In Relentless Pursuit, Ken Gire described his background
of believing and feeling like he was an outsider. He was picked on by bullies
for his red hair and wearing glasses. His father was very strict on how he
dressed, his hair length, and he wasn’t allowed to go to parties with his
friends. His brother told him that he thought he had ADD. He felt like an outsider
the majority of his life and he wanted to gain acceptance and be included. Ken
Gire wrote this book to help readers to always remember that God is actively pursuing
them even when they fail. He doesn’t run away screaming and you aren’t forgotten.
He told the story of Jeremiah about how God is like a lion hunting us down and
destroying and messing with his life. Jeremiah felt that God wasn’t listening
to his prayers and he wasn’t seeing any of his prayers answered. He clarified
that he perceived that God was using him for target practice and arrows were
being shot at him. Then in later verses Jeremiah rises up and declared that God
is the only person he truly needs. How many of us aren’t sometimes feeling the
same way?
It’s imperative to that we keep in mind that no matter
how far we may choose to run or hide God is already there. Jesus never turned
away people who were outsiders and loners. He would constantly stop and assist prostitutes,
people with leprosy, blind individuals, and people who were down and out of the
critiques. Jesus himself was an outsider and rejected by many people but Jesus
still gave His time to spend with them. He loved them for who they were and he
looked deeper into what they could become.
I would recommend this book to anyone who believes that
they are an outsider and they are unloved. This resource will provide you with countless
different characters in the Bible and historical examples of people who were
considered outsiders but God was vigorously pursuing them, despite how they
viewed themselves. I especially connected with how Ken Gire went into detail
about how Jesus goes after the lost sheep and the outsiders. Jesus illustrated
the story of The Good Shepherd and how he went after the one sheep that gets
lost. The shepherd will leave his flock of sheep to explore the land to look
for the one lost sheep. Because the one sheep means to the world to Jesus! In
this parable, we are the sheep and Jesus is never leaving our side even when we
think we are forgotten. The truth is God
wants to hold and protect you when life comes against you. Ken Gire is a huge encouragement
to people who are struggling to love themselves completely! The book has
brought freedom to realizing that God is listening and hearing my prayers!
“I received this book free from the publisher through the
Bethany House Publishers book review bloggers program.”
If you would
like to purchase a copy of Relentless Pursuit then check it out on Amazon.com:
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