“We all have hard days. The kind that make us want to pull the covers back over our heads, move to Hawaii, or eat a dozen cupcakes. Deep inside we know those aren’t the best options for our lives or our thighs. So what’s a girl to do?”

With these words that so many women can relate to, Holley Gerth invites readers into the tea-with-a-friend atmosphere of her newest book, What Your Heart Needs for the Hard Days, published by Revell in the summer of 2014.   Written as a daily (or weekly) devotional, this mini-sized book can easily be read by itself, or as a companion to Ms. Gerth’s previously released title, You’re Going to Be Okay.

Opening the cover for the first time, readers will be delighted with one of the best features of the book – a table of contents for the comprehensive titles of each devotional reading. By using this helpful tool, women can scan through the list for the topic their heart needs to hear that day – or simply read the devotionals in the order they were written.

Each of the 52 daily readings are based on a portion of Scripture from the book of Psalms, with a verse or two introducing each topic. Next follows an inspirational but brief discussion in which Holley shares personal stories from other women, poses thought-provoking questions, and gently gives advice for incorporating the Psalm into daily life. Near the end of the reading is a prayer with writing room for personalization, and a few lines of journal space to record your thoughts, hopes, goals, or anything else that comes to your mind – or heart. Finally, almost hidden at the very end of each section are two Psalms for recommended reading – by using this tool, readers will work through all 150 Psalms.

What Your Heart Needs for the Hard Days is a sweet, encouraging little book perfect for the days when you need an extra boost of encouragement, or a very thoughtful gift for a friend. It is clearly not meant to be an in-depth, soul-searching, or heavily reflective type of book, but rather an uplifting glance through the Psalms. As Holley states, this book may help you “walk away with a heart that’s full. You’ll have more strength, peace, and joy. You’ll feel refreshed and nourished…” Although some readers may be searching for truths with a little more meat to them, this gentle book will, at the very least, inspire you to read through the Psalms with a fresh perspective.

“Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.  Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group”.

Click to view an excerpt from What Your Heart Needs for the Hard Days