I (Gloria) met Sam Crabtree when he came to Dubai to minister to the leaders in our church.
I was 39-weeks pregnant that week. I was a bloated, sore, miserable mess.
One of the nights Sam was here he led a seminar in our meeting room downstairs.
I was distracted by the mild contractions I was having, so I was busy doing lunges in the office next to the meeting room. Because of the acoustics I could only catch a little bit of what Sam was saying, but I was still thinking about what he had said to me earlier that evening.
We were talking about pregnancy. The subject came up since that’s the most obvious thing to discuss with a woman who says she’s been having contractions for a week and she might burst at any moment (and wishes she would). 
Sam encouraged me with how gracious the Lord has been to me to sustain me thus far in this pregnancy. God has been faithful to persevere my faith and hope and even physical stamina in the midst of our busy lives, our active preschoolers, and my husband’s physical injuries (Dave has ulnar nerve syndrome and can’t lift heavy things like children).
God is gracious, indeed! I was humbled by how gracious it was of the Lord to remind me through Sam’s words of his ever-present help.
So as I did lunges around the downstairs wishing my water would break so we could get this show on the road, I praised the Lord for sending his Son Jesus. The encouragement I was given earlier that day reminded me that Jesus sympathizes with me in my weaknesses and knocked down the doors for me to the throne room of grace through his death on the cross.
“Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4:14-16
A couple days later I took those thoughts with me into labor. If God did not spare his own Son for me, surely I can ask this God for help to bring this baby into the world safely.
By the time Baby Judson was born, Sam was already back in the States. I never got to personally thank him for reminding me of the supreme pleasure of God in the gospel that day when I was so absorbed in how uncomfortable it was to sit, stand, walk or lie down.
I share that story to commend to you Sam’s book Practicing Affirmation. Reading Pastor’s Sam’s book is like talking to him. He’s open, warm, candid, and points you to Christ.
Practicing Affirmation is about how “God is glorified in us when we affirm the work he has done and is doing in others” (page 12). By God’s grace, Sam spells out what that means and gives loads of practical advice in how to apply it.
You can check out the book’s details on Amazon here.
Here are a few quotes from his book to whet your appetite for learning to practice God-centered affirmation…
We can truthfully say to an unregenerate four-year-old, “God is helping you become more…” and fill in the blank with qualities such as: careful with your things (as a steward), cheerful around the house as a singer, cautious around dangerous things like hot stoves, and so on. While the child’s growth in character is commended, God is identified as the source. Page 20
When we commend God’s image in people, God is glorified, and that’s why we were made – to glorify God. Isn’t it unspeakably good that we get the pleasure of fulfillment simply by doing what we were created to do? God gets the honor when we affirm his qualities we esteem, and we get the satisfaction of esteeming and enjoying those qualities, and pointing them out. Page 76
Affirmation should not be a self-esteem free-for-all. Don’t affirm any old thing. Don’t affirm empty trendiness. Don’t stroke the ego. Commend the commendable! Value the valuable! Supremely value the supremely valuable. Worship only Christ, and then commend his image in people. Page 30
Truth-telling is another parental provision more important that affirmation. But if we fail to affirm, our children may tune out the truth we are so interested in telling. Page 38
I determined that this eleven-year-old daughter whom I loved would receive more praise from me than from anyone else on the face of the globe. I became a student of her. I thought, if I have to stay up nights thinking of ways to commend her, then I will, because she’s going to need to hear her father (who happens to be me). So I began following her around. I don’t mean two steps behind her, but I was always on the lookout for things to commend. Alert affirmation requires vigilance. Page 57
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