About the Book

Book: DRAW NEAR: How Painful Experiences Become the Birthplace of Blessings

Author: Hadassah Treu

Genre: Christian Non-Fiction

Release date: March 15, 2024

Can something so painful, even tragic, actually be God’s way of blessing?

As believers, we generally expect good things to happen in our lives. We expect a blessing upon blessing because we love God and He loves us and we form an expectation of prosperity (relational, emotional, and physical). And when the tragedy strikes and we enter a season of unwanted changes and suffering, we are shocked, angry, disappointed, and confused. We start doubting God’s love and His good intentions and plans. We begin questioning His ways and methods. We don’t understand. It is difficult to reconcile the pain we feel with what we know about God. This encouraging book aims to help you not only identify and accept specific losses but to realize that painful experiences could be the birthplace of blessings. We lose something, but there is more to gain.

What is God using your pain for?

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Hadassah Treu is an international award-winning Christian author, blogger, poet, and speaker, and contributor to several faith-based platforms like Koinonia and Devotable, and a dozen devotionals and poetry anthologies in English and Bulgarian. She is a COMPEL Provers 31 Blog writer and Freelancing Community Group leader. Her writing is featured on (In)Courage, The Upper Room, Proverbs 31 Ministries, Her View From Home, Living by Design Ministries, Thoughts About God, Today’s Christian Living and other popular sites.

More from Hadassah

Why me? Why this? Why now? How am I going to heal from this pain? Where are you, Lord?

These are the questions I often asked when I stayed awake in the night, with tears burning down my cheeks. I needed a new perspective, a deeper understanding, and the assurance of God’s love and good plans in my painful experiences. I longed for comfort and hope, and help to fix my eyes on the divine transformation going on in my heart.

Do you face the same struggles?

We all do. We all need a biblical perspective and a new look at suffering to help us reconcile our painful experiences with what we know about God. Suffering remains a mystery and there is no simple theological answer to it. But what is our role? What are we supposed to think and do when we go through undeserved and unexpected pain and trauma?

The first and most important is to learn to see our dark moments as new chances and opportunities to draw near to God. We can choose to take off the glasses of loss and replace them with the lenses of God’s love, biblical truths, and thankfulness. Then our outlook will change and we will see more of the bigger picture. We can choose to live with open minds, believing God’s Word, with hands raised in prayer. We can commit to putting every effort into finding the balance between the reality we live in and the reality in which we live with God. It is in this balance of our reality and God’s reality that we find peace instead of fear, rest instead of anxiety, and wholeness instead of destruction.

Our painful experiences are glorious opportunities to draw near to God, to bond with Him, and to enjoy intimacy and fellowship with Him amidst the pain. This is the most important thing we can do in our lives because everything else results from bonding and connection. A loving connection with God births maturity, growth, transformation, and eternal blessings. Besides that, suffering is a privilege and a possibility to take part in our Lord’s sufferings and to know the power of His resurrection.

When we choose to listen and draw near to God in our pains, something miraculous will happen. God’s Spirit will birth blessings and precious gifts out of the pain.

Are you ready to unpack them?

Blog Stops

Inspired by Fiction, October 3

Book Reviews From an Avid Reader, October 4

Fiction Book Lover, October 5 (Author Interview)

Mary Hake, October 5

Texas Book-aholic, October 6

A Reader’s Brain, October 7 (Author Interview)

Life on Chickadee Lane, October 8

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, October 9

Locks, Hooks and Books, October 10

Back Porch Reads, October 11 (Author Interview)

Becca Hope: Book Obsessed, October 11

Cover Lover Book Review, October 12

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, October 13

Stories By Gina, October 14 (Author Interview)

She Lives To Read, October 15

Jodie Wolfe – Stories Where Hope and Quirky Meet, October 16 (Author Interview)

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Hadassah is giving away the grand prize of a $30 Amazon card and copy of the book!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/00adcf5457

Interview with Hadassah

What has been your greatest writing achievement to date?

This year 2024 was the year of my greatest writing achievements since I’ve started writing 7 years ago. In May, I was nominated for the Literature Award of the Municipality of Pazardzhik, Bulgaria and I got the award during an official ceremony. This was such a festive and exciting moment. This award means a lot to me because it is a sign of recognition of my contribution. The award was granted for all my books (in Bulgarian and English).

My second greatest writing achievement was the release of my first solo non-fiction book “Draw Near: How Painful Experiences Become the Birthplace of Blessings” by Calla Press Publishing in March. This book is the fruit not only of my writing efforts, but it is truly a labor of my soul. I share in the book all the valuable insights and lessons I learned on my journey of loss, suffering and grief. The book has a 5-star rating on Amazon and Goodreads and it resonates with the readers.

If you could give advice to a newbie writer, what would it be?

I can give a lot of advice to a newbie writer, but my top 3 tips are:

• Be persistent and write regularly. Sometimes to do this, we need not only to clear space in our schedules but also to change our perspective and get serious. It is difficult to see progress if we treat our writing as a hobby. But if we really commit to it, then we will also invest time and effort in it.
• Keep your passion. The creative process is supposed to give us joy and some level of satisfaction. When we keep our passion fresh, this will help us in the long run.
• Find your community. Community is vital, no writer can succeed alone. We need other creatives and writers from whom we can learn, with whom we can cooperate and grow together.

 Tell us about your daily life.

I have a pretty normal daily life and routine. I start my day with time with the Lord and breakfast – I am journaling, reading the Bible and a chapter in a book, I am making notes on my reading, then prayer. This time is extremely valuable for me because it prepares me for the day ahead. On normal days, I am going to the gym afterwards and for some shopping and visiting my mum. My afternoons are set for writing and everything writing-related. Sometimes, I write in the evenings, too. But I prefer to have more relaxing evenings meeting with friends, or watching a movie, or just taking a walk.

Do your books revolve around certain themes?

One persistent theme in my books and in my writing in general is hope and comfort in suffering, and trusting God with our suffering. My mission is to help others to:

• Find hope and comfort in God’s Word;
• Overcome discouragement and hopelessness;
• Navigate transitions;
• Deal with anxiety;
• Stand firm in faith and grow spiritually;
• Deal with grief and losses in healthy ways.

Tell us something unique about yourself.

I am a Bulgarian, living in Bulgaria, Europe, and I speak 4 languages–Bulgarian, English, German and Russian. I usually write in English and Bulgarian which are my creative languages. I think this multi-lingual and multi-cultural aspect is unique.