Gotta love a book with such an attention getting title: "How to Live in Fear: Mastering the Art of Freaking Out". Pastor Lance Hahn has done something that the church needs more of...acknowledged that people in the pews and the pulpit suffer from mental illness and that it's an illness, just like cancer and heart disease, and not a character flaw.Far too often the church treats mental illness as a lack of faith. Christians are told to pray more, have more faith, or just get over it. When that doesn't work, believers either drift away from the church in shame or live a sort of dual, fake life of smiling exterior and hurting interior.
I love Hahn's transparency as he shares his own story, even when it's personally embarrassing. He also doesn't shy away from talking about medication, therapy, and admitting that he has a disease that has to be managed. By the time he gets to scripture and theology, he's established credibility with the reader.
Hahn, unlike some other authors, makes no guarantees that reading this book will make your anxiety and fear go away. He does offer hope and encouragement as he discusses the symptoms of anxiety, possible treatments, and management tips that help him battle anxiety triggers.
If you suffer from anxiety, this book is for you. If you know and love someone who suffers from anxiety, this book is for you.
So glad that Pastor Hahn took this courageous step and wrote what, in my opinion, is one of the best books on anxiety out there written from a Christian worldview. His witness as an anxiety sufferer is powerful stuff. Here's hoping more Christians will discuss mental illness with more compassion and candor.
How to Live in Fear: Mastering the Art of Freaking Out
Lance Hahn
W Publishing (Thomas Nelson), 2016
Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from BookLook Bloggers in return for an honest review.
