Customer Reviews

Stronger Than You Think: Becoming Whole Without Having to Be Perfect. A Woman's Guide

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Kim Gaines Eckert's ideas are thoughtfully presented in this new and sometimes surprising guide for women. Her writing is fluid throughout. I believe men and women will find her voice to be authentic and the advice, while accessible, well beyond the typical parlor psychology one finds in many "self-help" books.

She also seems to understand the inherent limitations of a mass-appeal life guide; avoiding the common mistake of trying to do too much within the scope of a single text. Instead, she succeeds in creating a solid handbook for navigating some of the more sensitive and complex contemporary issues related to women's overall wellbeing. In particular, her discussion of female sexuality is a virtuoso performance. This chapter alone is worth the price of the book.

Eckert seamlessly weaves practical counseling with illuminating narrative to convince the reader that brokenness is not hopelessness. Her presentation is an elegant three-way balance of strong personal faith, solid empirical research, and clinical methodology. Eckert is insightful without grandiosity; helpful without condescension; and vulnerable without torturing the reader with endless feet-of-clay anecdotes. I commend her book to anyone who enjoys listening to intelligent women talk about important issues.

Stronger Thank You Think is, put simply, a book about empowerment of a woman using a Christian basis. If you are going through a difficult time in your life regarding aspects such as depression, career shifts, motherhood, family issues, and/or abuse and want a God-centered approach to assist you with those problems (and more), this book is definitely for you. However, for me to say or for you think that this book is simply another "Christian women's issues" book would be a grave mistake. This book does deal with the more common issues facing most women today and does deal with those problems from a Christian perspective; however, the author also manages to do a splendid job of actually giving the reader practical advice that goes very far beyond the traditional advice of "pray through it and things will change".
It is this practical advice that makes this a book that is fully capable of standing on its own when being read and used by someone who is not a Christian or may want something more than the traditional apporach. The author does a great job of making this book have a more "personal" feel to it with the practical way that this book is presented as well due to the case studies that are placed throughout the eleven chapters of this book. The practical and personal feel of this book is further enhanced by the reflection questions at the end of the book (each set of questions corresponding with its respective chapter). Add to this personal and practical feel the interactive approach that the reflection questions and the author's very reader-friendly way of writing, and Stronger Than You Think is definitely not like other books that one might typically read on women's issues.
The main focus of Stronger Than You Think is the general brokeness that all of us (men and women) have within our lives and the desire that we all have to be whole. This book does an equisite job of staying on that track without going off on wild tangents or trying to throw a bunch of psychological jargon around to make a point. The author uses everyday language in a very readable manner to get her points across, and it is this readability that makes this book suitable for the high-school dropout as much as the Ph.D or the CEO. The "accessibility" of this book also makes it reader-friendly for men. This is done by giving some very useful insight into the psychology and issues of many women with the books subject manner in general as well as the reflection questions being gender-friendly overall. Realstically, how many books about women can be given that praise in relation to men.
If you are looking for a very jargon-laden book that reads like a traditional textbook, this book is not for you. However, if you are looking for a book that is going to give you practice advice in how to help yourself become more open to who you are and what drives you towards becoming more of a whole being through "being real" with yourself in a practical and/or spiritual way, this book is definitely one that you should own.

There are so many Christian "self-help" books on the market written for women about relationships, marriage, personal problems, depression, sexuality, prayer life, etc. However this book is very different. "Stronger Than You Think" does address many of these issues, but the overall theme of the book in not self-help or how-to steps, it is celebrating the brokenness we all experience in our lives and how God can lead us to wholeness.

The author is well qualified to write on the subject material. I feel like a lot of Christian books for women are just written by a "stay-at-home mother of three" or the wife of a pastor or someone else who may not have as much credibility. Kim Gaines Eckert is a wife and mother, but she is also a clinical psychologist and a professor of psychology with a Doctorate degree. To me, this made her writing not only more credible, but it was also backed up with the knowledge and experience of a very educated and accomplished professional.

Despite her professional education and experience, the author writes in a very "readable" manner. She draws from her teaching and counseling practice, but also includes many personal stories of her own pain and brokenness. Among my favorite personal stories she shares are when she was a preteen and no one came to her birthday party (who hasn't experienced adolescent humiliation!), her struggles with weight and body image, and the tragic story of a friend who became paralyzed in an accident. The author also includes a lot of examples of women she has seen in counseling that I could relate to: women who struggle with a sense of self or using their voice. In addition, Eckert includes Bible verses, song lyrics, quotes from Pipher and other groundbreaking psychologists, and many references to prominent Christian authors such as Oswald Chambers and Brennan Manning. References such as these help the reading flow and encourage readers to connect to the material.

I highly recommend "Stronger Than You Think" to every woman, and also to men. For those of us who feel incomplete, somehow not quite right, and just plain imperfect, the book allows us to learn that our brokennes can be used by God in the lives of others. This book helped me to discover and share who I really am with others, and for that I am grateful.

This is a beautiful book that will benefit both men and women alike. It explores the inner working of a woman and it will serve as an important mode of knowing about yourself (if you are a woman) and it will also help those who work and live with and have women in their lives.
I absolutely loved it!

Kim's book has a mature spiritual content that interacts with our human condition in a very meaningful manner. God is using her to touch women's lives so they can become complete as He designed us.

Kim's discussion of a woman's role in the church was very enlightening. Oftentimes I am disappointed my husband did not have the opportunity to hear messages delivered by some of the gifted women at our church. She also gives examples of how the church really does not always have a place where women of various gifts can fellowship and minister to others. Maybe it is time we once again read God's Word with an open mind and see what is "tradition" and what is "scriptural".

As I read the chapter on brokenness, it really spoke to me in my hurry to find just the right scripture for my friend who is suffering. I thought I was doing the Christian, loving thing but now I realize that I need to pray for God's timing in sharing His Word. Just being there and crying together may be the greatest way of loving my friend. This was a real lesson to me.

I am challenged to do many things now that I have always felt I was not capable of doing. God might have gifted Moses with words and miracles, but He surely would not have given me that extra help. Kim Gaines Eckert has helped me realize that God created me whole and only my own mind has set my limitations. With His help, I can be what He created me to be.

As I read each chapter, I was disappointed to see it end. I hope to see more books from this author. I highly recommend this book to anyone trying to be more than they thought they could be--which should include everyone!

Kim Eckert ventures deep into a woman's heart & soul. Having seen myself on many pages, I found her wise counsel enlightening and helpful. Toni, Fl.

I am never good with words and have thought very hard about what I would write in this little review on amazon. I guess I will just have to hope my words are written for the best.

This book has the potential to be absolutely life changing. It was for me. I was both challenged and refreshed by the contents in the book. I feel that this book is a must read for both women AND men. Women can face many issues that are prevelant today in the life of a woman, and men can understand women a little bit better. The questions for group discussions in the back of the book provide a great way to discuss and learn from others as well. It's a great asset to the book and I encourage every reader to find at least a small group to study this book for discussion.

What is so amazing about Dr. Eckert is that she is a female who has struggled with the very things that are discussed within this book and knows there are many other women who struggle with them as well.(Many times books on women are written by males who have limited experience with their topic) Not only that, she is a book of knowledge when it comes to women. I have the honor of knowing Dr. Eckert and consider her to be the most passionate person I know when it comes to others. Her passion for others' lives is incorporated into this book. She has applied the wisdom she has acquired through Christ, past experiences, work, etc. so that many will be encouraged and challenged to face some tough questions and ideas raised, especially within the church. Some of my favorite chapters are on negative self talk and body image issues. She doesn't just write about the problems, but gives advise on how to approach and change these problems.

Eckert has also included many amazing quotes from other authors as well that are very moving. She uses real examples from the experience she has had as a therapist to correlate to certain ideas she presents. In short, I could go on and on about why you should buy, read, and study this book. You will be missing out on many inspiring messages if you choose not to read this amazing work. There really is no better way for me to put it than that.

This book provides a practical approach to many challenges women face today. Working though the book and using the tools at the end of each chapter has given me a fresh perspective on what it means to be a Christian woman in today's world. I highly recommend this book.

A great read, this book was very practical and smart. Eckert gets to the heart of the matter with her personal stories and years of experience as a Christian mental health professional. A great book for a study group or a women's ministry. I think this book would be a great read for conversation and connection in any group trying to go deeper in their relationships.

Great book to read with another female friend as recommended by the book. Great read, will spark some great discussions!