Godly Grit: Unshakable Resilience and Grit for Life and Leadership

by Kyle Farran

299 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 3, 2026

About the author

Kyle Farran helps people build resilient faith, lead with courage, and endure life’s hardest seasons with grit.

Raised in Papua New Guinea as a missionary kid, Kyle has spent nearly two decades serving in cross-cultural ministry alongside his wife, Heather, across Africa and Europe. Through years of leadership development, missionary care, coaching, and ministry in challenging settings, he has developed a deep passion for helping others stay faithful, strong, and fruitful over the long haul.

Kyle serves as a Regional Director with ABWE in Western Europe. He is also a life and leadership coach, speaker, and trainer with a passion for helping leaders grow from the inside out through character, courage, resilience, and faith-filled perseverance.

He lives in Lisbon, Portugal, with his wife and youngest daughter. When he is not leading, writing, or coaching, he enjoys hiking, reading, exercising, and exploring remote places on his motorcycle.

Reviews

[Matthew Lethbridge · Rating 5 out of 5]

Godly Grit Isn't Learned, It's Earned!

It is evident throughout this book that the author draws on decades of practical international missions experience, yet the applications are to all Christ followers with a special emphasis on Christian leaders.

At its core, Godly Grit is Bible focused with an abundance of verses building the theological framework, yet it is an easy read for everyone. With illustrations woven throughout and citations from many leading authors, Farran has captured the essence of what it looks like to not just to survive, but to thrive with godly grit.

Some of my favorite quotes:
• Godly grit isn’t learned; it’s earned. Kowing about grit isn’t the same as having it.
• Resilience is not just enduring hardships but also learning and growing from them.
• Leaders are the first followers. God wants leaders who follow Him, not leaders who seek followers.
• Perspectives shape our responses. Responses shape our lives. Change your perspective, and you change your life.
• Spiritual leadership . . . isn’t just about getting things done . . . it’s about influencing others to faithfully follow God.
• Success isn’t a finish line—it is continual growth.
• We must be humble enough to admit when we’re wrong. Focus on doing right, not being right.

But Farran does not stop with providing great insight, he encourages the reader to digest the information with great questions woven throughout the text as well as a “Responding To This Material” at the conclusion of each chapter, which is very beneficial to internalizing and applying this content.

As an added bonus Farran includes additional resources throughout the book that are available at his website and a great concise summary on starting gospel conversations in the Appendix.

This is a great read for everyone seeking to faithfully follow Christ as their Lord and Savior!

[Stanley Haynes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Life definitely has its challenges and its blessings. Kyle's new book, “Godly Grit”,
helps us recognize how we often miss the blessing because of how we deal with the
challenge. There will always be challenges, as he reminds us with his analogy,
“Behind every mountain are more mountains”.
As Christians, we have resources that helps us turn difficulties and trials into blessings.
God’s Word, God’s presence, God’s promises, God’s fellowship are all waiting for us to tap
into. Kyle reminds us God always has a plan for us. It’s not always easy and may
present hardship, however, He is always there to give us strength to respond correctly to
each and every trial we face.
I found “Godly Grit” to be convicting, thought provoking and inspiring. I highly recommend it to anyone who is serious about God's word and its promises.

[Diana Webber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Godly Grit is a very engaging book about leadership and resilience in the face of seemingly insurmountable challenges! One of my favorite illustrations is the author's account of a real-life encounter with a black rhino in a game park in Africa. The author, Kyle, and his family were in a vehicle when an aggressive black rhino charged at them at full speed. Kyle remembered something he had read in a motorcycle safety book about how to respond when chased by an aggressive animal: Don't panic and try to flee! Stay calm, let the animal charge toward you, then accelerate away from it at the last second. The leadership parallel is stay calm and trust God in the face of challenges. God doesn't have to explain His plan for dealing with a crisis. He wants us to trust Him. To quote the author: "Challenges have been one of God's primary methods to demonstrate His power."

[Joyce Voelker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Godly Grit, as the author accurately describes it, is a "field manual" I will often refer back to. Formatted in a way that can be easily revisited, it's a great choice for personal or group study. This Scripture-saturated book is a resource for leading myself and others toward godliness and deeper trust, especially during difficult seasons and trials. I encourage readers to put this book on their must-read lists. The author not only provides Scriptural references in the hundreds as he highlights godly truth, but also quotes each verse in its entirety throughout the text.

[Paul E. · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is my honor to write this review. Kyle has done a remarkable job in addressing a problem we all face as believers whether we are in ministry full time or just a regular believer. We all face challenges that can keep us from being effective for the Lord and I firmly believe this book has been written by Kyle as a great tool for anyone can overcome these challenges victorious. The use of scripture Kyle has shared underscores the fact that God does have the ability to help us be an effective tool for His glory. This is a great book!!!!

[Andrea M · Rating 5 out of 5]

Helpful and practical

Such a helpful and practical book about faithfulness in life and ministry! The Christian life is not easy, and it’s not supposed to be! Kyle shares some of what the Lord has taught him through the years about not giving up, and even learning to see the Lord working in and through our trials. I definitely recommend this book to all believers, but particularly those serving in ministry in any way.

[David A Carrel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book! Kyle does a great job of addressing all the areas in our ministry in which we need to have the right mindset in order to have long-term ministry. The format of the book makes it an interesting read. Kyle also has other helpful resources, like his podcast, that contain great material. He came to our field team leaders' meeting and was very helpful with our group on leadership training.

[Jamie Farran · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is fantastic and has really helped me to gain a better perspective on life and leadership in the face of challenges. It is clear that the ideas presented by Kyle are formed from scripture and are not just him slapping in a few verses here and there to back up what he is saying. I am looking forward to reading this book with my boys to prepare them for navigating life's challenges by running to Christ and allowing Jesus to use those hardships to shape them.

[Krista Rachevsky · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book. It was very practical and life changing at the same time. It really caused me to think about the purpose of challenges and trials. They will come. How will we react to them? This book challenged me and encouraged me in my walk with God.

[Keith Hudak · Rating 5 out of 5]

I highly recommend this book. It is a great read that challenges the reader change his way of thinking about life’s difficulties. The book is a perfect complement to Kyle’s first book, Overflowing.

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book from someone who is "living it!"

Per usual Kyle knocked it out of the park!