Amanda Anderson Helps Us Discover the Joys of Authentic Friendship in New Book

By Hallels News Jun 25, 2019 07:54 AM EDT

With relatable stories, scriptural truth, and psychological research, author and speaker Amanda Anderson reveals the keys to experiencing healthy, Biblical friendship in All My Friends Have Issues: Building Remarkable Friendships with Imperfect People (Like Me) (Jul. 9, 2019; ISBN 9781400208579; $17.99). Friendship has only gotten more complicated in the age of technology; for readers who have grown weary of trying to find the ultimate friendship or be the perfect gal pal, Anderson's debut book offers healing and hope to move forward in healthy friendships.

Anderson is the wise wing-woman readers need to help them embrace their own flaws and accept their friends' "issues" - failures, flaws, and fears - with honesty and grace. "Loving and being loved by others is my favorite part of being a human being," says Anderson. "it's also the hardest, most exhausting thing I do on a daily basis." The author knows from personal experience that good friendship takes work, but she also knows that it is both possible and powerful.

According to Anderson, the three pillars of healthy friendship are authenticity, the ability to reveal and be loved for our true selves; encouragement, the commitment to support one another in both the highs and lows and spurring one another on to continue growing through it all; and accountability, the permission to remind one another of who we are and the truths on which we stand. She explores these three elements in depth, examining why they matter and how they can be developed over time. By vulnerably sharing her own hurts and unhealthy habits, the author reveals the common missteps that lead to dysfunctional relationships and how the reader can avoid making the same mistakes.

The goal of All My Friends Have Issues, says Anderson, "is to define what healthy, safe friendships look like, how to cultivate them, and how to nurture the friendships you already have so that you can experience more fun, meaningful connection, and spiritual growth."

While friendships are meant to be fun, they are also a part of God's design to bring about healing and exhort holiness. With scripture as a guide and Amanda Anderson as a traveling companion, there is hope for every woman to find freedom in authentic friendship and courage to become the person God intends her to be. PO Box 141000 Nashville TN, 37214 tel: 800.251.4000 web: www.thomasnelson.com For more information about All My Friends Have Issues, please contact Shea Nolan, Shea.Nolan@HarperCollins.com.

Amanda Anderson wishes that the "Friends" theme song was written for her and girlfriends. A woman without sisters, she prizes her friends - ages 28 to 72 - highly for their wisdom, sense of adventure, knowledge of their own issues, and unconditional love. Amanda is a Bible teacher, retreat and conference speaker, blogger and freelance journalist in Orange County, CA. Her speaking ministry, Heart in Training, reaches young mothers, women's ministries and 12-step recovery groups around the country. Having overcome a decade-long struggle with anxiety and depression, her messages now focus on learning to follow God and actually enjoy it: through rest, recreating, creating healthy boundaries, risking authentic relationships, and releasing perfectionism. When not writing or speaking, she is sewing quilts at her kitchen table, talking on the phone with her girlfriends, hunting for vintage treasures with her husband of 20 years, or embarrassing her two daughters by dancing in public.