With All Your Heart
Have you given God all of your heart? In With All Your Heart, Christine Hoover calls you to live joyfully through allegiance to King Jesus.
In just over 200 pages, Hoover explains how Christianity is about allegiance, and we have a king to love. In the first part of the book, she shows how our hearts are constantly hungry and we must seek to fill them with King Jesus. Repentance and seeking the kingdom go hand in hand. It unites us with Christ and continues on toward Christ likeness. Hoover writes kindly while still challenging the idols in your life.
Heart Idols
The second part of the book is the biggest, and it exposes the false kings we are prone to follow. I was most challenged by the chapter on control. Hoover connects control with power, and we see a drive for this with the constant encouragement to pursue our dreams. While we are challenged to do “big things“ for the kingdom, what we often mean is “being seen for what we do, known for what we’ve built, and accumulating a large platform that feeds our cult of celebrity.” Hoover herself admits feeling this pull as an author: “Pursuing my dreams can easily be synonymous with control.”
We can counter these desires with rest and hiding in the power of God. We must identify our real responsibilities and steward them with diligence. We can use whatever influence we have been given for the sake of others, and we remember that we are merely servants in the kingdom of our great and glorious God.
God Remains Faithful
Other chapters in the second part of the book tackle anxiety, image, escape, isolation, and comfort. What I most appreciate is how honest Hoover is with her personal examples. Hoover shares how she had taken her idol of approval with her into her marriage, and she shares how a desire to be labeled as an author had also become an idol. She warns us to seek the approval of God and fear him only. And we must remember that even when our hearts are unfaithful to him, God remains faithful to us.
This book will cut to your heart and bind you back up with the love of Christ. Hoover ends by telling us that we are a part of the already-not-yet kingdom of God. I am resolved to do true kingdom work now, running the race with perseverance. The kingdom is here but there’s still work to be done, as we eagerly await and prepare for the return of our humble servant king.
I received a media copy of With All Your Heart and this is my honest review. Find more of my book reviews and follow Dive In, Dig Deep on Instagram - my account dedicated to Bibles and books to see the beauty of the Bible and the role of reading in the Christian life. To read all of my book reviews and to receive all of the free eBooks I find on the web, subscribe to my free newsletter.