Craving Hope: A Spiritual Companion on Your Weight Loss Journey
Joni Woelfel has been there: She’s faced the dreaded scale, debated the merits of the latest fad diet, and struggled to stop the yo-yo effect of dieting. What she has learned is that for all the emphasis on the science o. . . More >>
Craving Hope: A Spiritual Companion on Your Weight Loss Journey
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Joni Woelfel has written an amazing selection of books about overcoming difficulties in her life. From chronic illness, suicide and living alone. This latest book is a worthy addition to the library.
In her latest book Craving Hope, Joni Woelfel has another winner! It is full of the candid views into her life, spiritual struggles, and ultimate triumph we have come to expect from her books. A difficult subject to share on such an intimate basis, but Joni has done that successfully.
In the beginning she evokes an image of the brick wall built by her spouse and son, intended to demarcate a sanctuary. She alludes to the wall throughout the book, both as a symbol of the journey and the sanctuary. It is the visual many of us need.
The format is different from most of her previous books and we find a very interactive style.
I highly recommend this book and encourage anyone thinking about, working on, or just needing encouragement about a weight-loss program to buy this book. You will find encouragement form a kindred soul!
Rating: 5 / 5
Hey, I’ll take all the help I can get with my personal weight loss journey – and this is exactly what Woelfel’s book is all about. This book provides extra motivation and makes you think about your emotional and spiritual state. I love the daily reflection questions and that fact that there is room in the book to write down your thoughts every day. I have tried many diets and know what I should & shouldn’t be doing regarding diet and exercise. The problem is that you have to be mentally and spiritually ready to make the commitment, and more importantly, to stay with it. Woefel’s book has been helping me and it will help you too!
Rating: 5 / 5
On her web site, Joni Woelfel explains that her work has always risen out of what she needed to learn. In the introduction to this, her sixth book, she writes of researching the spirituality of weight loss “through the lens of an investigative reporter. ” No question the material is well researched, but it is also presented in an organized format appropriate to the subject matter. As one would expect, Woelfel recommends using the book in conjunction with a sound program based on healthy diet and exercise. She has also included five workbook lessons for small group use.
Woelfel breaks her personal 90-day journey into 10 stages, starting with Becoming Ready. A single stage consists of nine days presented with a heading; quotation from scripture and various other sources; reflection question with space for notes; affirmation; prayer; and mantra. For example, Stage Five, Understanding Struggle, begins with a discussion of plateaus on Day 37. The day’s topic, When Nothing Is Happening, opens with a quote from author Kathleen Norris who writes of the need to “wrestle” with the high plains region of the Dakotas “before it bestows a blessing. ” Woelfel’s theme is “one of those blasé, it’s-hard-to-get-up-off-the-couch type days when motivation has gone on vacation. ” She offers several suggestions, including visiting a friend and undertaking a craft project. The reflection question addresses physical and spiritual plans for dealing with plateaus. The daily affirmation reads: “Becoming despondent over a period where exercise and diet don’t appear to be working ignores the greater reason for the journey in the first place. ” In her closing prayer, Woelfel asks God’s help in grasping lessons and insights that arise from waiting. The daily mantra is “I will value the experience of “just being. ”
Woelfel’s journal also reports on progress of a fascinating wall-building project inspired by her desire to “visually portray the spiritual interconnectedness we receive as we enter the fullness of God. ”
Rating: 4 / 5