Prayers of a Stranger by Davis Bunn

Book Description:  While visiting the Holy Land, Amanda answers the prayers of a stranger…and begins an amazing Christmas journey.

Amanda Vance is ambivalent about her husband’s idea for a big family holiday up north. She had planned a special Christmas in their own home, carefully preparing a nursery and the keepsake ornaments for their newborn. Now that room stands as empty as her heart. Then a neighbor’s mishap turns into a last-minute chance for Amanda to take a much-needed vacation to tour the Holy Land. At the urging of her husband, Amanda agrees to go. An extraordinary turn of events allows Amanda to help answer a young mother’s plea for a healing. Filled with a sense of awe, Amanda visits the place of Jesus’ birth. There, she discovers anew the miracle of the Christ child—God incarnate as a tiny, vulnerable baby. Her return to Florida marks a momentous shift in her soul and in her marriage as she begins to realize that her journey didn’t end in the Holy Land. And that God doesn’t just answer the prayers of strangers…but also those of her heart.

My Review:  Davis Bunn is on my most favorite author list! And now he's written a new Christmas story.  Prayers of a Stranger is one of those reads that leaves the reader with a little glimpse of heaven.

Amanda Vance has had a devastating lost!  The child that she and her husband, Chris, were expecting at Christmas was still born.  Oh! the grief!  Oh! the heartache!  But then at the last minute her neighbor needs a companion for her trip to the Holy Land.  Amanda is not sure that  

she should go but at her husbands urging she quickly packs and is off.

Amanda is literally filled with awe at the sight of Christ's birth place and she comes to an understanding that fills her soul with peace.

While in the Holy Land she meets Miriam and the toddler, Rochele.  

Amanda, with her medical knowledge, is able to help Rochele who is ill.  

This journey in Amanda's life opens up a whole new world of peace in her soul.  And instead of clamming up she now can reach out to others in need.

When she returns home she realizes that the Holy Land wasn't the end of a journey but a beginning.  

We may not realize that the prayers of a stranger reach into the heavens and our life may never be the same.  

This is one of those not to be missed Christmas reads that will spark faith and love in your heart.  

*This book was provided for review by BookSneeze/Thomas Nelson Publishing*

Visit the author's website at www.davisbunn.com
Title: Prayers of a Stranger
SubTitle: A Christmas Story
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Pub Date: September 11, 2012
ISBN: 9780849944888