Every Christian will face times of suffering. In the midst of troubles, we can be swept away by a powerful tide of emotion, oscillating between feelings of hope and despair. Sometimes it can seem as though God has abandoned us altogether, setting us adrift in a sea of suffering without a life preserver. How can an honest believer safeguard faith when God seems so far away?

In his new book, POLISHING GOD'S MONUMENTS: Pillars of Hope for Punishing Times, author and pastor Jim Andrews offers hope for Christians whose suffering seems to stretch out to the horizon. “Our tender faith often requires shelter --- never more so than when we endure suffering. That shelter is the active memory of those demonstrations and confirmations of God’s goodness, wisdom, power and faithfulness that we have stored up from the past. ‘Monument polishing’ is a way of returning to those encouraging moments in our history with God in order to gain the strength and hope we need to face the future.” 

Though Jim has been a college professor and taught for years on the subject of suffering, this book was written far from the ivory tower. For the past twenty years, Jim has watched helplessly as his daughter, Juli, has experienced anguish that frequently defied description. Juli’s immune system is barely functional, stemming, it is believed, from brain injuries she suffered during a traumatic horseback-riding accident at age ten. She has also waged a decades-long battle with CFS (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome), a debilitating disease that has baffled the mainstream medical community. Juli’s crippling sensitivities to common chemicals found in everyday items and frequent brushes with death have produced the kind of persistent torment that can devour the faith of the most fervent believer.

“This book comes right out of Scripture and the crucible of harsh experience,” Jim says. “I developed this message years ago and knew it resonated with sufferers. So many out there grapple with this question: What do we do when we ask God to fill our cup and instead He seems to eat our lunch? Tapes of this message literally flew off the shelves. Now we have lived it. It’s a sermon in living color. We have been through the fire and have earned the right to be heard. We have tried the medicine and it works.”

POLISHING GOD'S MONUMENTS shares Juli’s touching story, from the periods when her severe chemical sensitivities forced her to live in total isolation to God’s miraculous intervention in the bleakest times. The book combines Jim’s insightful exposition of Scripture with real-life illustrations --- excerpts from the letters he sent to his congregation during the twenty-year odyssey of Juli’s illness. 

Jim approaches the problem of suffering with empathy and candor, acknowledging the emotions and spiritual struggles that accompany prolonged times of testing while providing a coping strategy that will restore faith in God’s character. This book will be an essential addition to the library of any pastor or counselor. “I have found that the message of this book connects with people everywhere at a gut level, ten times more so than any single message I have ever brought,” Jim affirms. “Around my church, everybody speaks of monuments.”

POLISHING GOD'S MONUMENTS: Pillars of Hope for Punishing Times © Copyright 2011 by Jim Andrews. Reprinted with permission by Shepherd Press. All rights reserved.