Book Review: One Thousand Gifts

Well there are probably already one thousand book reviews for One Thousand Gifts because it is a New York Times, USA Today, and Amazon Top Ten bestseller.  Simply put, a lot of people are reading this book!  And that, dear sisters, is a gift in and of itself because this is a book which glorifies our God. God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him. And if there was ever a book which helped us women to be satisfied in God, this is it.

Ann Voskamp is a farmer’s wife and mama to six kids on a rural farm in Ontario. But the book’s not really about her. It’s about us. From Satan’s fall to the first bite of fruit in the garden to the daily ways that we deviate from God’s path, the root of all is ingratitude.

And if the root of all stress, anxiety, depression, struggle, pride, sin is ingratitude, the good news is that we combat this evil foe by a concentrated onslaught of thanksgiving.  She began a list of 1000 gifts, giving daily thanks for common graces, and in the process she discovered a joy, intimacy, and passion she had never known.

This book will rock you in every possibly wonderful way. It’s The Problem of Pain meets Mere Christianity meets The Christian’s Secret to a Happy Life meets Annie Dillard. Destined to be a classic, written so exquisitely I sat and re-read sentences over and over just for fun. I want to re-read it so I can write down quotes and post them around my home.

A personal treat for me was her last chapter on how her trip to Paris became the sacred climax to this journey of thanks.  My own journey to Europe eleven years ago, was similar in my own walk with God. Having walked those same streets and stood in that same Notre Dame cathedral, I could smell and envision exactly what she described.  Interestingly, I read that chapter on the same day that Jeff and I were planning a very special upcoming ministry trip to Europe.  We got out my old scrapbook, revisited all those sacred places, and planned, giddy, for our upcoming trip.

But the gist of the book is that those sacred places are first and foremost at home. At the sink, in the laundry room, over the stove, at the table.

The sacredness of the mundane discovered by the simple discipline of counting gifts.

I love it. I think you will too. If you haven’t read it, check it out.

And start counting.

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*I love this recent post she shared on the journey of writing the book.