If fiction were to have its own gemstone, it’d be morganite. A member of the beryl gemstone family, morganites come in a variety of hues from colorless to pink, to lilac and pale violet.

The stone is said to emanate charm, spirit, and tenderness, and it is often used in gemstone therapy.

I like that idea. A gemstone to brighten my gray days, relax me, help me become calm and find joy. Remember the ’70s’ mood rings?

While most women would love a new piece of jewelry to battle stress or the blues, here’s another option: fiction therapy!

Why not read a good book? One that reminds us circumstances can truly change from bad to good, from wrong to right.

Fiction is relaxing, a momentary escape from worry; it sparks our imaginations and, in some cases, helps us gain knowledge.

We might even make a new friend or two.

Think about a book you’ve read recently that engaged your heart. Did you feel hope? Did you sigh over the satisfying ending, or agree with the unusual twist ending, realizing life doesn’t always turn out like we thought, but it’s still good?

Reading CBA books always makes me love God more. I’m so happy to know Him, even more grateful He first loved me.

On his blog, Thomas Nelson CEO, Mike Hyatt, recently confronted the emotion of worry. Here are a few of his thoughts:

“Worry leaves you feeling drained. Imagination leaves you feeling energized. Worry focuses on the bad things that might happen. Imagination focuses on the good things that could happen.”

He’s right. Worry benefits us nothing. In fact, Jesus said the same thing in Matthew 6.

Reading is one way to escape worry. Maybe a morganite stone could help soothe stress-related anxiety, but it’s the power of mind and thought that really takes us down the dark trail of worryand brings us back.

Fiction therapy will ignite our imaginations. Take us away from our troubles, if but for a while. Fiction infuses us with hope when we face trials and tribulations. We read about characters who rely on faith and possess a resolute spirit to overcome.

At the end of a good novel, we may have imagined a solution to our own problems. At the very least, we’re a little bit more resolved to push through difficulties. While most fictional tales are about characters who live only in the authors’ minds, they reflect real life. Many are inspired from real people, historical accounts, stories in the news, or from among the authors’ friends and communities.

Francine Rivers’s Redeeming Love continues to powerfully impact readers because it resonates with the human heart that longs to know that God loves them. The reader could also dive into the book of Hosea, which I highly recommend, but how much more Rivers’s book adds to our understanding of a loving God toward a weak and sinful heart.

Fiction therapy doesn’t distract from the truth of God’s Word but uses the divinely inspired art of story to illustrate His truth.

Feeling blue or stressed? Spend time with Jesus, listen for His heart, then pick up a good CBA book and go for a little fiction therapy.