Elizabeth Reynolds Turnage - The Waiting Room: 60 Meditations for Finding Peace & Hope in a Health Crisis

If you are ever in a hospital waiting room, submerged in anxiety, weariness, and possibly griefand you will befeel blessed if you have this book with you. Especially if you are trying to be a person of faith. Elizabeth Turnage has sat in your chair and knows your pain, doubts, and fears. She also knows the God who brings comfort and healing to the distressed. This booka mixture of memoir, insight into Scripture, prayers, prompts, and wise reflections on the experience of illness and sufferingis a great resource for those whose resources are fast draining away. No God talk, just talk about the faithfulness of God and how to embrace it.

DANIEL TAYLOR PHD

AUTHOR, CREATING A SPIRITUAL LEGACY, DEATH COMES FOR THE DECONSTRUCTIONIST (A NOVEL)

With acute accuracy Elizabeth names my deepest fears;

With gentle probing she invites me to trust my Father;

With an economy of words she creates space for faith to flourish.

SHARI THOMAS

FOUNDER AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF PARAKALEO

This brilliant book is a tender gift of the presence of God for those caught in the deep woods of medical uncertainty. When we are in the hospital waiting for resolution, we dont need a long chapter of admonitions or vague mumblings of comfort. We need a guide who has traversed this terrain and has a compass and a map to help us orient our journey. Elizabeth Turnage offers a wisdom that has been hard won, meets the test of the gospel, and is beautifully and brilliantly written. I cant recommend this book more highly than to say you need a copy for yourself and eventually for every friend or family member who is called to wait for redemption.

DAN B. ALLENDER PHD

PROFESSOR OF COUNSELING PSYCHOLOGY

FOUNDING PRESIDENT, THE SEATTLE SCHOOL OF THEOLOGY AND PSYCHOLOGY

Elizabeth writes to anyone who finds themselves in the waiting room of Gods sovereign purposes. She meets us there as an empathetic friend reminding us what is true in His Word, urging us to listen to the refreshing lyrics of the gospel. She beautifully models what it means to lift our eyes to the Father who is faithful to meet us in the midst of our suffering.

KAREN HODGE

COORDINATOR OF WOMENS MINISTRIES

PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN AMERICA (PCA)

Waiting is a part of life. We wait in lines, to hear from a college, to get a job, to find a spouse, to have a baby, for a wayward child to return. And we wait in medical waiting rooms: for a diagnosis, through a surgery, for newshopefully good, too often bad. Elizabeth Turnage, in The Waiting Room , sits with us, offering understanding, peace and courage. She takes us right to our God through her personal story of waiting room ordeals, through Gods Word, in prayer. And she conveys perspective for the difficulty of today, comfort and strength for the ongoing journey and great hope for the future. This is a helpful book for all the waiting of our lives.

JUDY DOUGLASS

WRITER, SPEAKER, ENCOURAGER

DIRECTOR, CRU WOMENS RESOURCES

The Waiting Room records naked, raw truth about The Club of those who have suffered deep loss. Elizabeths honesty about her family trauma will draw you in and challenge your core assumptions. She invites you to refocus on the hope that disease, tears, and death are on a short leash. She invites you to engage scripture, worship music, prayer, and honesty with your Creator. This is a book that I will read multiple times as Elizabeth has shown me where God is in plain sight in the wilderness of suffering.

DR. PENNY NELSON FREEMAN

LICENSED COUNSELOR AND TRAINER

The Waiting Room will comfort me when I take a loved one to the hospital. Elizabeths love for Jesus and Scripture helps us when life is on pause. Her words guide us along green pastures and still waters when the noise from our fear seems overwhelming. I strongly recommend her book to anyone that has to wait as a dear one suffers.

REBECCA ALLENDER

CO-FOUNDER, THE ALLENDER CENTER; AUTHOR, HIDDEN IN PLAIN SIGHT

Elizabeth Turnage has often penned gracious and wise words that lead us back to gospel truth. In this interactive meditation, Elizabeth shares her own personal walk through pain and suffering. She writes with amazing clarity and honesty and makes the dark, painful moments as real to the reader as they were to her. While you journey with her through these hard spaces, you will also see how she found the light of Gods mercy and grace shining in the dark. Your heart will resonate with the struggle and be encouraged by the scriptures and prayer points. If you allow yourself to take this interactive journey of meditation, you may well find a place where your own heart will grow in trust and grace, even in the hard.

RUTH ANN BATSTONE

COUNSELOR AND MENTOR, SERGE; SENIOR STAFF CONSULTANT, PARAKALEO

Living Story www.elizabethturnage.com etlivingstory@gmail.com

2019 by Elizabeth Reynolds Turnage

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any formexcept for brief quotations for purpose of review or commentwithout written permission from the author.

Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV)Copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. ESV Text Edition: 2016.

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version NIVCopyright 1973 1978 1984 2011 by Biblica, Inc. TM. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked (MSG) are taken from THE MESSAGE, copyright 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress. All rights reserved. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.

Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: This book details the authors personal experiences with and opinions about finding peace and hope from God in a health crisis. The author is not a healthcare provider. While the author and publisher have used their best efforts in preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties of any kind with respect to this book or its contents. The author and publisher disclaim all such representations and warranties, including for example warranties of merchantability and healthcare for a particular purpose. In addition, the author and publisher do not represent or warrant that the information accessible via this book is accurate, complete or current. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for your situation. You should consult with a professional where appropriate. Neither the author or publisher, nor any authors, contributors, or other representatives will be liable for damages arising out of or in connection with the use of this book. This is a comprehensive limitation of liability that applies to all damages of any kind, including (without limitation) compensatory; direct, indirect or consequential damages; loss of data, income or profit; loss of or damage to property and claims of third parties. The fact that an organization or website is referred to in this work as a citation and/or a potential source of further information does not mean that the publisher or the author endorses the information the organization or website may provide or recommendations it may make. Further, readers should be aware that Internet websites listed in this work may have changed or disappeared between when this work was written and when it is read. This book provides content related to physical and/or mental health issues. As such, use of this book implies your acceptance of this disclaimer.