I Can't Do It All: Breaking Free from the Lies That Control Us

This book tears away the curtain of lies women have become accustomed to hearing. These women talk candidly about their experiences in a way that will touch your heart. I can't be this open about my own life, but I'm so glad they could. They have provided insightful, practical advice for overcoming the problems each of us have. Not every experience will speak to you on a personal level, but I could identify with several of them. I think every woman should read this book and it would be nice if every man bought it for the woman in his life. I Can't Do It All, is a book you will read through more than once.

As we learned in Logic 101, if you base a theory on a false premise you will end up with a false conclusion. I once heard sin described as the human tendency to believe the lies of Satan over the truth of God. So whether we choose to convince ourselves that drinking ourselves into a stupor will solve our problems or that having material things is a measure of our self worth, believing these lies becomes the basis for behaviors that lead to trouble and misery. The three authors of I CAN'T DO IT ALL! have taken a giant step toward helping to identify some of the most common lies that we have the tendency to believe --- lies that can lead us away from truth and freedom and into sin and bondage. The table of contents reads like a mental "to do" list for today's busy generation as well as for many of us who still struggle with making changes in our reasoning. The chapters address such lies as: I deserve to have it all...right now; I can make my own truth; I don't have time to be healthy; True love is like a romance novel; The more I do the more God likes me. And, perhaps the biggest of Satan's lies: I don't need God. These and several other thought-provoking chapters provide the reader with much to ponder when trying to understand why life is full of stress and frustration. Tracie Peterson, Allison Bottke and Dianne O'Brian have crammed this small handbook full of Biblical truths that can be used to free yourself from the lies that have held you captive and never provided the promised results. In a unique format, each of the authors addresses one of the lies that she believed, describes the problems it led to and the resulting stress and frustration that it caused. Along with the Biblical truth that challenges the lie, there is a list of questions and suggestions at the end of each chapter to help provide practical applications. So you're not just getting "take two proverbs and call me in the morning" advice. Many chapters also contain inserts with simple prayers such as: I keep saying yes to things when I really mean no, Lord, help me get a grip! I CAN'T DO IT ALL! can be used to guide a Bible study or simply to help the reader break free of lies that control. It is a book about hope and healing, written by three women from diverse backgrounds who have a common belief in the goodness and mercy of God. --- Reviewed by Maggie Harding, a substance abuse counselor in Phoenix, AZ who wanted to be Brenda Starr before life intervened. [...]

I must be thin to be happy. I don't have time to be healthy. I can be young forever. The more I do, the more God loves me. Ever believed any of those lies? If none of the above, then I'm sure very few would not be able to identify with some other topics dealt with so capably - and honestly - in this book. Women sharing from their own hard earned experiences of life have to be listened to. The personal application sections at the end of each chapter gives the reader the opportunity to check things out for herself - and himself too! Highly recommended for group study and discussion also. Mary Hawkins

We try to do it all, be all things to all people, be all places at all times.We are women, we are capable and we are tired. Tracie Peterson, Allison Bottke and Dianne O'Brien tackle the statement 'I can do it all' with truth and grace in this book. With candor and vulnerability they share stories from their own journeys and guide us on ours. Fourteen chapters, fourteen lies we try to live and always fail. For it is the truth of the Bible that will break the lies. Then we learn it is only through Christ who strengthens us that we can do all things. This book is an excellent resource for women's Bible studies, retreats and individual growth and reflection. Woven through the pages is truth, beauty and the grace of the God who CAN do it all. Read the book. You will see yourself on the pages. You will also find mercy and freedom on every page.

This non-fiction book was so deep that I could only eat it in morsals. What an ideal resource for a women's group! I dare say I enjoyed it even more than Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World, and I thought that Bible study was awesome. Whether read individually or with a group, I Can't Do It All is so rich, and has such fantastic questions, that it smoothly facilitates transitioning into the deeper issues. I am going to strongly suggest this book for my women's group at church after we finish the current book we're working through. I learned a lot and gathered insights into my own spiritual walk. Talk about convicting! These ladies made a great team! I loved the "My Turn" section at the end of most chapters. I feel like I know the authors' hearts. Their candidness and testimonies are refreshingly real. It's as if I joined hearts with them as sisters in Christ. I even read a few sections out loud to my husband. He was wondering why it's only a women's book. Seemed to him like much of it applied to men as well. :) Highly recommended.