Let me start by saying that I'm a John Eldredge fan: I have an entire portion of my shelf dedicated to his books, and I typically devour everything he writes. The introduction to this newest book hit my parched soul like water in a desert, and I couldn't wait to jump further in.

Unfortunately, the work lost a lot of steam really fast. The trouble, as I was reading, seemed to be that this is really two or three books, not one, and that makes for difficult reading. It's as if Eldredge couldn't decide exactly what angle he wanted to take. He says early on that this isn't going to be a book about Covid specifically, but then he spends a fairly good deal of time talking about...Covid. He also says he's not a prophet and doesn't really want to get lost in the prophecies, but several of the chapters (the early ones in particular) are little more than him trying to create a case for why we are right now living in the end times and how important it is to get things in order and have our priorities straight because this is it, folks - Jesus is coming back now. It's really, really hard to read.

What he says about actual resilience, which is surprisingly scant in a book by this name, is solid. It is the water my parched soul thought was coming. I really wish he had spent more of an emphasis on these things because these are the things that his readers are really wanting and needing from this book, not his take on what he assumes are "signs of the times." I also think he doesn't give the reader enough credit - he assumes everyone is on some kind of low road and the truth is that it's just as possible to be weary and need resilience on the high one.

It took me several weeks to finish this read, which is uncharacteristic of me with an Eldredge work, but it was just such hard slogging through. As I read the final chapter, though, I finally realized what was happening - all of this stuff about the end times and the final days is part of the story Eldredge is telling himself to help him hold on in these difficult times. It is his coping mechanism. It is how he is clinging on and getting through. A quick re-read with this perspective in mind really changes how I engage this book. I still wish it was more purely in the flesh-meets-faith category, but realizing that he is living out in his words the very things he's telling us that we all do in times of distress...there's something authentic about that that is worth appreciating, once you get it.

Still, I think he's going to lose a lot of readers early on in this work because of the over-emphasis on the prophecies and this narrative he's clinging to. If you can push through, there are some really good nuggets of hope and truth and yes, resilience, to take with you.

4.5 stars for this post-pandemic look at weariness and filling your reserves in Christ. I've been a huge fan of John Eldredge for years and while this book is not my favorite of his, it was a well-needed read for this time in history. Looking at the effects of the pandemic as a trauma, it's easy to see what coping mechanisms we've used to get through it and how we've looked for things to "get better again". Eldredge uses the pages of this book to help guide the reader to draw closer to Christ and get our fill from Him rather than turning away as many have. This is a great guide on resilience, particularly in the wake of the pandemic, but also in the wake of any trauma. I would definitely recommend this read to any who are desperate in their desire to return to "normal", to those who are weary to their very souls, and to those believers who are questioning God during these times.

Special thanks to Nelson Books and NetGalley for an advance e-copy of this book. I was under no obligation to provide a review and the thoughts contained herein are my own.

I've been reading g John Eldredge since the Sacred Romance. His writing is truly a balm to the soul. This one again meets that criteria. He presents ways to lean on Jesus and Scripture during these pandemic crazy times. A book to savor and reread.

What does "resilience" mean for a Christian? John Eldredge, a Christian counselor for over thirty years, addresses the concept of resilience from an evangelical perspective, and provides concepts and prayers to help make it through such a time as a global pandemic.

First, the good stuff (from a liberal Christian theologian's perspective). Eldredge affirms that God gives us a core of life that wants to survive and thrive, and that we can access that life force through prayer. He provides a practice of meditative prayer stretching back to the medieval mystics to help generate a core of resilience upon which we can draw in hard times, including a biblical prayer to God as Mother. Eldredge also stresses the importance of disentangling from technology and a culture of overwork, spending time in nature and honoring the Sabbath. Finally, he reminds us that Christians do not need to worry or speculate about the future - including hoarding supplies or End-Times speculation.

Where we part ways is some of Eldredge's theology that undergirds these fine suggestions. He believes that we can divorce religion from politics, all the while making political statements about queer people and against people of other religions. (He specifically slams pluralism and inclusivism by saying, "Hindu gods didn't die on the cross for you." That's right - and it's not the most important part of Jesus, either.) Oddly for a practicing therapist, he suggests that depression is caused by Satan, and urges you to "put away the pain" and muscle through manfully for Christ. This undergirding of toxic masculinity and exclusivism undercuts the helpful practical suggestions (that he seems to have gleaned from secular psychology and Buddhist meditation in any case).

Read this book for the emphasis on prayer and resilience, not for the theology, and you will find a useful resource for surviving difficult times of all sorts.