Out of the Spin Cycle: Devotions to Lighten Your Mother Load

Lighthearted. Funny. Occasionally hysterical. Encouraging. Comforting.<br /><br />These are a few words I would use to describe this book by Jen Hatmaker. You will truly feel like you are taking a break from the <i>"spin cycle"</i> when you take time to read one of the many short chapters in this book. <br /><br />As expected in a devotional, the chapters are short (mostly 2 pages) and are encouraging with an impacting message held in each one. Jen's stories were real and easy to relate to making you feel like you are having a good laugh with a friend. The main focus is motherhood and these 40 thoughts are great for any mother of younger children (Newborn to Jr. High).<br /><br />The only reason this book did not get 4 stars in my opinion is that while containing a biblical perspective through the book, it did not always have scripture for each devotional thought. I personally would call this an encouragement book rather than devotional book. However, while I wouldn't use this for my daily time with God, I do think it makes for a great mid-morning, lunch time, or nap time pick-me-up that will bring both laughter and learning to your day.<br /><br />* * * * *<br />Available June 2010 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group

Quit reading at 24%.

Out of the Spin Cycle: Devotions to Lighten Your Mother Load. What a delightful book! It contains 40 two-or-three page devotions that are sure to crack a smile and draw your attention to ways to love God through service to your family. Easily digestible nuggets delivered in a most appealing, un-preachy, humourous style.<br /><br />Jen Hatmaker is an amazing writer. She begins each chapter with a dose of hilarity and with great skill turns that humour into a devotion that is really applicable to a young mother's life. Of all the mother devotionals I've ever read, this one is the best. I looked forward to each new chapter. And because of its lack of heaviness, it's easily readable for any busy young mother. I wish I'd had it as a resource when my children were young.<br /><br />A few take-away snippets for me were:<br /><br />"Mother is the name for God in the lips and hearts of little children." ~~ William Makepeace Thackeray<br /><br />"Motherhood is like a pitcher with a hole in the bottom: a constant drain on our energy, patience, and tolerance. ... Our only hope... is to ensure our spiritual reserves are not bone-dry." When I was a young mom, the books I read preached the same thing. Their solution was to get up at 5 or 6 in the morning to refill the reservour of spirituality before the babies woke. Not this book's advice. Her spirituality intake advice is very easy to swallow. "Goodness in, goodness out. Take care of the first and the second is covered."<br /><br />This is truly a book for every young Christian mom. A real gem of a book. <br /><br />My copy of Out of the Spin Cycle was provided by Graf-Martin Publications. It's available at your favorite bookseller of Revell books, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

A breath of fresh air. Jen hits the perfect balance of comedy and thought provoking spirituality in the everyday struggles as a young mother. It made me feel normal and not so horrible, while also helping me to strive to be better. We are not alone on this crazy ride.

I appreciate the idea of this book but I found the author’s writing style to be a bit too “accessible”. Hatmaker writes to mothers in a series of 40 devotions on various topics affecting us. There were a few that did really get me thinking and stuck with me. However I couldn’t get over her voice. I love showing the Gospel as accessible and relatable. I love breaking down the stories and diving deep into the heart. And I can see that’s what she was trying to do. But I think she stepped too far and crossed the line into irreverence. Irreverence towards women who practice their faith differently than she does. My example and primary turn-off: she made fun of a man who was praying (not a great start ever) because he used the phrase “thrice holy” in his prayer. I find this to be a beautiful and grammatically historical way to praise the Lord and was upset that Hatmaker would mock this gentleman for his word choice. <br /><br />I also don’t exactly trust her interpretations of the Word. She created her own church and I feel that leaves her open to the fault of re-interpreting what hundreds of years of scholars have already clarified.<br /><br />After reading a few other reviews, there was mention that if you are “ultra conservative” or a “SAHM” or “theologically conservative” this book might be great for you. I disagree. I am all of those things and I feel this was not written for me. I would have said this is for women who are middle of the road in politics and a generic Christian but perhaps need a gentle introduction to their faith or a way to jumpstart their interest.

3.5 stars. This is a book of 40 devotions for parents. A lot of them made me laugh because the scriptural reference was kind of a stretch from her anecdotal stories but there were 4 or 5 that I dog eared and will read repeatedly. I think this is the type of book that will hit differently depending on where you are in life and what you're struggling with. I'm glad I read it but wish the connection between story and scripture was a little more cohesive.

This was some out of the vault J.H. I love how she was one of the first Christian authors to tell my generation that it was ok to not be perfect and to have a sense a humor. There is a lot of grace in her message.

absolutely wonderfully encouraging and challenging without the guilt and judgement!

This was a fantastic, relatable book for moms. I really appreciated it in my stage of life (3 young kids), and would recommend it to any other mom!

I read this book for my MOPS Steering team Bible Study. I had not heard of Jen Hatmaker or the book Out of the Spincycle until that time.<br /><br />I absolutely LOVED this book for the following reasons:<br /><br />1) Jen speaks to mothers about mothering. She talks about the things that some of us only think because we are afraid of all the "perfect" moms looking down their noses at us. But she is honest, straight forward, and provides thought-provoking solutions that are biblical.<br /><br />2) She is just plain funny!<br /><br />3) The devotionals are short and to the point. Let's face it! I have a 3 year old and infant twins. I don't have time for hours on end studying the Bible right now (ok Perfect moms...you can stone me now). These devotionals allow me to focus on various aspects of motherhood from a biblical perspective without having to spend hours on end that I don't have. <br /><br />For all new moms (and moms that have been at it for awhile) this is a devotional for you. I'm curious now to read some of her other books.