THE book Ordinary Mum, Extraordinary Mission
(IVP, £8.99 (CT Bookshop £8.10 - Use code CT954 );
978-1-78359-024-7) is penned from the depths of domesticity by two
Christian women (and mothers to boot), Anna France-Williams and Joy
French, working alongside their husbands' ordained ministry in
urban areas.
The authors, who alternate writing each chapter, make it clear
from the introduction that "this book is all about living as a
missional mum." There is much sharing from their personal, family,
and spiritual lives, peppered with advice given on the assumption
that, whatever situation the reader may be in, "you are a busy mum
who wants to follow God."
Read on with that assumption in mind, and you get immersed in
the personal lives of the authors - both with professional
backgrounds - who manage to weave in the messiness of life looking
after a family while finding direction in their spiritual lives,
which, they believe, may help others.
One of the strengths of the book is the case studies at the end
of each chapter: an ME sufferer; a survivor of the Rwandan
genocide; a single parent who divorced and then her ex-husband
committed suicide; and the mother who set up baby basics, to
support vulnerable asylum-seekers. The touch of reality in these
stories, combined with the authors' honesty on marriage,
childrearing, friendships, and so on, make the book a genuinely
good read, and a possible choice for group study, as each chapter
ends with questions. But a shame about the title.