When I got the news that I could get an advanced copy of Max Lucado’s newest book, Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear I was thrilled! Max Lucado was probably my first real exposure to Christian Living literature. I first read his work in college and I just couldn’t believe how his words were so grounded in God’s Word and yet so relatable.

It had probably been 7 years since I had read one of his books, probably just the insanity of newlywed to new mother. So when I picked up this book it was like hearing from an old friend. You and the friend have grown over the years but you still can relate. That’s how it was for me when I picked up “Fearless”.

Synopsis
Fearless takes us from the primary reason for our fear, which is sin. the fears we face, and the fear we need to have. He takes the reader on a journey through fear.

The first chapter is an explanation of why we are afraid. I love that he takes the time to explain this concept. What impressed me most about these chapters were the Scripture passages he uses. Toward the end of the chapter he lists 13 verses where Jesus told His followers to be fearless. He then uses the words of Christ to open the following chapters.

The book continues with chapters that detail common fears and ways to change our thinking towards courage in the Lord. I appreciated his candor when dealing with the subject of fear of death. He details a dream he had where he dies but he has courage in death because of Christ. I loved the story and then he details his own brush with death during a heart surgery. I think that is one of the things I like about Mr. Lucado. He is honest about his own struggles and it makes me take his counsel seriously.

Other fears he touches on include the fear of not mattering, of not protecting my kids, of violence and other relevant topics (obviously you can read the table of contents)

He ends with what he calls “The One Healthy Terror” which details our fear of God. We must always fear Him for He is Holy.

Strengths
One of the best parts of this book is that it uses Scripture as the premise of the author’s assertions. That is important to me. It is not a book that makes points and then finds Scripture to back up his points. It is the other way around, Scripture is the base and everything else falls around that. The first chapter lists 13 verses where Christ instructs His followers not to fear. The following chapters are based largely on this list of passages making the book a cohesive unit.

I alluded earlier to Max Lucado’s candor throughout this book but I can’t reiterate enough how much I appreciate a transparent author. This is not the kind of book where the author spends 200 pages telling you all the great things he has done. Instead he points out his own fears and how these Scriptures help him in his daily walk.

The book includes a discussion guide which is excellent. It includes several thought provoking questions for each chapter as well as lots of Scripture to back it up! Each chapter’s discussion guide has 3 areas of focus: “Examining Fear, Exposing Fear, and Battling Fear.” This would be a great book discussion for small groups at church. When it focuses on Examining Fear it is filled with thought provoking questions like “What are you prone to – dread of failure, rejection, or calamity? What does that indicate about you?”
Exposing Fear is filled with God’s answers to our fears. It lists several bible verses to combat the fears you discover about yourself through the first section. Battling Fear includes a section of reflection and a meditation for the week.

WeaknessesI wish this book went deeper. I think it does a great job of skimming the surface of these issues of fear but the middle chapters where specific fears are listed seem to short. The discussion guide does make up some for this lack of depth in my opinion.

Conclusion
I do recommend Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear. It gave me a lot to think about in my own life. Fear is something that can plague a person. It is something I have struggled with and for those of you who usually read my blog you know that about me. Max Lucado delivers his message in an easy to read manner that is appealing to large audiences. If you are reading this book on your own I encourage you to do the discussion questions as study guide questions after each chapter. Do a chapter each week and meditate on Scripture from the chapter and the probing questions of the study guide. I think it will help the reader get a lot more from this book than simply reading the chapters. This book would also make a great book for small group discussion at church or local Bible studies.

Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear is a great resource for any Christian, whether they are oppressed with fear or not. We all need to remember that because of Christ we have every reason to be “Fearless.”

• Previous Entry: 100 Bible Stories 100 Bible Songs book review
• Next Entry: The Prodigal Son: A story of pride and humility