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An honest and vulnerable voice who puts a new face on the struggles women encounter, author and co-founder of Q Ideas with husband Gabe, Rebekah Lyons has penned her second book, You Are Free - Be Who You Already Are (Zondervan), available Feb. 21, 2017. In her latest, Lyons shares the freedom Jesus offers from competition and performance, offering us a life of purpose.
Depression and anxiety have reached an all time high among young women, with staggering rates increasing by 70 percent in the past 25 years. Women under the age of 35 in North America are the most affected by this alongside a growing number of women (one out of four and counting) taking anti-depressants. At the same time, Barna Research Group reports over66 percent of U.S. adults believe in supernatural healing - which is where this book and an author with personal perspective, becomes a valuable resource.
"Our deepest fears often leave us paralyzed, debilitated, exhausted, and alone." Lyons says. "We measure our worth by what others think of us. We compare and strive, existing mostly for the approval of others. Pressure rises, anxiety creeps in and we hustle to keep up. We weren't made to keep up. We were made to be free. To be who we already are."
In You Are Free, Lyons walks readers from fear to freedom in areas such as anxiety, grief, purpose, identity, self worth and rest. As a mother of three and female entrepreneur, Lyons draws from her personal experience and years spent speaking around the country to hundreds of thousands of women on issues such as: sharing the parenting role with her husband, nurturing the mother/daughter relationship, raising teenagers in a technological age, carving out time for rest, preparing a special needs child for adulthood, and more.
An interactive book, You Are Free is a trade book and Bible study in one. The chapters are written in a conversational tone, making the reader feel like they are sitting across the table having coffee with the author. Each chapter features a vignette, scripture and prayers for freedom, as well as questions built in throughout, helping the reader digest and take in what they're reading.
As a special needs mom, "I don't say this casually or lightly. I have been through agonizing anxiety myself, and I have prayed with and hear from women all the time that are considering suicide, experiencing trauma, fighting cancer, holding off divorce, overcoming addiction and more. These are women, weary and wounded saying, 'I'm done with the life I've created. I hunger for something more.'"
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