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I'm the Worst: How Freedom Is Found in Admitting Our Faults

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Actor and filmmaker Clarkson urges Christians to accept their inherent weakness in order to live more faithfully. —Publishers Weekly


When it comes to the world's problems, it seems we know who to them. The other party, team, tribe, or belief system. It's natural to ignore the log in our own eye while seeing the specks in others', but it might just leave us all blind and bound.


Through personal stories, cultural anecdotes, scientific data, and biblical wisdom, Nathan Clarkson invites you to join him in a different, better way of living—one that begins with admitting our own failures and faults, and leads to forgiveness and redemption.


There's freedom in God's grace—freedom for you and for the rest of the imperfect world too.

144 pages, Paperback

Published January 27, 2026

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About the author

Nathan Clarkson

17 books43 followers
Nathan Clarkson is an award winning actor, best-selling author, indie filmmaker, podcast philosopher, and member of the well-known and beloved Clarkson Family.

As an actor, Nathan has appeared in numerous national commercials, many TV-shows like NBC’s Community, and multiple major feature films like Universal’s The Purge.

As a filmmaker Nathan’s original movies have appeared on Netflix, Amazon Prime, Pureflix and more. With his company, Clarkson Creations, Nathan has produced such indie hits as Confessions of a Prodigal Son, The Unlikely Good Samaritan, Miracle on Highway 34, and most recently Don’t Know Jack, featuring Hollywood stars and Oscar Nominated actors. Nathan’s next project, Bright Sky, an Americana romance movie, is currently in development.

As an author, Nathan’s signature memoir-esque style, filled with thought and reflections on various topics, can be found in multiple books. His first book Different; a personal memoir of stories of and thoughts on growing up with a nuerodivergent mind and mental illness, quickly became a national best seller after an interview on NBC's Today Show with Kathie Lee and Hoda. Since, Nathan has written books Good Man, The Way of King’s, and children’s picture books, Only You Can Be You and the The Clubhouse. Nathan’s most recent book Finding God in Hollywood is out now.

Nathan is the co-host of the popular podcast The Overthinkers “Having fun thinking deeply”. The podcast covers topics of faith, philosophy, culture, creativity, and the big questions of life. The program features a host of influential and interesting guests and boasts over 100k downloads.

Nathan’s words have been featured and quoted in outlets like The LA Times, Variety, The Gazette, Publisher's Weekly, World Magazine, Religion Unplugged, and more.

Nathan lives with his wife Keelia Clarkson and his golden retriever, Darcy, between the lights of Los Angeles, the streets of New York City, and the wilds Colorado Springs.

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Profile Image for Jo|Ruth Reads.
689 reviews88 followers
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
January 15, 2026
"𝑩𝒖𝒕 𝒊𝒇 𝒘𝒆 𝒄𝒉𝒐𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒑 𝒔𝒄𝒓𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒏 𝒐𝒇𝒇 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒑𝒉𝒐𝒏𝒆𝒔, 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒃𝒂𝒄𝒌 𝒂𝒕 𝒖𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒍𝒂𝒔𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒍𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏, 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝒘𝒆 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅’𝒗𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒕 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒂𝒍𝒐𝒏𝒈. 𝑻𝒐 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒈𝒂𝒛𝒆 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝒂𝒕 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒐𝒘𝒏 𝒃𝒓𝒐𝒌𝒆𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒂𝒏 𝒂𝒄𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒕𝒉 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒃𝒓𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚."

This was a really unique read. Going in, the title had me wondering what angle Nathan would take, and it turned out to be a necessary one, especially for the time we’re living in.

Nathan has a way of writing that keeps bringing the focus back to your own heart instead of letting you stay distracted by what everyone else is doing wrong. It’s not heavy-handed, just honest. The book caused me to slow down, do some real self-reflection, and stop blaming others for what’s wrong with the world.

One thing that really stuck with me is how the book shows that a relationship with God isn’t some final moment where everything suddenly feels resolved. It’s more like the starting point. That felt freeing because it shifts the focus from trying to "arrive" spiritually to choosing to follow and keep showing up each day in my imperfect walk as a believer.

By the end, I wasn’t thinking about how to fix other people or even fix myself. I was thinking more about what it looks like to keep walking with God in a real, ongoing way, a journey I’m clearly still "in progress" with.

_________________
𝑰𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒄𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒋𝒐𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂 𝒎𝒐𝒃 𝒕𝒐 𝒄𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒍 𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒔, 𝒘𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒈𝒆𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒗𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒘𝒆𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒐𝒘𝒏.

𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒇𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝑺𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒕 𝑨𝒖𝒈𝒖𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒆, 𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒓𝒐𝒕𝒆, “𝑯𝒖𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒔 𝒒𝒖𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝒊𝒏𝒒𝒖𝒊𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒆𝒍𝒔𝒆’𝒔 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒒𝒖𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝒍𝒂𝒛𝒚 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒄𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒐𝒘𝒏.”

𝑱𝒖𝒅𝒈𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆𝒔 𝒖𝒔 𝒃𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒅, 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒔 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒖𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈. 𝑩𝒚 𝒋𝒖𝒅𝒈𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒘𝒆 𝒃𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒅 𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒗𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒐𝒘𝒏 𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒍 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒄𝒉 𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒂𝒔 𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒕𝒍𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒂𝒔 𝒘𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒆. —𝑫𝑰𝑬𝑻𝑹𝑰𝑪𝑯 𝑩𝑶𝑵𝑯𝑶𝑬𝑭𝑭𝑬𝑹, 𝑻𝑯𝑬 𝑪𝑶𝑺𝑻 𝑶𝑭 𝑫𝑰𝑺𝑪𝑰𝑷𝑳𝑬𝑺𝑯𝑰𝑷

𝑰 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒖𝒏𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒚. 𝑰𝒇 𝑮𝒐𝒅 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒌 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒎𝒆, 𝑯𝒆 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒌 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒂𝒏𝒚𝒐𝒏𝒆. —𝑨𝑻𝑻𝑹𝑰𝑩𝑼𝑻𝑬𝑫 𝑻𝑶 𝑺𝑻. 𝑭𝑹𝑨𝑵𝑪𝑰𝑺 𝑶𝑭 𝑨𝑺𝑺𝑰𝑺𝑰

𝑰 𝒉𝒂𝒅 𝒈𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒚𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒇 𝒂𝒔 𝑺𝒖𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒎𝒂𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒛𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒂𝒍𝒐𝒏𝒈 𝑰 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒚 𝒘𝒉𝒐𝒎 𝑺𝒖𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒎𝒂𝒏 𝒉𝒂𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒂𝒗𝒆.

I received a complimentary copy. This review reflects my honest opinion.
Profile Image for Christian Shelves.
292 reviews46 followers
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
January 14, 2026
It's evident that Nathan Clarkson is a storyteller through and through. Taking on a conversational tone, it’s easy to imagine hearing the words of this book spoken aloud over a coffee where the author is imparting insights that God has been teaching him over time. It's a refreshing voice for the next generation who may not be used to hearing messages about being the worst in a world that conditions them to think otherwise. Using a variety of storytelling techniques such as personal anecdotes and film plots, it's a great launching pad to discuss things like cancel culture, hero worship, and tribal mentality.

I appreciate that this book gets readers thinking about how being the worst is actually the best way for us to acknowledge our need for a Saviour and what that fully entails. The accompanying study guide is superb and would make an excellent resource for younger Christians being discipled in their faith. I'm the Worst is approachable and vulnerable, and readers who are well-versed in pop culture will be able to draw parallels between those stories and the story that God has for His people in the Bible.

Review link: https://christianshelves.blogspot.com...

Many thanks to Kregel Publications for providing a complimentary copy of this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.
Profile Image for Taylor Marie.
15 reviews
Read
January 9, 2026
It’s easy to point outward when something feels broken- how could we possibly be a part of what is wrong with the world?!

Through personal stories, scientific data, other Christian writers and scripture- I’m the Worst is a quiet invitation to look inward at the log in our own eye before pointing out the speck in others.

In Christ and Christ alone we are made righteous.

A thoughtful read. Thank you @kregelbooks for allowing me a digital copy of this book for review. 🤍📖
Profile Image for keira anne with an e.
53 reviews
February 11, 2026
Thanks to Kregel Publishing for sending me a complimentary copy of this book for review. All thoughts expressed are my own.

⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4/5 stars)
For years, I have listened to Sally Clarkson’s podcast, read her books, read books by Sarah, Joel, and Joy Clarkson– so I was very excited when the opportunity rose to read a book by Nathan Clarkson. Truly, this family’s books basically make up my entire nonfiction library.
Besides, as someone who has given a lot of thought to the ideas behind this book, I really appreciated the way that Nathan addressed some very important and difficult to tackle parts of the Christian faith. The idea that we really are the worst, and that we need the Best to take away our sin and make us clean again… let me just say there were several very convicting and underline-able (yes, that’s now a word) passages in this book that I think will really stick with me.
This book was a relatively short read, but in that time, we managed to cover a wide range of topics. I feel that Nathan Clarkson achieved a short commentary of the human dilemma of judging while at the same time trying to hide our own flaws, so we may not be judged by them.
I enjoyed how he organized the book, and the way we talked about the journey to redemption starting with the realization that we really are the worst. He continually referenced movie, book, and even video game characters to illustrate this journey, which really helped bring it to life.
I do want to put a few trigger warnings out there: this book briefly touches on a lot of hard topics– from upsetting news headlines to stories of brutal massacres, self-harm thoughts, and more. I think that should definitely be kept in mind when going to give this one a try. Also, there was one use of “h*ll”, and one use of “b*st*rd” when quoting a movie script. But, yes, this one does deal with some tougher topics, but it was handled from a Christian POV, which I really appreciated.
Again, I just want to recommend this book, especially if you’ve ever struggled with the idea of being “the worst”, or the balance between being a “good Christian”, but actually being a “bad sinner”, if that makes any sense. (Also, I am now wrapping up this review because I have used quotation marks too many times.)
Thanks again to Kregel Publishing for sending me such a beautiful paperback of this great read. I really appreciate it, and I’m very glad I picked it up.
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