God is bigger than whatever is eating your lunch

Most of us are overwhelmed by something, or maybe lots of things.  Perry Noble addresses that issue in Overwhelmed: Winning the War against Worry (Tyndale house, 2014).

I enjoyed this book and one of the first things that I noticed is that this talented and gifted pastor is maturing as an author. This book seems to flow better than UNLEASH (which by the way, I also enjoyed).

But back to the book at hand. Perry introduces the book with the honesty and candor for which he is known: “I wanted to kill myself”.  Great attention getter, but more than that, it sets the stage for the journey that Perry takes the reader on.  A journey from despair to hope. A journey that teaches us that God is bigger than our fears, our concerns, our particular bêtes-nôir, or our personal boogiemen.

All of us have those moments, but how many of us have as much faith as Daniel, as Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego?

Perry points out the difference between letting your circumstances define your belief system and using your belief system to help overcome circumstances.

Using biblical references, personal anecdotes, and stories shared by people he knows, Perry addresses quite a few of the circumstances that seem to conspire to overwhelm us. Those circumstances that force us to ask if we want to tell God how big our problems are, or do we tell our problems just how big our God is. When we’re overwhelmed by circumstances you can probably guess what the default position is.  So we have a choice, “focusing on our circumstances and the size of our problems always leads to tress, anxiety, and fear. Focusing on Christ, however, allows us to walk in freedom.”

Have you ever been ‘overwhelmed’ by people, circumstances, and religion? Do you have issues when it comes to sex, greed, unforgiveness, trust, God's love?  You’re among the majority.

And the final points that Perry makes are simple ones that we probably know, but often forget: God is good, all the time.  We can be upset, mad, overwhelmed by everything that happens, or we can believe that no matter what happens, God is still God, and God is still good. And the next is like it: God is greater than whatever it is that we’re going through, “so don’t give up on the God who has never given up on you.”

Jesus can do what you can’t. Let him

I might have preferred fewer but longer chapters, and more references to the story of Daniel throughout the book, but overall this is a compelling read. 5/5

I received an advance review e-copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. There was no requirement to post a positive review.