Never Enough is a well-written, thoughtfully structured series of ‘teachable moments’ based on the author’s own testimony of suffering from eating disorders and a battle between fitness and obsession.
Ivill talks of how her need to be romantically loved made her forget that her first love ought to be Christ; and how focusing on her earthly success led her to feel frustrated and disappointed. Each time, she explains with solid, biblical analysis how we should train our minds and our hearts away from such worldly lies and towards God’s truth.
The exegesis is faultless and the examination of the lives of Sarah, Rachel, and Leah, among others, is immensely helpful. Each chapter features questions that can be used in a group setting to help bring home the lessons to our own lives.
The author tellingly comments that her full immersion in God’s Word revealed the lies she had believed and replaced them with truth. This book is a helpful signpost away from those worldly lies and towards God’s Word. Until women can get out of the ‘comparison cage’ – as Ivill wisely describes the prison of our own sinful hearts’ making – we will need to be reminded that ‘the secret of satisfaction is not in securing our own plans, in our own ways, but in submitting to God’s sovereign plans that He brings about in His ways’.
However, it would be nice to find a book for women that doesn’t mention beauty or husbands. There are many women who want to be godly influences in the workplace but need to know how to navigate secular laws, or how to use their position to serve God better. Well-written, biblical books catering to such women are lacking.
Simoney Kyriakou
London
