This book changed me. It did. I have to admit, it’s rare that I will read a book that has a profound impact on my daily life (except the Bible, of course!), but this one did. As a matter of fact, it took me longer to get through it than normal for a few reasons: 1) I found that I needed to read it in small “pieces” in order to really absorb what it was about and 2) When I was about halfway through the book, a friend from another state paid me an unexpected visit. As she was sharing some things that were going on in her life, the Lord laid it on my heart that she really needed this book. So I gave her my copy and then went and purchased another one for myself.
The subtitle of this book is ‘How Just One Change Can Make All of Life Better’. It’s definitely a true statement, but it’s a HUGE change – at least for me it was. And here it is: do not be offended by anything. When Hansen says anything, he means anything. I know…it sounds radical. I was prepared to find all kinds of reasons why the author had lost his mind. After all – shouldn’t we be offended by violence? Abuse? Abortion? Hansen’s answer is “no”. But you’ll have to read the book in order to understand his reasoning, and I’ll tell you that it makes sense.
When Hansen first encountered this idea, he thought, “Surely there’s got to be a place for “righteous anger” against someone, right? Surely there are times we are justified in our anger…” And then he goes on to tell you why he now believes that we can choose to be unoffendable.
In the chapter “Everyone’s an Idiot But Me” Hansen hit me right between the eyes. Pow. Because I am very often critical of other people doing something wrong when I, myself, have done the exact same thing. Why? Because everyone’s an idiot but me, right? Yeah…no.
I love the way that Brant Hansen explains his theories in this book – it’s hard hitting stuff couched in a lot of humor. You know he’s got a sense of humor with chapters like, “Bert and Ernie and Satan” and “This is the Chapter About How We’re Just Barely Smart Enough to be Stupid”.
Here’s the thing: when you start putting the ideas in this book into practice, life becomes more calm; more peaceful. You no longer have to be “right” or “better” or “smarter” or even justified. It’s a weight that you can simply put down. Okay, maybe I shouldn’t have used the word “simply”, because there’s nothing simple about it.
I’ll probably give away this current copy of the book, too, but I’ll immediately go out and get another one. It’s a keeper book. I don’t keep many of them or my house would be overrun because I am a voracious reader. But this one is one that I will find myself referring to over and over.
You can get a copy at Family Christian Stores here.
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