Ginger Hubbard is a sinner. She is also a saint. In fact, she is a sinning saint, just like all Christians are—redeemed by God, giving in to temptation over and over, and finding forgiveness and grace over and over, too. Because of who Jesus is and what he has done, she and we are guiltless—forgiven—before God.
In her book, Guiltless Living, Ginger constantly confesses her own sins, and though they are not really ‘big’ sins, they are nasty. In this way she wants us, too, to learn to confess our sins because…
We cannot fully appreciate the depths of God’s holiness until we fully acknowledge the depths of our sinfulness. It is for this reason that God calls Christians to be real. The sooner we face the reality of our depravity, the sooner we accept God’s atonement for that depravity and enter into the freedom of guiltless living.
In order to lead us to confessing our sins, Ginger writes about being critical, proud, controlling, impatient, miserly, selfish, and outwardly religious. In each area she discusses the Bible and how Christians should live…and then she points to God’s grace, because we all sin. She also includes a Bible study so that individuals and groups can really think through all this and apply it to themselves.
Guiltless Living sounds like a good book, right? Why then do I dislike it? Is it because of the author’s breezy style when writing about sin? Is it because of her occasionally foolish statements, like saying that when Peter walked on the water, the other disciples were missing out on a great spiritual adventure because of their lack of initiative in hopping out of the boat too? Is it because she seems so full of herself?
Or could it perhaps be because I recognize myself in her and don’t like what I see? Miss 16 and I discussed this book, and we could not come up with the reason why this book rubs me the wrong way. Except, perhaps, its often flippant tone. In any case, Guiltless Living has caused me to think about what I do and why I do it. And that, I think, was Ginger’s intention, for she says,
Please know that my aim is for us all to grow closer to Jesus. I humbly challenge you to consider your reaction to the shocking truths of my heart. As you do, ask yourself two questions: Am I willing to acknowledge my own sinful capabilities? Do I extend God’s grace to sinners through my attitudes and actions toward them?
Should you read this book? If you think you are a pretty good person, yes, study it to have your conscience reactivated. If you are overwhelmed in your struggle with sin, read it to be reminded of God’s grace and goodness. But if you don’t read your Bible regularly, I encourage you to do that first, because that is far more important than any human book, especially one like this.
For more information, see the trailer.
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This is yet another book in the in the 2014 52 Books in 52 Weeks Challenge, and is also linked to Saturday Reviews.
Disclosure: I received a free ebook from Cross Focused Reviews for the purpose of this review and have presented my honest opinion.