The Creaking on the Stairs: Finding Faith in God Through Childhood Abuse

Book Description:

This is a book that has no easy answers and will offer none. This is a book that tries to get behind the tough questions of why God permits such abuses to occur in this world.

Using his own story of childhood abuse, Mez McConnell tells us about a God who is just, sovereign and loving. A good father who knows the pain of rejection and abuse, who hates evil, who can bring hope even in the darkest place. 'It's not a pagan rags to Christian riches story.'

Author:

Mez McConnell is the pastor for Niddrie Community Church, near Edinburgh. He is also the Director of 20schemes which is dedicated to revitalising and planting gospel churches in Scotland's poorest communities. Previously he was a missionary with street kids in Brazil. He is married and has two children.

Endorsements:

I really did not enjoy this book… but I am thankful for it. And I am convinced that it is vital reading for us. Mez points to the power of a loving, suffering Lord to save and heal even from the most harrowing abuse. Whether you've suffered abuse or grew up safe and loved, read it. It is an invaluable resource as we serve the abused and suffering in our midst with the love of Jesus. Simultaneously, gruelling and glorious.
--Steve Timmis, CEO of the Acts 29 Network

… even if every question is not answered, you will finish this book knowing these things for sure: You are not alone, God loves you intimately, and Jesus will make all things new. The two-fold testimony of Mez's vulnerability and Christ's sufficiency will certainly aid in bringing healing to the broken.
--Matthew Z. Capps, Senior Pastor, Fairview Baptist Church, Apex, North Carolina

This is the most disturbing book that I have ever read, and I cannot recommend it highly enough.
--Rosaria Butterfield, Author of The Gospel Comes with a House Key and The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert

 This book is heart-wrenching but necessary. It applies the gospel in the worst of contexts and demonstrates its power to save and restore. It is written for those who are hurting and for those who long to minister to them. These pages are void of whitewash, trite answers and cliché, but full of the gospel!
--Paul Washer, President, Heart Cry Ministry, Radford, Virginia 

Raw. Real. Redemptive. The story of Mez McConnell's childhood abuse, interestingly, neither centres on himself or his tormentors, but rather on God's good and sovereign providence, and a suffering Saviour who gave himself for Mez, and all who trust in him. It could have been just crushing, but instead it is filled with hope.
--Ligon Duncan, Chancellor and CEO, Reformed Theological Seminary

I finished it with the sober but thankful realisation that in its pages Mez has given us something incredibly valuable: truth and hope. He has given us truth that can be applied to even the most broken situations, and hope for that day when there will be no more weeping and no more tears. For that reason and many more, I can't recommend this book enough.
--Aileen Challies, Pastor's Wife

It's been said that we're all 'soaked with the sense of exile' and long for restored Eden. The hope for the abused and the abuser alike is in Jesus Christ who is indeed making all things new (Rev. 21:5). Born of unimaginable pain, this book will surely be a gospel balm to many.
--Chris Larson, President and CEO of Ligonier Ministries, Orlando, Florida

Additional Information: