We trace one family's beginning among extended family, to New York City, and back again. Along the way, the author writes about the "noise" of life; large family gatherings, navigating in a big city, and all the while, a growing family. Some of the stories left me laughing, while others had me tearing up. Would it even be possible to find Selah (the psalmist turn for pause) in the midst of life's chaos?

I really appreciated Kristen's writing style, her calmness while writing about the seasons wherein she learned and practiced Selah, peace. I appreciated to that this was a "How-To" book on how to find peace in a stress-filled world. I know that there is a place for those books but sometimes it feels better, more helpful, to read about another person actually walking through the seasons that are hard and learning peace under the pressure of that instead of 4 "easy" steps to breathe easily.

I loved her honesty.

Peace is something I think we all search for. It feels elusive and impossible in a world that says to "go, go, go" all the time. But peace - or as the Bible calls it, Selah - is not as impossible to find as we sometimes believe. Selah is as close as finding ways to center our minds on Christ throughout our day. 

In her new book, Finding Selah, Kristen Kill seeks to show the reader how to find peace in the day-to-day of life. Through sharing parts of her story, Kill sought to show the reader how to re-center life on Christ and therefore find peace.

Unfortunately for me, this book fell flat. Going into the book, I thought that I would be shown how to find peace in establishing some specific practices into my life. Instead, Finding Selah was filled with reflective personal stories and moments where Kill was able to find peace in her story. 

I can agree with Kill that many of us feel overwhelmed with life, in seasons of depression or are desperate for change. And what I think we truly need is the reminder to add in some pauses to our day. Those true pauses where we stop doing and we sit in the presence of God or take the time to reflect on what God has given us are what will bring us peace. 

What I had hoped going into this book would be reminders of places to really stop and pause in my day-to-day. Rather, Finding Selah made me feel a bit more hurried in my life. 

If you go into this book looking for the story and not a step-by-step guide, I think you will enjoy this book much more than I did. 

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley. This review is my own, honest opinion.

This is a simple yet powerful book about peace. Peace is something we all crave yet very few of us achieve it. This book shows us that its possible. It will change how you work and rest. A must read!!!

Kristen Kill shares with readers how God has shown up during the tough times in her life and helped her find moments of selah, moments of pause, small reminders and big that God is still there and good, even when life is hectic, crazy, and hard. Her experiences range from physical and emotional health issues, major life changes such as moving from an idyllic green valley to the skyscrapers of New York, to everyday headaches like all the challenges of raising kids in a Manhattan apartment. She has learned that sometimes God changes our circumstances to bring peace to our turmoil, but just as often He brings change to our hearts, offering selah even in the midst of crazy.

I don’t identify with all of Kristen’s personal experiences, but I think everyone has faced multiple moments in their life when they crave peace and calm or feel spiritually/emotionally dry and empty. Kristen provides good reminders that God won’t give up on us, that He’s always loving, and that despite our feelings, He’s always there. I think it was good to be reminded that sometimes God takes us away from the crazy and gives us days of peace and refreshing, and sometimes He provides the peace through little reminders in the midst of the craziness. I appreciated Kristen’s openness and willingness to share very personal stories. She also shares solid Scripture throughout, particularly Scripture passages God used to help refresh her. The Biblical principles were solid, the stories were engaging and from the heart, and overall the book is a good tool in providing invitations to experience selah wherever you are and whatever you are facing. Recommended for anyone who feels like their days are crazy, their hearts are dry, or their spiritual life needs a little boost. Due to Kristen’s life experiences, I expect mothers of young kids to be the ones who will most strongly identify with her. But you definitely don’t need to be a mother to get something out of this book.

I found this book interesting, not quite what I had expected. Intriguingly written, at first it seemed a little out of chronological order but later pans out. The author writes of her experience of losing a child and her pathway to healing. Many in this situation will find this book comforting, reassuring and maybe aspiring in their same journey.
She emphasies that it is important to take time out and dwell in the Lord's peace which gives us hope for each day.

This book is actually the author's personal journey in finding peace in her life. She shares many personal stories about how God acted in her circumstances.

To be honest when I first started to read this I had to pray for God to show me why I was reading it. Then it got better and about halfway throiugh I really started to enjoy it

This is a wonderful book written from a Mom who has been there! I love learning of her journey through depression and how she found peace.,

Kristen Kill's voice is authentic as she walks you through her own experience in finding selah while using Scripture to encourage your own journey into Christ's peace and rejuvenation.

I rarely come across a book, even devotionals I have picked out specifically, that seem to speak to my very soul. Finding Selah, though, hit me in the deepest recesses of my heart. Kill is a mother that remembers how hectic bringing up little ones can be, she also has an identity away from "MOM" and that life outside of that title is just as grinding.

Through thoughtful quotes, we are encouraged to get into the Word to examine what it means to find mindful peace and rest. That Selah in the Psalms is an instructional verb, not a noun. To take a beat, to find a rest, to listen in the silence. Some of the most profound:

Somewhere between majesty and misery, heaven finds us in the barren wilderness of our deepest longings.
The echoes of Eden breathes into a dry and weary world and called out to dry bones to wake and to walk, to taste and to see what was good and right and lovely, to keep the feast.
The pause, the rest, the interlude is Jesus. Selah and Sabbath are a person.

Within these pages, you will find permission to rest and encouragement to move. You will find peace, and it is a beautiful thing that emerges.

Thank you to NetGalley, Kristen Kill, and Zondervan for providing this free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is more a memoir than a devotional/teaching book. Though the story telling of her life was fine...it just wasn't for me.