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Religious Rebels: Finding Jesus in the Awkward Middle Way
Something is wrong. It’s become common for Christian celebrity leaders and organizations to be caught in corruption and public failure. Former believers are deconstructing their faith to the point of abandoning it. Many of us have experienced deep pain and resulting disillusionment because of things that happened at church or at the hands of other Christians. Are we missing something? What if there’s more?
What if the doubts, questions, and rebellious rumblings in our hearts are good? What if they are exposing a fake god and a broken religious system? What if our questions are pushing us to find a real God who is bigger and better than we’ve ever dreamed?
Christy spent her teens and early twenties in a cultic sub-group of Christianity characterized by legalism, twisted Scripture, and lies. But Jesus found her anyway. Getting to know the real Jesus changed everything. A people pleaser and good girl by nature, Christy began to feel a strange rebellion creeping into her heart. Religious Rebels shares Christy’s journey while exposing familiar lies she has noticed in mainstream Christianity. With stories, humor, and grace, she encourages her readers to embrace their own questions and doubts as they begin an awkward search for the real Jesus.
What if the doubts, questions, and rebellious rumblings in our hearts are good? What if they are exposing a fake god and a broken religious system? What if our questions are pushing us to find a real God who is bigger and better than we’ve ever dreamed?
Christy spent her teens and early twenties in a cultic sub-group of Christianity characterized by legalism, twisted Scripture, and lies. But Jesus found her anyway. Getting to know the real Jesus changed everything. A people pleaser and good girl by nature, Christy began to feel a strange rebellion creeping into her heart. Religious Rebels shares Christy’s journey while exposing familiar lies she has noticed in mainstream Christianity. With stories, humor, and grace, she encourages her readers to embrace their own questions and doubts as they begin an awkward search for the real Jesus.
152 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2023
14 people are currently reading
64 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
June 15, 2023
I'm going to be honest... we have a problem in the church. We make Christianity about rules and behaviours and traditions and then wonder why people leave the church. We give, young people especially, a list of behaviours and standards to live up to and place burdens on their shoulders that they should never have to carry, and then wonder why they walk away. What if true Christianity isn't about what we do, but what's been done for us? What if it's not about having it together and being a good Christian and doing all the things, but about being so deeply broken and yet so deeply loved, more than we could possibly imagine? What if it's about a Person? Someone who doesn't fit into our boxes, who breaks human standards, who is far bigger and far more amazing, than we realise, and so full of grace.
In "Religious Rebels", Christy shows us what is wrong with religion and leads us into walking the "awkward middle way" with Jesus. As someone who has come from a legalistic background and is deconstructing and reconstructing her faith to be more gospel centred, I found this an incredibly helpful read. I appreciate so much her thoughts and perspective and heart to point people hurt by religious teachings and systems back to the Real God. This is an amazing book. Seriously. Get a copy asap and read it. You'll be stretched. You'll be pushed outside of the Christianese box. But you'll be incredibly blessed. And you might just meet the Real Jesus for yourself. 😏😄💝
In "Religious Rebels", Christy shows us what is wrong with religion and leads us into walking the "awkward middle way" with Jesus. As someone who has come from a legalistic background and is deconstructing and reconstructing her faith to be more gospel centred, I found this an incredibly helpful read. I appreciate so much her thoughts and perspective and heart to point people hurt by religious teachings and systems back to the Real God. This is an amazing book. Seriously. Get a copy asap and read it. You'll be stretched. You'll be pushed outside of the Christianese box. But you'll be incredibly blessed. And you might just meet the Real Jesus for yourself. 😏😄💝
June 14, 2023
I appreciate Christy sharing her journey of drawing near to Jesus and away from legalism.
Just a few of the many quotes that resonated with me:
"I refuse to compromise my historically orthodox view of the Bible and Christianity. But I also refuse to go along with the religious traditions of cultural evangelicalism"
"We are the creation, not the Creator. It’s okay if we don’t understand it all. In fact, if we can explain everything about God, then our god probably isn’t the real One. There is much truth that needs to be held in tension."
"MAYBE TRUTH IS FOUND IN THE AWKWARD MIDDLE, IN A BALANCE BETWEEN TWO EXTREMES, WITH A VARIETY OF PERSPECTIVES."
This has been healing for me to read and I hope others will write books in a similar vein about the "awkward middle way"
I was provided a free copy of this book by the author. All opinions are my own.
Just a few of the many quotes that resonated with me:
"I refuse to compromise my historically orthodox view of the Bible and Christianity. But I also refuse to go along with the religious traditions of cultural evangelicalism"
"We are the creation, not the Creator. It’s okay if we don’t understand it all. In fact, if we can explain everything about God, then our god probably isn’t the real One. There is much truth that needs to be held in tension."
"MAYBE TRUTH IS FOUND IN THE AWKWARD MIDDLE, IN A BALANCE BETWEEN TWO EXTREMES, WITH A VARIETY OF PERSPECTIVES."
This has been healing for me to read and I hope others will write books in a similar vein about the "awkward middle way"
I was provided a free copy of this book by the author. All opinions are my own.
June 12, 2023
Christy's book tells her story of growing up in IBLP, the same cult as the Duggar family and currently featured in the documentary "Shiny Happy People". She didn't personally face abuse there, but had a spiritual and mental journey to untangle high control religious beliefs and come into her own authenticity as a believer in Jesus Christ.
She offers thoughts that I personally find helpful. What if Jesus already accomplished everything on our behalf? What if we don't have to live under the try hard do works religion? What if we don't have to be motivated by fear anymore? Some times religious people don't even see that is exactly what we are doing. That is exactly what many leaders have taught us to do all while claiming to believe the " gospel"
What if there is an "awkward middle way" of mindfulness that can't be reduced to a slogan or an identification or any outward focused standards and rules?
She offers thoughts that I personally find helpful. What if Jesus already accomplished everything on our behalf? What if we don't have to live under the try hard do works religion? What if we don't have to be motivated by fear anymore? Some times religious people don't even see that is exactly what we are doing. That is exactly what many leaders have taught us to do all while claiming to believe the " gospel"
What if there is an "awkward middle way" of mindfulness that can't be reduced to a slogan or an identification or any outward focused standards and rules?
July 17, 2023
Christy Lynne Wood grew up in Bill Gothard's IBLP (not named here, but very clear, IYKYK) and found her way out of it through her relationship with Jesus himself and through searching the Scriptures. I found this a fascinating and lesser-trumpeted deconstruction story (she discusses the term "deconstruction" here) and resonated with some aspects of her story.
One aspect I didn't resonate with (besides being raised in a mainstream, not cultic, evangelical family) was her abhorrence of the term "religion." She equates it with legalism and offers no meaningful distinction. In the conclusion, she shares her Instagram bio at one point, which said, "lover of Jesus and hater of religion." (139) This got my inner "religious rebel" raring. My high school youth group ran straight into a new legalism based on their "it's not a religion, it's a relationship" philosophy. Missing one (1) youth group meeting was grounds for a serious conversation. Fasting--among teenagers, especially girls--was common and expected for any perceived spiritual problem, which parents fought against. There might not have been rules around dress and hair and boy/girl relationships, though courtship was encouraged, but there was absolutely a crushing legalism that made me renounce church work entirely for nearly a decade, while I found true spiritual freedom and a liturgical church. I was (am) fastidious and often quoted James 1:27 to them. So I have an issue with how Wood (mis)uses the term religion here. Religion does not equal legalism. They are different words, with different meanings and semantic ranges. Jesus had no problem with the law as God set it up; he had issues with Pharisees (he probably was a Pharisee) creating a law unto themselves and using it to fracture the community.
Yet, I want to be clear, this is not an overall dealbreaker for the book. I'm sure Wood and I could have a good conversation about it, and I'm sure she has had that with plenty of people in her life. It's just a basic issue of vocabulary that I wish she would have corrected.
There were also some interpretive issues, like the woman who washed Jesus' feet being "most likely a prostitute." (64) She has a name: Mary of Bethany. It is never indicated that she may have been a sex worker, nor is it warranted by the context in any of the Gospels or by Luke's account, where she is unnamed. Mary of Bethany was "a sinner." She had transgressed the law, which could mean anything from wearing mixed-fiber fabric to not washing her hands. And she was the only person at that dinner who knew what Jesus was about to do. The disciples didn't get it; likely only the ones plotting Jesus' death knew he was going to die. Mary was promised that "wherever this good news is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in remembrance of her." (Mt 26:13 NRSVue) And yet two thousand years later her name is forgotten and her reputation slandered. I do not truck with false interpretations of women in Scripture. This one, unfortunately, is not unique to Wood. Thankfully, it is not representative of the rest of her interpretations elsewhere.
Of course, as a self-published book, there were some bumps along the way, but significantly less typos than I am used to in this area. Way to go!
Overall, I liked reading this book and hearing how Wood's perspective grew and changed as she trusted her spiritual experiences of Jesus more than the legalism she was taught in a cult. It offers a helpful perspective in the world of home school memoirs and I look forward to reading more by Wood as she continues to write.
Content warnings: spiritual abuse, miscarriage and stillbirth (not graphic but very sad)
One aspect I didn't resonate with (besides being raised in a mainstream, not cultic, evangelical family) was her abhorrence of the term "religion." She equates it with legalism and offers no meaningful distinction. In the conclusion, she shares her Instagram bio at one point, which said, "lover of Jesus and hater of religion." (139) This got my inner "religious rebel" raring. My high school youth group ran straight into a new legalism based on their "it's not a religion, it's a relationship" philosophy. Missing one (1) youth group meeting was grounds for a serious conversation. Fasting--among teenagers, especially girls--was common and expected for any perceived spiritual problem, which parents fought against. There might not have been rules around dress and hair and boy/girl relationships, though courtship was encouraged, but there was absolutely a crushing legalism that made me renounce church work entirely for nearly a decade, while I found true spiritual freedom and a liturgical church. I was (am) fastidious and often quoted James 1:27 to them. So I have an issue with how Wood (mis)uses the term religion here. Religion does not equal legalism. They are different words, with different meanings and semantic ranges. Jesus had no problem with the law as God set it up; he had issues with Pharisees (he probably was a Pharisee) creating a law unto themselves and using it to fracture the community.
Yet, I want to be clear, this is not an overall dealbreaker for the book. I'm sure Wood and I could have a good conversation about it, and I'm sure she has had that with plenty of people in her life. It's just a basic issue of vocabulary that I wish she would have corrected.
There were also some interpretive issues, like the woman who washed Jesus' feet being "most likely a prostitute." (64) She has a name: Mary of Bethany. It is never indicated that she may have been a sex worker, nor is it warranted by the context in any of the Gospels or by Luke's account, where she is unnamed. Mary of Bethany was "a sinner." She had transgressed the law, which could mean anything from wearing mixed-fiber fabric to not washing her hands. And she was the only person at that dinner who knew what Jesus was about to do. The disciples didn't get it; likely only the ones plotting Jesus' death knew he was going to die. Mary was promised that "wherever this good news is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in remembrance of her." (Mt 26:13 NRSVue) And yet two thousand years later her name is forgotten and her reputation slandered. I do not truck with false interpretations of women in Scripture. This one, unfortunately, is not unique to Wood. Thankfully, it is not representative of the rest of her interpretations elsewhere.
Of course, as a self-published book, there were some bumps along the way, but significantly less typos than I am used to in this area. Way to go!
Overall, I liked reading this book and hearing how Wood's perspective grew and changed as she trusted her spiritual experiences of Jesus more than the legalism she was taught in a cult. It offers a helpful perspective in the world of home school memoirs and I look forward to reading more by Wood as she continues to write.
Content warnings: spiritual abuse, miscarriage and stillbirth (not graphic but very sad)
November 24, 2023
A compelling book about “losing” your faith and the real God finding you.
June 12, 2023
3.5 ⭐️
So much of Christianity is laden with bits and pieces of mixed up, human-influenced ideas, practices and beliefs that have missed the truth. Our current Christian landscape needs a proper deconstruction movement, but not in the way we might assume.
“If our faith is based on a religious impostor and not the real God, then we need to lose that faith.” Above all, we need to get back to who our God truly is and to the biblical truths laid out in His Word.
In Religious Rebels, author Christy Lynne Wood shares about exactly that through the lens of her own reconstruction out of a legalistic, rule-obsessed cult and back to the true Jesus and the way Christianity is meant to be. With honesty and a call not to walk away from God but to discover the truth of who He is versus who we or others have made Him to be, she invites the reader to join her on the journey. This book calls us to “a new opportunity to question, ponder, and explore,” to “dig into [our] own questions, fears, and doubts.”
Encapsulating the longings of many, she writes, “We want to ask hard questions and search for answers in a safe place of acceptance and friendship. We want honesty and truth, to be known and to know others.”
(A note for other Anglicans like myself: Part of the subtitle “the awkward middle way” is what drew me to the book and may draw other Anglicans to it as well. However, this isn’t a book about someone who ends up an Anglican, though she does mention this use of the phrase “the middle way” near the end of the book.)
One thing I wasn’t sure of was where the author says something about moving past “theology, beliefs, and even Scripture, although we don’t let go of them,” when she was talking about God’s Spirit. I appreciate that she said “we don’t let go of them,” but this part still concerned me because that’s essentially what people did in the false teaching I got out of (i.e. New Apostolic Reformation/prosperity gospel via Bethel Redding and others). They had taught that we needed to “go off the map” (beyond Scripture) and they ended up doing so in very problematic ways. That said, it was holding to God’s Word, biblical theology, and right beliefs that helped me find the truth out of that “off the map” spirituality. We definitely need both the Spirit of God and the Word of God in proper balance and understanding.
Additionally, I agree with the book that it is helpful to know others’ perspectives, yet I wasn’t sure how to connect what she says of there being “a variety of perspectives” and there being gray areas (vs black and white thinking) with the word “truth:” Does this mean different perspectives or beliefs on issues that are made clear in God’s Word or things that are non-essentials? It is important to know which because denying His truth in even one area can send someone way off course.
Lastly, I most enjoyed the conversational style of this book. It felt like sitting down with a coffee for a moving and helpful conversation! Even though the false teaching I came out of was a different than hers, I very much related to the author’s story.
I received a copy of this book from the author and I am reviewing this book voluntarily. All opinions are my own.
So much of Christianity is laden with bits and pieces of mixed up, human-influenced ideas, practices and beliefs that have missed the truth. Our current Christian landscape needs a proper deconstruction movement, but not in the way we might assume.
“If our faith is based on a religious impostor and not the real God, then we need to lose that faith.” Above all, we need to get back to who our God truly is and to the biblical truths laid out in His Word.
In Religious Rebels, author Christy Lynne Wood shares about exactly that through the lens of her own reconstruction out of a legalistic, rule-obsessed cult and back to the true Jesus and the way Christianity is meant to be. With honesty and a call not to walk away from God but to discover the truth of who He is versus who we or others have made Him to be, she invites the reader to join her on the journey. This book calls us to “a new opportunity to question, ponder, and explore,” to “dig into [our] own questions, fears, and doubts.”
Encapsulating the longings of many, she writes, “We want to ask hard questions and search for answers in a safe place of acceptance and friendship. We want honesty and truth, to be known and to know others.”
(A note for other Anglicans like myself: Part of the subtitle “the awkward middle way” is what drew me to the book and may draw other Anglicans to it as well. However, this isn’t a book about someone who ends up an Anglican, though she does mention this use of the phrase “the middle way” near the end of the book.)
One thing I wasn’t sure of was where the author says something about moving past “theology, beliefs, and even Scripture, although we don’t let go of them,” when she was talking about God’s Spirit. I appreciate that she said “we don’t let go of them,” but this part still concerned me because that’s essentially what people did in the false teaching I got out of (i.e. New Apostolic Reformation/prosperity gospel via Bethel Redding and others). They had taught that we needed to “go off the map” (beyond Scripture) and they ended up doing so in very problematic ways. That said, it was holding to God’s Word, biblical theology, and right beliefs that helped me find the truth out of that “off the map” spirituality. We definitely need both the Spirit of God and the Word of God in proper balance and understanding.
Additionally, I agree with the book that it is helpful to know others’ perspectives, yet I wasn’t sure how to connect what she says of there being “a variety of perspectives” and there being gray areas (vs black and white thinking) with the word “truth:” Does this mean different perspectives or beliefs on issues that are made clear in God’s Word or things that are non-essentials? It is important to know which because denying His truth in even one area can send someone way off course.
Lastly, I most enjoyed the conversational style of this book. It felt like sitting down with a coffee for a moving and helpful conversation! Even though the false teaching I came out of was a different than hers, I very much related to the author’s story.
I received a copy of this book from the author and I am reviewing this book voluntarily. All opinions are my own.
September 24, 2023
This book is a very genuine, passionate, personal, and thought-provoking look at what Christianity is and isn't from the perspective of someone who had to sort out the truth from the lies she'd been brought up with.
I encourage anyone who is deconstructing/reconstructing their faith or has questioned the extremes of institutional Christianity to read this book. I also think it's a good wakeup call to those who have never had questions...are there things we're perhaps taking for granted that we *should* be searching the Scriptures about?
Christy's stories, questions, and look at key Scripture passages clearly address many misconceptions about faith/works, authority, who God really is, and how we are meant to relate to Him. It's sad that there were and are organizations such as IBLP that have hurt so many and led them to completely walk away from God. But this book (and Christy's story) is a testament of hope that God can handle the questions, the doubts, and the searching and, if we are willing, lead us into a faith that is stronger and a relationship that is deeper.
I encourage anyone who is deconstructing/reconstructing their faith or has questioned the extremes of institutional Christianity to read this book. I also think it's a good wakeup call to those who have never had questions...are there things we're perhaps taking for granted that we *should* be searching the Scriptures about?
Christy's stories, questions, and look at key Scripture passages clearly address many misconceptions about faith/works, authority, who God really is, and how we are meant to relate to Him. It's sad that there were and are organizations such as IBLP that have hurt so many and led them to completely walk away from God. But this book (and Christy's story) is a testament of hope that God can handle the questions, the doubts, and the searching and, if we are willing, lead us into a faith that is stronger and a relationship that is deeper.
June 15, 2023
I wanted to write a “Goldilocks” review. Neither too long nor too short, too detailed nor too sparse. “Just right” in fact.
Do you know the story? Goldilocks tries bowls of porridge, chairs, and beds successively, each time finding the third "just right". Christopher Booker says, "The idea that the way forward lies in finding an exact middle path between opposites is of extraordinary importance in storytelling," and, I would add, in life.
We're going to see that Christy's book is about this middle path and how she found it. In some ways it's a Goldilocks book, though I don't think she's tried both extremes of faith. Maybe it's better that way!
I have followed Christy for several years on Instagram, so when I saw that she was publishing a new book, and that I had the chance to be on the launch team and to review that book, I looked forward to it with enthusiasm. I was not disappointed!
Religious Rebels is easy to read. But that doesn't mean it's facile. On page after page, there are insights that bring you up short. Make you stop and think. Is that right? Do I believe that? Could that be right? Or indeed, “Wow! Yes!”
The book is well-structured in three major sections with five chapters each. But it flows so well that I hardly noticed the change from Becoming a Rebel, to Embracing Questions, and Rebuilding our Faith.
An Introduction sets us off on the right path, and a Conclusion wraps it all up nicely. I like order!
In between, I love the way she tells stories, whether her own story or stories about other people; the book is never boring.
It's autobiographical but also educational. Christy draws from her own experiences and traumas to help us with ours. Along the way, we can enjoy her discoveries about faith and Jesus, God and the Holy Spirit. Some of these may be new to the reader, or a welcome reminder of truths forgotten.
And she asks difficult questions like these:
What about you?
Are you satisfied with the God people have taught you about?
With the God you think might exist?
With the religion you've experienced?
These questions may cause us to doubt and, as she says, it's terrifying to think we might be losing our faith. But what if the doubt, frustration and confusion we feel isn't wrong; maybe that's the Spirit calling us to something else. It could be the starting place to finding someone bigger and crazier and lovelier than we could ever imagine.
And if our faith is based on a religious impostor and not “the real God”, then we need to lose that faith.
The real God. That's an idea that Christy keeps coming back to: the real God. She suggests that maybe we don't know the real God, but we could. And if she's a rebel - which she is - it's not against God, it's against religion which, as she says, is the business of appeasing gods, and turns a life-giving friendship into dutiful servanthood.
Or we may be reading the Bible and claiming promises out of context, turning God into a vending machine where we push certain buttons to make things happen. That's not the real God.
Christy says she has more questions now than when she started, but is also more comfortable with not having answers. I relate to that; I'm the same.
This could be the end of the short review, maybe the Goldilocks review. If you want some more detail, read on.
Skip to the end of the review for an invitation to join us on the Awkward Middle Way - the Goldilocks way.
CAVEAT
I would only like to add one caveat at this point. Christy clearly subscribes to the theory of Penal Substitutionary Atonement which dates largely from John Calvin's time. It is not what early Christians believed. Christus Victor is much older and, I believe, closer to the truth.
This is not a major drawback to the book as a whole, so I still heartily recommend it.
Calvin’s doctrines have convinced Christians today that God requires a human blood sacrifice, and that without the shedding of blood He cannot—and does not—forgive sins. Under this PSA theory, the Father of Jesus is one who will not settle for anything less than a virgin, pure, spotless human sacrifice—even His own son—in order to appease His wrath. (“Jesus Unforsaken: Substituting Divine Wrath With Unrelenting Love” by Keith Giles.)
She talks, albeit briefly, about Jesus appeasing God by his death. However, Jesus says that he and the Father are One.
It is my belief that God the Father did not need to be appeased. He forgives sins freely out of His generous love. And when there is forgiveness (of a debt, for example) there is no need for payment by the debtor or anyone else.
✼✼✼✼✼✼✼
Now for some more detail.
Christy goes on to talk about salvation, a word that is often bandied about without any real definition, as though everybody understands what it is. (A lot of the text below is taken directly from the book.)
“What must I do to be saved?” the Philippian jailer asked Paul and Silas in Acts 16. It was a good question and an important question. He probably wants to be saved from his Roman masters who are going to execute him for losing the prisoners, but Paul takes advantage of it to answer the question about how he can be saved from the consequences of his sin, from the life he was in, and from “this corrupt generation” as Peter describes it in a sermon recorded in Acts 2.
If we were to ask this question, we'd probably get all kinds of answers: pray the sinner's prayer, ask Jesus into your heart, raise your hand, make Jesus the Lord of your life, get baptised… all kinds of things.
Paul simply says, “Believe in Jesus.” Why do we complicate salvation; can it really be this simple?
What if salvation isn't what we've been taught it is within our version of religious Christianity? What if we have missed the truth because of our obsession with behaviours? And what if it is far deeper and more amazing than we could ever dream?
Sometimes salvation is more of a process than a moment, and that’s okay too. There doesn’t have to be a special prayer, or action, or anything. It’s about what Jesus did, not about what we do, anyway.
It's the same when we talk about the Gospel, but don't really define what that is. There is a version that focuses on what terrible, horrible, no-good sinners we are. It concentrates on God's wrath and how we all deserve hell. The god they talk about isn't someone I really want to spend time with anyway.
Another tries to guilt us into surrendering everything to Jesus in a desperate attempt to make him Lord. This God seems demanding, and I'm not sure I'll ever measure up to his expectations.
Often the Gospel is not exactly the Good News the word suggests!
Christy shares one way of looking at the Gospel:
G: God created us to be with Him.
O: Our sin separated us from God.
S: Sin cannot be removed by good deeds.
P: Paying the price for sin, Jesus died and rose again.
E: Everyone who trusts in Him alone has eternal life.
L: Life with Jesus starts now and lasts forever.
It's a good mnemonic, but I do have a couple of questions:
* If our sin separates us from God, why does Paul write to the believers in Rome that absolutely nothing can separate us from the love of God?
* It's a core component of the Penal Substitutionary Theory of Atonement that Jesus paid for our sins. But who received the payment? Jesus is one with the Father, so are we supposed to imagine that he paid himself? Let me say again that no payment was required. Forgiveness is free.
In fact, the Gospel is even better than this mnemonic suggests!
My own belief is that separation from God is an illusion on our part. Knowing Jesus removes that illusion. Perhaps that's what is meant here.
As regards payment for sins, I believe that God freely forgives us (this is taught throughout the New Testament) so no payment is necessary.
I feel like I may be quoting too much of Christie's book. But if so, it's because it's so eminently worth quoting!
So perhaps I should now restrict myself to a few gems from the remaining chapters, giving you an incentive to read the book for yourself.
For example:
* The real God never gets disappointed?
* God is full of grace and love, not condemnation and disappointment.
* The real God will not always make sense.
* We've got to throw away the understandable, controllable God that we have created in our own image.
* We must allow the real God to be bigger, greater, and more than we can comprehend.
* People in power like to use fear because it works, but Jesus doesn't use fear to motivate people.
* Fear is not from the real God. He is not a god of fear. He doesn't use fear to control us, and these are important truths to grasp in our minds and believe in our hearts.
* If we do this and that, then God will give us the blessings we desire. But if we mess up, then He is going to punish us. The real God doesn’t work like that.
* We try to stuff God in our little God boxes. We want to explain him, minimise him, dismiss him and move on.
* We act like we have got all figured out, but what if we are wrong.
* God used Freddie - a messed-up eighth-grader from a family of known felons and drug addicts - to show me what unconditional love looks like. Jesus poured His love for Freddie into my heart and I couldn’t help myself. And when I thought about how bad Freddie was and yet how much I loved him for no reason, I often heard a quiet whisper, “That’s how I love you.”
* Not religion, not rules, not trying harder, not human effort, but meeting the Person of Jesus Christ, getting to know Him, falling in love with Him, and choosing to follow Him changes everything.
* The world is broken, we are broken. The sooner we realise that, the better off we will be.
It's not popular these days to admit that we might be broken. Indeed, many people on social media say that we are not broken, we're fine. Christy goes against the grain here, and all credit to her for doing so.
There’s so much more, please read it for yourself.
As we get older, (and I’m a lot older than Christy!), beliefs that seemed black and white years before, are no longer so clear-cut.
But there is a middle way. “I’m choosing to hold truths in tension,” she writes. “I’ve settled into the belief that tension theology is the place where truth lives.” I agree.
Christy ends Religious Rebels with this statement and invitation:
“We don’t have to be people who conform to the religious norms, customs, and traditions of our day. We can be rebels who seek to know God for ourselves and believe that He wants to be found. We can join hands in the Awkward Middle Way, where together we hold the mystery of tension and paradox. Where we offer scandalous grace while looking for truth. And where we attempt to follow the One who called Himself the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Come with me, friends.
Let’s keep seeking the real Jesus.”
I, for one, am joining hands with Christy on the Awkward Middle Way.
Perhaps when you’ve read this book, you’ll find yourself drawn here too.
Do you know the story? Goldilocks tries bowls of porridge, chairs, and beds successively, each time finding the third "just right". Christopher Booker says, "The idea that the way forward lies in finding an exact middle path between opposites is of extraordinary importance in storytelling," and, I would add, in life.
We're going to see that Christy's book is about this middle path and how she found it. In some ways it's a Goldilocks book, though I don't think she's tried both extremes of faith. Maybe it's better that way!
I have followed Christy for several years on Instagram, so when I saw that she was publishing a new book, and that I had the chance to be on the launch team and to review that book, I looked forward to it with enthusiasm. I was not disappointed!
Religious Rebels is easy to read. But that doesn't mean it's facile. On page after page, there are insights that bring you up short. Make you stop and think. Is that right? Do I believe that? Could that be right? Or indeed, “Wow! Yes!”
The book is well-structured in three major sections with five chapters each. But it flows so well that I hardly noticed the change from Becoming a Rebel, to Embracing Questions, and Rebuilding our Faith.
An Introduction sets us off on the right path, and a Conclusion wraps it all up nicely. I like order!
In between, I love the way she tells stories, whether her own story or stories about other people; the book is never boring.
It's autobiographical but also educational. Christy draws from her own experiences and traumas to help us with ours. Along the way, we can enjoy her discoveries about faith and Jesus, God and the Holy Spirit. Some of these may be new to the reader, or a welcome reminder of truths forgotten.
And she asks difficult questions like these:
What about you?
Are you satisfied with the God people have taught you about?
With the God you think might exist?
With the religion you've experienced?
These questions may cause us to doubt and, as she says, it's terrifying to think we might be losing our faith. But what if the doubt, frustration and confusion we feel isn't wrong; maybe that's the Spirit calling us to something else. It could be the starting place to finding someone bigger and crazier and lovelier than we could ever imagine.
And if our faith is based on a religious impostor and not “the real God”, then we need to lose that faith.
The real God. That's an idea that Christy keeps coming back to: the real God. She suggests that maybe we don't know the real God, but we could. And if she's a rebel - which she is - it's not against God, it's against religion which, as she says, is the business of appeasing gods, and turns a life-giving friendship into dutiful servanthood.
Or we may be reading the Bible and claiming promises out of context, turning God into a vending machine where we push certain buttons to make things happen. That's not the real God.
Christy says she has more questions now than when she started, but is also more comfortable with not having answers. I relate to that; I'm the same.
This could be the end of the short review, maybe the Goldilocks review. If you want some more detail, read on.
Skip to the end of the review for an invitation to join us on the Awkward Middle Way - the Goldilocks way.
CAVEAT
I would only like to add one caveat at this point. Christy clearly subscribes to the theory of Penal Substitutionary Atonement which dates largely from John Calvin's time. It is not what early Christians believed. Christus Victor is much older and, I believe, closer to the truth.
This is not a major drawback to the book as a whole, so I still heartily recommend it.
Calvin’s doctrines have convinced Christians today that God requires a human blood sacrifice, and that without the shedding of blood He cannot—and does not—forgive sins. Under this PSA theory, the Father of Jesus is one who will not settle for anything less than a virgin, pure, spotless human sacrifice—even His own son—in order to appease His wrath. (“Jesus Unforsaken: Substituting Divine Wrath With Unrelenting Love” by Keith Giles.)
She talks, albeit briefly, about Jesus appeasing God by his death. However, Jesus says that he and the Father are One.
It is my belief that God the Father did not need to be appeased. He forgives sins freely out of His generous love. And when there is forgiveness (of a debt, for example) there is no need for payment by the debtor or anyone else.
✼✼✼✼✼✼✼
Now for some more detail.
Christy goes on to talk about salvation, a word that is often bandied about without any real definition, as though everybody understands what it is. (A lot of the text below is taken directly from the book.)
“What must I do to be saved?” the Philippian jailer asked Paul and Silas in Acts 16. It was a good question and an important question. He probably wants to be saved from his Roman masters who are going to execute him for losing the prisoners, but Paul takes advantage of it to answer the question about how he can be saved from the consequences of his sin, from the life he was in, and from “this corrupt generation” as Peter describes it in a sermon recorded in Acts 2.
If we were to ask this question, we'd probably get all kinds of answers: pray the sinner's prayer, ask Jesus into your heart, raise your hand, make Jesus the Lord of your life, get baptised… all kinds of things.
Paul simply says, “Believe in Jesus.” Why do we complicate salvation; can it really be this simple?
What if salvation isn't what we've been taught it is within our version of religious Christianity? What if we have missed the truth because of our obsession with behaviours? And what if it is far deeper and more amazing than we could ever dream?
Sometimes salvation is more of a process than a moment, and that’s okay too. There doesn’t have to be a special prayer, or action, or anything. It’s about what Jesus did, not about what we do, anyway.
It's the same when we talk about the Gospel, but don't really define what that is. There is a version that focuses on what terrible, horrible, no-good sinners we are. It concentrates on God's wrath and how we all deserve hell. The god they talk about isn't someone I really want to spend time with anyway.
Another tries to guilt us into surrendering everything to Jesus in a desperate attempt to make him Lord. This God seems demanding, and I'm not sure I'll ever measure up to his expectations.
Often the Gospel is not exactly the Good News the word suggests!
Christy shares one way of looking at the Gospel:
G: God created us to be with Him.
O: Our sin separated us from God.
S: Sin cannot be removed by good deeds.
P: Paying the price for sin, Jesus died and rose again.
E: Everyone who trusts in Him alone has eternal life.
L: Life with Jesus starts now and lasts forever.
It's a good mnemonic, but I do have a couple of questions:
* If our sin separates us from God, why does Paul write to the believers in Rome that absolutely nothing can separate us from the love of God?
* It's a core component of the Penal Substitutionary Theory of Atonement that Jesus paid for our sins. But who received the payment? Jesus is one with the Father, so are we supposed to imagine that he paid himself? Let me say again that no payment was required. Forgiveness is free.
In fact, the Gospel is even better than this mnemonic suggests!
My own belief is that separation from God is an illusion on our part. Knowing Jesus removes that illusion. Perhaps that's what is meant here.
As regards payment for sins, I believe that God freely forgives us (this is taught throughout the New Testament) so no payment is necessary.
I feel like I may be quoting too much of Christie's book. But if so, it's because it's so eminently worth quoting!
So perhaps I should now restrict myself to a few gems from the remaining chapters, giving you an incentive to read the book for yourself.
For example:
* The real God never gets disappointed?
* God is full of grace and love, not condemnation and disappointment.
* The real God will not always make sense.
* We've got to throw away the understandable, controllable God that we have created in our own image.
* We must allow the real God to be bigger, greater, and more than we can comprehend.
* People in power like to use fear because it works, but Jesus doesn't use fear to motivate people.
* Fear is not from the real God. He is not a god of fear. He doesn't use fear to control us, and these are important truths to grasp in our minds and believe in our hearts.
* If we do this and that, then God will give us the blessings we desire. But if we mess up, then He is going to punish us. The real God doesn’t work like that.
* We try to stuff God in our little God boxes. We want to explain him, minimise him, dismiss him and move on.
* We act like we have got all figured out, but what if we are wrong.
* God used Freddie - a messed-up eighth-grader from a family of known felons and drug addicts - to show me what unconditional love looks like. Jesus poured His love for Freddie into my heart and I couldn’t help myself. And when I thought about how bad Freddie was and yet how much I loved him for no reason, I often heard a quiet whisper, “That’s how I love you.”
* Not religion, not rules, not trying harder, not human effort, but meeting the Person of Jesus Christ, getting to know Him, falling in love with Him, and choosing to follow Him changes everything.
* The world is broken, we are broken. The sooner we realise that, the better off we will be.
It's not popular these days to admit that we might be broken. Indeed, many people on social media say that we are not broken, we're fine. Christy goes against the grain here, and all credit to her for doing so.
There’s so much more, please read it for yourself.
As we get older, (and I’m a lot older than Christy!), beliefs that seemed black and white years before, are no longer so clear-cut.
But there is a middle way. “I’m choosing to hold truths in tension,” she writes. “I’ve settled into the belief that tension theology is the place where truth lives.” I agree.
Christy ends Religious Rebels with this statement and invitation:
“We don’t have to be people who conform to the religious norms, customs, and traditions of our day. We can be rebels who seek to know God for ourselves and believe that He wants to be found. We can join hands in the Awkward Middle Way, where together we hold the mystery of tension and paradox. Where we offer scandalous grace while looking for truth. And where we attempt to follow the One who called Himself the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Come with me, friends.
Let’s keep seeking the real Jesus.”
I, for one, am joining hands with Christy on the Awkward Middle Way.
Perhaps when you’ve read this book, you’ll find yourself drawn here too.
March 23, 2025
A spiritual memoir brimming with insights about behavior-based religion vs. having a rich relationship with God. This was a first person account of how some Christians use fear to control and manipulate, but how Jesus pursues us despite it all. I especially loved what she had to say about "tension theology."
January 22, 2025
I'm not what you'd think of as a "religious rebel." I grew up in a Southern Baptist home, but my parents allowed me to wear pants, and except for some short stints in elementary and middle school, I had and still have a bobbed or pixie haircut. My little brother and I were allowed to watch Disney, and a good cross-section of most cartoons, with the obvious exceptions of some that both Christian and non-Christian parents considered vulgar or violent or just weird. I went to public school, was encouraged to a point to pursue college (that's a longer story), and could read any Bible translation, play cards as long as it wasn't poker, and in theory, dance (growing up with ambulatory cerebral palsy, that was very much "in theory.")
Still, something inside me keeps drawing me to books like Religious Rebels. I guess it's like the old "devil on one shoulder, angel on the other" thing. Because while my "devil," who sounds like my "angel," says, "What's wrong with you, you weren't in a cult, you weren't abused with or by religion, you weren't married at 19, nobody forced you to wear skirts, you liked them!" My "angel," who sounds like the devil but I'm trying to remember isn't, reminds me, "Wait a second, sweetie."
"You're a people pleaser."
"They taught you to look at everything through the lens of behavior, using both your religion and your disability as control measures."
"You've fought the eternal security battle for years and you've left some major pieces of yourself out on that field."
"You get angry at those legalistic church leaders for the sake of the girls they hurt, and you get angry at people who walk away from religion and make Jesus a casualty. But are you any better than either one of those groups?"
Wow. So okay, angel on my shoulder. Okay, Christie Lynne Wood. Apparently I needed to keep reading and listening, so that's what I did.
In some ways, Religious Rebels is saying a lot of the same things that Jinger Vuolo, Elisabeth Esther, Addie Zierman, and other authors on the market today are saying. Rules aren't freedom, but neither is hedonism. Jesus isn't who I think He is. Salvation isn't what I think it is. I've heard and read all this many times over, just in different packages. And that package, while slightly different, usually carries with it the backstory of the stereotypical ultra-fundamentalist, conservative upbringing. Because of this, I docked a star. Not because Christie's version isn't true or right or important, just because well, to me, some of it needed to pack a bigger punch. This is especially true since Religious Rebels is just a 161-page book (though to be fair, that's probably me; I like my books long and juicy, so anything under 200 is gonna feel light).
That being said, Religious Rebels still packs plenty of punch in other ways and has plenty of valuable things to say. First off, Christie did read my mail in many ways. All three of the books she mentions (Evans, Esther, Zierman), I had read and enjoyed too, but tossed aside because later on, someone else told me these women were false and dangerous (I'll come back to that). In reading Religious Rebels, I realized why that was--because these women had not been so willing to lump Jesus in with the real falseness of junk like megachurches, televangelism, abusive purity culture, the use and abuse of marginalized groups, you name it. Christie had been in the place where I was, and she was actually saying it. She was saying out loud, "Can we please disentangle ourselves and Jesus from the notion that to know and love Him, we have to live and move and have our being in this one very specific religious, social, emotional, political way?"
Second, Christie is more willing than most similar authors to go beyond, "You think Jesus is about rules but He's not." She gives examples of how Jesus "breaks the rules," and it's not always in her favor. Reading about her fertility journey for instance, broke my heart. But what I loved was how she then admitted, "God, Jesus, took my babies. I don't know why and He doesn't have to tell me or be sorry." You'd think that would have made me feel awful but you know what? It didn't. It actually gave me more security. As in, finally, a Christian said it. Instead of, "Why do bad things happen to good people," she admitted, "We aren't good people, but that's not why God allows bad things. God allows bad things because He's God and we're not and that's the way it's supposed to be. It *does not* mean we are any less loved, and neither we nor our religious authorities have any right to use behavior, to try to change it or Him." That concept alone, to me, is a lot more freeing than something like, "Girl, go read a modern Bible, put a bright red streak in that pixie hair, and be happy." (Which again, is what a lot of similar books stick to).
Three, Religious Rebels challenged--is challenging--me to think in ways I have never thought before. For example, despite being allowed to wear pants and watch secular TV, I was always implicitly taught, "You either bear fruit (read: behave) or it's cheap grace. No, you don't have to work to stay saved, but if you're not behaving a certain way, we really question. You either *want* to do your daily quiet time, love reading your Bible more than any other book, love Christian music more than any other kind, and don't show interest in these forms of dress or entertainment, or you may not be saved. You're allowed to sin, but not this way or that way, and not too much." It was either Christianity and heaven, or freedom and hell, and never the two shall meet. So as Religious Rebels put it, any deviation from that made me feel like, "I'm doing this because I can, dang it."
I'm still there in a way. A lot of ways, actually. But Christie and her book have challenged me to think, freedom should really be about, I do what I want to do, and I let Jesus change me. I trust Him to change me, rather than focusing on behavior. I trust that when He says I'm saved, I truly am. I trust that every time some male pastor, some Baptist Bible scholar with a YouTube channel, some well-spoken Protestant with six seminary degrees, says a female teacher or author is false because she spoke against part of *Christian culture*, I don't have to throw out the bathwater and the baby. I trust that Jesus is bigger and more than who I thought He was, and that my fellow believers, including those who dress differently or drink differently or believe in certain gifts or wear rosaries instead of plain crosses, will be in Heaven beside me.
It's gonna take a while. I may go back and reread. In fact, I may email Christie to talk more. But especially for women, and I'd say especially for those who *didn't* get brainwashed, who *didn't* grow up with the extremes, grab a copy of Religious Rebels. You'll find you're a bigger rebel than you thought, or maybe just a different kind. And you'll definitely find Jesus isn't who you thought He was--which is great news!
Still, something inside me keeps drawing me to books like Religious Rebels. I guess it's like the old "devil on one shoulder, angel on the other" thing. Because while my "devil," who sounds like my "angel," says, "What's wrong with you, you weren't in a cult, you weren't abused with or by religion, you weren't married at 19, nobody forced you to wear skirts, you liked them!" My "angel," who sounds like the devil but I'm trying to remember isn't, reminds me, "Wait a second, sweetie."
"You're a people pleaser."
"They taught you to look at everything through the lens of behavior, using both your religion and your disability as control measures."
"You've fought the eternal security battle for years and you've left some major pieces of yourself out on that field."
"You get angry at those legalistic church leaders for the sake of the girls they hurt, and you get angry at people who walk away from religion and make Jesus a casualty. But are you any better than either one of those groups?"
Wow. So okay, angel on my shoulder. Okay, Christie Lynne Wood. Apparently I needed to keep reading and listening, so that's what I did.
In some ways, Religious Rebels is saying a lot of the same things that Jinger Vuolo, Elisabeth Esther, Addie Zierman, and other authors on the market today are saying. Rules aren't freedom, but neither is hedonism. Jesus isn't who I think He is. Salvation isn't what I think it is. I've heard and read all this many times over, just in different packages. And that package, while slightly different, usually carries with it the backstory of the stereotypical ultra-fundamentalist, conservative upbringing. Because of this, I docked a star. Not because Christie's version isn't true or right or important, just because well, to me, some of it needed to pack a bigger punch. This is especially true since Religious Rebels is just a 161-page book (though to be fair, that's probably me; I like my books long and juicy, so anything under 200 is gonna feel light).
That being said, Religious Rebels still packs plenty of punch in other ways and has plenty of valuable things to say. First off, Christie did read my mail in many ways. All three of the books she mentions (Evans, Esther, Zierman), I had read and enjoyed too, but tossed aside because later on, someone else told me these women were false and dangerous (I'll come back to that). In reading Religious Rebels, I realized why that was--because these women had not been so willing to lump Jesus in with the real falseness of junk like megachurches, televangelism, abusive purity culture, the use and abuse of marginalized groups, you name it. Christie had been in the place where I was, and she was actually saying it. She was saying out loud, "Can we please disentangle ourselves and Jesus from the notion that to know and love Him, we have to live and move and have our being in this one very specific religious, social, emotional, political way?"
Second, Christie is more willing than most similar authors to go beyond, "You think Jesus is about rules but He's not." She gives examples of how Jesus "breaks the rules," and it's not always in her favor. Reading about her fertility journey for instance, broke my heart. But what I loved was how she then admitted, "God, Jesus, took my babies. I don't know why and He doesn't have to tell me or be sorry." You'd think that would have made me feel awful but you know what? It didn't. It actually gave me more security. As in, finally, a Christian said it. Instead of, "Why do bad things happen to good people," she admitted, "We aren't good people, but that's not why God allows bad things. God allows bad things because He's God and we're not and that's the way it's supposed to be. It *does not* mean we are any less loved, and neither we nor our religious authorities have any right to use behavior, to try to change it or Him." That concept alone, to me, is a lot more freeing than something like, "Girl, go read a modern Bible, put a bright red streak in that pixie hair, and be happy." (Which again, is what a lot of similar books stick to).
Three, Religious Rebels challenged--is challenging--me to think in ways I have never thought before. For example, despite being allowed to wear pants and watch secular TV, I was always implicitly taught, "You either bear fruit (read: behave) or it's cheap grace. No, you don't have to work to stay saved, but if you're not behaving a certain way, we really question. You either *want* to do your daily quiet time, love reading your Bible more than any other book, love Christian music more than any other kind, and don't show interest in these forms of dress or entertainment, or you may not be saved. You're allowed to sin, but not this way or that way, and not too much." It was either Christianity and heaven, or freedom and hell, and never the two shall meet. So as Religious Rebels put it, any deviation from that made me feel like, "I'm doing this because I can, dang it."
I'm still there in a way. A lot of ways, actually. But Christie and her book have challenged me to think, freedom should really be about, I do what I want to do, and I let Jesus change me. I trust Him to change me, rather than focusing on behavior. I trust that when He says I'm saved, I truly am. I trust that every time some male pastor, some Baptist Bible scholar with a YouTube channel, some well-spoken Protestant with six seminary degrees, says a female teacher or author is false because she spoke against part of *Christian culture*, I don't have to throw out the bathwater and the baby. I trust that Jesus is bigger and more than who I thought He was, and that my fellow believers, including those who dress differently or drink differently or believe in certain gifts or wear rosaries instead of plain crosses, will be in Heaven beside me.
It's gonna take a while. I may go back and reread. In fact, I may email Christie to talk more. But especially for women, and I'd say especially for those who *didn't* get brainwashed, who *didn't* grow up with the extremes, grab a copy of Religious Rebels. You'll find you're a bigger rebel than you thought, or maybe just a different kind. And you'll definitely find Jesus isn't who you thought He was--which is great news!
July 16, 2023
This book is like anti-venom for those of us out here poisoned by narcissistic micromanagers!! In its content, tone, & delivery. If you’ve experienced too much dealing with major issues by way of finding minor aspects to _*tweak*_, then read this. If symptom-masking & repression are what you’re used to, symptom-prevention, & c•o•n•t•r•o•l of anything & everything around symptoms are what you’re used-to… then read this book!! It is often thought that a critical difference- as cults define for us— has been discovered. Then, to increase bandwidth, those touting it _*work it*_ like a guitarist playing a riff:
[……….“‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we played a dirge, and you did not mourn.’
For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon!’
The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’
Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.”
Then He began to denounce the cities in which most of His miracles were done, because they did not repent.
Matthew 11:17 thru 11:20]
Likewise, the author of “Religious Rebels” ceases to point out to the reader a desired response in behavior, instead pointing out miracles. Because of this book, I now embrace submitting myself to ANYONE’s relating of the Gospel itself. Why?? For. My. Own. benefit in osmosising the unique claim on redemption that any one receiver of it sprouts particular to this person’s soul. We are each God’s _*poema*_; what He writes on the heart of those He speaks regularly with is going to be unique,
one-from-another. Same exact good news, but different crops yielding. The variety conveyed via the author’s faith rounds-out the range of testimony of the very nature of God.
I was in this cult. It made many skeptical to hear again. But this book makes good on the admonition to trust again.
[……….“‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we played a dirge, and you did not mourn.’
For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon!’
The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’
Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.”
Then He began to denounce the cities in which most of His miracles were done, because they did not repent.
Matthew 11:17 thru 11:20]
Likewise, the author of “Religious Rebels” ceases to point out to the reader a desired response in behavior, instead pointing out miracles. Because of this book, I now embrace submitting myself to ANYONE’s relating of the Gospel itself. Why?? For. My. Own. benefit in osmosising the unique claim on redemption that any one receiver of it sprouts particular to this person’s soul. We are each God’s _*poema*_; what He writes on the heart of those He speaks regularly with is going to be unique,
one-from-another. Same exact good news, but different crops yielding. The variety conveyed via the author’s faith rounds-out the range of testimony of the very nature of God.
I was in this cult. It made many skeptical to hear again. But this book makes good on the admonition to trust again.
November 7, 2024
Finding beauty and freedom by letting go and embracing a journey of discovery
I bought this book because I met the author (at a conference) before I even knew she had written a book. I experienced firsthand, Christy's genuine compassion and willingness to listen and empathize with my struggles and difficult questions. I was able to look into the caring eyes of someone who was also searching. Someone who had found something real and believed there was still more to discover. She didn't try to fix me or explain away the answers to my difficult questions. Instead, she offered me her time and comfort by relating to my story and providing encouragement through prayer and being present with me.
In her book, Religious Rebels: Finding Jesus in the Awkward Middle Way, Christy offers her readers the opportunity to explore and challenge their beliefs and why they believe them. She gives us permission to dig a little deeper. To look beyond face value. And to learn to be okay with living in the tension of walking out our faith without having all the answers while also avoiding falling into the ditch of extremes on either side of the path.
She encourages us to seek, with all our hearts, the One True God, as we wrestle to understand and embrace both grace and truth—two seemingly opposing concepts that can coexist and be experienced together. This requires surrendering our human desire for things to be black and white.
Her personal stories and illustrations will draw you in and help you to appreciate the revelations and hope she shares on her continuing journey to find the know the real Jesus of the Bible.
I bought this book because I met the author (at a conference) before I even knew she had written a book. I experienced firsthand, Christy's genuine compassion and willingness to listen and empathize with my struggles and difficult questions. I was able to look into the caring eyes of someone who was also searching. Someone who had found something real and believed there was still more to discover. She didn't try to fix me or explain away the answers to my difficult questions. Instead, she offered me her time and comfort by relating to my story and providing encouragement through prayer and being present with me.
In her book, Religious Rebels: Finding Jesus in the Awkward Middle Way, Christy offers her readers the opportunity to explore and challenge their beliefs and why they believe them. She gives us permission to dig a little deeper. To look beyond face value. And to learn to be okay with living in the tension of walking out our faith without having all the answers while also avoiding falling into the ditch of extremes on either side of the path.
She encourages us to seek, with all our hearts, the One True God, as we wrestle to understand and embrace both grace and truth—two seemingly opposing concepts that can coexist and be experienced together. This requires surrendering our human desire for things to be black and white.
Her personal stories and illustrations will draw you in and help you to appreciate the revelations and hope she shares on her continuing journey to find the know the real Jesus of the Bible.
June 13, 2023
Do you set a value on knowledge?
Do you set a value on truth?
Do you set a value on a Deity?
Do these things matter to you, or do you push through the river that is life by other paddles?
I personally highly value knowledge and truth, and I cannot imagine an existence without God. And yet, just like this author expresses in her book, my church upbringing and early faith experiences were infiltrated by a hidden agenda that was a parasite. My knowledge was used to spawn seeds of untruths in other childlike minds that were seeking truth; my search for truth was hijacked by a conductor who didn’t care where the train went as long as the profits benefited their pockets; and, as difficult as it is to write this down, my picture of “Who Is God” was overwritten and undermined and twisted left and skewed right and pulled inside out until I felt terrified of Benevolence and angry at Justice or Grace or Mercy or … Truth.
Of course, the “conductor” is the devil, like a lion who wanders and seeks someone to devour. Tragically, countless religious leaders have fallen victim to “knowledge” and “truth” and “deities” of the devil’s deceitful making, and have passed onto their followers pieces of their damage.
If you find yourself in a similar position, where it feels like your faith has destroyed what you value, please don’t despair!
Take a moment to read how this author found her way out of that deception and has now been able to share her knowledge, parasite free; to recognize truth, conductor free; to love her God, condemnation free.
Herein is Hope, a fantastic vehicle with which to navigate the river that is life.
Do you set a value on truth?
Do you set a value on a Deity?
Do these things matter to you, or do you push through the river that is life by other paddles?
I personally highly value knowledge and truth, and I cannot imagine an existence without God. And yet, just like this author expresses in her book, my church upbringing and early faith experiences were infiltrated by a hidden agenda that was a parasite. My knowledge was used to spawn seeds of untruths in other childlike minds that were seeking truth; my search for truth was hijacked by a conductor who didn’t care where the train went as long as the profits benefited their pockets; and, as difficult as it is to write this down, my picture of “Who Is God” was overwritten and undermined and twisted left and skewed right and pulled inside out until I felt terrified of Benevolence and angry at Justice or Grace or Mercy or … Truth.
Of course, the “conductor” is the devil, like a lion who wanders and seeks someone to devour. Tragically, countless religious leaders have fallen victim to “knowledge” and “truth” and “deities” of the devil’s deceitful making, and have passed onto their followers pieces of their damage.
If you find yourself in a similar position, where it feels like your faith has destroyed what you value, please don’t despair!
Take a moment to read how this author found her way out of that deception and has now been able to share her knowledge, parasite free; to recognize truth, conductor free; to love her God, condemnation free.
Herein is Hope, a fantastic vehicle with which to navigate the river that is life.
June 12, 2023
This book is one of the most beautiful books I have ever had the privilege of reading. I love it so much, I'm buying 10 more to give away! And I never do that! Christy has written a book that needs to be read by anyone who has been a part of any "religious" organization and wants to find the Real Jesus. She writes with clarity and transparency but doesn't shove her ideas down your throat. She asks great questions..."what if God isn't who we think He is? What if God cares more about our heart than our outward actions? What if He wants to heal our deepest wounds and messes more than He wants our behaviors to change?" but doesn't claim to have all the answers herself. She shares her own journey and recognizes that not everyone has the same journey and that's OK! Reading this book is like sitting down for coffee with a friend you didn't know you had, who really understands the struggle of coming out of spiritual abuse and trying to figure out what to do now. She has put words to so many of my own thoughts, feelings and experiences and the entire book resonates with truth for me. I'm going to share the last paragraph of her book with you:
"We don't have to be people who conform to the religious norms, customs and traditions of our day. We can be rebels who seek to know God for ourselves and believe that He wants to be found. We can join hands in the Awkward Middle What where together we hold the mystery of tension and paradox. Where we offer scandalous grace while looking for truth. And where we attempt to follow the One who called Himself the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Come with me, friends. Let's keep seeking the real Jesus."
"We don't have to be people who conform to the religious norms, customs and traditions of our day. We can be rebels who seek to know God for ourselves and believe that He wants to be found. We can join hands in the Awkward Middle What where together we hold the mystery of tension and paradox. Where we offer scandalous grace while looking for truth. And where we attempt to follow the One who called Himself the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Come with me, friends. Let's keep seeking the real Jesus."
June 17, 2023
If you are struggling with questions about faith, the church, or Christianity, this is a great book for you. Perhaps, like me, you are dissatisfied with the formulaic, pat answers to complex questions about God and the Bible you have been given in the past. In Religious Rebels, Christy Lynne Wood says, “It’s okay to wonder and question…It’s okay to reevaluate your faith. It’s a good thing” (61). She goes on to say that a season of questioning may be “the first step to finding the real God for ourselves. Because He is real—He just might not be who we thought he was” (64).
I’ve been going through my own journey of deconstruction and reconstruction, so I resonated very much with the things Christy shares in this book about her experience of questioning her religious upbringing and all the things she has learned through this process about the “Real Jesus” (6). The book is divided into three sections that move progressively through Christy’s journey from “Becoming a Rebel” to “Embracing Questions” to “Rebuilding Our Faith.” Christy writes in a down-to-earth, conversational tone that is easy to read but is also quite thought-provoking. The book’s short length makes it ideal for discussing, chapter by chapter, with others. I look forward to sharing this book with my friends and family members who are also on their own faith journeys.
I’ve been going through my own journey of deconstruction and reconstruction, so I resonated very much with the things Christy shares in this book about her experience of questioning her religious upbringing and all the things she has learned through this process about the “Real Jesus” (6). The book is divided into three sections that move progressively through Christy’s journey from “Becoming a Rebel” to “Embracing Questions” to “Rebuilding Our Faith.” Christy writes in a down-to-earth, conversational tone that is easy to read but is also quite thought-provoking. The book’s short length makes it ideal for discussing, chapter by chapter, with others. I look forward to sharing this book with my friends and family members who are also on their own faith journeys.
July 20, 2023
Focus, that's been my word this year....
The past year+ has been hard! I've been hurt and questioning. A good majority of this book I felt I could have written. To hear someone else put my heart into words was encouraging.
My friend and I started reading together. Both us of seeking God but in different places in our walk. We both walked away encouraged!
As I was sitting here reading, my heart heavy with stress and fear, I met my God in a new way! I AM LOVED! Inspite of me! HE KNOWS! I don't have to live in fear!
Over the past year God has reminded me over and over to change my focus. Like Peter stepping out of the boat to walk on water to Jesus. The storm didn't calm, the wind didn't stop, Jesus didn't move away. The ONLY thing that changed, and made Peter start to sink, was his focus.
I will be recommending this book to anyone God lays on my heart! Thank you Christy for putting yourself out there for God's name, I know it couldn't/won't be easy. But God's name is being glorified because of your obedience!
The past year+ has been hard! I've been hurt and questioning. A good majority of this book I felt I could have written. To hear someone else put my heart into words was encouraging.
My friend and I started reading together. Both us of seeking God but in different places in our walk. We both walked away encouraged!
As I was sitting here reading, my heart heavy with stress and fear, I met my God in a new way! I AM LOVED! Inspite of me! HE KNOWS! I don't have to live in fear!
Over the past year God has reminded me over and over to change my focus. Like Peter stepping out of the boat to walk on water to Jesus. The storm didn't calm, the wind didn't stop, Jesus didn't move away. The ONLY thing that changed, and made Peter start to sink, was his focus.
I will be recommending this book to anyone God lays on my heart! Thank you Christy for putting yourself out there for God's name, I know it couldn't/won't be easy. But God's name is being glorified because of your obedience!
February 19, 2025
I enjoy Christy's writing style. She alternates between telling snippets of her own story and addressing the reader directly. She is empathetic and even reassures the reader, if they have been in a cult or spiritually abused, they may need time away from religion, and that's ok! She encourages the reader to ask all of their burning questions, to be open to nuance, and not having all the answers.
She discusses common theology taught in many evangelical churches such as the wrath of God, obsession with laws and fear of punishment. She contrasts this with biblical accounts in both the old and new testaments, and with her own relationship and experiences with God. She embraces the complexity, mystery, love and power of God.
This is a must-read if you were raised in high control religion and need a different and thought-provoking perspective that doesn't abandon Jesus. "Religious Rebels" is like a warm hug from a friend.
She discusses common theology taught in many evangelical churches such as the wrath of God, obsession with laws and fear of punishment. She contrasts this with biblical accounts in both the old and new testaments, and with her own relationship and experiences with God. She embraces the complexity, mystery, love and power of God.
This is a must-read if you were raised in high control religion and need a different and thought-provoking perspective that doesn't abandon Jesus. "Religious Rebels" is like a warm hug from a friend.
June 14, 2023
I thoroughly enjoyed reading Religious Rebels. It is well written with a comfortable, friendly tone that invites you in. At first, I wasn't sure I would fit in. However, it didn't take long for me to be drawn into the story and questions raised. It got me thinking more deeply about my faith and my relationship with my church. I believe this book helped me to see a bit more clearly the place of my church in my life. I haven't changed my core beliefs (I don't think that's the goal), but I have started looking at some things in a different way - and that's a good thing. Any time we are asked to look more closely at our faith, there is an opportunity for growth. I highly recommend this book to anyone who has been hurt by the church. I also recommend it to people who don't feel that pain to help them understand the pain of those who have been hurt by the church.
July 7, 2023
Very inspiring and interesting book. The author talks about her early days in a religious cult with its demanding rules and controlling ways. As time goes on, she begins to question her faith and shows that questioning is not a bad thing. God is big enough to handle our doubts and our questions. As she moves on, she comes to find the freeing, liberating grace of God and realizes that following the Holy Spirit is done out of love, not by following a set of rules. She finds, as we all should, that we have freedom in the grace of God, we can associate with one another in our differences, and accept one another in the love of God. None of us have God all figured out, there is no us vs them and we can all learn from one another by talking and realizing we are not all the same. I found this book very encouraging and uplifting, as I think you will too.
November 29, 2024
I wanted to like this better, because the topic is important and the personal stories are worthwhile, but I found the book weak theologically - it did not dive deep - and it was too repetitive as it returned to this one camp that was so life-changing. I get that there are those points in life that make us reconsider, but they just initiate the rest - they are not the anchor. I also find the description of the old church a bit too careful, instead of just naming the church. So, I went back and forth with is this a good book or just mediocre - and I found it somewhere in between as a book.
However...
If you are in the position of walking away from your faith, or at least your church, this may just be the book you are looking for that will give you hope that your faith is not the same as the accident of your church - and that you can leave a church and keep Jesus.
However...
If you are in the position of walking away from your faith, or at least your church, this may just be the book you are looking for that will give you hope that your faith is not the same as the accident of your church - and that you can leave a church and keep Jesus.
June 11, 2023
I have just finished reading this book as part of the launch team. It comes out next week. Such an encouraging, challenging and eye-opening read!
Christy really focuses on how the real Jesus truly meant us to experience his love, life and freedom. Also, the book challenges people to seek Jesus as the God who truly desires a restoring vibrant relationship of love with us. I was especially challenged to follow Jesus, not with a “black and white”, “us verses them” mentality, but to humbly listen and learn from a compassionate and loving and amazing God who is greater than anything we can fully imagine.
Christy really focuses on how the real Jesus truly meant us to experience his love, life and freedom. Also, the book challenges people to seek Jesus as the God who truly desires a restoring vibrant relationship of love with us. I was especially challenged to follow Jesus, not with a “black and white”, “us verses them” mentality, but to humbly listen and learn from a compassionate and loving and amazing God who is greater than anything we can fully imagine.
June 13, 2023
Do you ever feel alone as a follower of Jesus? Do you feel like the people around you don't know the same Jesus that you know, based upon what you read in scripture? Do you feel like you're holding multiple beliefs in tension as you try to go the "awkward middle way"? Christy invites you to sit with her as she shares what she has learned about the real Jesus, the Jesus who wants to have a relationship with you! Christy will share with you what Jesus has taught her, while sympathetically considering the hurts that you might have experienced through religion. Religious Rebels is a message that so many followers of Jesus need to hear--a message that He already loves you and likes you and wants you to know Him better.
August 25, 2023
For anyone who has lived through life in a Fundamental church and escaped or is looking to escape, Christy has written this book for you. Through her narratives and teaching, she explains what it was like for her to live life as a teenage fundamentalist and the struggle she endured to escape the legalism and rules she was raised with. She shows her reader that there is hope and life outside of the Fundamental church and that your faith can not only exist but thrive outside of those rules and regulations. Most importantly, Christy talks about what it looks like to truly find Jesus in the middle of the process.
June 15, 2023
Christy takes on fundamentalist Christianity with a gentle, positive spirit. As a former member of IBLP, the legalistic staunchness of those caught up in systemic religion is very near and dear to her heart. With sensitivity and passion she probes into the root issues of legalism, and shows there is indeed a better way - the awkward middle, as she calls it. A wonderful reminder of the deep love of God towards us. You will not regret picking this book up!
I received an advance copy of this book from the author. All opinions expressed are my own.
I received an advance copy of this book from the author. All opinions expressed are my own.
June 9, 2023
Christy has profound wisdom to speak into modern America Evangelism. She is speaking grace and truth in a space that desperately needs it. I love that’s she wants people to find hope in the real God of the Bible when others who’ve shared similar experiences have walked away from the faith entirely. If you are looking for the encouragement to dismantle the things you’ve been taught and decipher what is good and true I highly recommend this book.
March 16, 2024
I really enjoyed reading this book and hearing Christy's story. She also makes some very good points throughout the book. Nevertheless Wood's upbringing in the faith seems to be so extremely far right wing that her "awkward middle way," in reality, is more like middle-right than anything else. I think only those with a similar upbringing as hers will find anything "rebellious" in her book.
July 21, 2024
The Middle Path - Finally!
I just finished a few nights ago. I highlighted more of this book than any other I can think of.
Highest possible recommendation for Christians trying to get their bearings, reconciling different images of God in the Bible, de/re-constructing faith, etc. I had already found myself to a similar place to her conclusions, and a great part of that is I know I don’t see eye-to-eye with Christy on everything. And that’s OK!
Seriously, read the book.
I just finished a few nights ago. I highlighted more of this book than any other I can think of.
Highest possible recommendation for Christians trying to get their bearings, reconciling different images of God in the Bible, de/re-constructing faith, etc. I had already found myself to a similar place to her conclusions, and a great part of that is I know I don’t see eye-to-eye with Christy on everything. And that’s OK!
Seriously, read the book.
June 16, 2023
An Interesting Read
Good book that asks lots of Jesus questions to ponder, whether or not we have similarities in our faith journey. Solid bible references. I highly recommend this book.
Good book that asks lots of Jesus questions to ponder, whether or not we have similarities in our faith journey. Solid bible references. I highly recommend this book.
December 29, 2023
I loved this book intensely. She's such a great writer, and her experiences and thinking are so genuine and sincere. Highly recommend.
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