Surrendering to Hope ― Guidance for the Broken

Broken trust is not the end.Have you ever felt like Job, watching God cure, calm, and care for others, while you remain crumpled on the floor looking for God in the darkness? In Surrendering to Hope, you’ll find fifteen stories of heartbreak and tragedy told with unflinching honesty—brutal deaths of loved ones, chronic illness, mental and sexual abuse, divorce, as well as struggles with same sex attraction, dealing with the trauma of combat loss, and living under racial oppression. But the real story of Surrendering to Hope is that every story is God’s story. Despite brokenness and suffering, God is lovingly, powerfully present in every life. He invites each of us to lean on him in trust and begin a journey towards peace.

John Mark Hicks, Professor of Theology at Lipscomb University, is no stranger to the hard lesson of surrendering to hope as a man who has lost a wife and a child. He has taught in higher education among Churches of Christ for thirty-five years, spoken in over forty states and twenty countries, and has authored numerous books and articles. He tells his own story in his latest book Meeting God at the Shack: A Journey into Spiritual Recovery.Christine Parker, a therapist and speaker, partners with God to bring healing in the midst of present and past suffering. Passionate about God’s compassion and mercy, Christine earned master’s degrees in counseling and in Christian ministry from Harding School of Theology. There, she spent fifteen years mentoring students and their families. She also served for ten years as the spiritual director of a ministry to women with loved ones who are incarcerated. She has two amazing sons, Aaron and Noah, and a delightful daughter-in-law, Molly.Bobby Valentine has served churches in Louisiana, Mississippi, Wisconsin, Arizona, and Colorado. He holds an MA in church history and an MDiv from Harding School of Theology. A frequent speaker for lectureships and congregational seminars, Bobby has teamed up with John Mark Hicks on previous books, including Embracing Creation: God’s Forgotten Mission. Bobby enjoys great music and hanging with friends in coffee shops talking about movies, books, history, theology, and Harley’s. His greatest privilege in life is being dad to Rachael and Talya.