Overcoming Life's Disappointments, Vol. 4 » (Abridged)

Harold S. Kushner is Rabbi Laureate of Temple Israel in Natick, Massachusetts, where he lives. His books include The Lord Is My Shepherd, Living a Life That Matters, and How Good Do We Have to Be?

From Harold S. Kushner, the author of When Bad Things Happen to Good People, an audiobook that shows us how to be our best selves even when things don t turn out as we had hoped that is, how we can overcome life s disappointments.Kushner turns to the experience of Moses to find the requisite lessons of strength and faith. Moses towers over all others in the Old Testament: he is the man on the mountaintop to whom God speaks with unparalleled intimacy, and he leads his people out of bondage. But he is also deeply human, someone whose soaring triumphs are offset by frustration and longing: his people ignore his teachings, he is denied entrance to the Promised Land, his family suffers. But he overcomes.Through the example of Moses remarkable resilience, we learn how to weather the disillusionment of dreams unfulfilled, the pain of a lost job or promotion, a child s failures, divorce or abandonment, and illness. We learn how to meet all disappointments with faith in ourselves and th...

Publishers Weekly

When life does not unfold as planned, Rabbi Kushner (When Bad Things Happen to Good People) strongly but sympathetically urges his readers to take inventory, learn from their experiences and move on with an open heart. Who better to learn from, he contends, than Moses, the greatest hero of the Jewish people? Moses not only led the Jews from slavery in Egypt and through the desert for 40 years to receive the Torah, but had to continually bear the ingratitude and complaints of his people, and relegate his personal life to a distant second place. Threading vignettes of Moses' resiliency into his discussion, Kushner advises that when personal difficulties arise-whether in the form of illness, marital problems or job frustrations-readers should not allow their faith and dreams to die. Rather, they should draw upon hope and forgiveness to become stronger, channeling their love and fear toward a dream that incorporates the best of who they are. Kushner does not shy away from difficult issues and awkward dilemmas, and his years of rabbinical experience in dealing with congregants' troubles make him well suited to offer advice. This readable and sensitive discussion of "Life is tough; let's be strong enough not to be broken by it" should appeal to anyone who has ever been disappointed. (Aug. 16) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

First Words     ix
The Man Who Dared to Dream     3
Who Are You Working For?     27
A Hard Road, Not a Smooth One     49
New Dreams for Old Ones     68
Keeping Promises     99
It's Not All About You     119
The Mistakes Good People Make     134
How to Write Yourself a Happy Ending     154