Beauty on the Backroads

Stories of grace for life's unexpected turns

Non-fiction

Embracing uncomfortable: Review of Wrecked by Jeff Goins

The subtitle to Jeff Goins’ book Wrecked sounds like the sort of thing you’d want to avoid: “When a broken world slams into your comfortable life.”

And, I’ll admit, this was not an easy book to read. Not because the writing is confusing or the structure unclear.

No, Wrecked is a book that lives up to its name. wrecked cover

If you aren’t wrecked already when you read it, you will be. But don’t let that scare you away.

Goins offers stories and practical life advice for how to embrace what makes us most uncomfortable and live a life of radical obedience, even when the “adventure” looks more like “mundane.” Being wrecked means we’ve encountered something outside of our comfort zone and have made a choice to not go back to the way things were.

I’m afraid I’m not doing the book justice. When I read a book these days, I dog-ear the pages where I’ve read something that resonates. Almost every other page in Wrecked is dog-eared. Goins is a gifted storyteller, and his advice sounds more like gentle yet challenging encouragement from someone who’s traveled the road already than mandates from someone without a clue what they’re talking about.

To be wrecked begins with an experience that pulls you out of your comfort zone and self-centeredness, whether you want it to or not. … Being wrecked means everything you believe–everything you know about yourself, your world, and your destiny–is now in question. (34-35)

Before reading this book, my life got wrecked by a change in circumstances–financial, emotional, spiritual. All of it. Over time I’ve wondered if this is a good thing. Goins’ book offers stories that assure me I’m not alone and that even when it’s painful, being wrecked has the potential to foster deep change.

But it’s not enough to be wrecked. It’s not enough to see and walk away. Goins challenges us to commit to work that affirms what wrecked us in the first place.

Change always happens when you come down from the clouds and deal with the messiness of life. When you turn a mission trip into a lifestyle. … Real transformation happens when you commit. (92)

Although Goins draws from missions experiences and stories, this book is for anyone called to something by God. As a wife/stay-at-home mom/writer, I found the principles and stories in Wrecked meaningful and applicable to my situation.

It’s a small book, less than 200 pages, but each chapter is full of life-giving truth. I judged the book by its length, thinking I could breeze through it. Instead, I found myself reading a few pages and setting it down for a couple of days. In the places where I’d been wrecked already and thought I had moved past, I found the book wrecking me all over again, giving me a gentle nudge to take another step out of the comfortable life.

Even now as I revisit the pages I marked, I find myself lifted by the words.

If you’ve had an experience (a mission trip, a major life change, an encounter with poverty) that has wrecked you and you don’t know what to do now, this book is for you.

If you’re looking for your life’s calling, this book can guide you in finding it.

It would be good reading for high school and college grads who want to live the story God has for them.

As Michael Hyatt says in the book’s foreword, Wrecked “is not designed to make you feel overwhelmed by the world’s problems. Nor is it designed to make you feel guilty for not doing enough. No, it’s more than this. It is an invitation to lead a wrecked life–one that is shaken up but transformed by confronting the world’s most difficult challenges. It’s about living the life we are so often afraid to live. … It’s about stepping into the pain and discovering fulfillment in the most unlikely places.”

You’ve been invited to be wrecked.

The choice, now, is yours.

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In exchange for my review, I received a free copy of Wrecked from Moody Publishers.

How to care for the least: Review of Orphan Justice by Johnny Carr

In one of my favorite movies, Ever After (a Cinderella adaptation), the prince, who is being influenced by the lady’s passion for equality and the poor, says these words: “I used to think that if I cared about one thing, I’d have to care about everything.”

I confess, my attitude toward adoption and caring for the world’s orphans has resembled those words. I love children, and the idea that there are children literally starving to death and dying from preventable diseases anywhere in the world breaks my heart. And I have been reluctant to open my heart to that kind of pain, afraid that I would become discouraged that I can’t take them all home, love them like they ought to be loved, or provide for all their basic needs.

So, I’m encouraged by a new book that challenges the Church’s attitude about orphans and adoption, as well as offers varied ways the Church can be involved in orphan care, not only through adoption.

orphan justiceIn Orphan Justice: How to Care for Orphans Beyond Adopting, Johnny Carr, who works for the largest adoption and orphan care agency in the U.S., presents a case for the Church to do its part to care for orphaned children, domestically and globally. And he isn’t always nice about it.

Nor should he be.

From the beginning of the book, Carr lays out the problem–153 million kids worldwide who have lost one or both parents, which is twice the total number of children in the U.S.–and reveals his own journey from American Dreamer to Orphan Advocate.

Every time I heard about missionaries digging clean wells, working with HIV/AIDS patients, or trying to alleviate poverty, I rolled my eyes. Why are they wasting their time? I thought. Don’t they know that the gospel is what really counts? … But now as I look back, I see how narrow-minded I was. … I didn’t realize I was missing the true meaning of religion–one that includes BOTH sharing the gospel and meeting people’s physical needs.

Carr and his wife have adopted three children with special needs, and throughout the book, he readily admits his own struggles to care about children with special needs, much less make them part of his family. And I think that’s a strength of this book. Carr’s journey is one many of us can relate to: of wanting to serve God only when it suits us, then being transformed by the real-life plight of those in extreme poverty.

Each chapter addresses an issue related to orphan care, such as human trafficking, orphanages, foster care, and poverty. Carr writes about the impact each of these areas has on the worldwide orphan population and gives ideas of what churches and Christians can do to care for orphans. At the end of each chapter is a three-tiered approach to getting involved, offering ideas that anyone can do, many can do, and a few can do. I appreciate this because Carr doesn’t assume that everyone can contribute at the same level, but he doesn’t let anyone off the hook for getting involved.

Overall, I found Orphan Justice to be informative and inspiring. I learned more about orphan care, including the idea that orphanages are not a “solution” and how churches can support adoptive families and families involved with the foster care system. My “social justice” beliefs are under development and the principles and stories in this book have helped with that development.

I no longer fear a broken heart when confronted with the realities of caring for the least of these. Equipped with practical insight such as is found in this book, I’m more ready to take the risk and be involved in orphan care.

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In exchange for this review, I was given a copy of Orphan Justice.