Hopes Fulfilled For Peggy

Alice nodded, but she stared into space dreamily, a little half smile on her lips. Peggy, watching her, wondered how you could ever help someone if she didn’t know she needed help. Peggy hated to be snoopy, but she was sure Alice was getting in deeper and deeper with the wrong bunch of kids. And she wasn’t at all bothered about doing something a little bit wrong if it wasn’t convenient to do what was right. “How can I help?” she wondered achingly. Then she turned around impulsively to face Alice. “I – I wish – “ she began and stopped. She wanted to say, “I wish you would become a Christian.” but the words stuck in her throat.

Book: Hopes Fulfilled for Peggy by Dorothy Martin, Moody Publishers/Back To The Bible, 1963

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Target Audience: Girls 12-16

Subjects: Sharing your faith, Obedience, Trust, Patience, Perseverance

Summary: What’s it going to take for Alice to see her need for salvation? With her spending the summer at Peggy’s house, Peggy is sure she will have lots of chances to witness to Alice, but somehow the words just won’t come out. She tries inviting Alice to their programs at church, but Alice just thinks those are boring. She even tries getting one of the boys Alice likes to invite her, but Alice still won’t open her heart. In fact, she seems to be getting deeper into her sinful lifestyle as the summer goes on. How can Peggy ever reach this girl that she cares so much about?

Notes: The fifth in The Peggy Books series, this book has Peggy learning more about what it means to share her faith. She has to learn perseverance and patience as she witnesses to both her dad and one of her friends. It’s hard to not be annoyed by the decisions they make, but by the end of the book, Peggy has been able to get her own heart in the right place and share the Gospel, leading Alice to actually put her trust in Christ for her salvation, and leading her dad to intentionally start seeking and find the truth. The author does a good job showing how our whole focus needs to be on the right things. I can definitely recommend this book!

Spiritual Content Recommendation Scale: 5/5

Reviewer: J:-)mi

Romans 10:13-17 – for, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!" But not all the Israelites accepted the good news. For Isaiah says, "Lord, who has believed our message?" Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.