A newly released book by Guest poster Harriet Cook (the paperback on April 6, 2024, the Kindle on May 6, 2024), titled WHAT CAN I DO TO HELP LAZARUS?: Reaching Out with Knowledge and Compassion to Survivors of Domestic Abuse in our Congregations, is based on her August 19, 2016 Guest post on our blog. Her Guest post is titled I’m Nobody Special; What Can I Do To Help Lazarus?.
This new book, WHAT CAN I DO TO HELP LAZARUS?: Reaching Out with Knowledge and Compassion to Survivors of Domestic Abuse in our Congregations [Affiliate link], written by Guest poster Harriet Cook, is based on her August 19, 2016 Guest post on our blog. Her Guest post is titled I’m Nobody Special; What Can I Do To Help Lazarus?.
From the Amazon blurb (I added the bold and the emoji. 😊):
Domestic abuse concealed within the fabric of Christian life is often foreign to both leadership and laity alike. With a focus on abused wives, What Can I Do to Help Lazarus? compassionately gives spiritual and practical ways for leaders and fellow believers to better minister to women whose spouse has cruelly torn apart the marriage covenant. With sensitivity, scripture, and wisdom, the author also brings needed validation to the targets of purposed evil in the institution God designed to be a woman’s sanctuary — marital oneness.
What Can I Do to Help Lazarus? was written as a short article for abuse survivors reading a Christian domestic abuse support site. [😊] Reader comments were extremely positive and, with the Lord’s inspiration, the author expanded the content.
From Harriet Cook’s Guest post:
Domestic abuse was quite hidden in decades of the past; it was hushed. I know my eyes did not see nor comprehend the damage inflicted upon some spouses. Since then I’ve encountered abuse’s ugly face as I walked for years with a friend on the brutal path to emancipation. Through that experience and others, the study of the topic, and the divulgences of survivors, my eyes have been opened. As I have learned their stories I can now count a minimum of 12 women who were, or are, the targets of domestic / intimate partner abuse and post-divorce harassment.
These women were not walking in Biblical disobedience by petulantly deciding they just didn’t want to be married anymore or because they found someone more attractive. On the contrary, most were trying their hardest to be the best wives possible and uphold their vows before their Lord. Though details differed, most were living with an enemy who shot them with various projectiles, then jeered at them for having the nerve to bleed and / or cry for help while burying the victim in wretched disgust!
Many had children in the tomb of abuse with them. These moms saw their children contracting diseases of the soul; yet another reason to escape so as to remove them from the contamination of abuse or show the adult children a better way.
Sadly, some escapees are scorned in unmerciful judgement by critics who lack the facts, the desire to know details beyond gossip level, have little compassion, and even less understanding of the nature of abuse, to say nothing of right dividing of Scripture.
Recently I pondered Jesus calling Lazarus forth. Yea! A brother brought back to his grieving sisters! High five! All is well! But the story doesn’t end there. Come learn with me.
***
Further reading
I’m Nobody Special; What Can I Do To Help Lazarus? — A Guest post by Harriet Cook, dated August 19, 2016.
WHAT CAN I DO TO HELP LAZARUS?: Reaching Out with Knowledge and Compassion to Survivors of Domestic Abuse in our Congregations [Affiliate link] — Harriet Cook’s new book.
Unhelpful Comments by Well-Meaning People: A coaching clinic for victims of domestic abuse and their supporters — By Barbara Roberts.
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From the Amazon blurb Reaching Out quoted in her post:
(The bold was done by Reaching Out in her post’s quote.)
From the excerpt (the A Cry For Justice post, I’m Nobody Special; What Can I Do To Help Lazarus?) Reaching Out quoted in her post:
I chose Harriet Cook’s sentence “Come learn with me.” because I like the way it sounds. I loved her Guest post, and her comments on the A Cry For Justice blog….the way they’re written….the way they “sound”.
I’m sure I’ll love Harriet Cook’s newly released book, WHAT CAN I DO TO HELP LAZARUS?: Reaching Out with Knowledge and Compassion to Survivors of Domestic Abuse in our Congregations, just as much 😊….I’ve got it on order, although it might be a while before I’ve the opportunity to read it….I’ve already got so many things I want to read. 😊 (Omitting all details or I’d spend all my time writing the list and never get anything done. 😊)
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Barbara, this comment is really different testimonies of God’s hand directing this book. I hope you don’t mind me sharing these as they may be an encouragement to others.
In 2021 I had a local printer print up 100 copies of “Lazarus”, expanded from my original article on this blog, which I comb-bound at home. I mostly gave to ladies I knew needed it or knew people who needed it. But I kept being asked to get it formally published. The Lord kept adding new understanding to include in the text. In 2023 I began the year-long road to truly birthing this book.
I merely filled out a box in late 2022 on a Christian publisher’s website for a download of publishing ideas. From that, the VP of Acquisitions called me to ask about what I was writing. When I explained the book’s topic, without hesitation, she exclaimed “OH! This is so needed!” After sending the manuscript I got a call “We accepted your book for publishing!”
God had provided a Christian friend who has written two books and edits others, to be my local editor. Abuse was a topic she was passionate about! She told me that it is RARE for the first publisher approached to actually accept a manuscript for publishing!
Using a publisher is not cheap and we could not afford it alone. BUT GOD! Without us requesting any assistance, my mother-in-law, five other women, and our church council, together provided at least half of the cost! All glory to God!
My ladies pastor is so encouraging. She wanted me to present What Can I Do to Help Lazarus? at our monthly ladies Saturday luncheon last week because these ladies had prayed for this book last year. The ladies responded so positively! You could feel and hear their agreement with the fact that leadership, family, and friends need to know how to help women, instead of just telling them to submit, pray more, and go back to the wolf. Two of the twenty ladies in attendance bravely spoke up and told of their past history with domestic abuse. Another bought a book the next morning, gave me extra for several other women in need, and quietly disclosed “I have abuse in my past, too.”
This coming week I get to present the book to the bi-monthly Bible study, and the following Sunday Pastor is having me come up to present it to the church and have a little table set up in the back! I pray that the Lord uses this book to bring freedom to women who need to leave the tomb of abuse. Please pray that many books find their way into the hands of leadership!
Here is the link to the post with photos from the luncheon.
What Can I Do to Help Lazarus?
Thank you, Barbara. Your work in creating and maintaining this blog IS fruitful! Love you!
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Hi CameAlongside — and welcome back! 😊
I noticed your screen name is slightly different than the one that you previously used on the blog 😊 ….I didn’t change it from your previous screen name of Came alongside because I thought you might’ve had a reason for making the minor change. 😊
And thank you for taking the time to comment, telling more of the story behind your book. 😊 😊 😊
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Thanks for sharing this, CameAlongside. :)
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CameAlongside,
You wrote (17th July 2024):
Thank you for writing about how your book came to be 😊 ….I find these kinds of details interesting 😊 ….and sometimes they help me understand what makes the author “tick”. 😊
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Reaching Out: I simply couldn’t remember how I wrote it! ;-) Aging!
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