Where Is God? When Hope Hurts by Carol E. Urton

5.0 out of 5 stars Heart Wrenching!

Book Description

Abandoned at age two by her father, Carol was thrust into a life of unrelenting sexual abuse and child pornography when her mother remarried a deacon in their local church. After nine years, she brought the dark family secret into light, only to be silenced and sent away to live with her grandparents. At age 14, Carol began her journey of trying to find peace among the shattered pieces of her life. After years of running from the truth, she had to face her past. Carol began to try and answer her biggest question...”Where is God? When Hope Hurts.” She knew she had to make a choice and to choose life, she had to choose to be free. She ultimately found freedom from the debilitating hurts of her childhood and adult life through the healing process of forgiveness, salvation and above all HOPE in a loving God who never leaves and never forsakes.

With faith, there is always hope. Carol Urton’s story is compelling, riveting and empowering. Carol is truly a survivor that has been guided by the hopeful healing power of God. She not only survives, she thrives!
-Patricia Wenskunas, Founder CEO, Crime Survivors, Inc., and Orange County Crime Stoppers • www.crimesurvivors.org

The process of forgiveness is painful, but it produces great rewards. Carol Long/Urton had parent figures that abused and abandoned her. In the midst of her personal hell, she achieved a new perspective on life. Carol recounts her intimate story with honesty, telling of failures as well as successes.
-Carl Westerlund, Assistant pastor, Calvary Chapel of Costa Mesa

In the midst of pain and tragedy, when we feel abandoned and alone, God can be hard to find. Carol’s story of strength and survival is a testament to God’s love and faithfulness and serves as assurance to all of us that God never leaves us and lives can truly be restored. We know this to be true, just as we get to see these truths every day at the Orange County Rescue Mission.
-Jim Palmer, President, Orange County Rescue Mission

Biography

Carol Urton is a national lecturer and has been invited to be a speaker at numerous conferences, workshops, retreats and conventions.  She is a published author of several articles and short stories and has been a featured guest on several radio and television programs.  Her long awaited book, "Where is God? When Hope Hurts" was released in January 2013 and is now available.  Carol is currently working on the sequel, "Growing in God's Hope". 






My Review ~

No synopsis of this book is necessary. I cannot do it justice. The concept of a small child in the hands of a pedophile is almost more than I can comprehend, much less acquiesce. The verbal abuse, sexual abuse, and pornographic experiences that the author suffered at the hands of her stepfather, a deacon in the church, are deplorable. This author has overcome the atrocities in life, and survived to tell her story through the grace of God. Her faith and hope in a loving God has brought her to the pinnacle, an accomplishment that only strength of character and a wealth of faith can achieve. Carol's life story will stay with me for the rest of my life, not only because of the atrocities she suffered, but because of her resulting survival, transformation and recovery from the enormity of the cruelest forms of inhumanity. Her salvation, faith and forgiveness through Hope portray a woman of strength who not only survived, but thrives, and shares her heart and Hope without boundaries. This life story is unforgettable.