Hope in the Hard Places: How to Survive When Your World Feels Out of Control

by Sarah Beckman

Hope in the Hard Places is a practical, encouraging guidebook for the weary soul looking for hope in dark circumstances. In this life, everyone must face trials. Cancer, chronic illness, loss of a loved one, divorce, depression, prodigal children, caring for aging parents, and other unknown terrains can cause people to feel hopeless and helpless. For those who feel like they don’t know where to turn, Hope in the Hard Places equips readers to walk through their trial with hope rather than desperation. Sarah Beckman, a speaker and author, teaches effective and powerful ways to get through the pain with biblical truths and principles. She also includes insight from others who have experienced all manner of trials. Packed with practical strategies, checklists, encouragement, wisdom from seasoned travelers, and rock-solid biblical truth, Hope in the Hard Places provides a beacon of hope in the darkness so that readers can walk through the depths of hardship with insight, dignity, and certainty.

Genres: Nonfiction

216 pages, Paperback

Published March 5, 2019

Reviews

[Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book will show you how to get through the hard places of life with hope. Everybody has some kind of hard trial at one time or another in their life and needs help. This book is full of scriptures and life stories to help you. This is a book you will read more than once and share with a friend. I received an ARC copy of this book and it was so good I pre-ordered a copy to share. If you are someone you know is feeling like all hope is gone, get this book. I can't say enough good thing about this book! This is my honest opinion and I highly recommend it!

[Melissa Henderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

An uplifting, encouraging book filled with practical wisdom and ways to find hope when hope seems lost. A great resource for anyone who is journeying a tough time in life. Whether illness, relationship, spiritual or other issues, the author provides Scripture, personal experiences and more that offer ways to find hope. Excellent book to be read again and again and to give as a gift. I received a complimentary copy of this book. No review was required.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such an uplifting and inspiring book, from the beginning to the end. One of my favorite quotes... "God will always do His part to nurture us into a more real picture of what He intended our nature to be from the start."
#Isaiah3021

[Greta Schrock · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful and encouraging book. Full of tips and action steps that will guide and direct you when you are struggling in the midst of hard times. We live in a fallen world that presses us from all sides but there is help in navigating through it and there is ONE who is the HOPE for all of us and we can trust Him to bring good out of the struggle. This book will help you connect to hope in many ways including The Hope.

[Jodie Pine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an advanced copy of this book and want to recommend it as a great resource for those who are struggling through any kind of hardship. It's full of relevant stories, encouraging passages to hold on to, and practical tips from choosing a focal point to forming a support team to having a ready answer to those outside your immediate circle who don't need to know all the details of your crisis.

"As we wander through our own deserts, God wants us to trust Him to deliver exactly what we need each day, both literally and figuratively." Sarah skillfully unpacks what it means to turn to God, to seek help, and to humbly receive what we need to survive and even thrive in those difficult desert times when it's crucial to have truth-tellers and mat-bearers bring us to Jesus.

[Alyssa Crews · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sarah Beckman really digs deep into the survival skills needed for you and the hard place(s) you are going through. I found myself consistently shaking my head to what she is saying. Most of the time I think I am the only person in the world that feels the way I do. Many of us have very similar hard places that we are or have dealt with before. Sarah's book brings you to a sense of peace and gives you hope. You will be ok! No matter what happens in your life.

[Barb Gaines · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ahhhhhh! I just finished reading Hope in the Hard Places and it was like sitting next to a dear friend walking me through a painful situation. Sarah Beckman skillfully shares helpful steps for those dealing with crises in their lives and you can just feel her caring arm wrapped around your shoulder. Grab a cup of tea and maybe, a tissue or two, and spend some time learning to navigate your challenges in life.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hope in the Hard Places is an uplifting book with stories that help the reader see hope when everything seems lost. This book is a great resource for someone going through a difficult season in life. Whether you find yourself dealing with an illness, relationship issue, physical ailment, aging parent or anything else, the author gives hope through the scriptures. I received a complimentary copy of this book and review was not required.

[Crystal A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book! Sarah Beckman demonstrates how to find hope and healing when your life is in a downward spiral. Very enjoyable, encouraging and insightful reading.

[Jill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Our faith is not dependent on our circumstances. Sometimes living our faith is hard.  Health problems, marital issues, death and more test our faith. Sarah Beckman, author of "Hope in the Hard Places", shows us how to walk through trials with hope.

I finished "Hope in the Hard Places" on the day a tornado slammed through a local community causing death and destruction.  Everyone in our area has been affected in one way or another by this tragedy that has left many homeless.  While our community and neighbor communities are coming to their aid with supplies, equipment and a willingness to set aside their personal agendas and help those who are grieving and in need, the world gets to see the hands and feet of Christ as they rebuild and recover.

Beckman's book offers a wealth of advice to people going through hard places as well as those who want to help them. She used her personal experience along with the wisdom gleaned from others to help readers ask and receive the help they need discerning both the right and the wrong people to help them and change their mindset from helpless to hopeless.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free as part of Lindsey Hartz Creative Author Ambassadors Launch Team.  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.”

[Katie Fischer · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you have entered into trying times, or are walking alongside someone who is, I would strongly recommend this book. Honestly, if you haven't been through something like that, I would still recommend it. It is full of practical information and advice, many things I would not have even considered. Better to think of these things when you are not in crisis-mode, if you can help it. Sarah Beckman brings a lot of experience with difficult times, not only personally but as someone who has watched friends and family go through those challenges. For those of us that don't always know how to respond to people during times of crisis, I was grateful for her suggestions on what to say in difference situations. I really appreciated how she used Scripture to back up her ideas. I also enjoyed reading the real-life examples that were shared by her, her friends, and those she interviewed in preparation for this book. It was a well-written, easy read. Not to be missed! I am so thankful that I received an advance copy of the book from the publisher!

[Michelle Welch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hope in the Hard Places by Sarah Beckman is her follow up to Alongside: A Practical Guide to Loving Your Neighbor in Their Time of Trial. Using scripture, stories from dozens of fellow travelers, as well as her own times of doubt and hardship, Sarah takes the reader on a step by step journey of how to find and hold on to hope while in the midst of life's inevitable trials and tribulations. With reminders that "God is not afraid of your why" and "Gratitude is a decision", Hope in the Hard Places talks of the real, the difficult, and the Holy. With a step by step packing guide to help prepare for those hard places, Sarah has written an indispensable book for every "valley" traveler. In particular, I loved the chapter on how to build a team of "traveling buddies" for your hard times. Sometimes it can be hard to know just who should be walking beside you. The scriptures and biblical references are also spot on and incredibly useful. This book is a great resource for counselors, pastors, and church libraries.

[Mona Kach · Rating 5 out of 5]

After having read Sarah’s book, Alongside, I had high expectations that this would also be a very helpful book especially for women. I was not disappointed. This book has made an incredible impact on my life in helping me walk through a difficult part of life. Because of what was transpiring in my life as I was reading this book, I was amazed to see how God’s timing of its reading was what I needed at this very moment. I found great help and hope through her advice, sharing, and experience. This will be a book that I read multiple times and recommend often to others. The timely reading of the last chapter and even the last few words, “Even if” made an incredible impact upon me. I am thankful that Sarah has been willing to share herself so that women all around the globe can find help in the hope that God offers to us in our journey often fraught with pain, hardship, and disappointment. How interesting that my theme word for this year was hope. I could never have planned it quite the way God did.

[Patricia Tiffany Morris · Rating 5 out of 5]

UPDATEDL Finished book on May 27, 2019. : I am not yet finished reading this treasure, but I am ready to write this review and give 5 stars for what I have read so far. This is a difficult topic. But the author’s compassion and empathy shines in this book. A heart-rending place we all find ourselves treading water. I am grateful for authors who pour their lives into hope spaces and tough subjects so readers and young and mature believers can maneuver through the rough seas of the world's turmoil together. Survive with Hope in Jesus Christ and read before your world feels out of control if you haven't yet experienced places of lost or misplaced hope. I have a friend, Jesus Christ, and some earthly friends, who walk with me during my tough seasons. This book is a wonderful, heart changing path building journey, I can't wait to finish. You won't regret your investment into your spiritual journey and way of hope in the hard places of your life.

[Ashlie Hogan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sarah Beckman writes this book from such a personal place of reflection and introspection that it allows the reader to see her humility as she tells her own stories of dark places and helps the reader to see that there is a way to peace, restoration, and Hope. This book feels like you went over to that good friends house, poured your heart out, and that friend said, “Me too, I have been there, and I know there is hope on the other side.” The biblical references are so clear and poignant that the reader knows the author trusts the word of God and what he says to be true.

I would highly recommend this to anyone who has felt like they are in the valley of despair and looking for the light to shine into the dark places in their heart.

[Angelina Jade · Rating 5 out of 5]

Encouraging, uplifting and emotional help where needed. Mrs Sarah has put so much in this book it will be one I can read again and again and the Lord will show me exactly what I need over and over again. I truly enjoyed reading this book. It was hard to put in down being able to relate to those people in the book in so many ways and then seeing how and what they did in their times of sadness worry, depression, morning, all of it has helped me tremendously. I am grateful for a book that finally has feeling and Mrs Sarah was not afraid to put them all out there in the hopes that it would help someone (and let me tell you, she did). You will be happy you read this! Get your copy today and you will see what a blessing it is!

[Shelley Sisson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hope in the Hard Places by Sarah Beckman
Is your life in a downward spiral? Are you facing the trail of your life? Have you suffered trauma? “Finding hope in the midst of navigating the hard times is a choice—a difficult, soul- and gut-wrenching choice. But often, we don’t know how to grasp for hope when we are caught in the undertow of anger, fear, and hopelessness. Even if we don’t get our earthly “happy ending,” journeying well is imperative.” Sarah walks alongside you to help you navigate this path you find yourself on. This is an uplifting read with plenty of Scripture to keep you grounded on your journey.

I was provided an ARC of this book in return for my honest review.

[SJ Garrison · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. The author shares things she has gone through while helping the reader find hope in the hard times. If you can read this book before you are in the hard places, you will be well equipped. But it is still very useful even while in the hard times. I discovered my need to figure out who is my people I want with me during the hard places. Each section is started with the perfect scriptural quote that embodies that section. I highly recommend to everyone, because no one has ever gone through life without troubles.

[Loretta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who has not been through a difficult time? You know from experience that there is such a need for encouragement and often no time or energy to seek it out.
This practical resource provides a companion for the hurting. It’s an easy read with advise you can apply. It’s clear the author has lived difficult days and speaks from experience.
This is a great book to have on-hand for sharing with those who are struggling. It’s tone is one of encouragement never preachy or bossy.

I did read an advance copy of this book. However, it did not influence my review.

[Ellie Jean · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was lucky enough to be given a pre release copy of this book. Through chronic illness and more drama than one's life is probably supposed to have, my life is in a permanent hard place. A guide book on what to do is exactly what I needed. But not what I got. Sure, plenty of guidance, but mostly advice from a comforting, friendly soul. It sent me to the right places in the Bible for comfort without being preachy. I will be turning to this book often in the future.

[Shari · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Hope in the Hard Places" is a book unlike any other I have read before. While at the time of this writing I am not personally going through a "Hard Place", I assure you that if you are, THIS IS THE book for you (or a loved one). Sarah's writing is full of her wit, meaningful true stories, and oh so very tangible, poignant, applicable, and ready to be used NOW strategies & advice that not only come from her heart but most importantly, The Word of God.

[Trish Topmiller · Rating 5 out of 5]

An encouragement during trials. Hope in the Hard Places is a great tool for those going through difficult times and to come alongside those struggling with a trial. Sarah has definitely experienced hard times so I knew I wasn't alone in my struggles. The inspiring scripture encourages you and makes you realize it's OK to get help. Shows you how to set boundaries during trials, how to help others and how to receive help yourself. I have bought it for a friend going through a hard time too.

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Admittedly I have wanted to read this book for a while, but I find it amusing that I would read it when I need it the most.

I highly recommend purely if you’re anxious during the CIVID-19 outbreak. Yes it’s Christian and has Bible verses, but read this during a time of high stress and high anxiety as you stay home (please stay home unless absolutely necessary and thank you if you have to work). It will help.

I’m still anxious, but this helped me obtain a better grip on it.

[Lisa P Clement · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are struggling with a difficult time in your life then this book is a must read. Such a great resource for you or someone you know. You kind of feel like you are sitting with a friend who is encouraging you and pointing you to scripture.
I highly recommend it.
I received an advanced copy from the publisher and this is my honest opinion.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hope in the Hard Places is a must-read if you or someone you know are going thru hard times. It's a book that is easy to read, yet needs to be absorbed and put into practice. You can put any of the practices to use, and refer to it as needed.

[Amanda Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, this book is absolutely a blessing. When you have found yourself in a spot where you question why? Why me? And you feel like nothing is going right, GET THIS BOOK!! You will not regret it!

[Nathan Wagner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book! The top three ideas I'm applying to my life are "have a focal point," "pray truth," and "finding the green." Thank you for the encouragement.

[Krista · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some similarities to her Alongside book but unique in other ways.

[Heidi Hogan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good advice as well as biblical counsel for a variety of issues facing anyone.
A book I will keep on hand as a resource.

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Filled with uplifting verses and encouraging truths. Practical tips of what to say or not say.