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Defying Normal: Soaring Above the Status Quo
Skip Heitzig, pastor of a 15,000 member mega-church, shows readers how to defy the pressures of this worldly life, and soar above the status quo to experience the divine.
- GenresChristian
240 pages, Paperback
First published October 27, 2015
3 people are currently reading
175 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
September 5, 2016
Very readable, practical and pertinent for our times. How to deal with struggles, stress and keep your chin up. I love the way he writes as though he's just sitting there having a conversation with you.
January 13, 2021
Pastor Skip essentially gives us a sermon put into a book, making it an easy read. He takes us through the life of Daniel - specifically the different qualities he took on throughout his walk with the Lord. At the end of each chapter, Heitzig gives the reader “dares” as a way of encouraging you to take action. Both open ended questions and direct instruction facilitate these means of “defying normal”. The only criticism I really have is the few typos I found within the book, but other than that I loved the things that Pastor Skip had to share and how he backed the points he made with scripture!
August 17, 2019
Excellent book by a great pastor. The gist of the book is to rise above the status quo in your life as a Christian. The book follows the life of Daniel, who did exactly that - rise above the status quo. This book took me a very long time to read because there was a life discontinuity which occurred and prevented me from reading it for a lengthy period of time. It should have no bearing whatsoever on the quality of the book.
December 26, 2017
Good but not great read. Packed with great quotes from others. I do like his approach to Daniel's life though.
July 9, 2022
Loved this book, very inspiring and was hard to put down.
October 29, 2015
Skip Heitzig in his new book “Defying Normal” published by Worthy Publishing Group gives us Soaring Above the Status Quo.
From the back cover: Find a hill worth dying on
How many of us lead lives of quiet desperation–and don’t even know it? Caught between the shifting moral landscape of our culture and a burning desire to make our lives count, too often we settle for less. God has so much more for us than conformity to the status quo–if we will only take the necessary leap of faith.
In Defying Normal, pastor Skip Heitzig offers such a challenge and provides practical, Biblical advice for pursuing a life of faith and transformation in uncertain times. Drawing on the life of Daniel–a nonconformist agent of God in a time and culture in desperate need of truth and light–Defying Normal dares you to embrace eight God-centered traits that will help you soar above the norm and live your faith in a bold and winning way.
You don’t have to blend in or give in to find and fulfill your purpose and impact your world. In fact, it can happen only when you defy what is popular and rise above the crowd to a new normal.
Who ever said that we have to do what everybody else does? Pastor Heitzig reminds us that “Paul said, ‘Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.’ By “Transformed” he meant utterly changed. Call it an extreme makeover.” Pastor Heitzig looks at the life of Daniel who, with his three friends, were nonconformists to life in Babylon and made great changes and shows us how we can do the same. There are eight God-centered traits that Pastor Heitzig focuses on: Self-Control, Faith, Humility, Integrity, Dependence, Courage, Hope and Balance. If we can be transformed then we can go out and transform where we live just like Daniel and his friends did! I think that everyone should have a copy of this book and it would make a terrific gift for friends and family so that they could be transformed as well.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Worthy Publishing Group. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
From the back cover: Find a hill worth dying on
How many of us lead lives of quiet desperation–and don’t even know it? Caught between the shifting moral landscape of our culture and a burning desire to make our lives count, too often we settle for less. God has so much more for us than conformity to the status quo–if we will only take the necessary leap of faith.
In Defying Normal, pastor Skip Heitzig offers such a challenge and provides practical, Biblical advice for pursuing a life of faith and transformation in uncertain times. Drawing on the life of Daniel–a nonconformist agent of God in a time and culture in desperate need of truth and light–Defying Normal dares you to embrace eight God-centered traits that will help you soar above the norm and live your faith in a bold and winning way.
You don’t have to blend in or give in to find and fulfill your purpose and impact your world. In fact, it can happen only when you defy what is popular and rise above the crowd to a new normal.
Who ever said that we have to do what everybody else does? Pastor Heitzig reminds us that “Paul said, ‘Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.’ By “Transformed” he meant utterly changed. Call it an extreme makeover.” Pastor Heitzig looks at the life of Daniel who, with his three friends, were nonconformists to life in Babylon and made great changes and shows us how we can do the same. There are eight God-centered traits that Pastor Heitzig focuses on: Self-Control, Faith, Humility, Integrity, Dependence, Courage, Hope and Balance. If we can be transformed then we can go out and transform where we live just like Daniel and his friends did! I think that everyone should have a copy of this book and it would make a terrific gift for friends and family so that they could be transformed as well.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Worthy Publishing Group. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
January 17, 2016
Heitzig wants us to rise above the mundane and defy what is popularly described as normal. He gleans principles from the life of Daniel to encourage us to do so.
Daniel is a role model for people who desire to be a counter-cultural force in a hostile political structure. Heitzig has identified eight characteristics that allowed Daniel to defy the normal of his day: self-control, faith, humility, integrity, dependence, courage, hope, and balance. Each of these qualities is explored in depth as Heitzig encourages us to develop the kind of character Daniel had.
This book is more than just theory. Heitzig wants us to apply these characteristics so he gives us prompts at the end of each chapter. The first ones are invitations to think about the points he has made in the chapter – deliberate. He then gives invitations to actually apply the principles to our lives – defy normal.
Heitzig explores a few other topics in the book too. I like his teaching on prayer. He uses the example of Daniel to identify the four fold strand of humble adoration, honest confession, heart felt petition, and holy motivation. Another aspect of this teaching I really liked was identification of what to pray for in the face of spiritual warfare.
The background story of how Daniel arrived in Babylon is given so this would be a good book for those unfamiliar with the story. This is a good all around book to help Christians live life with integrity in an adverse situation. The application sections at the end of each chapter make this a good book for individual or group use. I highly recommend this book to those desiring to rise above the normal of this day and live their Christian life with integrity.
I received a complimentary copy of this book through Icon Media for the purpose of an independent and honest review.
Daniel is a role model for people who desire to be a counter-cultural force in a hostile political structure. Heitzig has identified eight characteristics that allowed Daniel to defy the normal of his day: self-control, faith, humility, integrity, dependence, courage, hope, and balance. Each of these qualities is explored in depth as Heitzig encourages us to develop the kind of character Daniel had.
This book is more than just theory. Heitzig wants us to apply these characteristics so he gives us prompts at the end of each chapter. The first ones are invitations to think about the points he has made in the chapter – deliberate. He then gives invitations to actually apply the principles to our lives – defy normal.
Heitzig explores a few other topics in the book too. I like his teaching on prayer. He uses the example of Daniel to identify the four fold strand of humble adoration, honest confession, heart felt petition, and holy motivation. Another aspect of this teaching I really liked was identification of what to pray for in the face of spiritual warfare.
The background story of how Daniel arrived in Babylon is given so this would be a good book for those unfamiliar with the story. This is a good all around book to help Christians live life with integrity in an adverse situation. The application sections at the end of each chapter make this a good book for individual or group use. I highly recommend this book to those desiring to rise above the normal of this day and live their Christian life with integrity.
I received a complimentary copy of this book through Icon Media for the purpose of an independent and honest review.
January 6, 2016
Days after his eighteenth birthday he was converted and gave his life to Jesus Christ. This was his faith. Defying Normal. His teachings are about self control, faith, humility, integrity, dependence, courage, hope and balance. A very good reading experience!!!!! THANK YOU GOODREADS FIRSTREADS FOR THIS FREE BOOK!!!!!
June 27, 2016
Looking to make a Difference
I gave this rating because I think Skip does a great job of challenging us today in overcoming complacency in our faith-walk with God. His book motivates us as believers to keep focused on what we should be doing for the cause of Christ.
I gave this rating because I think Skip does a great job of challenging us today in overcoming complacency in our faith-walk with God. His book motivates us as believers to keep focused on what we should be doing for the cause of Christ.
October 26, 2015
Loved it. Check out my book review on Jamie Chases Butterflies.
December 31, 2015
Two words: Life Changing.
January 4, 2016
In compliance with FTC guidelines I received the book for free through Goodreads Giveaways.
Wow! Just Wow! Life changing.
Wow! Just Wow! Life changing.
May 4, 2025
A fantastic study through the book of Daniel.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews