Tag Archives: Wrecked
Guest Post: Life is NOT About You
I have the privilege and honor in guest posting for Teri Johnson’s “Keeping It Personal” blog today. She is an amazing encourager, writer and woman of God.
Life is not about you.” – Jeff Goins
This quote became my favorite after reading Wrecked by Jeff Goins.
When I read this quote, it brought me back to a time when I was on the mission field in Guatemala. This was my very first short-term missions trip. I lived in the city all my life and never served on the mission field before. So, I had no idea what to expect or what it would be like. However, I learned quickly…
…it wasn’t about me.
To read the rest of this post, please click here.
Book Review: Wrecked by Jeff Goins
Paperback: 176 pages
Publisher: Moody Publishers (August 1, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0802404928
ISBN-13: 978-0802404923
Price: $11.99
Purchase: Amazon | BN | CBD
Description
Wrecked is about the life we are afraid to live. It’s about radical sacrifice and selfless service–how we find purpose in the midst of pain. It’s a look at how we discover fulfillment in the least likely of places. It’s about living like we mean it. It’s a guide to growing up and giving your life away, helping you live in the tension between the next adventure and the daily mundane.
This book is for us–a generation intent on pursuing our life’s work in a way that leaves us without regrets.
Author Jeff Goins shares his own experience of struggling as a missionary and 20-something who understands the call to live radically while dealing with the everyday responsibilities of life. Wrecked is a manifesto for a generation dissatisfied with the status quo and wanting to make a difference.
Review
“Life is not about you.” ~ Jeff Goins
I have been following Jeff Goins’ blog for some time now. I read everything he writes. He is one of those remarkable people you meet in life. Everything this man writes is gold. He is wise beyond his years. He continually blesses me with his blog posts and now he completely Wrecked me.
I don’t even know where to start. How do I put into words my experience reading this book? Every single page of this book is phenomenal, truly.
Wrecked will make you see the world differently. Wrecked will convict you. Wrecked will not make you feel comfortable. Wrecked will challenge your complacency. Wrecked will propel you into action.
When we think of the word “missionary”, we envision countries like Africa, India or Guatemala. However, these countries aren’t the only places that need our help.
Wrecked discusses serving and making a difference where you live. We do not need to travel thousands of miles away to serve others in need. We can choose to serve right in our own communities.
I admit, I was one of those people who thought I needed to go to some far off land to make a difference. There was a lot of romanticism connected in being a missionary overseas. Yet, the Lord wasn’t asking me to go anywhere.
I had it in my head that this is what He wanted me to do. I figured if I sacrificed going to another country like Africa and serve as a missionary, I would finally arrive in becoming this great Christian. Nothing could be further from the truth.
There was a part in the book which especially spoke to my situation. I had this “dream” of becoming a missionary in Africa. The whole idea became bigger than life to me.
God had other plans for me though. I met my husband, got married and had two boys. I remember when I had my first son, he was diagnosed with all sorts of health issues. I realized then my dream of becoming a great missionary in Africa was over.
I really was struggling in my new role as wife and mother. I had a difficult time understanding why my son was born with all sorts of health problems. I didn’t understand what the Lord was doing and questioned Him a lot. I wasn’t a happy camper.
This is why these excerpts spoke to me:
“When I felt the call to be a missionary, I thought I would end up traveling the world for the rest of my life. You know, pack my coffin, move to Africa, and have the natives bury me–that sort of thing. But that’s not what happened. In fact, that may never happen. After a lot of struggle, I’m okay with that. I’m finally embracing this is not my life; it doesn’t belong to me. I’m not the master of my own destiny. I’ve started to find what I was made to do, and it has little to do with going or staying and a lot more to do with obedience.”
“When you are thirty-five, doing the uncomfortable thing may mean cleaning the house or paying the bills. It may look like making sure the kids aren’t late for school or that you don’t miss a soccer game. It’s less glamorous, but the less is the same: your life is not about you.”
Well, that pretty much sums it up. I came to realize this after the Lord broke me of my idol. Funny thing is, I was exactly where God wanted me to be all along.
I highly recommend Wrecked to everyone. This book will change your life.
If you order the book through August 4th, Jeff Goins will send you six exclusive gifts valued at over $158. Please check out what you will get here.
In conclusion, I want to personally thank Jeff Goins and Moody Publishers for allowing me the opportunity to read and review an advanced copy of this book. I am sincerely grateful.
Photo by Ashley Goins
Jeff Goins is a blogger, speaker and author. He works for Adventures in Missions, a nonprofit, where he serves as the Communications Director. In his free time, he writes books and shares ideas worth spreading.
Originally from the suburbs of Chicago, Jeff graduated from Illinois College with a double major in Spanish and Religion. There, he spent a semester in Spain, an experience that opened his eyes to the needs of the world.
After he graduated, he spent the next nine months on tour with a band and the following three months training other musicians. Then, after a year of traveling around North America, he moved to Tennessee to “see about a girl.” In 2008, he married her.
Since 2006, Jeff has worked out of his home, overseeing marketing, communications, and innovation teams from afar. He is passionate about not only telling great stories, but living them, as well.
His blog, GoinsWriter.com, is one of the fastest-growing blogs on the web and is a well-respected resource for writers and difference-makers. In 2011, it won the Top 10 Blogs for Writers award on WritetoDone.com. Each month, he receives over 80,000 visitors to his website.
Jeff’s work has been published online and offline in a variety of publications, including RELEVANT Magazine (with a circulation of more than 150,000 readers) and ZenHabits.net (one of Time Magazine’s Top 50 Websites for threes years in a row).
Jeff and his wife, Ashley, live just outside of Nashville, TN with their son and dog.
Posted in book reviews, christianity, faith
Also tagged Christianity, Homelessness, Jeff Goins, Missions
2 Comments
Heart Strings
I have had the blessing of traveling a great deal in the past. I visited several countries and have seen poverty at it’s worst. Nothing breaks my heart more than witnessing homeless and hungry children, especially orphans.
Photograph by Chan Kwok Hung
This photo speaks a multitude, doesn’t it? This world can be such a cruel place. How I wish something could been done to help save every child and preserve their innocence.
There are times I feel helpless and overwhelmed, like tonight for instance. I was walking crosstown on 42nd Street to catch my bus home.
As I was walking, I took in my surroundings; the rhythm, activity and energy of rush hour.
Until something caught my eye that caused me to stop in my tracks. I remained frozen, watching, pondering whether I should go do something.
This moment reminded me of an incident I read in Jeff Goins’ new book, Wrecked. I knew I had to make a choice.
Suddenly a man spoke and snapped me out of my trance. I guess he noticed my struggle. He tells me, “Your heart strings are being tugged, huh?” I said, “Yes.” He nodded in understanding.
Right then, I decided to walk over to her. This young woman who was pregnant sitting on the hot concrete floor with a toddler. She must have been no more than twenty-five years old. I asked her if she needed help.
She didn’t speak English. She said something which sounded like Spanish. However, when she responded again, I realized it wasn’t Spanish, but more like Portuguese or Italian.
She wanted me to give her money. I told her I didn’t want to give her money. She said she needed diapers. I said I would go buy her diapers if she wanted. She agreed for me to get her diapers.
I asked, what size, she tells me size four. For the life of me, I don’t know how we were able to understand each other, it had to have been the Holy Spirit.
She tells me she would wait for me in the same spot for only twenty minutes. So I take off in a hurry to the nearest place I could find and bought diapers. I also bought her a few other items so she could feed her child who looked dirty, hungry and tired. I especially felt compassion for her child.
The city was so hot. I’m sure this poor child was outside all day in the heat while her mother begged.
When I returned she was there waiting. I handed her the bag and she thanked me.
What was most beautiful to me was the reaction on the little girl’s face. She pointed to the bottle of water and looked up at me with a big smile. She seemed genuinely appreciative. I grabbed her little hand and smiled at her too. My heart swelled with love for that child. I so badly wanted to protect her.
I looked into the pregnant mother’s eyes and told her Jesus loved her. I also told her to be careful and to take good care of herself and the baby. I just hope she really understood what I said.
I arrived home very somber. I began thinking about all the homeless mothers and children living in the streets of New York City and around the world. My heart hurts for them.
This tug never goes away. I guess it serves as reminder to never forget.
I wonder how things would be if every Christian from around the world stopped to help and encourage one person each day?
What do you think would happen? I would be very interested in hearing your thoughts.
Posted in blogging
Also tagged Children, Hunger, Jeff Goins, New York City, Poverty, Travel
14 Comments
Wrecked by Jeff Goins
I barely made it out of bed alive this morning. Ok, maybe I’m exaggerating a little bit. But seriously, I am dead tired and it’s all Jeff Goins fault.
It’s his fault because I couldn’t stop reading his new book last night. I literally had to peel myself away and get some sleep.
Thus, I rolled out of bed, as we say in New York City, mad tired.
I began my daily routine by turning on the water to take a shower. Guess what, there was no hot water… again.
Needless to say, this isn’t what I would call an ideal way to start your day. However, the cold shower definitely jolted me awake. Seriously, you should try it some time.
While taking my cold shower, I was thinking of Wrecked. My thoughts brought me back to a time where a group of us from Times Square Church went on a short missions trip to Guatemala.
I remember when we first arrived to the mission, it was hot. We all wanted and needed to take a shower. But, there was one little problem, there were no bathrooms or showers.
Thankfully, it began to rain. We knew this was our opportunity to take a shower.
Now keep in mind, I’m from New York City, ok? I’ve only camped out maybe a few times in my life and poorly at that. I’ve never taken a shower in the middle of nowhere before, much less in the rain.
But there I was in the mountains of Guatemala, in the rain, with a bunch of people I didn’t know and a major decision to make. Shower or no shower, is the question. I felt gross, so I decided on the shower. The next dilemma was to figure out how and where?
The shower situation definitely took me out of my comfort zone. I basically was forced to use my imagination and pray… a lot.
Thankfully, the Lord had mercy on my poor soul and answered quickly. There, hidden in view, was my salvation… a small cascade of water falling off a tin roof. When the water hit my skin, it was as cold as my shower this morning.
The only difference is, I actually enjoyed it.
This experience definitely wrecked me and so is reading this book.
Wrecked is stirring me in a major way. Jeff Goins is a prolific and amazing writer. His writing is like eating your favorite ice cream, you don’t want to stop.
But whatever you do, don’t buy the book yet. You don’t want to miss out on this: http://wreckedthebook.com/.
Jeff Goins is a part-time blogger, speaker and author. He works full-time for a nonprofit organization called Adventures in Missions, where he serves as the Communications Director. In his free time, he writes books and shares ideas worth spreading.
Originally from the suburbs of Chicago, Jeff graduated from Illinois College with a double major in Spanish and Religion. There, he spent a semester in Spain, which opened his eyes to different cultures and stretched his worldview.
After a year of travel and long-distance communication, he moved to Tennessee to chase the woman who became his wife. In 2008, he married her.
Since 2006, Jeff has worked out of his home, overseeing marketing, communications, and innovation teams from afar. He is passionate about not only telling great stories, but living them, as well.
His blog, GoinsWriter.com, is one of the fastest-growing blogs on the web and is a well-respected resource for bloggers and writers. In 2011, it won the Top 10 Blogs for Writers award on WritetoDone.com. Each month, he receives over 80,000 visitors to his website.
Jeff’s work has been published online and offline in a variety of publications, including RELEVANT Magazine (which has a circulation of more than 150,000 readers), Copyblogger.com (voted by Ad Age as one of the top marketing blogs online), and ZenHabits.net (one of Time Magazine’s Top 50 Websites for threes years in a row).
Jeff and his wife, Ashley, live just outside of Nashville, TN with their son and dog.
Posted in blogging
Also tagged Books, Guatemala, Jeff Goins, Missions, Moody Publishers, Times Square Church, Writing
4 Comments
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