alongside.
A Practical Guide for Loving Your Neighbor in Their Time of Trial.
ABOUT THE BOOK
Whether it’s cancer, death of a loved one, long-term illness or another significant challenge, we all know someone facing trial.
We wonder: “What can I do to help?”
Filled with practical tools, personal experience and insights from those who’ve faced hardship, Sarah Beckman delicately weaves together action and inspiration to create this comprehensive resource. Alongside will become your trusted guidebook so
you’ll know exactly how to bring life-giving help, hope and encouragement to people you care about in their greatest time of need.
Alongside will help you:
- Overcome the insecurity of doing the wrong thing
- Gain confidence to love well with tangible actions
- Discern between helpful and unhelpful words to say
- Identify personalized ways to serve more effectively
- Live out the Biblical command to love your neighbor
“The person in need is not likely to ever actually ‘tell you what you can do.'”
-page 44 of Alongside.
ENDORSEMENTS
“As I grow older the need to come alongside suffering friends has increased in frequency. Alongside provides rock solid, practical advice that will give you confidence as you seek to genuinely love people as they walk through the dark valleys of life. I will keep this book as a handy resource for knowing how to love people when they need it most.”
– Ken Davis, Comedian, Speaker, Award-winning Author of Fully Alive
“With love for both the person in pain and the people who care for them, Sarah Beckman has crafted a heartfelt and practical book to help bridge the gap between good intentions and beautiful relationship. Not only does she have a wealth of personal experience, she’s also invested in countless in-depth interviews. In short, she’s done the work so you and I don’t have to. Alongside is a hard-won collection of wisdom for those who want to turn the isolation of crisis into an opportunity for life-giving connection.”
-Michele Cushatt, Speaker and Author of I Am
“Having several friends who have gone through overwhelming circumstances in the past couple of years, I know what a valuable resource this book will be. Alongside is designed with you in mind—the friend who wants to be there for their friend, but doesn’t always know the next best step. Have this book on hand for the next time someone you love is in the midst of a crisis. You will go from feeling helpless to hopeful.”
– Kathi Lipp, Speaker and Author of Clutter Free and The Husband Project
GROUP RESOURCES
For group resources including study guides, bulk book orders and even a Skype call with the author, click here!
“When you allow your friend to talk, even when it brings tears, you are among those who know how to effectively love others in their time of trial.”
-page 79 of Alongside.
“Sarah Beckman’s Alongside provides valuable insight and practical approaches to caring for those who need it most.”
– Michael Hyatt, Author of Platform, and Living Forward
PURCHASE NOW
Click on the logo of your favorite online retailer to order your book today.
“This readable, practical guide provides concrete actions for talking (or not) and acting to aid another person who is in distress, whether a friend or a virtual stranger (and Beckman spells out why knowing such distinctions is important.) The book will be useful to readers of all faiths, and the practical elements of the book don’t depend on any particular faith…This book will be of great value to readers who are struggling to help others in difficult times.”
-Publisher’s Weekly
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING
“Throughout reading this book, I was struck by how much insight it contained. As we get older and want to help those facing challenging situations, we just kind of muddle through, hoping we’re “doing it right.” Alongside is the perfect mix of emotion, practical advice, stories, subtle humor and “first person” insight. With each page turned, I felt like I could better support friends and family AND have confidence in going about it in the very best way. SUCH an important book.”
-Blair from Illinois
“Alongside helped me rethink my relationship with my aging parents and how they have a “new normal” now. In the past, I would tell them what to do or how to do it, now I come alongside them and walk them through it. Because of this book I now meet with my dad weekly to help him from organizing his calendar to how to use his iPhone.”
-Cassie from New Mexico
“A friend of mine’s husband was in hospice care for over 3 months. After reading Alongside I was able to think differently about how to help her. I called and made a specific offer to sit with her husband for an afternoon so she could get a much needed break. She took me up on it right away! If the only thing people got out of this book was to make a specific offer that alone would be invaluable.”
-Susan from Arizona
“Alongside is equal parts practicality, encouragement, and challenge—and desperately needed.”
– Keith Ferrin, Author, Storyteller, Speaker
Sarah Beckman is an author and speaker. Her experience on both sides of the “bed”—both being helped and helping others—provide her authentic viewpoint. She’s walked alongside countless people in life’s most challenging circumstances, including three close family/friends with terminal illness in just three years. She doesn’t just talk about loving her neighbor…she lives it.
When she’s not writing or speaking, you might find her in the kitchen creating something to share with a “neighbor” in need. Her passion for loving her neighbor has fueled her life and ministry for over 10 years, giving her the opportunity to address audiences across the country.
Sarah currently lives in Albuquerque, NM with her husband, Craig, of 24 years. They have three delightful children. Sarah loves spending time with family and friends, golfing, hiking, sailing, entertaining, being still at the lake, leading mission trips to Haiti and eating green chile!
She has a B.A. in Journalism from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and also works as a communications coach and corporate trainer.