This book is based on the song by the same name and has delightful illustrations added for visual interest. It provides a wonderful opportunity for a mother (or father or grandparent) to share with her child the truth that even though "I couldn't love you more," there is someone who can . . . and that is Jesus! The few minutes it takes to look through the pictures and read the short sentences on the pages are certain to bring rewards worth many times the investment.
Matt Hammitt, lead singer of Sanctus Real, co-wrote this song after he found out that his son Bowen was diagnosed with a congenital heart defect. It became part of an album where Matt shared many of his questions and emotions in dealing with that diagnosis.
Watch this video to learn more of the story behind I Couldn't Love You More.
FREE GIVEAWAY! -- Tyndale House Publishers provided me with a certificate for a free copy of this book to pass along to a reader. Leave a comment below, and I will choose a winner tomorrow after 5 p.m.
Matt Hammitt is the lead singer and a founding member of the band
Sanctus Real. Over the past decade, the Grammy nominated, Dove
Award–winning group has released five albums and has topped the
Christian radio charts with fourteen No. 1 and Top 5 radio hits. In
2010, Matt and his wife, Sarah, found out they were expecting their
third child. Already the parents of two young daughters, Emmerson and
Claire, they were looking forward to an ultrasound that would reveal
whether they were having a boy or a girl. "We found out it was a boy,
and we were all celebrating," Matt recalls. "But only a few minutes
later the doctor came in and told us that things weren't right, that
half of the baby's heart wasn't developed. At that time, they didn't
think he would survive." Diagnosed with Hypoplastic left heart syndrome,
little Bowen, whose name means "small, victorious one," defied the odds
and survived. But it hasn't been an easy road for Matt and his family.
Following Bowen's birth, Matt and Sarah watched their newborn son endure
two open-heart surgeries, and they spent more than three months by his
bedside at Mott Children's Hospital in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Matt and
Sarah have shared the pain, as well as the joy, of their journey with
others through their blog, Bowensheart.com, which has received more than
one million hits to date. Sarah says, "God clearly has His hand in all
of this. Our family has been called to walk through this, and we will do
our best, even though it's going to be really rough at
times." "Everything I've watched happen in the hospital—all the pain
I've felt—is deepening my faith, strengthening my marriage, and molding
my character," Matt says. "Out of what appeared to be a well of
emptiness has flowed a fountain of purpose." Matt's album Every Falling
Tear, released in 2011, was born out of the heart of a father wrestling
with his pain but buoyed by his faith and his love for his family. I
Couldn't Love You More is one of the songs on the album. It expresses a
parent's desire to share Christ's unconditional love with his child. A
portion of the proceeds from both Matt's album and this book will be
given to support the Whole Hearts Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit
organization founded by the Hammitts that is dedicated to helping
families with children suffering from congenital heart defects. Matt
says, "We've met so many families like us whose children are suffering,
and they are looking for hope. It has become our mission to help them
find it."This book was provided free of charge from Tyndale House Publishers for my honest review.
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