Eat with Joy: Redeeming God's Gift of Food
"This book made me hungry! Hungry for all that is good and beautiful about the art of gathering with others around a table. As a drive-thru mom I have struggled daily with my own connection to food for decades. Rachel helped me understand the true joy and gift of community, culture and a healthy connection to my food. It gave me nourishment, comfort and a deep understanding of the power of my kitchen table to heal and restore. A truly great read!" (Tracey Bianchi, pastoral staff at Christ Church of Oak Brook and author of Mom Connection and Green Mama, traceybianchi.com)"This book is manna in the wilderness to any Christian who has ever had a conflicted relationship with food, thereby missing the unadulterated joy of eating. In a fresh and engaging voice, Rachel Marie Stone reminds us that when we savor delicious, nourishing food, we are actually tasting God." (Jana Riess, author of Flunking Sainthood: A Year of Breaking the Sabbath, Forgetting to Pray, and Still Loving My Neighbor)"In the quest to deal at length in writing with a theology of the ordinary (work, rest, play, study, worship, sex) it turns out I left out a crucial subject--eating. Thankfully Rachel Marie Stone's splendid new book fills the void--in my stomach, mind and heart for an adequate and accurate theology of eating from a biblical point of view. I'm tempted to give the advice God gave Ezekiel--'eat this book.'" (Dr. Ben Witherington III, Amos Professor of NT for Doctoral Studies, Asbury Theological Seminary)"Rachel Marie Stone is a woman after my own heart: a mom, a writer and a Christian who loves to feed the people she cares about.Eat with Joyis practical and inspiring, wise and full of love." (Shauna Niequist, author of Cold Tangerines and Bittersweet, www.shaunaniequist.com)"Eat with Joyis a perfect title for this wide-ranging look at food and eating. I loved Stone's emphasis on communal meals and finding pleasure in the sensory experience of eating. My creativity--and appetite!--were stimulated by her stories about God's joyful presence in the growing, cooking and savoring of food, and the connections she made between food and justice were illuminating. The variety of beautiful table prayers at the end of each chapter reflect the heart of the book, encouraging the reader to see food as a gift from God to be enjoyed in God's presence and with the people we love." (Lynne M. Baab, author of Fasting, Sabbath Keeping and Joy Together: Spiritual Practices for your Congregation)"I'm not proud of this, but I didn't start taking my eating habits seriously--or seeing them as part of my spiritual life--until I reached mid-life. I wish I'd started when I was in my twenties (or before), and I wish I'd hadEat with Joyas my guide. The beautiful mealtime prayers alone are worth the price of the book. A treasure for soul and body." (Brian D. McLaren, author, speaker, blogger (brianmclaren.net))"In our multitasking, 24/7 world, many of us treat food as mere fuel for our bodies. By slowing down, eating healthier and learning to relish our food, we catch a glimpse of life as God intended: an everlasting communion with him. Those who seek an improved relationship with their daily bread will rejoice inEat with Joy. Highly recommended!" (Nancy Sleeth, author of Almost Amish: One Woman's Quest for a Slower, Simpler, More Sustainable Life)"When Irma Rombauer publishedThe Joy of Cookingshe couldn't have imagined we'd need to learn to eat with joy eighty years later. But we do. Stone offers the backstory of our current food woes and dilemmas along with hopeful and redemptive responses. And all the while she invites us toward a practical, joyful celebration of just, good food." (Lisa Graham McMinn, author of Walking Gently on the Earth and Dirt and the Good Life)"In this food-focused age, reading about food can be a lot like eating it: fraught with anxiety, confusion, excess and even emptiness. Rachel Marie Stone is here to restore what God intended from the first--real joy. You'll find much wisdom and celebration in its pages, including recipes and simple family-tested ways of living and eating more joyfully right now. Make ready the feast!" (Leslie Leyland Fields, editor of The Spirit of Food)"Christian faith and life have always been deeply and inextricably bound up with eating. But Christians have not always appreciated this. What a joy then to have the gift of this book by Rachel Marie Stone. In prose that is inviting, nonjudgmental and inspiring, Stone shows us that we can eat with joy, and in such eating extend God's love in the world. By combining stories, recipes, biblically based reflection and numerous practical tips, Stone helps us move more deeply into the mystery and the grace that eating is. Prepare to receive a blessing." (From the foreword by Norman Wirzba, author of Food and Faith)"This book is a remarkable spiritual and practical guide to God's most basic gift. Rachel Marie Stone takes eating to a devotional level, where food becomes a part of our healing, our relationship building and our gratitude toward God. My joy in eating is now increased as I can better realize the meaning and purpose of food, and the relationships built around it." (Dr. Joel C. Hunter, senior pastor of Northland, A Church Distributed  )"Eat with Joyis delicious! Generous, wise, well-reported and--yes--joyful, Rachel Marie Stone's book will open your hands so that you may receive the good gifts of God. She had me long before even mentioning saag paneer,Babette's Feastor the recipe for cinnamon rolls." (Jennifer Grant, author of Love You More and MOMumental)