I want to thank Netgalley and the author for gifting me the ebook. A great Christian nonfiction novel. Highly recommend for all Christian's out there.

I have been feeling lost the past couple of months and this book hit home for me in so many different ways. The author, Mary Lenaburg, is wonderfully down to earth and relatable through her writing, and the many life examples she gives in the book. I am so thankful for this book coming to me at a moment when I really needed it. It's very much worth the read and might help you too feel a little less loss.

This book is amazing and very different. the writer uses her experience to guide us to be closer to Jesus. It made me realize, usually people tend to tell their story when they are successful and skip the hardship. But the author gave us a detailed story. it helped me because I realize God's way may not be fast but it always ends up beautiful. Also, she gave us a reflection question. The most amazing part is that I live in Indonesia, which we have a different culture. But a Catholic book can unite all of us. This book is absolutely amazing and very worth our time.

I found myself nodding “yes” to so much of what the author says in this book. Mary and I are polar opposites in terms of personality, but I could see myself in quite a few of the personal anecdotes she shared. If you’ve ever felt like you just don’t fit and start questioning what you’re even doing here, this book is for you.

Mary Lenaburg's humor and vulnerability lend themselves readily to her authentic style, enabling readers to empathize easily and absorb the hard-earned lessons she shares.

While her first book, Be Brave in the Scared, focuses on the blessings and challenges of caring for her daughter, Be Bold in the Broken moves between childhood reminiscences and more recent experiences in which Mary Lenaburg is seeking love and approval in all the wrong ways. Ultimately, she finds love and freedom in being the woman God created her to be, encouraging readers to do the same.

While I didn't readily identify with the experiences, I could enjoy their humor and poignancy and appreciate the beauty of how God has worked in Mary Lenaburg's life, whether she was cooperating with that work or not.

This book gave me a whole new perspective on grace and the love of God. I highly recommend this book. It will give you courage and reinforce the love of God in your life.

"Fitting in means you change yourself for someone else, and belonging is when you are welcomed just as you are." - Mary Lenaburg, BE BOLD IN THE BROKEN

Mary Lenaburg, the "Catholic Mom of Instagram," has written a second book! BE BOLD IN THE BROKEN comes out March 12th, and it relates incidents from Mary's life that have slowly helped her learn to be herself, and to believe that God loves her just as she is.

Reading this book, I really related to Mary's desire to fit in and the way she sometimes struggled to do so. Stories about her teen years made me laugh in recognition of the awkwardness we all endure at that age, and her reflections on her relationships with her husband, her in-laws, and her friends really rang true for me as well. I was also really interested to learn of her early aspirations to write romance novels, as that is a path I have considered for myself.

I love Mary's honesty in her stories here on Instagram and in both of her books. She is such an inspiration to Catholic women, and I really appreciate her willingness to share the path she has walked to get to where she is today. This book, which includes discussion questions in the back for every single chapter, provides a great opportunity for us to remind ourselves of God's enduring love for us, and to look for ways to boldly be ourselves even when it might feel more comfortable to deny our true selves in order to fit in.

🖤 Book Review 🖤

🖤 Be bold in the broken by Mary E Lenaburg

🖤 Thank you @netgalley for my copy!

🖤 Publication Date, March 12 2021

🖤 Who am I? What is my purpose? Where do I belong? These questions linger in every season of our lives, but, as Mary Lenaburg learned the hard way, answering them becomes possible only when we direct our hearts to the God who made us and loves us best of all...

🖤 With an open attitude and honesty you don't find often Mary helps the reader to see that God loves us in all our imperfect ways and with all our many flaws. He knows we aren't perfect because he created us this way and yet He loves us completely. We don't need to hide ourselves from him.

🖤 She encourages us to be open and honest with ourselves and with God and to have an authentic relationship with Him.

Be Bold in the Broken: How I Found My Courage and Purpose in God's Unconditional Love is not only a love letter to God, but a love letter to flawed human beings who need to know the measure of God's endless affection. Author Mary E. Lenaburg lights up the page with her firecracker prose. A gifted storyteller, Lenaburg manages to connect something as relatable as a disappointing trip to the department store fitting room with God's abiding love.

Lenaburg holds up a mirror to the reader that is far more forgiving than the one in the fitting room. She shows that behind our imperfections we possess a profound beauty which the good Lord loves to celebrate.

Any woman who has been broken by life will treasure Lenaburg's insights into rebounding into the welcoming arms of God. No sin is unforgiveable, and no amount of angst on our part can deem us beyond God's love.

Lenaburg is to be commended for her willingness to be vulnerable on the written page. Her openness helps the reader to delve into those places within her own soul which need tender care and healing.

Let Lenaburg teach you that belonging to God is more important than fitting in with the crowd, and that God's love can see you through, no matter what obstacles are placed in your path.

Mary Lenaburg's second book is as much as a gut punch shower of truth and love as her first book. In Be Bold In the Broken, Mary uses examples from her own life (some hilariously funny, and some gut-wrenching) to illustrate that God loves us, *no matter what*. We are not "less" to God. We don't have to try to hide our imperfections and brokenness before Him, because He knows it all and loves us *anyway*--and invites us to deep, true, loving relationship and authenticity with Him. A truly wonderful and vital book!

The book had me on a roller coaster of emotions . Even though it's a short read with 160 pages I loved every page of this book.

Mary tells her story of self discovery and her journey to finding a relationship with Christ.

At a point when she had not fully discovered a personal relationship with God she had resorted to jealousy, comparison and gossiping to make her self feel better.

She kept grasping for apples from the tree of social acceptance and in her own words " strived for the image of perfection that would lead to recognition by others"

I love that she shares her mistakes and loss with us .

She also shares her love story with us which I found touching and had me smiling at some point.

And like I said before the book had me on an emotional ride. There are pages that had me laughing, sad, smiling, happy.

For anyone on the path to self-discovery, I would definitely recommend this book.

Reading Be Bold in the Broken by Mary E. Lenaburg, I was constantly reminded of the 2 Corinthians 12:9 which says, “My grace is sufficient for thee.” Leanburg shares with authenticity about life events that have shaped her faith journey and understanding of God’s unconditional love and grace. She shares painful moments, as well as humorous ones, as well as moments where you can tell that she wishes she had done better. She models vulnerability which is so needed in order to bring healing and unity in our world today. Her writing is both relevant and relatable with wisdom shared from ordinary, everyday moments.

Thank you NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

#BeBoldintheBroken #NetGalley

I received an advance copy of, Be Bold in the Broken, by Mary E. Lenaburg. I loved this book. It is so insightful. God loves us unconditionally, most people cant accept that due to low self esteem. Mary gives valuable and humbling examples in her own life.