Authors: Karen Ball
A Test of Faith
EST OF
F
AITH
“Anyone who has ever struggled in a mother-daughter relationship will identify with Karen Ball’s
A Test of Faith
. The story is as real as the evening newspaper. It was as if I was reading about my own mother, my own daughter, and perhaps more profoundly, reading about myself.”
—DEBBIE MACOMBER,
New York Times
bestselling author
“As a mother of daughters, I was quickly drawn into the world of Anne and Faith. I laughed and I cried throughout
A Test of Faith
. And at the end, I thanked God for my own mother and daughters. Thank you, Karen Ball, for this beautiful and memorable story.”
—ROBIN LEE HATCHER, bestselling author of
Beyond the Shadows
“With fierce reverence, Karen Ball takes hold of truth with both hands and lovingly molds it into a life-changing story that readers will treasure.”
—ROBIN JONES GUNN, bestselling author of the Sisterchicks™ novels
“A story this honest could only come from the deepest, most tender places in a writer’s heart. Karen Ball is a highly skilled author who has gifted us with a gripping, heartfelt tale of the times.”
—KAREN KINGSBURY, bestselling author of
One Tuesday
Morning, Oceans Apart
, and the Redemption series
HE
B
REAKING
P
OINT
“
The Breaking Point
is compelling and strikingly honest. This story touches the heart and gives hope for struggling marriages. Karen Ball writes with clarity, depth, and power. It’s a pleasure to recommend this engaging and memorable book.”
—RANDY ALCORN, bestselling author of
Safely Home
“The Breaking Point
is must-reading for any couple seeking God’s ideal in this wonderful covenant we know as marriage.”
—ANGELA ELWELL HUNT, author of
The Debt
“Gut-wrenching in its honesty and passion,
The Breaking Point
packs a powerful message of obedience and God’s healing.”
—BRANDILYN COLLINS, bestselling author of
Color the Sidewalk for Me
and
Eyes of Elisha
“An honest, heartfelt novel about the craggy recesses of marriage—where God does some of His best work. Karen Ball’s writing is emotionally gripping and full of insight.”
—JAMES SCOTT BELL, bestselling author of
Breach of Promise
“In
The Breaking Point
, Karen Ball exposes the painful, honest truth of marriage: It’s hard work. This story of lives out of control, love misplaced, and the wounds we often give each other in the name of righteous direction is carefully balanced with God’s love, hope, and ministry of reconciliation. I highly recommend this book.”
—TRACIE PETERSON, bestselling author of the Desert Rose series and
Eyes of the Heart
Novels by Karen Ball
A Test of Faith
The Breaking Point
“Bride on the Run”
in the 3 Weddings and a Giggle anthology
This book is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogues are products of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
A TEST OF FAITH
Published by Multnomah Books
© 2004 by Karen Ball
eISBN: 978-0-307-76943-5
Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from:
Holy Bible
, New Living Translation
© 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.
All rights reserved.
Other Scripture quotations are from:
The Living Bible
(
TLB
)
© 1971. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.
All rights reserved.
New American Standard Bible
® (
NASB
) © 1960, 1977, 1995
by the Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
The Holy Bible
, New International Version (
NIV
)
© 1973, 1984 by International Bible Society,
used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House
“Shepherd of Love” © copyright 1966, renewed 1994 by John W. Peterson Music
Company. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
“Jesus Is Lord of All” words by William J. and Gloria Gaither. Music by William J.
Gaither. Copyright © 1973 William J. Gaither, Inc. All rights controlled by Gaither
Copyright Management. Used by permission.
Published in the United States by WaterBrook Multnomah, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House Inc., New York.
M
ULTNOMAH
and its mountain colophon are registered trademarks of Random House Inc.
All Rights Reserved
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without prior written permission.
For information:
Multnomah Books
12265 Oracle Boulevard, Suite 200
Colorado Springs, CO 80921
v3.1
For my mom, Paula Sapp.
Mom, yours was a life of true faith and love.
You lived out your devotion to God every day,
sharing His love and kindness with everyone around you,
rejoicing in His blessings of family and friends.
You showed me that all the eloquent talk in the world doesn’t
measure up to one simple act of love. And though you’re gone,
people still talk about the way you made others feel special,
about your gentle spirit and your wonderful, sweet smile.
You were the best mother any daughter could ask for.
I miss you every day, and I’m so grateful
God shared you with me.
We’ll be together again one day, in eternity.
What a grand reunion that will be!
You loved to hear me sing “Shepherd of Love,” and I enjoyed
singing it, because it made you smile. And it made you cry.
No wonder, then, when I needed a special song for the mother
and daughter in this book to share, I knew right away which
song it would be. And every time I write about that song,
I’ll sing it for you.
And for Julee, Heather, Caitlin, and Alyssa.
The sister and daughters I never had. I love you.
A
CKNOWLEDGMENTS
Many thanks to my physician, Susan Derry, and her wonderful nurse, Joanne, who always answered my medical questions—some of which I’m sure seemed quite odd—with patience and humor.
Thanks, also, to Heather, Caitlin, and Alyssa, who brain-stormed ways to make young Faith real and shared them with great enthusiasm. You girls are wonderful!
My eternal gratitude to my church family. You upheld us, prayed with us, supplied us with meals for months, and cried with us as we walked the path with Mom in her last days. We couldn’t have made it without you. And my true devotion to the wonderful women who’ve been part of my life for as long as I can remember—Anita, Marge, Pat, Therese, Verva, Betty, and Maxine—who reminded me on that first Mother’s Day, the day after Mom’s memorial service, that I still have spiritual moms. I love each one of you.
Finally, special hugs to The Coffee Crew—Linda, Sarah, Jennifer, Lori, Sandy, Deb, Andi, Connie, Max, and Patti—the original Yada Yada Sisters. (Though we gave ourselves that name years ago, it still fits us perfectly!) Your humor, faith, and wisdom have been an anchor for me through the toughest of times; your care has upheld me when I couldn’t stand on my own. Thank you, dear friends, for all of that—and for letting me use you in this book! Shows you’re not only good friends, but really, really good sports!
ART
O
NE
“A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials, heavy and sudden, fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine, desert us; when troubles thicken around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts.”
W
ASHINGTON
I
RVING
“Listen! A farmer went out to plant some seed. As he scattered it across his field, some fell on a footpath, and the birds came and ate it. Other seed fell on shallow soil with underlying rock. The plant sprang up quickly, but it soon wilted beneath the hot sun and died because the roots had no nourishment in the shallow soil. Other seed fell among thorns that shot up and choked out the tender blades so that it produced no grain. Still other seed fell on fertile soil and produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as had been planted.”
Then [Jesus] said, “Anyone who is willing to hear should listen and understand.”
M
ARK
4:3–9,
NIV
“Therefore this is what the Lord Almighty says:
‘See, I will refine and test them.’ ”
J
EREMIAH
9:7,
NIV
