choice is yours.

This is not just a book to read and move to the bookshelf. This is a book to keep at hand for when your own hard seasons come along and I highly recommend it.

To learn more about this book and the author, Jennifer Rothschild, go to: https://www.jenniferrothschild.com/th...

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

*Reviews of this book were posted at the following locations:
Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Deeper Shopping, and to be featured on my blog at http://titus3.wordpress.com

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

In her latest book, God is Just Not Fair, Jennifer explores the questions we all want to ask. As painful circumstances arise, we all wrestle with the lack of understanding we seem to poses as to His sovereign plan. We struggle with pain, loss, and obstacles, lamenting to our Father, and asking, pleading "why?" with no tangible answer to hold on to. Broken into six sections, she not only explores these inquires, but how God answers our hearts cries. She speaks hope and strength into times of trial, and points to God's purpose when we may lack the sight to see His plan, or our ears seem only to hear silence.
"Meaning can exist in the absence of understanding, even if the why of our circumstances is never answered."
One of my favorite parts of the book lies at the conclusion of each "part" of question. Jennifer talks about the idea of your "Blanket of Faith" and provides "Threads of Truth" to mend our blankets together when we feel as through it may unravel, asserting God's gracious heart that yearns to be in relationship with each and ever one of us. Each verse of scripture in these sections are perfect reminders of how God remains faithful to His children during every moment and each season of our lives.

read more at http://www.simplyfreeblog.com/2014/03...

[Rachel Lundy · Rating 4 out of 5]

God Is Just not Fair is written by Jennifer Rothschild, who started going blind at the age of 15 and has now been blind for over 25 years. A few years ago she really struggled in her faith and was battling depression and questioning God. In this book she writes about her struggle and shares the answers she has found to some big questions of faith. The first question she tackles is “God, are you fair?” Jennifer comes to the conclusion that “thankfully, God is not fair.” He “does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities” (Psalm 103:10). He gives grace that is far beyond what we deserve!

Other questions Jennifer answers are:
• God, do you err?
• God, do you hear prayer?
• God, do you care?
• God, are you aware?
• God, are you there?

This is a good book for those who are struggling in their faith, especially those who have chronic illnesses or disabilities. Jennifer comes alongside the reader, giving help and encouragement as one who knows what it is like to struggle with big questions.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I pick up a book that addresses the issue of suffering and understanding God and His ways in suffering, I want to know the author's bonafides. Jennifer became blind as a teenager and struggled again with her blindness and depression in her forties. As a result, her experiences were able to speak to me as I felt like she had truly been through it and was going through it. The best part about this book is that it isn't filled with pat answers. The author recognized the real struggles and the real questions and doesn't skirt them but encourages the reader to trust God and be willing to live within the mystery of an inscrutable God who loves them.

[Christel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Some favorite quotes:

"Often our prayers are a way to corral our emotions to keep them from crushing our hearts."

"His compassions will not fail. So do not fail to expect them. You will not be consumed by fear when you are consumed by the truth that God cares."

"Note the precision of the statement: 'He must increase, but I must decrease.' It's a shift of focus. We do not ignore our pain or dismiss our sorrow. We do not neglect or debase ourselves. We just shift our focus. Instead of focusing on me and me alone, I glance at me and gaze at Jesus."

[Vincent · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is great! If you have ever wondered why and how come bad things happen to good people then this is book for you. I found myself agreeing with much of what she said and her approach is friendly and inviting. I only wish I would have found this book sooner. The way she sets up that God can deliver you from something, through something or to something and still be gracious is awesome.

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Used this book for a small group at church and it was helpful as a 6 week tool and resource. Thanks Jennifer!

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book in small portions so I could take in all the lessons. I love Jennifer and her story of God's power in life through blindness and now depression. God is strong enough to handle our pain and struggles. We must remember who He is and all His promises as we face whatever life brings us.

[Katie Axelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like Jennifer Rothschild. She’s got a lot of powerful things to say and, being blind, a different way at look at life. Unfortunately, most of her ideas aren’t new to me but that doesn’t make them bad reminders.

[Ruthie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great book by Jennifer. I love her refreshing approach. She is focused, insightful, spiritually grounded, positive, and uplifting. Check her out. You'll be glad you did.

[Diane Perry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this a personal Bible Study and I got so many of my questions answered. Jennifer's honesty in this book really hit home. This was the perfect time in my life to read this.

[Hank Pharis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is very well written and practical. I've read at least a couple of dozen books on suffering and this one more than another emphasizes our response to suffering.

[Patti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book opened my eyes

I was looking for something to help me find my way in my faith. This book open my eyes to new strategies and a new understanding of Christianity

[Sarah Tummey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so helpful. When wrestling with hard questions, this encouraged me to cling onto God - not turn my back on Him.