K.J. Ramsey - This Too Shall Last: Finding Grace When Suffering Lingers

There is little, if any, place for suffering within the theology of many American Christians. Yet everywhere around us, people are suffering. We are suffering. This Too Shall Last examineswith moving honesty, sharp insight, and deep faithwhat it means to suffer, how to suffer, and why an understanding and acceptance of suffering is essential to Christian belief and the Christian life.

KAREN SWALLOW PRIOR, author, On Reading Well: Finding the Good Life through Great Books

Suffering is one of those experiences that tethers us to our humanity. However, most of us arent honest about the unexpected gifts hidden away in our painful hardships. Suffering is also one of those experiences that remind us of the divine imprint on each of our souls, because suffering is as spiritual as anything. Theres no doubt the heartfelt reflections that fill these pages are bathed in prayers and rinsed in tears, as K. J. Ramseys clearly done the difficult work of integrating these lessons deep into her soul. May you find the courage to sit with these words and be held by a book that will remind you of what hope really is.

CHRISTOPHER L. HEUERTZ, author, The Sacred Enneagram and The Enneagram of Belonging

In a world where dark nights of the soul are inescapable, we need help seeing that it is not our circumstances that reveal to us the truth about God, but the truth of God that reveals to us the meaning in our circumstances. As Paul said of his own thorn in the flesh, it is in our weakness that the power of God is most at work, transforming our thorns into crowns. Loved and kept by a strong, steady God who works all things together for good, hope and meaning wait for us in the shadows. K.J. does a very good job opening our eyes to this reality.

SCOTT SAULS, pastor, Christ Presbyterian Church; author, A Gentle Answer

The truest words in this book are this book is not a before and after story. K.J. looks without caveat into the reality of suffering, her own and others, and doesnt flinch from the truths to be mined there. Neither does she paint a picture of suffering as glorious or easy. She tells the truth, the gritty, mired truth about suffering, and instead of merely offering a path forward, she stands beside her reader for the journey.

LORE FERGUSON WILBERT, author, Handle with Care: How Jesus Redeems the Power of Touch in Life and Ministry

When I first saw the cover of this book and read the title, I knew I needed to get my hands on it. Turns out, you really can judge a book by its cover. For anyone who is hurting, for anyone whose life isnt turning out like they had hoped, this is an extraordinary invitation, from a credible voice, to be held by God in the middle of suffering. Dont miss this book.

JENNIFER DUKES LEE, author, Its All under Control

K.J.s exquisite offering comes from the depths of suffering and from a whole heart. Shes a woman whose vulnerability makes it easy for you to relax into the wild and wondrous story of God, and to see how Gods design of human brains and bodies invites participation in the life of the suffering servant. A wondrously healing book.

CHUCK DEGROAT, writer; therapist; Professor of Pastoral Care and Christian Spirituality, Western Theological Seminary

In a market so often dominated by easy answers and spiritual platitudes, K.J. has crafted a work of masterful complexity and depth. She seamlessly weaves pieces of memoir with universally applicable truths, tearfully soaked in a wisdom birthed from her intimate understanding of pain. With prose that often feels more like poetry than instruction, K.J. empathetically guides readers through a nuanced reflection on suffering, faith, community, and embodiment. In the end, were left in the perfect tension between comforted and challenged, with a newfound ability to see the beauty in that sacred dissonance.

STEPHANIE TAIT, author, The View from Rock Bottom: Discovering Gods Embrace in Our Pain

Of all people, those who follow Jesus should have a framework to relate to suffering and loss. However, we often find ourselves lacking the internal and external resources to navigate the harsh realities of life. K.J. offers us a powerful way forward to help us find God in the midst of suffering that has no end date in sight. I highly recommend it!

RICH VILLODAS, lead pastor, New Life Fellowship

What do you do when your trial isnt merely a matter of making it through to the other side? Youre not going to get better or your situation will never get resolved. And how do you reconcile such things with your faith and those seemingly unanswered prayers? I am so grateful for the deep and compassionate treatment of these challenging questions in this new book. K.J. is a beautiful writer with a strong and thoughtful response to the heartache of suffering. You will find no pat answers here, but I daresay you will find unexpected hope.

LISA JACOBSON, Club31Women.com

The kingdom of God is both now and not yet, but what are we supposed to do when it seems like its mostly not yet? Drawing on her experiences of Gods grace in the midst of chronic suffering, K.J. delivers penetrating insights about the present age that most of us never see but that we all so desperately need. There is better news than the American Dream, and this is it.

BRIAN FIKKERT, coauthor, When Helping Hurts and Becoming Whole: Why the Opposite of Poverty Isnt the American Dream

I opened the pages of this book and found grace. You wont find pat answers or quick fixes here. Instead, youll find the healing balm of honesty, vulnerability, and shared experience. K. J. Ramsey is a gift.

ALISON COOK, therapist; author, Boundaries for Your Soul

This book is not for everyone: its for the weary. K.J. is a modern-day prophet. The job of a prophet is to speak truths, particularly those truths that expose the illusions of the dominant culture. In this book, K.J. exposes illusions that bind us, but she doesnt stop there. Her goal is to invite you into your story. Your story matters more than you think, particularly your story of suffering. Why? Because, as K.J. unfolds in the following pages, it is in your story of suffering that you mysteriously come to know the One who gets down on the floor with you, and sits in the fire of your ache. All you who are weary, welcome.

ADAM YOUNG, therapist; host, The Place We Find Ourselves podcast

K.J. works from her own turbulent experience to weave empathy, therapeutic wisdom, and rich theology into an artful gift. All who suffer will find deep-running currents of grace in her work. Rarely do I find such a work that models so powerfully the therapeutic properties of good theology, from the Trinity to ecclesiology.

DON J. PAYNE, Associate Professor of Theology, Denver Seminary

A must-read for patients and anyone with constant pain or suffering. K.J. will change your relationship with pain forever as she shares her journey, knowledge, spirituality, and strategies to find peace and grace during lasting suffering.

JOSE NATIVI-NICOLAU, transplant cardiologist

I serve a church that recently lost its beloved founding pastor to brain cancer. What do we do when it is life that withers and suffering that blossoms? When pain simply doesnt pass? K.J.s words pulse with gospel truth and grace for those who live in the middle of a still-painful storyline.

JORDAN KOLOGE, rector/pastor, Church of the Advent

Just when I needed it most, this book was given to me. Within these pages I found language for all that Ive felt and hope for all that I need. Through her vulnerability and beautiful writing, K.J. shows us how we can find grace in suffering that lingers and strength in Gods presence that lasts. The invitation your heart longs for in the middle of your brokenness is waiting for you here.