Diony George is a wife, stay-at-home mom of seven, grandmother of three, motivational speaker, and the author of four books. Through her writing and public speaking she loves helping others draw closer to God. An avid reader whose favorite genre is romantic suspense, Diony also loves to travel, sew, and bake—especially pies and homemade bread. Born and raised in Alaska, she currently resides in Salt Lake City with her husband and family. Mrs. George can be reached through her personal website at http://www.dionygeorge.com
Heaven’s Just a Prayer Away by Diony George

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Whenever I read Diony George’s works, I always come away feeling much closer to God and spiritually refreshed. Although she is an LDS author, her books are chock full of information and thoughts that do not contradict most of my beliefs. When she and I do not agree, it is certainly not a deal breaker. This current book of hers has everything that I have come to know and love in her writings. As I shared with my mom, my favorite parts of the book are the real life examples she shares. She shares a lot from her own life, but she does feature well-known examples.

There were many amazing teachings that she mentioned: forgiveness, trust, and God cares about the little things. I had a perfect example of that today when I was repairing my daughter’s toy. I recognized that I could not do it on my own, and God honestly cares about everything. Why on earth do we wait until prayer is a last resort? It should be the first thing we do. And if we are constantly praying throughout the day, we will have an easier time making the transition.

I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. I was not financially compensated, and all opinions are 100 percent mine.

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Excerpt

It was the middle of December, and it looked it. Snow was steadily falling, in the Salt Lake Valley and had been for several days. When I went to bed that night, snuggling close to my husband I was glad to be in a warm house.

Later on something woke me up. I glanced at the clock by my bed; it was after three in the morning. I realized I hadn’t heard my nineteen-year-old son, come home. I whispered to my husband, he hadn’t heard him either. I was worried, work never kept him out this late. I reached for my cell phone and sent him a text.

“Are you okay?”

“No,” he replied.

My heart started to pound. “No?” All kinds of thoughts started rushing through my head. I quickly showed my husband the message. He sat up in bed and immediately called.

Our son had been in an accident and just barely gotten phone service again. He needed someone to come get him. My husband quickly got dressed, grabbed some warm blankets and left.

He had been coming down the mouth of Little Cottonwood Canyon after his shift ended and unknowingly hit a patch of black ice. He lost control of his car and it slid off the road hitting a concrete barrier. The front of the vehicle pointed up at a forty-five degree angle. Less than a foot off to the left was a twenty-foot drop into an icy creek.

The air bags had deployed causing minor injuries he had been dazed but remained conscious. He told us he had fumbled around for his cell phone to call for help, but when he found it there was no reception. Slowly, he had gotten out of the car, feeling shaken, and began walking down the road out of the mouth of the canyon. It was pitch black, bitter cold and snowing hard.  A mile and a half later he found a small gas station and was able to use his phone.

The next forty-five minutes of waiting passed interminably slow. When I finally heard the garage door open, signaling my husband was back I was filled with gratitude and relief. I met him as he came inside and immediately hugged my son close. He was tired, pale and understandably upset about his car, but home safe. He asked for a father’s blessing. After my husband finished, he was visibly calmer and able to go to sleep.

Before I went back to bed, I knelt down with a full and grateful heart and thanked my Heavenly Father. Earlier that day, worried over the weather, I had specifically said a prayer asking that my son would be safe traveling to and from work.

Some might argue—but he was in an accident and his car was totaled—I say my prayer was answered like many others before and once again I was overwhelmed with gratitude.

“It can be tempting to complain when life is challenging. The act of thanking and praising has great power to help us endure and is one of the surest methods for increasing happiness. It is also a way to define our relationship with God, from whom all blessings flow.”                                            

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