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The 10 Greatest Struggles of Your Life: Finding Freedom in God's Commands
Every day is full of struggles. We struggle with time; with truth; with authority; with finding peace, purity, and contentment; with our words, thoughts, and actions - and that's just the beginning! Does God speak to us about these daily tests? Is there hope in the struggle?
The answer, of course, is yes - but where God speaks about them may surprise you. With his exceptional ability to open up Scripture, author Colin Smith leads you to a fuller understanding of the Ten Commandments and their relevance to the struggles of your life. You will learn that when you love God fully and unconditionally, his commandments no longer seem the impossible rules of a dictator but the firm guidance of a loving father, setting you on the path to the rich life he desires for you, his child.
Pastor Colin Smith, author of Unlock the Bible in 30 Days and the Unlocking the Bible Story series, presents a powerful argument that these ancient commands are not only relevant to modern life but also help us better understand how to overcome and prevent many of the battles we face.
The answer, of course, is yes - but where God speaks about them may surprise you. With his exceptional ability to open up Scripture, author Colin Smith leads you to a fuller understanding of the Ten Commandments and their relevance to the struggles of your life. You will learn that when you love God fully and unconditionally, his commandments no longer seem the impossible rules of a dictator but the firm guidance of a loving father, setting you on the path to the rich life he desires for you, his child.
Pastor Colin Smith, author of Unlock the Bible in 30 Days and the Unlocking the Bible Story series, presents a powerful argument that these ancient commands are not only relevant to modern life but also help us better understand how to overcome and prevent many of the battles we face.
- GenresChristian
Audible Audio
Published October 18, 2016
15 people are currently reading
28 people want to read
About the author
Colin S. Smith
75 books31 followersColin Smith was born in Edinburgh, Scotland. He came to personal faith in Christ at the age of six, and sensed God's call to pastoral ministry early in life. He received his Bachelor of Arts in Theology and Master of Philosophy from London Bible College. Before coming to the States in 1996, Colin served as the Senior Pastor of the Enfield Evangelical Free Church in London for 16 years. While in London, he was active in the Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches in England; and served the Fellowship as president.Colin currently serves as Senior Pastor of the The Orchard Evangelical Free Church in Arlington Heights, Illinois. He is committed to preaching the Bible in a way that nourishes the soul by directing attention to Jesus Christ. He has published several books and is the teacher of the popular evangelistic video series, 10 Keys for Unlocking the Bible Story.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
January 1, 2017
The 10 Greatest Struggles Of Your Life by Colin S. Smith is intended to help the reader utilize the Ten Commandments in order to discover areas of your life that are out of sync with God's will, and receive wisdom to help you break through these struggles. The book contains an introduction, ten chapters, and a 30-page study guide to help you apply the lessons from each chapter. Each chapter is written to address a struggle reflecting the commandment it shares a number with. The struggles (in order) are God, Worship, Religion, Time, Authority, Peace, Purity, Integrity, Truth, and Contentment.
First, the things I like about this book... In the application suggestions (in the included study guide), there are three suggestions given for each chapter: Baby Step, Substantial Move, and Radical Life-Change. This allows the reader to find an application that correlates with their current level of progression on their spiritual journey... I also like that each chapter is broken into several segments, making it easy to read portions of it when you can't get a long block of free-time.
Unfortunately, my list of dislikes is longer than my list of likes. I spent most of my reading time trying to figure out the intended audience (knowing that somehow it wasn't me). It seems to jump back and forth between speaking to the new-believer and the longtime Christian, without much time spent in between the two. This could lead to a lot of confusion for new-believers, as well as potentially leaving them feeling very inadequate for the journey, rather than embracing it. Also, several parts of the book seem to be redundant and jump around a lot so it's hard in places to figure out what point the author is trying to make.
Honestly, my strongest complaint about this book is more of a warning than anything else. I think the subtitle (Finding Freedom In God's Commands) could be misleading to the wrong person. I'm at the point in my journey where I'm struggling with self-worth and shame, and was hoping that said "freedom" could help me embrace God's love and forgiveness more fully by rediscovering the Ten Commandments. That's why I got this book. However, most of the book is dedicated to pointing out our short-comings as humans and how we all fall short of perfection, and that none of us can live up to these Commandments. While I agree that we all sin and fall short of perfection, and that we all need God's forgiveness and redemption, focusing on your short-comings is not the best way to feel "freedom" if you are already in a pit of despair. I fear that to the wrong person, this book could simply add fuel to a chaotic spiral and make their already low sense of self feel even more devastated.
So, please, only read this book is you have a relatively strong sense of contentment with where your life is at this present moment, and are looking for ways to build a closer relationship with Christ by tightening your level of commitment toward following His example. This book is not recommended for use to build contentment if your present life is radically different than how you would desire to have it.
Overall, I'm giving this book 3/5 stars.
*Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher for the purpose of this honest review.*
First, the things I like about this book... In the application suggestions (in the included study guide), there are three suggestions given for each chapter: Baby Step, Substantial Move, and Radical Life-Change. This allows the reader to find an application that correlates with their current level of progression on their spiritual journey... I also like that each chapter is broken into several segments, making it easy to read portions of it when you can't get a long block of free-time.
Unfortunately, my list of dislikes is longer than my list of likes. I spent most of my reading time trying to figure out the intended audience (knowing that somehow it wasn't me). It seems to jump back and forth between speaking to the new-believer and the longtime Christian, without much time spent in between the two. This could lead to a lot of confusion for new-believers, as well as potentially leaving them feeling very inadequate for the journey, rather than embracing it. Also, several parts of the book seem to be redundant and jump around a lot so it's hard in places to figure out what point the author is trying to make.
Honestly, my strongest complaint about this book is more of a warning than anything else. I think the subtitle (Finding Freedom In God's Commands) could be misleading to the wrong person. I'm at the point in my journey where I'm struggling with self-worth and shame, and was hoping that said "freedom" could help me embrace God's love and forgiveness more fully by rediscovering the Ten Commandments. That's why I got this book. However, most of the book is dedicated to pointing out our short-comings as humans and how we all fall short of perfection, and that none of us can live up to these Commandments. While I agree that we all sin and fall short of perfection, and that we all need God's forgiveness and redemption, focusing on your short-comings is not the best way to feel "freedom" if you are already in a pit of despair. I fear that to the wrong person, this book could simply add fuel to a chaotic spiral and make their already low sense of self feel even more devastated.
So, please, only read this book is you have a relatively strong sense of contentment with where your life is at this present moment, and are looking for ways to build a closer relationship with Christ by tightening your level of commitment toward following His example. This book is not recommended for use to build contentment if your present life is radically different than how you would desire to have it.
Overall, I'm giving this book 3/5 stars.
*Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher for the purpose of this honest review.*
May 25, 2016
ARC received courtesy of NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
This a deeply profound and not to mention thought provoking work of scholarly research, that not only challenges, but captivates the reader as well. All in all, every single word is God-inspires to bring us back into alignment with the one that we call "Abba, Father." If you have been off the rails like I have, this is not an easy book to stomach, but it's good for you, like a timely medicine that ultimately heals.
Giving this one: 5 solid stars.
This a deeply profound and not to mention thought provoking work of scholarly research, that not only challenges, but captivates the reader as well. All in all, every single word is God-inspires to bring us back into alignment with the one that we call "Abba, Father." If you have been off the rails like I have, this is not an easy book to stomach, but it's good for you, like a timely medicine that ultimately heals.
Giving this one: 5 solid stars.
December 20, 2021
This book made me think a lot about the deeper meaning of the Ten Commandments and realize how much I fail to keep them. It goes beyond the face value of them and looks at the deeper meaning of each one.
March 18, 2025
This book does a great job of breaking down the meaning of following gods word. It simplifies the 10 commandments and makes them much easier to understand. But most of all it gives the reader the opportunity to evaluate their life and continually work to make sure they are living within the commandments.
May 5, 2017
This book was part of a bible study I did. I really enjoyed the book! The questions at the end were pretty basic so it gets a 4 vs 5. I recommend listening to the actual sermons at Unlocking the Bible to enhance the content even more.
Want to read
April 13, 2022Unlocking the Bible has the sermons online. Not sure it I want to read the book or listen to the sermons.
https://unlockingthebible.org/series/...
April 29, 2024
Slow start for me, but once I got through the first couple chapters, it started to get very relatable and interesting!
October 12, 2016
Facing struggles of my own currently and trusting Moody Publishing for sound biblical material I decided to read this book. It caused/helped me to look at me personally and not at all the circumstances around me. I am reading for a second time more slowly. The wisdom and in depth look at the commandments hits home every time I pick up this book. I have used several quotes from the book in several conversations. It is written in easy to understand terms and not deep theological language.
November 21, 2016
This book was recommended reading as part of a kids program we run in our church. It was a great book for getting to the heart of the Ten Commandments and our failure to keep each and every one. This is a great book for adults but I found in invaluable for using in our Sunday school lessons as it really brought home the message of the being outward actions easily avoided. I would recommend this to anyone interested in growing in Christ.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews