I have to admit.. I don't know Pete. I haven't ever met him face to face but I feel like I do know him in an online kinda way. He's on my Pastor list on Twitter, I read his blog Without Wax . I have lots of friends (okay, probably five) that go to Cross Point Church in Nashville, TN where he is the lead Pastor. So when I found out that his book was being published by Thomas Nelson, I could not wait.
I couldn't wait because my spirit has been changed by Pete's teaching of God's Word. His blog posts have made me think and called me to action.
Plan B is a wonderful book. Pete's writing style has a very personal tone. A "as if he is sitting across the table from you" style. I tend to gravitate to those type of authors and leaders. I want to know that for the few moments I have your attention, that you truly care about me and want to show me what He says. Pete does exactly that in Plan B.
Everyone has a story. We all have dreams that have been shattered, plans don't turn out the way we want them, we have suffered death, loss of a job, financial crisis or our families don't turn out the way we thought they would. We all have a story. We all have lived through some sort of Plan B.
Plan B is frank, Biblical, honest and offers hope. As Pete walked alongside a very young girl in his congregation as she suffered through an unplanned pregnancy and subsequent death of her newborn, one question would haunt him for months: "What do you do when God doesn't show up for you in the way you thought God was going to show up?"
Pete sets out in Plan B to offer us hope and encouragement. He offers the amazing fact that we are not alone. We are never alone.
One of my favorite chapters was Chapter Three: The Illusion of Control. How about this line: "The greatest of all illusions is the illusion of control". There went a wallop right upside my head. Did you see it? Well hang on, how about this one? " You know why these things frustrate and anger us? They're reminders that control is an illusion - and we don't like being reminded of that. we want to control the outcomes in our lives. We want to win if at all possible. We want to be right. We want it done our way. This powerful desire leaks into our marriages, our jobs, our parenting. And the danger for most of us is that not only are we tempted to think we hold the strings to our life; we really think we get to write the script. We buy into the illusion of control. We keep a death grip on those marionette strings. Letting go of control like David did is a HUMBLING and even PAINFUL act." (My emphasis) Holy Toledo. That one will stay with me for a long, long time. That's a good word right there.
He walks you through your options of surrender and living in the moment with God. It's refreshing and sound.
Another favorite chapter was Chapter Six: Whiplash. Story of my life. Up until I re-dedicated my life to Him. Became sold out for His glory. This whole stinkin' chapter is underlined and high lighted.. but here are some of my favorite statements:
- "When you respond in your current circumstances as if you were confident that God is there, you will see God in the circumstances."
- "Because the simple truth is that God is there. God is always there. The problem comes when we allow our circumstances to distort our perspective and we miss God."
- "In other words, our view of what God wants and what he is doing in our lives is way too limited."
- "In this life, many of your questions will simply not have answers. But through it all, God himself will never change. This is why our faith must rest on his identity and not necessarily on his activity.
- "Even in the midst of a Plan B, you really have only one task, one calling. And that is to do what you would do if you were confident God was with you."
Heavens to Betsy... that chapter rendered me speechless. No joke.
I won't continue to quote every favorite word from Pete's book. I promise.. other favorite chapters? Eleven: Power and Hope and Thirteen: Transformation through Tragedy.
I will close with this last word.. and I promise it will be the last quote: "My greatest fear for my life and for yours is that we'll just get busy and distracted and settle for a mediocre, unexamined life. It's that we'll just settle into life as usual and never become the persons God intended for us to be."
I loved the book, loved the message more and am grateful for the author.
Rating:
I have a copy of Plan B to give away randomly on Saturday, May 8th at Noon, CST. Just leave me a comment answering this question:
What would you be doing RIGHT NOW if you were living confidently that God was with you?
Lobs ya,
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their Book Review Blogger (BookSneeze) program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
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