The Sweetness of Grace

Stories of Christian Trial and Victory

By: Constantina R. Palmer

Narrated by: Constantina R. Palmer

From the author of The Scent of Holiness, The Sweetness of Grace is a collection of stories derived from conversations with Orthodox nuns, monks, and laypeople, along with experiences of Orthodox life in South Korea, Greece, and North America.

Those who enjoyed Everyday Saints will enjoy these similar stories from other parts of the Orthodox world. The book includes conversations with monastics, priests, and laypeople and stories of the sweet and difficult aspects of Christian life. The stories span three continents, including experiences in South Korea, Greece, and North America.

©2017 Constantina R. Palmer (P)2020 Constantina R. Palmer

Truly inspiring

I don't think I was ready to listen to these in the beginning of my conversion to Orthodoxy, but I am truly enjoying these stories, as well as, her previous book. The stories are inspiring and thought provoking.

A window into holiness

The Sweetness of Grace is by far the favorite book I read in 2020. I had the pleasure of listening to it on Audible and I truly enjoyed hearing Matushka Constantina tell her stories aloud --- and it felt as if you were sitting with her surrounded by Holy Icons as she read. She and her husband have been blessed with being able to travel and have many encounters with monastics over the years during their time in Greece, Korea, and North America. She is a masterful storyteller and relays the experiences, teachings, miracles, and other encounters with holiness and weaves them into a beautiful tapestry and colors them with Scripture and the writings of the church Fathers. The stories are grouped into eight chapters, one for each Beatitude.

These vignettes make one long for holiness and a more intimate knowledge and relationship with Christ. While many of us, especially in North America, do not have easy access to monastics (especially in these most recent days), Constantina gives us a window to look and see that Christ is real and a life of devotion to him is possible both in and outside of a monastery. Her stories also made me realize that we often are to busy to seek the blessings that Christ has to offer us – whether it be the blessing from our own parish priest, visiting clergy or a pilgrimage to a nearby monastery. Miracles, blessings and answers to prayers abound if we are open to acknowledge them and receive them. As I listened to this book, I would very often be reminded of Isaiah 55:6, “Seek the Lord while he may be found..”

This book is written in a very conversational style, which makes it completely approachable for a nice long listen, but I also wound up purchasing the written copy so that I could keep it on my nightstand to read and ponder a specific story or miracle that she relayed.

I cannot recommend this book enough. It beautifully depicts the teachings of the Orthodox Church and offers inspiration to continue the journey toward (and I paraphrase): “attaining holiness, tasting the sweetness of Grace, and living a life of blessedness.”

A Grace for Every Virtue

As someone who listened to and loved The Scent of Holiness, I was beyond excited to start listening to The Sweetness of Grace. The Sweetness of Grace has the familiar, comforting format of short stories that are simultaneously easy to listen to and are full of great spiritual depth. The Beatitudes were used as both the book outline and chapter titles, and this format helped me to focus on how every virtue is a source of a particular grace.

Constantina beautifully shows the simplicity and depth of the Orthodox faith through this book, and the stories she shared have been good reminders and sources of encouragement to keep pursuing the narrow path. I also appreciated Constantina’s openness in the book, sharing her own personal stories and experiences of God’s grace in her life.

Two parts of the book I especially appreciated were (1) the importance of taking your spiritual rule seriously, not doing things outside of that rule without a blessing from your spiritual father and not growing prideful if you have a stricter spiritual rule than someone else and (2) the reality of and to be cautious against spiritual delusion. I appreciated how open Constantina was in talking about these topics and personally learned a lot. As these are just two small pieces out of a book filled with a plethora of nuggets of spiritual wisdom, I believe that anyone who reads this book will be able to learn something.

The Sweetness of Grace is truly a book for everyone. Its short stories make it easy to digest, especially for someone who may not have the time or focus to keep up with one elongated story, Constantina is a wonderful narrator that is both pleasant to listen to and draws you into each of the stories as though you were right alongside her, and most importantly, this book is another tool to aid in spiritual growth by learning through the stories of others and wisdom of many saints.

Such wonderful stories! Sorry it ended!

I was sorry this ended and wished it went on and on. The stores are deep and told so well. The narration is very pleasant and I enjoy how the author speaks so openly as if she is sitting right here telling you about what she experienced. I hope she writes more books about where she is now and what is happening around her!

Loved these wonderful stories

This compilation of stories about holy people and followers of Christ has strengthened my faith and helped me through some of the doubts i was going through. I’m so glad I read this and i would highly recommend!

A Sense of Spiritual Wonder

"The Scent of Holiness" is one of those books that just can't be long enough: because I couldn't bear for it to end, I've now read and listened to it six times. Yes, it's that good. So when Constantina Palmer released her second book, "The Sweetness of Grace," I couldn't wait to pick it up. Except as a mom of four (soon to be five) I can really only "read" audiobooks, so wait I did, an intolerably long period until the audio version came out.

Some books can probably be read by anyone, but I'm glad Palmer reads her own works. The warmth of her telling brings the personalities she describes to life. More than this, however, her work shines because of the sense of spiritual wonder it reflects, and that is most easily seen through her eyes and in her own voice. It's this sense of spiritual wonder and close observation coupled with keen reflection that makes both her works so unique and valuable. Readers will learn and be challenged spiritually, while also being comforted. I listened to this book during a time of spiritual dryness and fatigue, and while some kinds of spiritual reading can feel like an irritant or burdensome during such a time, this book managed to both uplift and give me some much needed rest and encouragement.
 
"The Sweetness of Grace" stands well on its own, but many characteristics of "The Scent of Holiness" are repeated to good effect as well. As she previously ordered anecdotes around the prayer rope, Palmer now orders the stories around the Beatitudes, giving the collection a purposeful and beautiful structure. I doubt the reader exists who will not take away some strengthening insight from this book.

What a gem

I loved every bit of this book. First off I love that the Author also is the narrator! It adds such a personal touch to the reading experience. Overall it is just such a wonderful book full of beautiful and inspiring stories that really touch the heart and mind. I haven't read or listened to her first book "Scent of Holiness" but after listening to this it is definitely next on my list!

Amazing!

I highly recommend this book and Scent of Holiness! So inspirational and a wonderful addition to your spiritual library.

Wonderful personal accounts of God's grace

As someone who does not come from the Orthodox Church, but loves learning about the ancient faith, these stories are especially moving. Growing up in mostly Baptist churches, there was no sense of the sanctity of objects or matter. There also was very little said about miraculous encounters or healing in the present day world. The resulting effect is that God feels very impersonal and removed. I can testify to God's presence in my life, but the miracles were always minor ones, nothing profound like the stories in this book. Constantina Palmer's personal stories and those that she has encountered in her travels bring enlightenment of the miracles that take place every day around the world in the most moving ways. I also love the emphasis on the inner changes that we should work on as christians. Beautifully written and easy to listen to. I can't wait to listen again and note all the scriptures she sites throughout the book and look them up. Thank you for sharing Constantina!