To be honest at first I found this book difficult to engage with and left it for a while, thus late review. later making myself read it - I found that it wasn't that long until i was mesmorised by the authors ability to capably describe the society of the day and the truth regarding the Lord God and His view of our "suffering", its purpose and how we an know true peace "no matter" what the external circumstances are. This is blended with the life of David and the way that the Lord has worked in his life. Highly recommend everyone to read this book, potentially life changing!

It is no secret that Christians nowadays live in a hostile world. As society becomes more secular and religions being seen as nothing more than simply motivation for good works, it is harder for Christians to live in this pluralistic culture. If we are content to just get-along with anything and everything in our culture, we would be left alone. What if we decide to stand up for our historical faith, the biblical principles and truth of Jesus? It would be an uphill task, given the way atheism and secularism had taken hold of all parts of society. Public schools forbid any talk about religion. Businesses generally discourage any discussions about faith matters. Any hint of religion in the public square would trigger push-backs from skeptics and secularists everywhere. The example of Russ Vought being ridiculed before the US Senate Committee for his Christian position is a case in point. On the other hand, violent programming and the sexually charged entertainment options continue to go unabated. Will Christians have courage to stand up against the tide of hostility? What can believers do in the midst of many obstacles that seemed so insurmountable? What does it take to shape a "David faith for today's Goliath World?" That is the crux of the book, which begins with a paraphrase of the biblical story of David vs Goliath in 1 Sam 17. The author writes this book hoping to encourage Christians not only to be courageous in a big way, but to do it in the right way and for the right reason. Courage don't just happen. They are strengthened with challenges. They go through a period of preparation. They stem from the conviction that God is love and God's love overcomes all.


The five ways to prepare such a "David Faith" will make 'davids' out of ordinary believers. Put it another way, it is a 5-step way to brave. First off, we need to understand the world we live. We need a calling. We cannot simply will ourselves into wanting to be davids. Each of us needs to discern what is God's specific calling for us. McQuitty says that we are to build gardens that invite people in, not walls to keep people out. For knowing what the world is like will convict us that we need to ask God for help, for strength, and for wisdom. This world is more broken than many of us may think. From playing cellos in the haunting war zones of Sarajevo to placing tables amid shooting tragedies in America, the call to be Christlike is also a call to be a blessing to others in the midst of conflicts, in what the author calls as being a "cellist of Sarajevo." We learn about changing our perspectives from fighting cultures to engaging cultures. We fight not against flesh and blood but against spiritual powers; not with weapons of violence but weapons of peace. Recognize our calling to be "both garden-planters and spiritual warriors."

Second, like how God anoints young David through the prophet Samuel, we know that the way to such confidence and conviction is through God, via the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit anoints us and convicts us on what we ought to be doing. McQuitty leads us through a fundamental understanding of the Holy Trinity and the Holy Spirit, especially in a world where many believers do not emphasize the Spirit as much. Believers learn to "catch the wind" as they are reminded of the impossibility of living the Christian life on their own strength. Plus, what is impossible with humans is absolutely possible with God! We learn about the three fundamental disciplines of Word, Prayer, and Community. The third way is probably the toughest step of all: When God breaks us. Just like how David's pride was broken at a very young age, when he was bypassed by his brothers in the initial selection process, we too must learn to deal with pride in an increasingly individualistic society. For if we are not careful, pride could squeeze God out. When that happens, we squeeze out the very Person we need in our lives, as we prided ourselves in our own abilities and achievements. Not only will we harm ourselves, we discharge ourselves from the army of God. Learning to be grateful for times of trouble is a strange thing. Yet, it is a way to make us "beautifully broken." Fourth, the test of our spiritual strength comes when we face adversities, or our Goliaths. There is no point to train without having a test to verify what we have learned. Like running the Olympics. If there is no competition, why train? We learn courage as we face opponents bigger than us. We are tested beyond imagination. We also learn more about ourselves. Finally, we see how God transforms us. Very often, we learn most when we reflect upon something we had done in the past. This is a lesson too about spirituality. Education is not about what we are going to learn in the future. It is about reflecting our our past and to see our history as a way to educate ourselves to be prepared for future challenges.

My Thoughts
We all need encouragement. For we are increasingly being surrounded by a hostile environment that forces us to keep our faith private and confidential. The way to brave is a needed encouragement for those of us who feel small and meek in a big and brutal antichrist culture. Even if Christians try to stand up for what they believe in, people will often try to brush them aside. They might put their own denunciation of our faith, as more important than our freedom of religion. They may use the institutional powers and societal norms to push us into a corner. They might even persecute or prosecute us for making our stand. If we are not trained, we will succumb to the pressures. If we are afraid, we might choose to stay silent or non-committal about anything regarding faith. Worse, we might in our actions deny Christ. Thankfully, McQuitty helps us along with a five-step process to finding our courage, and to live without apology and without regret for Jesus.

If you are in need of some hope; if you have recently encountered situations where you find it hard to stand up for your faith; and if you are simply in need of some gentle words of encouragement, pick up this book and find your courage, beginning with God.

Dr Andy McQuitty is senior pastor of Irving Bible Church. In the years he was there, the Church had grown from 300 to 3000 in three worship services.

Rating: 4.25 stars of 5.

conrade
This book has been provided courtesy of Moody Publishers and NetGalley without requiring a positive review. All opinions offered above are mine unless otherwise stated or implied.

Shalom: peace. Andy Mcquitty writes a brilliant book on what our church should be, gardens of peace not places of defensive walls, and our role "is not to fight wars or build walls, but plant gardens and throw dinner parties; not to hurl stones, but become place-makers of peace and doorkeepers of grace in the city to which God has brought us." This is a book we all should read, imagine what an impact the church would have on the world if we took the posture of grace and peace, and we planted beautiful gardens.

Pastor Andy Mcquitty has written a fascinating book that probes the broken culture we live in. He jumps right in at the beginning of this book and discusses David versus Goliath, comparing this classic Bible story to the current climate of Christians versus the world. The new normal in our anti-Christian world can only lead to emptiness and brokenness. We, as Christians, should see this as an opportunity to embrace our broken culture and sow the seeds of righteousness and live out the Gospel.

Mcquitty goes back to the beginning and discusses where it originally all went wrong, Adam and Eve and the fall of man. Then he marches through the Bible and points out the important people and events that proclaim God as Lord and Jesus as the risen savior, urging us to be mindful that Christ has overcome the world. In each of the five sections of this book, Mcquitty examines how God prepares David in five key areas, and then he expands on these areas and explains how we can prepare ourselves as well.

In another book I recently read, Dr. Jason Allen, president of Midwestern Baptist Theogical Seminary, stated, "Those who are committed to the Bible as God’s Word, and its standards for sexuality, gender, and marriage, will walk upstream, against the culture, in the twenty-first century and beyond." Andy Mcquitty echoes that statement with this book. We, as Christians, must prepare ourselves to stand firm in the truth and confront spiritual warfare head on in the name of Jesus!

I recommend this book to all Christians, young and old. May it serve as a guide to be brave in the face of adversity. I received this as a free ARC from Moody Publishers on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The downfall for me personally is that I have studied the life of David so much, that it is hard for me to capture any kind of new revelation about his life. Now, what I can say about this book is that Andy is very easy to read and follow. All of his references were amazing and the heart behind what he wanted to communicate was dead on, so the book is a great resource for someone wanting to learn more about courage and boldness. It was a quick read and the stories were fun to follow. He captured David well and I look forward to see what Andy puts out next.

The Way To Brave


I like how the author, Andy McQuitty, starts out this book by discussing David’s situation as a young shepherd boy who is willing to face a giant and how that situation compares to present day Americas situation of Christian believers facing our own valley of Elah, an increasingly corrupt and immoral society that hates Christians and wants to keep them from influencing American society. He discusses how spiritual muscles grow weak, there is a lack of conviction, and bravery comes to a halt when ones love of God and faith are hardly ever challenged. Yet a very hostile environment that reacts to our faith, makes us stronger spiritually, and brings us closer to God because we find our identity and strength in Him. Our eternal home is Heaven, we are on earth for a short time until we are reunited with Jesus in Heaven.
He also gives examples from the Bible and the present day of people who are willing to show how Christians can help others by not building walls to keep unbelievers out but instead by showing them how Christians can show how Jesus reached out to others so they want to be like them.
He also goes through other aspects of David’s life, such as having to fight lions and bears with his hands and a slingshot to a lot of the trials and pains that we as Christians experience that make us into people that God can use and make us realize that we are not self sufficient, we can not exist without God’s help.
You will need to read this book for yourself to see how we can become like David by letting trials and disappointments shape is into what we would never become unless God used them to make us into what we should be.