Road Trip to Redemption : A Disconnected Family, a Cross-Country Adventure, and an Amazing Journey of Healing and Grace

Brad Mathias thought everything in his family was fine. A busy, contented dad, he had vaguely noticed that Bethany, his middle child, had become withdrawn and moody, but he assumed it was part of being a 'teen' and didn’t look any deeper. Until the night God spoke clearly to Brad and his wife: Ask her to reveal what she has hidden . They did-and learned the secret Bethany had been carrying, one that rocked their family to the core. In a desperate attempt to reach their daughter and to reconnect as a family, Brad and his wife piled everyone into the car and embarked on a wild, crazy, seven-thousand-mile, what-are-we-thinking trip across the country. As they drove, they realized how far apart they’d drifted, found unexpected blessings along the way-and journeyed together from pain and loss to recovery and redemption. In this book, Brad shares stories from the road about God’s grace, gives practical tips on what he learned about reconnecting as a family, invites you to consider your own epic journey as a mother or father, and calls you to trust wholeheartedly in the amazing love God has for your kids. Tyndale House Publishers Cover; Endorsements; Title; Copyright; Dedication; Contents; Foreword; Introduction; Part I: Detour Ahead; Prologue: To Hell and Back; Chapter One: Flashback at the Falls; Chapter Two: Stepping Back from the Edge of Fear; Chapter Three: Parent Guilt and Parent Pain; Chapter Four: Leaving the Old and Embracing the New; Part II: On the Road; Chapter Five: My Family on a Road Trip: Genius or Insanity?; Chapter Six: Nashville to South Dakota: An Anxious and Stormy Start; Chapter Seven: South Dakota to Montana: The "Four Chins" to Tornado Alley Chapter Eight: Montana to Canada: Running Wild and FreeChapter Nine: A Week in God's Country and the Hike That Changed It All; Chapter Ten: Canada to Yellowstone and a Memory in the Tetons; Chapter Eleven: Lost in the Present and Finding Bethany's Moose; Chapter Twelve: Caleb's Climb and Jessica's Rainbow; Chapter Thirteen: Road-Trip Theology: Learning to Read the Road Signs; Paige's Story: My Reflections on Our Journey; Appendix: Planning Your Family's Road Trip; Notes on Chapter Opener Photos; Endnotes; About the Author Brad Mathias thought everything in his family was fine. A busy, contented dad, he had vaguely noticed that Bethany, his middle child, had become withdrawn and moody, but he assumed it was part of being a "teen" and didn't look any deeper. Until the night God spoke clearly to Brad and his wife: Ask her to reveal what she has hidden. They did -- and learned the secret Bethany had been carrying, one that rocked their family to the core. In a desperate attempt to reach their daughter and to reconnect as a family, Brad and his wife piled everyone into the car and embarked on a wild, crazy, seven-thousand-mile, what-are-we-thinking trip across the country. As they drove, they realized how far apart they'd drifted, found unexpected blessings along the way -- and journeyed together from pain and loss to recovery and redemption. In this book, Brad shares stories from the road about God's grace, gives practical tips on what he learned about reconnecting as a family, invites you to consider your own epic journey as a mother or father, and calls you to trust wholeheartedly in the amazing love God has for your kids