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Life can be hard sometimes. There can be a lot of worries, lots of disappointment, as well as many happy times. During the bad times, we struggle and often forget the saying “Give it to God”. We forget that we have a higher power to help us through.

Recently, I was able to read a book called The God Box by Mary Lou Quinlan that gave me a reminder of that. Mary Lou Quinlan wrote this book after her mother passed away and she discovered her mother’s God Box. She wanted to share how her mother kept all of wishes and prayers for the past 20 years of her life.

Inside the boxes, Mary Lou was able to relive moments and continue the mother-daughter bond that they had. Mary Lou felt that even after her death her mother was still able to teach her and reach out to her.

Quinlan is sharing with us her mother’s faith and love and her own journey of letting go.  The legacy that a God Box leaves behind is a blessing for all those who are left to mourn their loss.

 When Mary Lou Quinlan’s beloved mother, Mary Finlayson, dies, her family is bereft–until Mary Lou searches for her mother s ”God Box,” her private cache of notes to God on behalf of family, friends and strangers. To Mary Lou’s amazement, she finds not one but ten boxes stuffed with hundreds of tiny petitions that spanned the last twenty years of her mother’s life.

Note by note, Mary Lou unearths a treasure of her mother’s wishes and worries and insight. Mary asked God for everything from the right flooring for her daughter’s home to a cure for her own blood cancer. Her requests, penned on scraps of paper, were presented without expectation–the ultimate expression of letting go.

Follow Mary Lou’s emotional journey as she uncovers her mother’s innermost thoughts–nostalgic, surprising and even a bit shocking. As she recalls life with the woman who was her best friend, Mary Lou also discovers her own more empathetic, engaged self–the woman her mother had believed in all along.

Poignantly written and beautifully designed, The God Box is a gift for every mother, every daughter, every person who, regardless of beliefs, trusts in the permanence of love and the power of family. – description from Amazon.com

 

I know that one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do was tell my husband that his mom had passed away. He was a mama’s boy (in a good way) and was very close to her. It broke his heart to have her gone. It wasn’t long after she died that I found a letter she had wrote to us on our wedding day. I imagine the way I felt when I was able to share it with him was very much the way Mary Lou felt as she was able to read each little paper from her mother’s boxes.

I absolutely love the idea of a God Box. Can you imagine placing your worries inside and forgetting about them? The peace that someone would feel from that? I have recipes, notes, and cards from my grandparents and each time I see their handwriting it makes my heart happy. I feel closer to them, even though they have been gone for years.

This book is wonderful for this time of year. It’s near Thanksgiving and it’s very rare that we stop to count our blessings or just to send up a prayer for someone in need. Reading The God Box it showed me just how easy it is to leave a legacy of faith and love for those I care about.

You can also download a free God Box app on iTunes which allows you to create your own God Box while on the go. You don’t have to wait to place your item in the box. You are able to do it while it’s fresh on your mind…and then give it to God!

You can find the God Box project on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.

We also have a wonderful giveaway for you! Three (3) readers of 5 Minutes to Mom will win a God Box project package that consists of two copies of the book The God Box. Just use the Rafflecopter form below to enter this giveaway. New to Rafflecopter? Watch this 45-second video on how to enter!

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Disclosure: I received this product free of charge for review. All opinions are my own and were in no way influenced.

Lesley is a mom of two kids – one girl and one boy. She’s married to her first and only love, Robby. Author of Life with Lesley. Her blog has a little bit of everything – life, love, parenting, along with product reviews and giveaways.