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A review by bickleyhouse
Running Scared: Fear, Worry, and the God of Rest by Edward T. Welch
4.0
I received a Kindle version of this book in a free promotional through one of several websites I subscribe to. There was no obligation to provide a positive (or otherwise) review.
At first, I didn't think I was going to like this book. The author calls the thirty chapters "meditations," and, for the first few chapters, I had decided that he didn't really know what that word means. They didn't seem "meditative" at all, to me.
But, if I had been paying closer attention, I would have noticed that part one is called "Initial Observations." That's a good clue. The first four chapters are a sort of "introduction to fear," if you will.
Beginning with part two, "God Speaks," Edward takes the veritable plethora of times that God tells us, "Do not be afraid," and, coupled with God's provision of manna to the Israelites in the wilderness, launches us into a wonderful treatise on how to battle fear and anxiety in our lives.
He covers are propensity to worry (even to worry about worrying), our leaning toward grasping at money and possessions, how we worry about what others think about us, and our fears of death, pain, and punishment (judgment from God).
Finally, he tells us how God speaks peace into our lives.
Perhaps these turned out to be meditations, after all. There are a lot of good points in this book, and I think it well worthy of reading again. We would do well to remember that there are over three hundred occurrences of God telling someone, "Do not be afraid," in the Bible.
I think he means it.
At first, I didn't think I was going to like this book. The author calls the thirty chapters "meditations," and, for the first few chapters, I had decided that he didn't really know what that word means. They didn't seem "meditative" at all, to me.
But, if I had been paying closer attention, I would have noticed that part one is called "Initial Observations." That's a good clue. The first four chapters are a sort of "introduction to fear," if you will.
Beginning with part two, "God Speaks," Edward takes the veritable plethora of times that God tells us, "Do not be afraid," and, coupled with God's provision of manna to the Israelites in the wilderness, launches us into a wonderful treatise on how to battle fear and anxiety in our lives.
He covers are propensity to worry (even to worry about worrying), our leaning toward grasping at money and possessions, how we worry about what others think about us, and our fears of death, pain, and punishment (judgment from God).
Finally, he tells us how God speaks peace into our lives.
Perhaps these turned out to be meditations, after all. There are a lot of good points in this book, and I think it well worthy of reading again. We would do well to remember that there are over three hundred occurrences of God telling someone, "Do not be afraid," in the Bible.
I think he means it.