One of my prayers for our church is that we would be a “reading church” — first and foremost, the Word of God, but also the many helps that the people of God have left the church over the years.
— Pastor Monty
May 2026
Fearfully and Wonderfully Made: Fighting for Faith When You’re Falling Apart, by Sydney Anne Bennet
If you are in the midst of great soul-sorrow, this book is written for you by someone who has been there too. Christians are often afraid to put language to deep suffering. It doesn’t seem “holy” to outwardly grieve our losses, to lament our afflictions, to put up words like modern-day dust and ashes. This book is Sydney Anne Bennett’s humble effort to sit beside you in the darkness and say, “I know. I feel it too. Let’s go to Jesus right now, for we have nowhere else to go.”
After becoming disabled just two weeks after her honeymoon, Sydney was forced to reckon with a body that changed overnight and inhabit a faith that no longer fit tidy answers. Diagnosed with Functional Neurological Disorder (FND)—a condition that disrupts the brain’s ability to send correction signals to the body—Sydney now lives with daily seizures, mobility loss, and chronic pain.
Fearfully and Wonderfully Broken is not about overcoming disability. It is about learning to live truthfully before God and others with unresolved grief, humiliating dependence, and lingering limitations. It is about recognizing that faith does not resolve all questions neatly, and that dignity, courage, and steadfastness may remain even when independence disappears. God is present in bodies that no longer work as they once did. His presence makes broken things fearful and wonderful.
This book is the companion Sydney wanted to have when she first became sick. Whether you are struggling with physical pain, disability, or illness, or are working through chapters of grief of a totally different kind, the answer to pain is always the same: Jesus will redeem your brokenness. He is building something—something fearful, yes. But also something wonderful.
“I am pleased to recommend a book that is especially meaningful to me personally. The book is written by our daughter, Sydney, and it has just been released.
I realize I am not a neutral party in commending this book. I love Sydney, and I am grateful for the work the Lord has done in her life. But I am recommending this book to you not because she is my daughter, but because I believe it will be genuinely helpful, encouraging, and worthwhile for our church family.
One of the blessings of belonging to the body of Christ is that we get to rejoice when the Lord uses the gifts (and weaknesses) of those among us and those connected to us for the good of others. Sydney has labored to write something that I believe can serve us well, and I am thankful to be able to share it with you.” — Pastor Monty
Bonus Material
Interviews: RAPT, In Awe by Bruce, Doreen Virtue
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Scandia Bible Church 