Forever Obsession: My Stubborn Heart

My Stubborn Heart by Becky Wade

ISBN: 978-0-7642-0974-1

Pages: 340

Summary:

Kate Donovan is burned out on work, worn down by her dating relationships, and in need of an adventure. When her grandmother asks her to accompany her to Redbud, Pennsylvania, to restore the grand old house she grew up in, Kate jumps at the chance.

Upon her arrival in Redbud, Kate meets Matt Jarreau, the man hired to renovate the house. Kate can't help being attracted to him, drawn by both his good looks and something else she can't quite put her finger on. He's clearly wounded-hiding from people, from God, and from his past. Yet Kate sets her stubborn heart on bringing him out of the dark and back into the light...whether he likes it or not.

When the stilted, uncomfortable interactions between Kate and Matt slowly shift into something more, is God finally answering the longing of her heart? Or will Kate be required to give up more than she ever dreamed?

Hey guys, the long awaited review of My Stubborn Heart by Becky Wade. First of all, sorry for the HUGE delay, I won't make any excuses for it. Okay, let's get started on this review shall we?

Characters:

Kate's Grandmother: Guys, can we just give this woman a round of applause for asking Kate to go with her to PA? Without this gal, my beautiful couple would not have met. I don't remember much about her, as I finished this book in June, but I love her nonetheless.

Kate: My beautiful heroine of the story.

I love that, despite being worn down by her work and life, she still has this super strong faith in God and is willing to go to him for anything. If I could meet her in real life, I would just stand there and be like, "Girl I love you!" I would probably then start to bombard her with questions about how she stayed strong in her faith and how she dealt with doubts in her life. I mean, this girl is one big Christian role model! (In my POV.)

Matt: This guy is perf, I love the description in the summary where it says that he's clearly wounded and hiding from people, God, and his past. It sort of gives me this view that he strong, but scared, which is just awesome. The thing that drew me to him was the fact that he wasn't arrogant or big-minded like a lot of guys that are hiding from their past (that I've read in books.) Instead, he's pretty quiet and cold, which is fine I guess...

Morty and Velma: Gonna categorize this couple as one. First of all, Velma is one heck of a girl. If I could meet her in real life I would definitely tell her, "Girl, the world and it's men do not revolve around what you want." Morty is this super sweet guy who just wants a chance with the woman he's in love with. And he literally did all that he could to win her approval. Honestly, I didn't think Velma was all that worth it. I mean, she told him to change his hair, change his clothes, even to show off his coveted car! That girl wants way to much from him. But in the end, they fell in love and lived happily ever after, so...yay for them.

Story:

I freaking loved this story. I loved the way it began (which btw, you can read here). That sentence, "Funny thing about prayers. God hears them. But you just never know if, when, or how He's going to answer them." I mean, wow, completely blown away. Then all that goodness in the middle where the two of them (Kate and Matt not Morty and Velma) fell in love was beautiful. Everything seemed to go perfectly. A broken and hurting man with a caring, beautiful woman. Who doesn't see the sparks here? Then the part which absolutely broke my heart, but I won't tell you cause that would ruin the story and then the ending which just about made me cry and fall into 100 little pieces. Alright, overall, you guys have to go read it regardless if you are Christian or not, just so you can see the beauty of love, hope, and God.

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

Thank you, she prayed. Thank you, God.

Tonight, with the stars visible through the den's windows, she couldn't help but brim with hope. Hope for this old house, hope for her future, hope for her job, hope even for their heartbroken recluse of a contractor.

I think that God has blessing He wants to give but can't until you let Him.

She'd recognized him because he was the reason God had brought them here. God didn't care about the renovation of old houses. But He did care, very much, about His lost people.

Forgive me.

It seemed impossible, but he felt God's response immediately. You're forgiven. Just that quickly and simply. No lectures or blame. Only the feeling that God had heard everything and forgiven everything in one fell swoop. Just like that.

His plan had been for Matt to return to his hockey, which meant that three months ago had been the wrong time for them. God had needed these past months to work on them both. To get them where He wanted them to be.

How like God to bless Matt with hockey and to bless her with him. It was far more than she's hoped for and far more than she deserved. She'd had so little faith. When she'd left Matt behind, she'd stop trusting God, been willing to turn her back on Him. While God had only, ever, this whole time, been working for her good.