Melissa: If One Life by Janette Henning and Melissa Camp
Genre: Biography, Memoir
Read: 7th August 2024
Amazon
Published: 4th May 2020
★★★★★ 5 stars
DESCRIPTION:
The story that helped inspire the new movie I Still Believe.
Melissa, If One Life ... is the real-life love story of Melissa Camp, first wife of recording artist Jeremy Camp. Her heartrending story is told through her journals and reveals her intimate conversations with God, her extraordinary love story with Jeremy, her walk-through cancer and her supernatural responses to life’s hardest trials. The film, I Still Believe, is based on Melissa’s fun and emotional love story with Jeremy Camp. It is more than inspiring! It is transformational! It restores faith that great love does exist and is worth sacrificing everything for. This book expands the dialog, shows Melissa’s reactions and fills in the details of her remarkable life. It also reveals the mystery of living a courageous life filled with love, joy and hope no matter what the circumstances are.
MY THOUGHTS:
"If one life comes to faith in Jesus Christ because of what I go through - my cancer, my suffering and even my death - it will all be worth it!"
WOW! This has to be one of the most convicting and yet encouraging and inspiring books I have ever read. I don't read a lot of non-fiction because I find it very hard to connect with what is being written and being able to absorb it (as opposed to fiction which is easy to read). But this book was such a beautiful and inspiring read. I felt by the end that I had actually known Melissa, such was her passion and love felt throughout the pages.
I came across this book when purchasing her husband's, Jeremy Camp, own book "I Still Believe". When I read the premise for it I just had to have it and went out to buy, purchasing a copy for a friend of mine who was recently diagnosed with terminal cancer also. My hope is that she will be encouraged through Melissa's journals which fill this book with such love and passion like none I have ever seen.
Melissa speaks constantly of her desire for a greater intimacy with Jesus and her prayers tell of her selfishness at times and I'm thinking...I have never seen a more selfless person than Melissa! She was the epitome of selflessness and shone with love. I can only ever see her smiling and love Jeremy's favourite photo of her which he included in his book saying...
"How I will always remember Melissa"
Melissa's journals coupled with her mother Janette's telling of Melissa's story are both convicting and encouraging, inspiring those read it into a greater intimacy and love for Jesus also.
Despite cancer ravaging her body, she continued to praise God and worship Him, knowing that He had a greater plan for her. I would have loved to have known Melissa. She is truly an inspiration. Her story is an inspiration. The title of the book sums her desire up perfectly...in her words:
Melissa's total sacrificial love for others as well as Jesus is her legacy that continues to live long after she breathed her last two decades ago. She wanted everyone to know the great love she had and she was willing to go through pain, suffering and even death so that others would come to know the Saviour she loved so much. She was and continues to be an inspiration. I could only hope to reflect some of what she did. I dare anyone not to be be moved to tears by Melissa's journals.
You can purchase the book on Kindle but you will miss out on the beautiful illustrations that is in the hardback. The quote above I snapped from the book but really, it doesn't do it justice (my scanner isn't working so had to use my phone). These pictures below will give you a better idea (I hope).
This is truly one of the most beautiful books I have ever read. And it is beautifully illustrated too. It was lovely to see Melissa's smiling face in the photos at the end. You could just see the joy that radiated from her. She truly was beautiful...even after chemo took her beautiful hair.
Thank you Melissa for living and loving. Thank you for the love that is your legacy.
MEET THE AUTHOR:
Social Media links:
No comments:
Post a Comment