“Will you choose to stand on the unchanging truth of the God-breathed Scriptures, or will you choose whatever trendy catchphrase people are currently obsessed with?”

Alisa Childers (author of ‘Another Gospel?’) was part of the Christian band ZOEGirl back in the 90s. She had her own deconstruction journey and questioned her faith and Christianity. In her study and questioning, she reconstructed in truth and is now an apologist. Her podcast, blog, and more can be accessed HERE.

She also received over a million hits on her article she posted in response to Rachel Hollis’s book Girl, Wash Your Face which reflected a lot of my own thoughts on it.

I was drawn to this book because of the title—Live Your Truth (and Other Lies). I hear that phrase ‘live your truth’ so often as positive encouragement. What Childers tackles in this book is exposing phrases like this and ideas that are marketed as positive and life-changing and showing how they actually promote the worship of self instead of God.

She quotes a lot of popular progressive Christians who have drawn an audience by espousing these ideas and shows how they are leading Christians astray.

If you’re a fan of Jen Hatmaker (Fierce, Free, and Full of Fire and For the Love), Glennon Doyle (Untamed), and Rachel Hollis (Girl, Wash Your Face and Girl, Stop Apologizing), you may find this book insightful and possibly even surprising.

If you’ve thought there’s just something off about some of the ideas these Christians promote but can’t put your finger on why, this book will affirm your discernment and wariness and direct you to what God’s Word says about them.

Wherever you stand on these phrases, it’s worth pondering whether the underlying principles of these phrases align with the gospel message.


What are the Lies?

Of course there are more than ten lies in the world, but in this book she has chosen to focus on these popular ones:

- Live your truth.

- You are enough.

- Put yourself first.

- Authenticity is everything.

- YOLO

- God just wants you to be happy.

- You shouldn’t judge.

- You’re the boss of you.

- Love means agreeing.

- Girls are most powerful when they act like men.

Are you uncomfortable? You’ve heard these a lot right? You maybe even promote them yourself. They sound so encouraging. Many of them fall under the cultural umbrella of ‘self-love.’ Aren’t we supposed to love ourselves? After all, God created us in his image and we should be physically, mentally, and emotionally healthy.

It is true that we are image-bearers and being healthy is a way to honor God with our bodies. But self-love inevitably elevates self above self-sacrifice. It takes truths of the Bible and twists them, or in some ways completely ignores what the Bible actually teaches.

“What if those little slogans that sound positive and life-affirming are really just lies that will unhinge us from truth, reality, and hope? Relying on popular wisdom can cause unnecessary pain and confusion. In other cases, it leads to absolute bondage to whatever virtue signal of the day is dominating the internet.”

Childers takes each of these lies and sheds the light of Scripture on the truth behind the lie. And in case you need this reminder, the truth is not discouraging. The truth actually frees us from having to be our own saviors, our own constant source of strength and sufficiency. The truth actually offers rest, hope, and authenticity and love as God intended.

“Recognizing who we are in Christ is the ultimate self-care because the Word of God doesn’t reinvent itself along with a constantly changing culture.”



How to Be Deceived in 7 Easy Steps

Childers includes this list in her book and I think it’s super helpful to think about as we discern the messages we hear in the world, whether from secular or Christian sources.

And again, these are not Childers’ invention. We see these at play when Adam and Eve first sinned. If you want to follow Glennon Doyle’s suggestion that “Maybe Eve was never meant to be our warning. Maybe she was meant to be our model. Own your wanting. Eat the apple,” then essentially you’re attempting to become your own god.

Like Eve, if you want to be deceived by lies, follow these steps:

1. Question what God actually said.

2. Twist what God said.

3. Paint God like the mean bully in the sky who uses fear tactics to keep you from having any fun.

4. Persuade you to trust yourself more than you trust God and his Word.

5. Catapult your life into darkness and chaos.

6. Convince yourself that darkness and chaos are actually good things.

7. Rinse, recycle, repeat.

Take a moment to reflect. I think we do these a lot more fluidly than we realize. We like to trust ourselves and believe things that feel good and allow us to do whatever we want.

“It’s easy to point people to themselves. There will always be a market for that. We love it! We love to talk about ourselves, focus on ourselves, pamper ourselves, and adore ourselves… But we were not created to worship ourselves.”



My Favorite Parts

Childers is bold and has a great sense of humor. This book is easy to read— she shares information in a really accessible and oftentimes entertaining way. Yet it is also gospel-centered and Scripture-filled.

Other reviewers have commented that she is merely presenting ‘her truth’ as what everyone should believe. But that is not the case. She is not just offering a forceful opinion. She is offering biblical evidence, context, and linguistic information to support a historically believed truth.

She touches on linguistic theft (quoting the fantastic book Mama Bear Apologetics, in which she was a contributor). Linguistic theft describes the practice the culture has made of redefining words like love, tolerance, bigot, justice, truth, hate, etc. This is a significant thing and the cause of many hurtful conversations. If we’re not operating from the same definitions, we are not understanding each other properly.

One of the most important of these words is ‘truth.’ As Christians, we should believe in objective truth. And we can know truth. After all, ‘true’ just means ‘corresponding to reality.’

“Truth is true for all people in all places and times. It’s also something you can’t invent, think up, or create. It is something you discover. It doesn’t change, no matter how much people’s beliefs about it do. Truth isn’t altered because of how it makes someone feel. Truth is entirely unaffected by the tone and attitude of the person professing it. A lie is still a lie even when communicated with humor and just the right amount of whimsy.”

“Defending the gospel requires defending objective truth. There’s no way around it. Christianity is based on truth.”



It makes me sad when I see everyone trying to be authentic and struggling with who they actually are. They’re so often not looking in the right place. And even as they attempt authenticity, they are unfulfilled and depressed. Because our own attempts to define ourselves are never going to be enough.

“Living according to the truth is the most authentic way to live because it’s what we were made for.”

“Paul writes, “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.” That doesn’t mean the unique talents, personalities, and giftings we’ve been created with are dead. Rather, we continually put to death the sin that stains and taints those God-given gifts and qualities. This frees us to be who we were truly created to be.”

When our identity is in Christ, He defines the truth, and we allow God to sanctify the ways we taint the gifts he’s given us, we find true authenticity.

“As Christians, we have to submit our inner lives to the authority of Scripture, and sometimes that requires denying our desires, repenting of our sinful proclivities, and reforming our ideas to align with God’s revealed truth. When we don’t do that, we can find ourselves fighting against God and trying to build our identities on a cracked foundation.”



Another thing I think about a lot that she addresses in her book is that to love someone doesn’t mean you always agree with them.

She quotes Glennon Doyle saying:

“If you want to change me, you do not love me… If you wish me well but vote against my family being protected by the law, you do not love me… to love me as yourself means to want for me and for my family every good thing you want for yourself and your family. Anything less than that is less than love.”

This is a common sentiment- love doesn’t desire change in someone. But that is not logical. Of course anyone is welcome at the foot of the cross exactly as they are, but Jesus doesn’t leave us there. The Bible clearly teaches sanctification which is God changing us to be more like himself.

Doyle’s definition would mean that Jesus isn’t loving. It would also mean that she herself isn’t loving because these words were directed towards her friend whom she was subtly trying to change.

Childers rightly points us to the famous 1 Corinthians 13 passage who helps inform our view of biblical love:

"‘It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful.’ (You mean, I can’t demand that other people capitulate to my very specific theological and political views if they want to love me?) Next Paul wrote, ‘It does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.’ (Well, shoot. This means that when I’m a loving person, I cannot rejoice in sinful behavior but am commanded to rejoice only when things line up with the truth of God’s Word?) According to Scripture, love means I cannot affirm someone in their sin, even if they insist that love requires that. In that sense, the biblical definition of love is the exact opposite of the cultural one.”

“True biblical love is neither a trite affirmation of someone’s life choices nor holding someone hostage to our own politics or theology.”

Now to still show compassion even in disagreement is challenging and I fail at that regularly. But it exposes that lie that anything that feels good must be true and right. God gave us emotions so they must be important, but he also gave us his Word which is far more important than feelings. And His Word warns us that our hearts are deceitful. They cannot be our ultimate authority in determining what is right and wrong.

The choice Childers gives us to either follow our heart or follow God is a real choice.

Our hearts can still lead us to sin. They can lead us to celebrate sin. But God’s Word will always direct us to truth and life.



Conclusion

While there is a bit of overlap on this book with Mama Apologetics, this is still a valuable read. The tone here is a bit different. Mama Bear Apologetics takes on the ‘-isms’ like feminism, moral relativism, Marxism, etc., but Live Your Truth takes on specific phrases.

Books like the ones Hatmaker and Hollis (at least before her meltdown) put out garner a lot of interest. I wish Childers had quoted more of the other progressive Christian authors that have become popular as well, because Christians are getting sucked into this positive, seemingly healthy worldview that is really based on anti-gospel ideas.

It’s going to take some humility, honesty, and willingness to self-reflect for us to recognize some of the lies we’re believing. But Childers is a great writer to take us on that journey. She is a bold lover of truth (and hopefully my future best friend) who has courageously written this book, knowing that she will face a lot of backlash.

“it must be said that if 99.9 percent of a god-hating culture loves you and your message, chances are you are not being prophetic. They killed the prophets. They adore influencers who sanctify sin.”

If we fit in too much with the culture, we may have strayed from the radical and selfless teachings of Jesus.

“None of the lies we’ve talked about in this book can exist in the same space as the Cross. If you want to be enough for yourself, you cannot have the Cross. It is the irritant that aggravates our sense of self-sufficiency, and it is the remedy that cures the defect that self-sufficiency creates.”

If you haven’t figured it out yet— I highly recommend this book!



More Quotes:

“‘You are enough’ is a message that enslaves people to the false idea that they are responsible to be the mastermind of their current circumstances and future realities—even when they feel overwhelmed. It burdens them with the obligation of being the source of their own joy, contentment, and peace.”

“You are not enough, but when your trust is placed in Jesus, his enough-ness is transferred to you.”

“The self can’t be both the problem and the solution. If our problem is that we’re insecure or unfulfilled, we’re not going to be able to find the antidote to these things in the same place our insecurities and fear are coming from.”— Allie Beth Stuckey

“When we dedicate our lives to serving God and others, we are not like a car running out of gas. We are more like a house with solar panels.”

“The secret is Christ in me, not me in a different set of circumstances.”— Elisabeth Elliot

“Authenticity is not unimportant. It’s not wrong when defined correctly, but it’s not everything. Do you want to know what is everything? God’s holiness. That’s everything.”

“Heaven is not escapist. Worldliness is escapist. Heaven is home.”

“Popular culture tells us that happiness means controlling our circumstances in a way that allows us to have those good feelings as often as possible, and if we don’t experience those good feelings, we should change our circumstances. Are you unhappy in your marriage? Get a divorce. Feeling down? Get drunk. Overwhelmed by motherhood? Take to social media to vent about what little monsters your kids are.”

“Biblical happiness doesn’t come from having stuff, feeling good about our circumstances, or even finding romantic fulfillment. Those things feel good, but they can’t bring ultimate happiness. In some cases, they may even distract us from real happiness. True biblical happiness is knowing deep down that no matter our circumstances, we were lost and now we’re found. We have experienced the love of Christ, which always brings encouragement and comfort.”

“Scripture actually commands us to judge but to do it carefully, rightly, humbly, and without hypocrisy.”

“In our culture, to claim that there are differences between men and women has become taboo. Sadly, we’ve taken all the strengths that men typically possess and made them the standard of goodness and value. Because of this, women feel they need to fight like a man, compete with men in the workplace, and achieve all the things men do. But why is no one making womanhood the standard of goodness and value?”

“Take, for example, the claim that women are “too emotional.” Why do we automatically believe this is a negative stereotype that must be toppled in order to crush the patriarchy? Could it be that God actually hardwired an emotional intelligence into women because they are literally responsible for bringing all the new humans into the world? Could it be that they need to be naturally intuitive and nurturing, with sharp instincts designed toward the survival and flourishing of individuals? Instead of viewing this as a weakness to be overcome, I praise God for the beauty of his diverse creation.”

“The fruit wasn’t something good that was being withheld but something incredibly destructive that God was protecting Adam and Eve from.”

“Satan wants us to view God’s commands as barriers that keep us from enjoying the things we are entitled to. In reality, God is protecting us from what will harm us.”

“Already we can see the precious value assigned to women from their creation. From the language used to describe God’s divine activity to the man’s response and the woman’s role, the Bible ascribes a value to woman that was unique in the ancient world.”

“Sometimes I think we humans tend to downplay our own sinfulness, not realizing how much our sin is an affront to a holy God.”



Books She References

Mama Bear Apologetics: Empowering Your Kids to Challenge Cultural Lies by Hillary Morgan Ferrer

Live Not by Lies by Rod Dreher

Cynical Theories: How Activist Scholarship Made Everything about Race, Gender, and Identity- and Why This Harms Everybody by Helen Pluckrose and James Lindsay

The War Against Boys: How Misguided Feminism Is Harming Our Young Men by Christina Hoff (on my TBD)


Other Relevant Books:

The Intolerance of Tolerance by D.A. Carson (discusses the changing definition of tolerance)

The Secular Creed: Engaging Five Contemporary Claims by Rebecca McLaughlin (discusses the ‘love is love’ sentiment)

You Who?: Why You Matter and How to Deal With It by Rachel Jankovic (a book basically in response to Girl, Wash Your Face and one of my favorites)


**Received an ARC via NetGalley**

Call it 3.5 stars. This is a worthy follow-up to Childers' first book, Another Gospel?, and it expands some ideas touched on there. Childers takes on a host of popular catchphrases (beliefs), such as "you are enough," "God wants you to be happy," "you shouldn't judge," and the titular "live your truth," countering each with biblical truths and scripture passages. She writes with a conversational voice that doesn't flinch at what may seem contentious in our modern climate. Absolutely essential.

This is my first experience with Alisha Childers aside from watching her YouTube channel.
I was happy to know that her writing style is no different from her speaking style. This outing with her was very much like watching one of her YouTube videos and I enjoyed it

I struggle writing reviews for books like this.

On one hand, what Childers has to say is not revolutionary or ground breaking - it's not rocket science - BUT, on the other hand, she addresses certain commonly held values and perceptions in a way that shows just how seductive yet disappointing they are. Things like the title value - "live your truth" - seem right and good and true on the surface. It sounds good and positive and, potentially, even hopeful. If you're like me, though, that type of phrase has rang hollow and rubbed a little bit the wrong way but I could never vocalize why.

That's where this book shines. Childers uses the words of Scripture - rooted deeply in the love of God for all people - to show why trying to live according to these sentiments, the things memes are made of, leaves us feeling frustrated, empty, hollow, disconnected and exhausted instead of bringing the fulfillment they promise AND provides alternatives. She gives voice to some of what I was feeling but didn't know how to express and for that I'm thankful.

I felt like Childers did an excellent job addressing what could be some pretty touchy subjects with grace, truth and common sense. The logic she follows makes sense.

I had both an audio (read by the author) and an e copy and I would recommend them both. I ordered myself a hard copy and look forward to sharing it and discussing it.

This book is full of so much truth. Culture tells us nothing but lies and twists up God's Word, but Alisa spells it out so clearly for us why we need to tune that out and focus on what's real. Her podcast is just as amazing, so if you haven't listened to that, be sure to check it out. But this book is a must read to understand what's going on in culture today and why it's so harmful.

I received a review copy from NetGalley and these are my honest thoughts.

Alisa’s writing is candid and relatable. She doesn’t hold back from calling out the toxicity of many self-help (even Christian) influencers’ messages. This book can open eyes and hearts that are wrapped up in a feel-good, self-serving gospel and point them to Truth. I really enjoyed it.

👏🏽 With this book, Alisa Childers has set herself apart in the world of apologetics. Instead of being heady and academic, she presents rich theological truth as if you were simply chatting over a cup of coffee. Her writing is often conversational and then she seamlessly moves into supporting her view with historical evidence, sociological analysis, and backing from the Bible. This read is entirely approachable, relatable, and understandable.
She also takes up the mantle of exposing the victim-creating, female-enslaving indistry that is the self-help market. Wrapping it all up with a strong & convicting call to Christians to consider the true cost of the cross, and then take up our own and follow Him.

Buy two copies: one for you and your friend!
Today’s culture is confusing, destructive, and in your face 24/7. This book guides us to take our eyes off ourselves as we lay down the burden of self-absorption and find true joy, contentment, and peace in the Biblical Jesus.

😍 Favorite Quote: “But if our understanding of ourselves isn’t rooted in Scripture, it can become easy to confuse taking care of ourselves with the world’s idea of “self-care.”

The statements we often hear now such as “live your truth” and “you do you” are ones I have heard and know are unbiblical, but Alisa Childers’ new book deeply unpacks the nuances behind them and the problems with these lies in a helpful way.

She does not hold back in sharing the truth, as well as underlining again and again the importance of the Bible as the foundation of truth and the standard of measure for our lives.

Some key understandings the book shares are the consequences of basing whether something is true on if it feels good and comfortable versus negative, harmful or uncomfortable. The author writes:

“The truth is that some biblical teachings are difficult. They make us uncomfortable. They call us to deny ourselves and prefer Jesus even over our family and friends. They get all up in our sex lives, our relationships, and our identities. . . . it’s not brave or revolutionary to deny *the* truth in order to speak *your* truth. . . . It might feel good for a while, but in the end it will simply bring anxiety, pain, depression, and exhaustion.”

The charts used in most chapters are a goldmine. One question I had never thought of before was especially key for discerning if something isn’t THE truth: “Is truth in this situation dependent on how it makes you or someone else feel?” or “Is truth in this situation dependent on what the Word of God says?”

This book truly hits the target, addressing the lying “truths” of our current society and the actual truth of God’s Word and ways. With such truths, this book is a must read for believers and unbelievers alike.

Lastly, I was unexpectedly touched by how she shared her own challenges and story in various chapters.

I received a review copy of this book for free from Netgalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. All opinions are my own.

The book is okay and there are definitely kernels of wisdom and takeaways, but if you’re not a religious person, I do not recommend this book. I thought this was a spirituality focused book, but I was wrong!

“You see, the best lies are the ones that sound the most beautiful. They are made up of at least 50 percent truth.”

I could say the same about Alisa Childers’s book.

Live Your Truth (and Other Lies) could be renamed Your Truth Doesn’t Exist (Unless it Aligns with Alisa Childers’s Truth).

This book juxtaposes common cultural sayings like “live your truth”, “you only live once”, and “put yourself first” with tenets of the gospel such as the nature of God, original sin, and the atonement.

The author quotes popular self-identified Christian authors such as Rachel Hollis, Jen Hatmaker, and Glennon Doyle to prove how they are false teachers and unbiblical.

The main message of the book is that truth is not subjective. Truth is fact. Love tells the truth. And a Christian must live the truth instead of living your truth.

Here’s What I Liked

It is difficult to rate a book when you disagree with most of the author’s approach and perspective. This is Alisa’s second book (following Another Gospel? A Lifelong Christian Seeks Truth in Response to Progressive Christianity) and I have read them both. The book is well-written, and I like how it was organized around each common cultural saying that she tackles.

I actually do agree with several of the author’s points. Many of these cultural sayings do go too far and crown a god of Self instead of making Jesus our Lord. I agree that it is misleading to make someone a guru when their personal choices have wreaked havoc and they have intentionally misled their audience in order to sell books (see: Glennon Doyle). Our culture, especially social media culture, does value “artificial authenticity” and gaining followers over becoming who God created you to be. I also agree that “you shouldn’t judge” is thrown around way too much to mean that no one can disagree with me or have a different opinion.

Alisa points out the inconsistencies with Glennon Doyle’s assertion that “If you want to change me, you do not love me.” This cultural value of “accept me as I am” is a myth. Alisa is trying to change our beliefs with her book. Glennon is trying to change our beliefs with her platform. I am trying to change your beliefs with this book review (or at least influence your opinion about this book).

I also agree with the problems with the emphasis on happiness over biblical joy (though I have some problems with the application of this, which I will address later). “The Bible defines happiness in a completely different way. It’s not a psychological state or an emotion we experience. It’s described more like an alignment with God and obedience to his Word. It’s a God-focused joy, not a self-centered mood enhancement.”
Mostly, I strongly agree with Alisa’s point that “if you are a Jesus follower, he is in charge. Jesus is the boss of you, and he says the Bible is also the boss of you.”

The Problem with Apologists

But we disagree on what our boss is telling us.

Like other apologists, Alisa seems to assume that historical evidence and “proof” means we will all agree on every theological point and that her (read: conservative) interpretation of Scripture is the only correct one.
I disagree. We can agree the Bible is true and authoritative but still disagree on the interpretation and application of it.

For example, Alisa says “your truth doesn’t exist”. Yet the book is filled with her versions of biblical truths and glaringly omits those that aren’t popular among conservative Christians yet are still biblical, nonetheless. There is no mention of social justice (Micah 6:8), no denouncement of racism or sexism (Galatians 3:28), no acknowledgement of systemic inequalities and Jesus’s command to serve the poor (Proverbs 14:31, 1 John 3:17).

Alisa encourages readers to argue with other believers on nonessential aspects of the faith. We should evaluate “Am I being persecuted for my unwillingness to compromise on essentials?” If so, continue speaking up, she says. “Am I being persecuted for my unwillingness to agree to disagree on nonessentials?” Continue arguing your points, she suggests.

What a successful way to drive hoards of Christians away from what she defines as “historic Christianity” and into the “evils” of progressive Christianity, as her first book unpacked. Indeed, Alisa shows a fundamental misunderstanding--or refusal to understand--deconstruction. She defines deconstruction as “the slow unraveling of someone’s faith as many of the beliefs they grew up with are picked apart and discarded.”

So to Alisa, deconstruction = deconverting. She leaves no room for deconstruction to lead to the reconstruction of a deeper, more nuanced faith with space for openness, doubt, and questions while holding strong to a love of Jesus and the fundamentals (“essentials”) of the faith. (This has been my experience of deconstruction and a journey I offer my followers in Faith Reconstruction Coaching.)

Complementarian “Truth”

Alisa’s truth (the only truth) contains a lot of the usual complementarian garbage. (As an aside, I have always found it ironic that self-identified complementarian women influencers who write, speak, teach, and lead say women have “unique and different roles” than men. Yet they are occupying many of those same roles in the work that they do. Carry on, you Proverbs 31 women.)

She argues against modern feminism with many of the same tired and old arguments typical of complementarians.

Here are a few quotes:

“The way to build up girls is to help them embrace and celebrate the specific role and traits God hardwired into women” (emphasis mine).

“It’s a beautiful truth that God made men and women equal in value and worth but different in role and responsibility. Could it be that God actually hardwired an emotional intelligence into women because they are literally responsible for bringing all the new humans into the world? Could it be that they need to be naturally intuitive and nurturing? Could it be that God has built into men an instinct bent toward protecting and providing?“ (emphasis mine).

“There is great value in reminding women that God has hardwired them with intuitive insights, nurturing qualities, and natural mothering instincts. A woman’s body is beautifully designed by God to carry a baby, birth a baby, and feed a baby. In the same way, he has hardwired men in specific ways that make them naturally protective and bent toward work and providing” (emphasis mine). This is all said without any consideration for women whose bodies are unable or do not have the opportunity or desire to carry, birth, and feed a baby. Or men who choose to serve their family in other ways besides “work and providing”.

All this language of “hardwiring”, “natural,” “God-built”, “bent”, and “instinctual” presupposes that it is a fact that God created all men and all women differently for these different roles. Yet there is no scientific evidence or proof that women are “naturally intuitive and nurturing” or that men are “hardwired for protecting and providing” in a way that the opposite sex is not. Or even that those supposed “hardwired” differences mandate separate and inequal roles. Men and women are different, but as a feminist (and a psychologist rooted in evidenced-based research), I believe the differences between individuals are greater than the differences between the sexes. This is a scientific fact.

Alisa cites overused stereotypes and weak arguments against feminism, such as feminists can’t accept help with a heavy suitcase or opening a door. She then makes the absurd claim that “the damage this does to women and girls is significant, and the devastation it brings to men and boys is incalculable.” So not allowing a man to open my door or help me with my suitcase (which I typically would not have a problem with) brings “damage to women” and “devastation” to men? What a low opinion of both men and women. And there is no research to support this; yet remember, there is no subjective truth so everything Alisa says must be taken as fact.

Love & Emotions

While her writing flows from cultural statement to “objective truth”, her chapters felt incomplete at times. She lays out her theological arguments but doesn’t always connect them fully back to the original cultural statement she was objecting to. For example, she states “love is love” has to be rooted in an understand of God’s nature and character because God is love. Agreed.

But what does that love look like in action? Will it look like speaking up for the value and dignity of black lives? She would likely say no, at least to the current cultural expression of the BLM movement. Would it look like voting against the rights of gay people to marry, adopt, or be safe from workplace discrimination? She would likely say yes.

Alisa gives an example of love as her bandmate calling her out on her eating disorder because it was harming her. This is a reasonable example because it is an objective, measurable fact that an eating disorder harms the physical and mental health of a person. But when it comes to other issues, Christians often disagree on what causes harm and what doesn’t.

This is where she explores the problem in trusting our feelings and letting those be our guide. I agree our culture puts too much emphasis on “following your heart” and “doing whatever makes you happy”. But there is so much harm from conservative Christianity telling us only that our hearts are “wicked and deceitful” and never teaching us that our feelings are valid and worthy of attention. As a psychologist, the majority of my work is helping people learn to identify, validate, and communicate their emotions effectively instead of avoiding, suppressing, and denying them.

Alisa ultimately sets up a false dichotomy when she says, “we can choose to follow our hearts or we can choose to follow Christ.” Why not recognize that Christ gave you that heart and those emotions, and yes we ultimately need to seek his discernment, wisdom, and guidance, but our emotions are still valid.

Glorifying Suffering

Alisa cites Elizabeth Elliot as a shining example of the faith and Elizabeth Cady Stanton as a black sheep. Like other evangelical teachings, this book glorifies suffering and persecution instead of focusing on attempts to end it. I see many evangelicals wearing their experiences of “persecution” like a badge of honor and exalting martyrs.

There is also the usual conservative jargon about suffering in your marriage; you can be unfulfilled in your marriage yet still have deep abiding joy because of Jesus, they say. To me, this is another half-truth. You can pursue joy in Jesus despite a disappointing marriage and you can seek help and work toward change in your marriage. It doesn’t have to be either/or.

There are other problems with the book I won’t unpack, such as her odd fat shaming comments toward herself and talk of her body and weight consistent with diet culture.

Ultimately, Alisa insists that “Christians must remain committed to speaking and living the truth, because as we’ve already established, “your truth” doesn’t exist.”

In a book filled with some biblical truth but a lot of her own Evangelical-shaped opinions, beliefs, and assertions, Alisa has offered us the same thing she set out to dismantle: half-truths.

Easily the best book I've read this year. Each chapter focuses on an aspect of our current culture and the lies it tells you. Its not don't do this, do this kind of book. This book is a call to examine yourselves in light of God's Word.. to test your heart and affections to see where they lie. In the end Childers has you examine yourself and ask who really is on the throne, you (self) or God?

I really enjoyed this book and the truth it held. Not my truth, not your truth, but THE truth. Truth is the entire plot of this book. We live in a time where everyone's trying to find their own personal "truth" instead of searching for actual facts. This book is a great place to start for finding truth and understanding the current debate surrounding truth.
I know that sometimes nonfiction can seem like all knowledge, no fun. If that were true, then I wouldn't have enjoyed this book. Luckily, Childers raw humor and honesty about her personal life brings some laughs and really interesting points to the conversation. After all, we do learn best when having fun.


The chapter titles tend to be pretty attention grabbing and fun as well. "McJudgypants" is by far my all-time favorite chapter title. This gives a little insight into the humor of Childers that you will find in this book. Each chapter also features a quote at the beginning, which is always fun.

The information in this book is all biblically based with references. You will also see a lot of references to other texts as well. This book was very well researched.

For these reasons I must suggest this book to everyone. It covers an extremely important topic in a fun way that is easy to understand.

I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for this honest review.

This is in my top five of the best books I have read this year. Live Your Truth is a much common saying/ theme that has been going around for the last few years, among other little slogans that tie into it, especially among “popular Christian’s”, but as a Christian what is exactly is the truth?
In this book Alisa Childers does a wonderful job sharing different different slogans among live your truth and brings to clarity what the Bible says is truth.


I graciously received an advance e-copy via netgalley for review. All opinions are my own.

I was very excited to receive an ARC of Alisa Childers’ forthcoming release Live Your Truth (and Other Lies): Exposing Popular Deceptions That Make Us Anxious, Exhausted, and Self-Obsessed. Thank you to Tyndale House and NetGalley for the e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I highly respect Alisa Childers’ willingness to speak up for the truth of the Gospel and push back on the continual winds of change in our postmodern world. Her first book Another Gospel? is one of my favorites of the year so far and this new book is now a top contender as well. Her books, podcast, and social media posts give me such encouragement in my faith every single day.

In her newest book, Childers tackles many of the popular mantras of self-help and self-glorification that are rampant in society today- “Live your truth,” “You do you,” “You are enough,” “Do what makes you happy,” and others. Childers addresses these self-obsessed philosophies with the everlasting truth of the Word of God. I took so many notes and highlighted countless quotes, but I’ll share just a couple of my favorites.

“We all have a choice. We can worship ourselves or deny ourselves. We can choose to follow our hearts or we can choose to follow Christ.”

“Pursuing Christ in a world that tells you to put yourself first is a difficult road. It stinks like death to those who are perishing. But to those who are being saved, it is life and hope and peace. Christian, your truth doesn’t exist. Your truth won’t bring hope or save anyone. You must speak and live the truth, no matter the cost."

I am so grateful to Alisa Childers for continuing to proclaim boldly and stand firm upon the Word of God. The entire book is exceptional and one that I highly recommend to Christians. Look for this book from your favorite bookseller on October 18, 2022.

Live Your Truth & Other Lies – Exploring Popular Deceptions That Make Us Anxious, Exhausted, and Self-Obessed by Alisha Childers is a must read, especially for older teens and young adults who hear these constant messages of live your best life, you are enough, follow your heart, you only have one life to live, your the boss, you do you, live your truth, etc… If you didn’t know it these are lies, not truth, though they sure do sound good and positive, but they will certainly lead you astray. As she stated, “Relying on popular wisdom can cause unnecessary pain and confusion.” This book takes some of these popular messages you hear from books and the internet, and compares them to the Bible.

Alisha shares in her book why these memes are false, where wisdom comes from, how to find what true freedom is instead, and it won’t be in some meme or internet post from a celebrity. So many of these lies are sold as truths, because they use some type of religious language to make it look true. She warns us that that seeing something with religious wording we often share it without thinking about is it really true or not, because it made me feel right instead. “You see the best lies are the ones that sound the most beautiful.” An import reminder right there, that our feelings do often lie to us and half-lies don’t make it true.

She also share the importance of the use of our language, what may of once meant this…, now instead means this. For example she says, “Words like love, hate, bigot, male, female, oppression, justice, and truth – many of which we’ll talk about in this book – are all being constantly refashioned.”

We have to wonder why is depression and anxiety sky-rocketing in our society? Well, she states, “No one knows where they can find reliable information about anything from brownie recipes to personal health to morality to politics.” Don’t worry she doesn’t point out all the bad without pointing us to good, she makes the case, by showing examples from popular books, social media celebrities, the self-gospel, how we have become self-worshipers, and then shows us how to build a firm foundation, comparing these false lies to the biblical truth. Which is found in the Bible and knowing who we are in Christ. She also stated, “Peace and unity are not always the highest virtue.”

Another great highlight I have (and I have many from the book) is: “The truth is that some biblical teachings are difficult. They makes uncomfortable. They call us to deny ourselves and prefer Jesus even over our family and friends. They get all up in our sex lives, our relationships, and our identities.” This whole quote right there, speaks to what we are seeing today in our culture! Here is truth: “We all have a choice. We can worship ourselves or deny ourselves. We can choose to follow our hearts or we can choose to follow Christ.” “You must speak and live the truth, no matter the cost. Your reward? As Jesus said in John 8:32 “The truth shall set our free.” Truth came as a person, and He is your reward.” You find that and so much more in this book!

In my view, with this book Alisa Childers has set herself apart in the world of apologetics. She has taken 10 cultural mantras and exposed them for the lies they really are.
This is a book about the Bible, logic, and common sense. It’s about the solidity of God’s truth.

Childers presents rich theological truth as if you were her friend and you were simply chatting over a cup of coffee. Her writing is at some points conversational, and then she seamlessly moves into supporting her view with historical evidence, sociological analysis and backing from the Bible. This read is entirely approachable, relatable, and understandable.
She also takes up the mantle of exposing the victim-creating, female-enslaving indistry that is the self-help market.

Wrapping it all up with a strong & convicting call to Christians to consider the true cost of the cross, and then take up our own and follow Him.

Here are some favorite quotes - couldn’t pick just one!
“Ditching the jargon and clinging to the timeless truths of the Bible is the most freeing and stabilizing thing we can do.”

“"You are enough" is
a message that enslaves people to the false
idea that they are responsible to be the
mastermind of their current circumstances and
future realities-even when they feel
overwhelmed. It burdens them with the
obligation of being the source of their own joy,
contentment, and peace.”

“Could it be that differences between men and women fit together like puzzle pieces to ensure that both flourish and that the whole family and society in general thrive?”

I really enjoyed reading thus book. Alisa Childers writes about topics that have been on my heart for a while but haven't been able to put words to it. She has a very easy to understand writing style. It feels like sitting down with a friend and having a discussion.

"Live Your Truth (and other lies)" was a well-anticipated book in my corner, and I really appreciated the perspectives of Alisha Childers. It was quite a breath of fresh air - as when you normally see that phrase, you think of certain ideologies which more often than not distort the will and design of God. I rather enjoyed Childer's first book, "Another Gospel?" and was not disappointed with this one. Thankful for how quickly she tackled hard subjects, her humor and personal stories of her touring days throughout, and the research crafted behind the scenes of many of the circumstances mentioned. I applaud her for knowingly taking a class that seeks to debunk her worldview, and challenging first hand what we know as "progressive christianity." In the pages of this book, you will find relevant, genuine, and easily read dialogue about current events and how to understand and respond in love as Christians, while she narrates her own experiences in tour, in the class, and through seeking to understand what other popular "Christian" authors say about social topics of the day. This whole "christianiese" and progressivism is such an invasive mindset and worldview that sometimes it can be difficult to cut through the muddle and look to the truth. But Childers continually points us to the Truth! A few examples are the differene between subjective/objective thought, the scientific method or process to defining truth, and how we can use discernment in a world that is full of "personal truths." Her books are like a crash course or introduction into apologetics and you walk away wanting more, looking to keep the conversation flowing as if you are enjoying time learning from a friend. Despite a few more personal arguments that may go on a paragraph longer than you'd expect I give this book 5 stars and applause. It should be highly recommended reading, alongside a few other books which tackle culture and theology and the inerrancy of scripture, for youth groups and young women alike. Also, the audience and tone is definitely more geared toward women than men, but all those of faith will enjoy it. *Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy to review! All opinions are my own.

"Christians must remain committed to speaking and living the truth, because as we've already established, 'your truth' doesn't exist." - Alisa Childers, Live Your Truth (and Other Lies)

In this book, Alisa Childers addresses all the common lies that the world throws at us. Everything from "live your truth" to "be your authentic self" to "love is love" to "you are enough" and others. She addresses it head on and explains how all these little quotes sound nice and sweet on the surface, but when you really look at it you can see the ugly lies buried beneath. All of these lies lead to a worship of self rather than a worship of God.

I enjoyed the writing style and the relatable way in which she wrote. I'm looking forward to reading her previous book "Another Gospel?".

**Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for an ARC. All opinions are my own.

In a social media culture where we are constantly being bombarded with information, the opinions of others, fake news, and media censorship, it is hard to know what information is reliable and trustworthy. Lots of folks are turning to therapy, self-help, and feel-good philosophy to teach them how to live

Popular beliefs in our culture tells us to:
- Live your truth
- Follow your heart
- You are enough
- Love yourself
- You are the boss of you
However nice these ideas seem, as Christians, we must hold these philosophies against the Scriptures of God's written Word

In this book, aplogist Alisa Childers gives many examples of cultural lies that become stumbling blocks, and potentially shipwreck our faith. She also, combats each lie with the truths Jesus tells us in the Bible. Primarily that our lives our not our own.

I was so happy to have the opportunity to review this book. Alisa's easy writing and simple explanations remind me why I love apologetics so much. 10/10 would recommend this book!

Thank you so much to Tyndale House Publishing for sending me this advanced reader copy for free through Netgallet in exchange for an honest review!