Adversity for Sale: Ya Gotta Believe by Jeezy Book Review

In Adversity for Sale, Jeezy has written an autobiography about his rise to becoming a rapper. He was from a small town in Georgia, Hawkinsville. He started out as a thief and he described his childhood and how he was able to get money always. He revealed how he became to selling crack and making money off others. He shared how one of his friends was spammed out of their money and what this principle taught him. He realized the importance of getting what you deserved out of every single deal. You have to stand your ground. Ultimately his friend ended up paying the price with his life and was killed. He opened up about how he got caught and went to jail. He went to a youth challenge program boot camp and learned some new principles to live by and he is still living by these today. One of these touched on the importance of reseting. He covered his musical career and the adversity and successes he encountered. He released the popular album, “Thug Motivation 101” as a mixtape that later grew into a huge hit album. 

He explained in the book how people need to have a crystal clear view of who they are and where they are wanting to go. You must have a plan on how you are going to get there. It’s important to be in the right mindset and believe without a doubt you deserve the success that is to come. He revealed that if you change your mindset and you can change your entire lives. 

I would recommend this book to anyone is a fan of Jeezy music and they are wanting to learn from the artists and how he became a huge hit. It was eyeopening to read about his rough upbringing and living in poverty to now being a successful rapper. He tries to motivate others to believe in themselves and to dream and to go after what you want. He encouraged readers to have better mindsets to overcome any adversity that they may face. 

Check it out below:

https://www.amazon.com/Adversity-Sale-Ya-Gotta-Believe-ebook/dp/B0BV6FQYJ5/

Poison in the Well: 11 Toxic Beliefs That Kept Me from the Living Water of Jesus by Granger Smith Book Review

In Poison in the Well, Granger Smith explored eleven toxic beliefs that negatively affected him and kept him away from Christ. All of these are warning signs where he claimed to be a true Christian but wasn’t living out his beliefs. He begins the book by sharing how when he was a teenager, his dad let him drive a red Massey Ferguson 240. He was supposed to cut the grass along the gravel road. He was in awe watching the tall grass laying flatten. He made another lap when he realized all the hard way wasn’t paying off. He had only been pressing down the grass and he forgot to turn on the power takeoff. The blades were never spinning so it never cut the grass. He compared this story to salvation and how we are saved by grace alone. A changed life can reveal to others their own need for a savior. 

Granger Smith was a country music singer and had a number one hit with, “Backwood Song”. Two of the other top charted songs were called, “Happens Like That” and “If The Boot Fits.” He also went on stage and dress up as Earl Dibbles Jr as alter ego and in the book he revealed how that began and how felt convinced to quit playing that role. He was actively touring and performing in numerous states when everything changed forever. He ended feeling called to quit music altogether and is now a pastor. What brought all this one was in June 2019, his third child River, around aged three was playing outside around the pool. Granger opened up about pulling his cold lifeless body from the water. This led to his family moving from their home. This dismantled his entire world and he lost his identity that he was holding onto. He was having to give up all of his false idols. When he passed away, Granger felt it was time to give up the music and he was seeking to follow Christ’s path. 

In the book, he also touched on how losing his son, River led him to Christ. He just had finished playing a show and his ears were still ringing fro the drums and the rush of the crowd. He turned on the TV to a TV pastor, Joel Osteen. Joel asked if his heart stopped beating where would you spend eternity. He recited the Lord’s prayer along with Joel Osteen and felt at peace and went to sleep. He explained how he had repeated and believed he was a Christian many times before. This led to the toxic belief in our poison well that repeating a prayer can bring about full transformation. He shared what salvation is and how this decision is about being transformed and made new. It means more than just a simple prayer it’s supposed to change us into knowing Christ. He explained how we won’t be finding alter calls in the Bible but instead we will discover the importance of repenting and believing. 

I would recommend this life changing book to anyone who is tried of the old Christianity and the beliefs on what it takes to be a good Christian. This is the second book Granger Smith has written and it continues on with his story but this one adds more details about Christ and his journey to healing and changing his life. I have enjoyed him since listening to the record, “Dirt Road Driveway” and it was difficult in seeing him give up music completely. Although I understand, the calling on his life has changed I just wish he would at least still do Christian music. This book provides a glimpse into his story and how his toxic beliefs were slowly killing him from living. I really enjoyed the topics and this is a wake up call to live out our beliefs in Chris and be really transformed by the power of His love. 

Check it out below:

https://www.amazon.com/Poison-Well-Toxic-Beliefs-Living-ebook/dp/B0G1K2FNNG/ 

https://grangersmith.com/pages/books

One of my personal favorite songs:

Backroad Song:

Happens Like That:

Book Trailer: