Enemies Of The Heart, Breaking Free from the Four Emotions That Control You, by Andy Stanley.
Andy does a masterful job identifying 4 giants that pollute our hearts… guilt, anger, greed and jealousy. He uses actual examples from his own life and those encountered through his ministry to help us identify with the circumstances that feed these giants. Then, he takes on the task of providing the practical answers needed to overcome them. This book helps us identify the real root of these issues… and gives the answers to how to fix them.
From the book…
“Somehow what’s in our hearts, good and bad, is eventually translated into words and deeds. That’s a bit scary. Especially since it’s so hard to know what’s going on in there. For example, when we hear or see something and suddenly we’re overwhelmed with emotion, we think, that really touched my heart. But we’re always surprised when it happens, aren’t we? Why? Perhaps because we’re so out of touch with our hearts…
The heart is such a mystery. In fact, one prophet asked of the heart, “Who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9) Good question. The implication is, nobody. With which I readily concur. And even if we do begin to understand it, we certainly can’t control it – which is all the more reason we need to learn to monitor it. Like the seismic activity of a dormant volcano, what you don’t know can hurt you. If you’ve suffered the consequences from anything on Jesus’ from-the-heart list, you know that to be a fact.”
Overwhelmed with emotion… and from there Andy goes on to list a few very painful, sudden and tragic events that take place every day in somebody’s life.
I started to read this book several months ago and put it down as I thought it was too similar to The Wellspring Of Life, my first book project. I didn’t want to read it at the time as I was afraid it would interfere with my own thought process. I did use it as a comp in my book proposal, and while it is similar, both of our works are unique. I found this book to be very helpful in recognizing and resolving a couple of personal shortcomings. This is an excellent book, very well written and filled with real-life knowledge that can be practically applied in our everyday lives.
The Q: Do you see any of these, guilt, anger, greed or jealousy, taking place in your life or in someone close to you? Can you think of any other “Enemies Of The Heart?”
Yeah…guilt is mine. It’s very hard to get through and over. The others feel irrelevant to me but I’ve got a triple dose of guilt. Thanks for the review of this book. It looks like a worthwhile read.
Most people with a conscience and a humbled spirit have a big problem with guilt. Andy says guilt is the feeling in our heart that we owe someone something. We’ve done them wrong, and we need to repay them. That can be as simple as an apology… but if we don’t sincerely confess, repent and make amends for our wrongdoing we feel guilty about it.
I struggle with this one too Carol and am usually pretty quick to make amends when I’ve made a mistake. I don’t really like loose ends in life… and this is one that is relatively easy for me to fix when I mess up.
Thanks for opening up and sharing today about this difficult topic!
I read this book before and loved it. Andy went to the heart and ripped it apart. I find guilt and anger creeping into my life ever so often. I almost feel dirty when I realize it now.
That’s a good description Joe, feeling dirty. Eeeeks, I don’t like that feeling!
Looking forward to reading this book. Andy is a great writer and leader. I find anger and greed creep into my life the most.
Here’s a good Andy Stanley quote…
“It is when our hearts are stirred that we become most aware of what they contain.”