Book Review: The Women of Christmas

Good inner reflection with "The Women of Christmas" by Liz Curtis Higgs

Overview: The cover says, "Experience the Season Afresh with Elizabeth, Mary, and Anna". A sacred season is about to unfold for three women whose hearts belong to God. Elizabeth is barren, yet her trust in God remains fertile. Mary is betrothed in marriage, yet she is willing to bear God’s Son. Anna is a widow full of years, yet she waits patiently, prayerfully for the Messiah to appear in the temple courts. Following in their footsteps, you too can prepare for the Savior to enter your heart, your mind, and your life in a vibrant, new way this season. (from book jacket)

Dawn’s Recommendation: 4 of 5 Stars

What I liked: Ms. Curtis Higgs delves into the story surrounding Jesus' birth by going through Scripture, breaking it down bit-by-bit, adding her own reflections and comments from women who took her online Bible study on the topic.  It has been nice this Christmas season to take the time to read this book and reflect myself on Elizabeth’s and Mary’s pregnancies and what it would mean to birth and raise John the Baptist and Jesus the Messiah. 

What did the women think? What did they feel? How did their lives change with God's perfect plan? I am on my last section of the book, getting ready to read about Anna, but I wanted to go ahead and publish my review before Christmas. Although, the Scripture offers nothing new (I read it every year), Ms. Curtis Higgs brings the women to life and therefore, Jesus' birth to life....connecting us, Mothers from today, to those precious mothers back then and helping us grasp the "realness" of Christmas.

Jesus isn't just "Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace". He was a fully human baby with real human parents. "The Women of Christmas" reminds me that we each have a purpose and plan for God. Elizabeth and Mary humbly accepted God's plan. I want to do the same.

What I didn't like: It didn't offer any new exciting revelations to me or perhaps it was the format (Scripture, reflections, comment from Bible Study women, repeat) that was a tad mundane.  Don't get me wrong, I liked the book and I needed the focus on Christ that this book offered! I'm really glad to have read it.