Book excerpt: Joy, Peace, Contentment, and Happiness Are Yours for the Taking intertwines a spiritual memoir and a devotional reflection on surrendering to the will of God. From the strong fiber that emerges from this entwining, Simon Petrus Berkhout, a native of Holland who immigrated to Canada at a young age, fashions an approachable guide to seeing, in faith, the gifts joy, peace, contentment and happinessGod offers all who live according to His ways. Eight chapters tell the story of the authors journey and bring his life into conversation with voices from the Christian tradition that speak of surrender, particularly, The Joy of Full Surrender, the classic work by Jean-Pierre de Caussade, SJ. After briefly recounting his life, the author presents chapters that include pages with space for the reader to record thoughts and questions, turning the work into a kind of spiritual journal. These chapters address spiritual awakenings, acceptance and surrender, being consciously present in the moment, meditating, and attending to ones physical wellbeing. When you take stock of your life and find that challenges and burdens weigh upon you, leading you to wonder about you and your reason for being here, then Joy, Peace, Contentment, and Happiness .. Are Yours for the Taking can serve as a simple, yet profound guide to submitting your life to God, learning how to follow His will, and discovering that His outstretched hands hold gifts that are yours for the takingjoy, peace, contentment, and happiness. Go ahead, take them; He offers these gifts to you.