jmharmsen's review

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challenging informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.25

wootenfamily2008's review against another edition

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5.0

Enlightening

What a great book about God’s pursuit and a woman’s surrender to obey. It was enlightening and convicting and gave me so many thoughts to ponder on more deeply about my own walk with Christ. Highly recommend!

lovelytnic's review

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4.0

Jackie truly unpacked much of her life story within this book. While I feel there were pieces missing that would have been good to understand I got a great outlook on her life story.

kayofthelee37's review against another edition

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emotional medium-paced

4.5

mandypandyrox's review

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emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

emeraldeveryday's review

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3.0

Jackie weaves her love for poetry and words into this transparent testimony of her “come to Jesus” story. She draws unique parallels between her own journey and biblical parables that challenge the reader to question all aspects of sin in their own life.

inyourbunghole's review

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5.0

This book had many bad reviews and I was skeptical at first. Christian books can sometimes be tedious and monotonous but this book is different. I was anxiously waiting to hear more. I listened to the audiobook and Jackie’s voice is powerful. The way she speaks just makes you want want to listen and in a James 1:19 way. Her poetic cadence of speaking made this audiobook feel different than others.

This book is a memoir of a woman’s story about her life before and after meeting/knowing Jesus. It’s her personal story through her own eyes. Her story is unique compared to other coming-to-Jesus stories. It was a story I’ve heard before but through a new perspective. I loved this book and it’s author. God Bless Y’all.

murfmonkey's review

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5.0

Jackie Hill Perry has a way with words that is warm, touching, and quite eloquent. From the very start of her memoir of how God pursued and drew to himself a gay girl, the words and the phrases and the paragraphs flow effortlessly in a way that draws the reader in and keeps them interested. Here is a good example as she contemplates how God is working in her life before she comes to faith:

"'Is God trying to get my attention by making my life harder or something?' I said. Blowing out smoke between questions said out loud, but mainly meant for God to hear and relent. "I mean, does God want me that much?" As grace would have it, he did."

She has a way with words, no doubt due to her talent as a poet, like this riff on temptation:

"Temptation was slapping me around like a weightless doll in the hands of an imaginative child."

I mean, that's just brilliant imagery if you ask me. She follows this up with a description of the struggle she had with homosexuality. She writes:

"The struggle with homosexuality was a battle of faith. To give in to temptation was to give in to unbelief, to decide that the body mattered more than God, or that the pleasure of sin would sustain all that I am better than He."

In this passage she uses the groom at a wedding ceremony as a metaphor for fear. "The date of our wedding was approaching, and fear was insisting on walking me down the aisle. I couldn't let fear hold my hand, even though it was a familiar palm."

Here is another passage in which she brilliantly describes what it meant to her to leave her sin and come to faith in Jesus:

"One thing is for sure, if ever I am asked how I am able to see now after being blind for so long, I will simply say, 'I was blind, but then a good God came, and now, I see.'"

This is a very, very good book and the best, most honest handling of the topic of homosexuality and the Christian faith that I've read.

111mirrorball111's review

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fast-paced

0.5

This is the worst book I’ve ever read. I went into it hopeful to get a new perspective on the subject or at least be introduced to one and instead got a mess. The chapters jump around way too much and it feels like it was written by a fifth grader trying to be artsy. Describing the top of a playhouse as a crayon is one of the many examples of Perry trying and failing at being deep and interesting. The hot take in this book isn’t that she’s straight now, it’s that God called her to not act on it. The delusion is actually insane and this is coming from someone who believes in God. I can’t believe this is something that people actually enjoyed.

lotusblue's review

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5.0

I was introduced to the ministry of Jackie Hill Perry by my nephew who is also a poet. It took me some time to read this work. I waited until the Lord gave the green light for me to consume this wonderful work that is not only her testimony but a testament to who God is and what He has chosen is to do. It's both liberating and poetic in its ability to convey to the church what is needed by all of who are struggling with sexual temptations.