The Naked Soul: God's Amazing, Everyday Solution to Loneliness

by Tim Alan Gardner

Go ahead. Leave your loneliness behind.

We all want to matter to someone, but the risks of relationship can seem far too great. It’s easier to just keep our distance.

We fear embarrassment, misunderstandings, and even rejection, so we silently endure our loneliness. We work on trying to be nice–rather than being real–hoping that others will like us. Or we might simply give in to the path of least resistance–the life of hurry, impatience, and fatigue–which feels familiar and safe. We pay a terrible price to avoid authentic relationships.

It’s time to stop denying your deepest longing–the desire to be known and loved. The Naked Soul shows you how to know and accept others, and how to be known and accepted by others. You can exchange the familiar but deadly territory of loneliness for the exhilaration of giving and receiving love.

You don’t have to hide any longer. Break free from loneliness, be the person God created you to be, and start living a life that matters.

Genres: Christian

224 pages, Paperback

First published October 19, 2004

Reviews

[Jd · Rating 4 out of 5]

Insightful...it explains a lot about loneliness and how people can be their own worst enemy.

[Katie · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was ok. I have been working my way through the books I've gathered over recent years since I have no more room on the bookshelf. So I've read a lot of books about the same topic all very close together. And, I made an interesting observation -

Men and women talk about loneliness very differently. I don't know what the source of these gendered differences are exactly (and won't pontificate on that here) but I have noticed that Christian books about loneliness written by women talk about rejection and learning to feel loved by others/God. Whereas this book (and one other I read) which was written by a man was all about how the answer to loneliness is to open up time and emotional energy for relationships. In other words, going out and let yourself love others is the answer to loneliness. Christian books that are written by women are almost always written for women, but this book didn't have an explicit gendered audience in mind. But it was DEFINITELY written for men, even if the author hadn't intended it that way. He even sets up the whole Biblical premise for relationship by saying that God created loneliness [by making Adam, man] then created the solution to loneliness [by making Eve, woman]. There's even a whole chapter on anger - not something one typically finds in a Christian book on loneliness from a female author.

I will not express an opinion about the merit (or lack of merit) in these gendered perspectives here. Like all stereotypes, there might be a nugget of something true tucked away in there somewhere. Though a woman, I actually probably identify more with this male perspective on loneliness. But now I'm reflecting on this gendered perspective itself.....it's curious.

[Nate Comstock · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the first few chapters, but then in the middle it seemed to become standard Christian living material advice. Not to say it's bad or wrong, just a little deflating when you're expecting something fresh. Picks up some near the end.

[Kimberly Hadley · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVED! I used to feel the deepest, gutted loneliness, even when surrounded by people. It didn't matter who they were, friends or family. A friend recommended The Naked Soul to me to help overcome my loneliness. I went in hopeful but also wary because I had tried other methods to combat the feelings I had. I am someone who really absorbs what I read and practices methods to see if they actually are helpful to me. I can tell you that after I put some of the ideas from this book into practice that my loneliness slowly went away. There are occasional times when I still feel it, but it's far and few between. Over the years I have recommended this book to anyone who has voiced that they don't know how to get rid of their loneliness.

[Adriana · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book transformed my life. Literally. It has tremendously helped me deal with my long time depression. Thank you for writing this, Tim.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Learn how other women have the same issues that I do.