Amy Hollingsworth - Gifts of Passage: What the Dying Tell Us with the Gifts They Leave Behind

E NDORSEMENTS FOR Gifts of Passage

In this compelling book, Amy Hollingsworths remarkable gift with words unfolds a thesis that is both powerful and gentle: there are gifts left at the time of passage. The outcome is a wonderfully comforting perspective on lifes final transition.

SQ UIRE R USHNELL, BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF When God Winks

Amy Hollingsworth has given us a wonderful gift in this book, enabling us to view death from a new and different perspective, which is a rare gift indeed. I can honestly say I have never thought about discerning the gifts that loved ones wanted to give us before their deaths, whether intentionally or unintentionally. Yet it makes perfect sense to me now, for they do want desperately to give us one last gift before they die. Hollingsworth uses stories, literature, dreams, and biblical examples to awaken in us the desire and even a sense of holy urgency to discover, understand, and cherish these gifts. It made me ponder my past losses in a new way. I received gifts I did not know were there. I cannot thank Amy enough.

G ERALD S ITTSER , P ROFESSOR OF T HEOLOGY AT W HITWORTH U NIVERSITY AND BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF A Grace Disguised: How the Soul Grows Through Loss

Amy Hollingsworths writing is reminiscent of Henri Nouwen in its vulnerability.

S EAN H ERRIOTT, HOST OF NATIONAL C ATHOLIC RADIO PROGRAM Morning Air TM ON RELEVANT RADIO

If you have lost someone in death, this profound book will give you peaceand insight! Amy Hollingsworth boldly shares her wounded heart, after the death of her father, in the writing style and poignant insight of C. S. Lewis. In the midst of grinding pain and tears, Amy gives hope, spiritual support, and optimistically encourages people to look for the gift that their loved one has left behind.

Amy was one of my encouragers as I walked through the pain of losing my wife to breast cancer. Amy writes from real life she has been where you are! She is authentic, vulnerable, and radiates a warm connection with God.

J IM C ONWAY , P H D, PRESIDENT OF M ID -L IFE D IMENSIONS , AN INTERNATIONAL COUNSELING AND CONFERENCE MINISTRY . A UTHOR OF Traits of a Lasting Marriage, When a Mate Wants Out, Men in Mid-life Crisis, AND Women in Mid-Life Crisis.

2008 by Amy Hollingsworth

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or otherexcept for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Published in Nashville, Tennessee, by Thomas Nelson. Thomas Nelson is a registered trademark of Thomas Nelson, Inc.

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Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations are taken from the HOLY BIBLE: NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked KJV are from the KING JAMES VERSION .

Scripture quotations marked NLT are from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation. 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked NASB are from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE . The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977. Used by permission.

ISBN 978-0-8499-2955-7 (tp)

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Hollingsworth, Amy.
Gifts of passage : what the dying tell us with the gifts they leave behind / Amy Hollingsworth.
p. cm.
ISBN 978-0-8499-1920-6 (hc)
1. GriefReligious aspectsChristianity. 2. FathersDeathReligious aspects Christianity. 3. Hollingsworth, Amy. I. Title.
BV4905.3.H475 2008
248.8'66dc22 2007047184

09 10 11 12 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

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Please note that footnotes in this ebook may contain hyperlinks to external websites as part of bibliographic citations. These hyperlinks have not been activated by the publisher, who cannot verify the accuracy of these links beyond the date of publication.

This book is dedicated to my mother, Carmela Christin, in honor of and gratitude for many gifts, but especially for the glass-hearted necklace that still holds the love that brought me into the world.

I do love you.