What do you think?
Rate this book
Authentic Faith: The Power of a Fire-Tested Life
The faith God calls us to is far more than glowing positivism that shields us from life's struggles. It is one that guides us into a deepening intimacy with the God who sustains us in the broad sweep of life. Bestselling author Gary Thomas helps us sharpen our spiritual vision and fortify our commitment to Christ by examining ten disciplines God uses to forge a fire-tested faith. A biblical view of these disciplines can safeguard us from disillusionment when - not if - difficulties surface in our lives. Sharing scriptural insights, the wisdom of Christians through the centuries, and cogent personal observations, Thomas explores the disciplines of: selflessness, waiting, suffering, persecution, social mercy, forgiveness, mourning, contentment, sacrifice, hope and fear. As Thomas reminds us, faith is about something other than a smooth ride through this fallen world. Rather, authentic faith is shaped, tempered, and purified in the flames of struggle. This eye-opening look at what it means to be a true disciple of Jesus will encourage you, bolster your faith, and help you rise above shallow attachments to fix your heart on things of eternal worth.
256 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 2002
66 people are currently reading
455 people want to read
About the author
Gary L. Thomas
61 books646 followersGary Thomas is a bestselling author and international speaker whose ministry brings people closer to Christ and closer to others. He unites the study of Scripture, church history, and the Christian classics to foster spiritual growth and deeper relationships within the Christian community.
Gary is the author of 20 books, including "Sacred Marriage" and "Cherish", that together have sold over two million copies, have been translated into more than a dozen languages, and won numerous awards . His writings have established him as a thought-leader in the areas of marriage, parenting, and spiritual formation.
Gary holds a B.A. in English Literature from Western Washington University, an MA degree in systematic theology from Regent College (Vancouver, BC), and an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree from Western Seminary (Portland, OR).
He serves on the teaching team (and as Writer in Residence) at Second Baptist Church, Houston—a congregation with six campuses and 70,000 members—and is an adjunct faculty member at Western Seminary in Portland, Oregon and Houston Theological Seminary in Houston Texas.
Gary’s speaking ministry has led him to speak in 49 states and nine different countries, and on numerous national television and radio programs, including multiple appearances on Focus on the Family and Family Life Today. Gary’s interviews on Focus on the Family have been chosen among the “Best of 2013,” “Best of 2014” and “Best of 2017.” Gary is a lifelong advocate of using the Christian classics to bring people closer to Christ.
Gary enjoys running in his spare time and has completed 14 marathons, including the Boston Marathon three times. He and his wife Lisa have been married for 35 years and they have three adult children and the smartest, cutest, most adorable granddaughter on the planet.
Gary Thomas – Bringing people closer to Christ and closer to others.
Gary is the author of 20 books, including "Sacred Marriage" and "Cherish", that together have sold over two million copies, have been translated into more than a dozen languages, and won numerous awards . His writings have established him as a thought-leader in the areas of marriage, parenting, and spiritual formation.
Gary holds a B.A. in English Literature from Western Washington University, an MA degree in systematic theology from Regent College (Vancouver, BC), and an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree from Western Seminary (Portland, OR).
He serves on the teaching team (and as Writer in Residence) at Second Baptist Church, Houston—a congregation with six campuses and 70,000 members—and is an adjunct faculty member at Western Seminary in Portland, Oregon and Houston Theological Seminary in Houston Texas.
Gary’s speaking ministry has led him to speak in 49 states and nine different countries, and on numerous national television and radio programs, including multiple appearances on Focus on the Family and Family Life Today. Gary’s interviews on Focus on the Family have been chosen among the “Best of 2013,” “Best of 2014” and “Best of 2017.” Gary is a lifelong advocate of using the Christian classics to bring people closer to Christ.
Gary enjoys running in his spare time and has completed 14 marathons, including the Boston Marathon three times. He and his wife Lisa have been married for 35 years and they have three adult children and the smartest, cutest, most adorable granddaughter on the planet.
Gary Thomas – Bringing people closer to Christ and closer to others.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
July 23, 2019
I've read almost all of Gary Thomas' books, and this is another solid one. It covers such a worthwhile topic: What is authentic faith? I fear that after a 'conversion' experience of the sinners prayer, Christians today are not provided - or challenged - with discipleship, the true meaning of what it is to be a Christian. I know that was my experience! This book very adeptly goes behind the assumptions of what being a Christian should look and feel like (which are mostly cultural assumptions) and brings out, with clarity, a true picture of Christian life. The one chapter that I though was a little weak was the one on forgiveness. It is my opinion that less time could have been spent talking about the benefits of forgiveness to ourselves and more time spent on why, biblically, we are called to forgive and why we choose to obey that call. But maybe that depth is the subject matter of a different book? I recommend How to Be Free From Bitterness, by Jim Wilson.
Quotes from the book:
"We don't want to become Christians in order to become an improved man or woman, but an entirely new man or woman - people who live with a different outlook on life, who find joy while others pursue happiness, who find meaning in what others see as something to simply be overcome or cured, who want to drink deeply of life - with its mountains and valleys, twists and turns - rather than to "rise above it.""
"To embrace God's love and kingdom is to embrace his broken passionate heart. It is to expose ourselves to the assaults brought on by the world's hatred toward God. The active Christian life is a life full of risks, heartaches, and responsibilities. God does indeed bear our burdens. Certainly, he blesses us in many ways, but this initial relief is for the purpose of assigning to us more important concerns than our own...Yes, we experience peace, joy, hope, but it is a peace in the midst of turmoil, a joy marked with empathy, and a hope refined by suffering."
"God doesn't offer us freedom from a broken world; instead, he offers us friendship with himself as we walk through a fallen world - and those who persevere will find that this friendship is worth more, so very much more, than anything this fallen world can offer...It doesn't sound like much fun initially, but those who have walked these roads have left behind a witness that they have reached an invigorating, soul-satisfying land."
"In a broken, fallen world, we really only have two choices: mature friendship with God, or radical disillusionment."
"Faithful obedience, over time, weakens temptation's allure."
"If we value wisdom more than comfort, we won't casually dismiss the role of suffering...in prosperity, we can be strangers to ourselves, but affliction teaches us to know ourselves, including the corruptions of our hearts."
"This means that spiritual formation is achieved primarily when we learn to persevere through suffering, responding with biblical hope. Such a person will never be disillusioned or disappointed."
"If you insist on avoiding suffering at all costs, you will never be free of your addictions. If someone is truly serious about spiritual growth or overcoming a long-term bad habit, he or she had better be prepared to go to war. A halfhearted effort usually won't suffice."
"I love that line: The mess is there to show me where I'm hanging my hope. Perhaps life on this fallen earth is no longer meant to be perfect, but we were meant to trust the One who is. Suffering is God's tool to expose our false belief, and the mess is intended to drive us back to the only sure hope we can have."
"In Haugen's mind, if we truly desire to know God, we will go where the suffering is greatest...if we want to know God deeply, it just requires some measure of willingness to understand the places where He's been."
"If you are dissatisfied with your faith or disillusioned with your God, try this: Instead of accusing or blaming God, ask yourself what you've been holding back. Instead of waiting for God's blessing, ask him where you can begin serving. Rather than becoming disillusioned by what God seems to be withholding, or by how life isn't working out just the way you planned it, remember that we are called to follow the example of our Lord, presenting our bodies as living sacrifices to accomplish God's work on earth."
"If we dare to enter the true arena of Christianity, if we accept the cross of sacrifice, then prayer becomes a tempest as we seek to die to our own wills so that God's will and purpose might reign supreme and uncontested - even though we know a price must be paid."
"It's human nature to value most that which has cost us something. If you don't highly value your faith, perhaps you've never sacrificed for it."
"Sadly, our fear of God has too often been replaced by the less noble fear of man. By this I mean that many of us sometimes fear exposure of our sin more than we fear facing God's wrath. Rather than living in genuine concern that we might offend the powerful God of the universe, we are more concerned that other people will discover and disclose our moral failings and thus embarrass us."
"The fear of man is a prideful, self-centered, soul-shrinking fear. It is a desire to remain in sin, but to not have that sin become known. Such an attitude will never lead to repentance but rather to deceit and hypocrisy."
"...the fear of the Lord involves a moral understanding, a trust in God's commands and goodness, a willingness to accept his higher understanding, and a corresponding surrender to his will. It is underscored by a genuine love and affection, tempered by awe and reverence. To fully fear God, we must practice all of the above."
"Our affluence is both a blessing and a challenge that often threatens to sweep us away from the disciplines and lifestyles that previous generations of Christians knew were essential for spiritual growth and maturity. Although our affluence provides much leisure time, a certain degree of security, and perhaps increased freedom, it also tempts us to adopt a pseudofaith that fits our culture, rather than encouraging us to shape our lives in such a way that we can live out our faith."
Quotes from the book:
"We don't want to become Christians in order to become an improved man or woman, but an entirely new man or woman - people who live with a different outlook on life, who find joy while others pursue happiness, who find meaning in what others see as something to simply be overcome or cured, who want to drink deeply of life - with its mountains and valleys, twists and turns - rather than to "rise above it.""
"To embrace God's love and kingdom is to embrace his broken passionate heart. It is to expose ourselves to the assaults brought on by the world's hatred toward God. The active Christian life is a life full of risks, heartaches, and responsibilities. God does indeed bear our burdens. Certainly, he blesses us in many ways, but this initial relief is for the purpose of assigning to us more important concerns than our own...Yes, we experience peace, joy, hope, but it is a peace in the midst of turmoil, a joy marked with empathy, and a hope refined by suffering."
"God doesn't offer us freedom from a broken world; instead, he offers us friendship with himself as we walk through a fallen world - and those who persevere will find that this friendship is worth more, so very much more, than anything this fallen world can offer...It doesn't sound like much fun initially, but those who have walked these roads have left behind a witness that they have reached an invigorating, soul-satisfying land."
"In a broken, fallen world, we really only have two choices: mature friendship with God, or radical disillusionment."
"Faithful obedience, over time, weakens temptation's allure."
"If we value wisdom more than comfort, we won't casually dismiss the role of suffering...in prosperity, we can be strangers to ourselves, but affliction teaches us to know ourselves, including the corruptions of our hearts."
"This means that spiritual formation is achieved primarily when we learn to persevere through suffering, responding with biblical hope. Such a person will never be disillusioned or disappointed."
"If you insist on avoiding suffering at all costs, you will never be free of your addictions. If someone is truly serious about spiritual growth or overcoming a long-term bad habit, he or she had better be prepared to go to war. A halfhearted effort usually won't suffice."
"I love that line: The mess is there to show me where I'm hanging my hope. Perhaps life on this fallen earth is no longer meant to be perfect, but we were meant to trust the One who is. Suffering is God's tool to expose our false belief, and the mess is intended to drive us back to the only sure hope we can have."
"In Haugen's mind, if we truly desire to know God, we will go where the suffering is greatest...if we want to know God deeply, it just requires some measure of willingness to understand the places where He's been."
"If you are dissatisfied with your faith or disillusioned with your God, try this: Instead of accusing or blaming God, ask yourself what you've been holding back. Instead of waiting for God's blessing, ask him where you can begin serving. Rather than becoming disillusioned by what God seems to be withholding, or by how life isn't working out just the way you planned it, remember that we are called to follow the example of our Lord, presenting our bodies as living sacrifices to accomplish God's work on earth."
"If we dare to enter the true arena of Christianity, if we accept the cross of sacrifice, then prayer becomes a tempest as we seek to die to our own wills so that God's will and purpose might reign supreme and uncontested - even though we know a price must be paid."
"It's human nature to value most that which has cost us something. If you don't highly value your faith, perhaps you've never sacrificed for it."
"Sadly, our fear of God has too often been replaced by the less noble fear of man. By this I mean that many of us sometimes fear exposure of our sin more than we fear facing God's wrath. Rather than living in genuine concern that we might offend the powerful God of the universe, we are more concerned that other people will discover and disclose our moral failings and thus embarrass us."
"The fear of man is a prideful, self-centered, soul-shrinking fear. It is a desire to remain in sin, but to not have that sin become known. Such an attitude will never lead to repentance but rather to deceit and hypocrisy."
"...the fear of the Lord involves a moral understanding, a trust in God's commands and goodness, a willingness to accept his higher understanding, and a corresponding surrender to his will. It is underscored by a genuine love and affection, tempered by awe and reverence. To fully fear God, we must practice all of the above."
"Our affluence is both a blessing and a challenge that often threatens to sweep us away from the disciplines and lifestyles that previous generations of Christians knew were essential for spiritual growth and maturity. Although our affluence provides much leisure time, a certain degree of security, and perhaps increased freedom, it also tempts us to adopt a pseudofaith that fits our culture, rather than encouraging us to shape our lives in such a way that we can live out our faith."
May 25, 2013
I wanted to underline everything in this book! I highly, highly recommend it!!!! Super realistic and confrontational about what authentic faith looks like. A challenge but encouragement in the faith.
August 20, 2016
What a great read and definitely convicting in terms of living compassionately and mourning and what Christianity *actually* looks like (as in: it's not happyhappyhappy all the time).
August 30, 2020
4.5 stars. Like anything from Gary Thomas, the teachings in this book are pure gold. I so appreciate that his writing is steeped in the classics. He makes the masters accessible. So why not 5 stars? He uses many illustrations that haven’t aged well. I read this eighteen years after it was first published, and while the teaching is still spot on, the anecdotes and illustrations he chose to use feel kinda cringy now.
June 24, 2021
This book is rich with spiritual insight and guidance. It reminds me of Richard Foster’s Celebration of Discipline, but less academic, more conversational. Highly recommended for all followers of Christ, but be warned it is not an easy read for those who find themselves to be living a comfortable life!
January 29, 2019
One of the best books I have ever read. It was well written and easily understandable, but presented some challenging ideas - both new and old. Gary Thomas is an incredible writer. Highly recommend it.
July 19, 2022
The examples the author used require a strong stomach a lot of the time. But great lessons about investing in people and focusing on God’s kingdom and His eternal rewards. We need: meaning, purpose, mission and hope.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 18, 2023
Thought provoking and convicting. It may change how you live your faith in God through selflessness, waiting, suffering, persecution, social mercy, forgiveness, mourning, contentment, sacrifice, hope and fear.
"What if life isn't meant to be perfect but we are meant to trust the One who is?"
"What if life isn't meant to be perfect but we are meant to trust the One who is?"
August 3, 2020
Read this impactful book while in the midst of a testing fire and it help me to make sense of the struggle and learn from it. I still highly recommend it.
April 9, 2016
Gary Thomas has a wealth of wisdom in his books and this one is no exception. I'll need to listen to it a few times more, but so far, the main things that stand out are:
Keep yourself in God's love as you wait for the mercy of Jesus Christ to bring you to internal life.
Take comfort from God while you wait.
God is concerned with character: Faith, hope and love are all based on waiting.
Value wisdom more than comfort - we are all going to go through some suffering, in different degrees, in our lives.
Spiritually we need to be tested in order to build our character. Learning to perservere through suffering brings us closer to God.
Separate ourselves from anything that takes place of God in our lives.
The mess is there to show me where I'm hanging my hope. Life gets messy so that God can see how deep our faith is in Him.
God gives us vocations, it's an opportunity to be thankful to God for what we have been given, while working on advancement. We should not be discontent with these vocations as they are a lesson. Wherever we are - we need to adopt a holy attitude of contentment, while working on a change.
Are we running from things or to God? There's a big difference! This one has been a significant lesson for me - no matter what, I must always run to God. Focusing on the storm will never help - looking up, seeking God's love and grace always will.
Keep yourself in God's love as you wait for the mercy of Jesus Christ to bring you to internal life.
Take comfort from God while you wait.
God is concerned with character: Faith, hope and love are all based on waiting.
Value wisdom more than comfort - we are all going to go through some suffering, in different degrees, in our lives.
Spiritually we need to be tested in order to build our character. Learning to perservere through suffering brings us closer to God.
Separate ourselves from anything that takes place of God in our lives.
The mess is there to show me where I'm hanging my hope. Life gets messy so that God can see how deep our faith is in Him.
God gives us vocations, it's an opportunity to be thankful to God for what we have been given, while working on advancement. We should not be discontent with these vocations as they are a lesson. Wherever we are - we need to adopt a holy attitude of contentment, while working on a change.
Are we running from things or to God? There's a big difference! This one has been a significant lesson for me - no matter what, I must always run to God. Focusing on the storm will never help - looking up, seeking God's love and grace always will.
October 18, 2007
it's a book that i feel like i need to read over again once a year. in fact you lovers of "celebration of discipline" by richard foster would dig this book also. i was constantly challenge in this book to reach deeper inside myself and apply the life of Jesus directly to my own life. it also helped me see how often i slack and don't do as Jesus did. this book speaks of real love for your fellow man and how to really apply Jesus example into our own lives.
June 1, 2014
A book on spiritual disciplines, but not the kind we typically talk about, the ones we do, fasting, solitude, praying etc.. But the disciplines our Father walks us through in life to work in our lives. Like mourning, waiting, and suffering. Reading this book with my wife was really helpful. It pushed our buttons, but that is good. It leans heavily on the wisdom of the 'classics,' many catholic spiritual masters, and puritans yet is scriptural reasoned and soaked.
July 15, 2013
Another book that will have you sit up and take notice. He paints a very vivid picture of the real life of a believer in Christ and what it looks like up close and personal to have an authentic faith.One that's been tried and found authentic for sure.
June 16, 2014
Another book to consider how God works in our lives THROUGH the tragedies of human suffering--how He changes us for the better. I found this to be a way to hear others' experiences and ponder how God makes Himself known in our humility.
July 24, 2025
4.5 stars! This book was excellent - in the convicting and thought-provoking departments. I wanted to underline so much! The chapters on suffering, waiting, and contentment were particularly timely for me.
August 9, 2007
i am totally loving this book so far. what a refreshing a challenging look at the christian life!
December 31, 2008
I didn't end up finishing this one. I was disappointed -- I've really appreciated Gary Thomas' other books and this one just didn't do much to challenge me.
Read
June 24, 2011This book was very insightful. It really goes after tearing down fake Christian faith and the search for an easy life. It challenges you to deal with pain in a healthy way.
June 28, 2014
Provided a lot of insight on different spiritual disciplines to think about. I took tons of notes and know I will to take a lot of time to process these ideas further. Insightful and a good read.
April 18, 2014
I underlined almost the entire book!
September 4, 2014
A good resource for gaining spiritual perspective on difficult realities. How to accept, persevere and rise above challenges that seem painful and unfair with your integrity in tact.
Read
February 20, 2016okay
August 9, 2007
This book is amazing, it will change your life page by page!
October 15, 2007
first couple of chapters are kind of slow but it gets better with every chapter. excellent book.
Read
June 30, 2017Helpful and encouraging guide to going through difficulties and coming out intact on the other side.
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews