McKENNA by Kathleen Sherwood

A story that truly shows you how God can and will work all things out for good, to those who love Him are and called according to His purpose.    I loved McKenna's Mom's advice as she was dying, "We must remember that He knows best and only wants what is best for us.  He can see the whole picture of our lives, McKenna, while we can only see what is happening today."  McKenna had to cling to that as she faced some difficult times after her Mom died and she went to live with her Uncle and Aunt.  Life was not easy for McKenna, but she learned, "one day at a time, very slowly at first, the healing begins and then you are actually able to thank God for allowing the ones you lost to have a part of your life.  Some days are harder than other though."
McKenna never lost faith though and finally she finds life looking up, when a man by the name of Tucker comes into her life and rescues her from a bad situation.  In order to take her with him on a wagon train west to help take care of his little girl, Tucker must marry McKenna, though they both go into marraige realizing they will just be friends.  But McKenna is someone who is hard not to fall in love with, and Tucker is someone McKenna can easily trust to protect and take care of her; so your heart is warmed as you watch the marriage become real and lasting.  As you watch them build and grow a home your heart is blessed and you find yourself very satisfied as you close the last pages of the book.
This story was filled with Godly insight and wisdom.   It showed characters who experience sorrow and joy and love and a continued "trusting in the Lord with all their heart, not leaning upon their own understanding, but in all their ways acknowledging Him and letting Him direct their paths.   Tucker and McKenna's marriage was a joy to read about and I look forward to reading more about their oldest child, Rachel, in the sequel to McKenna.