Miriam Neff - From One Widow to Another: Conversations on the New You

M IRIAM N EFF

F ROM
O NE W IDOW
TO A NOTHER

Conversations on the
New You

MOODY PUBLISHERS
Chicago

2009 by
M IRIAM N EFF

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version. NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked NASB are taken from the New American Standard Bible, Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org)

Scripture quotations marked NRSV are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked CEV are taken from the Contemporary English Version. Copyright 1991, 1992, 1995 by American Bible Society. Used by permission.

Emphases in Scripture verses are the authors. Some Scripture references are written with feminine wording for readability.

All Web sites listed herein are accurate at the time of publication but may change in the future or cease to exist. The citing of Web sites or other references does not imply publisher endorsement of the entire contents.

Editor: Pam Pugh
Interior Design: Ragont Design
Cover Design: LeVan Fisher Design

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Neff, Miriam.
From one widow to another : conversations on the new you / Miriam Neff.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN 978-0-8024-8784-1
1. WidowsReligious life. I. Title.
BV4528.N44 2009
248.8434dc22
2008029224

This book is printed on acid free recycled paper containing 30% PCW (Post Consumer Waste) and manufactured in the United States of America by Bethany Press.

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I n 1979 I dedicated my first book To my husband, Bob, the most Christlike person I know.

In 1992 I dedicated my third book To Bob, for twenty years of shared parenting and twenty-seven years of unconditional commitment. I recently asked him how our life compared to what he had anticipated on our first date, an outing back in 1963 on a beautiful fall day in Brown County, Indiana. He answered, The challenges and adventure are more than I ever dreamed. This book is the result of both, and this working mom could not have written it without his incredible, ever-believing support.

On April 21, 2006, I experienced the third greatest event in my life: Bobs exit to heaven. Following my choice to marry him, then his impact on my choosing to be a Christ follower, his exit was profound, far beyond the words that have resulted in this book.

After forty-one years of marriage, family, babies, adoption, careers, crises in the lives of those we cherished most, moving, ministries, traveling the world togetherAlaska to Albania, Maine to Morocco, Romania to Russiathe world shrunk in my view; the man grew in my love and esteem. Our final journey through the months and years of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis was the greatest, and toughest, though most precious of them all.

Today, my dedication again is to my husband, Bob, still the most Christlike person I have ever known.

Miriam Neff