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When You, Then God: 7 Things God Is Waiting to Do In Your Life
God loves you unconditionally . . . but could it be true that some of His promises have strings attached?
In the groundbreaking tradition of Not a Fan and Jesus > Religion comes this provocative new book from pastor and debut author Rusty George.
Beginning with the Old Testament and walking through the life of Jesus, Rusty unpacks seven core promises of God―and reveals what you need to do in order to unlock them. What is it God wants from you? When you do it, what can you trust He will then do in response? And how can you confidently move forward in life without wearing yourself out trying to guess God’s will or somehow earning His unconditional love and boundless grace?
Come to know all this and more in When You, Then God ―a dynamic call to obedience, an invitation to partner in God’s work in your life, and a fresh way to experience His blessings.
In the groundbreaking tradition of Not a Fan and Jesus > Religion comes this provocative new book from pastor and debut author Rusty George.
Beginning with the Old Testament and walking through the life of Jesus, Rusty unpacks seven core promises of God―and reveals what you need to do in order to unlock them. What is it God wants from you? When you do it, what can you trust He will then do in response? And how can you confidently move forward in life without wearing yourself out trying to guess God’s will or somehow earning His unconditional love and boundless grace?
Come to know all this and more in When You, Then God ―a dynamic call to obedience, an invitation to partner in God’s work in your life, and a fresh way to experience His blessings.
228 pages, Paperback
First published April 5, 2016
6 people are currently reading
63 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
November 21, 2025
I found this book so refreshing. I have known Rusty for as long as I can remember. He is truly one of the best people I know. Yes when you then God has thought me so much from inviting people to church to trying and putting yourself out there to meet your neighbors.
March 22, 2016
I think sometimes we get confused in our relationship with God with what God might expect of us. Should we keep all the “thou shalts” in the Bible or should we just say “never mind” and not try to keep it all, hoping that God will overlook it in his grace? This is the question that Rusty George addresses in his book When You, Then God: 7 Things God Is Waiting to Do In Your Life.
In this book, George attempts to strike a balance between the legalism that he feels is often the image of Christianity and tendency of others to simply cling to the grace of God without ever changing our lives or attempting to conform to God’s commands. He also discusses the feeling that many have God doesn’t love them and how that keeps them from loving God before attempting to find areas where we can “partner” with God in our lives.
These areas are:
When you trust God’s love, then God will invite you to partner with him.
When you walk with Jesus, then God will help you look like Jesus
When you relax, then God will guide you
When you notice God, then God will reveal his presence
When you invest in God’s kingdom, then God will invest in yours
When you show kindness to others, then God will show them grace
When you place your hope in God, then God will give you hope
There’s also a study guide in the back with reflection questions, just in case you want to make his book into a four week study.
This is a good book in many ways. Much of the advice contained within is Biblical, and none of it is bad advice, although the book suffers from a continual leaning on the New Living Translation as a primary source for scripture.
Some chapters are scripturally sound, but others, such as “when you show kindness to others, then God will show them grace” seem to be based on a devotional understanding of just a few verses to create an underlying principle. It’s psychologically sound, and it sounds nice, but I’m not sure there’s a firm Biblical foundation. However, I do appreciate the ideas and anecdotes contained within the more devotional seeming chapters and found them to be inspirational.
I’m also not crazy about the terminology of “partnering” with God or the idea that these are things that we can do for/with God. As someone who likes to make lists and check off lists, this is something that is a little bit tempting to my works-based side. I also worry that it could be something that could create a struggle in someone’s faith. After all, this sounds works based, and even though the author attempts to explain that it isn’t, it still feels that way to me after reading the book.
Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
In this book, George attempts to strike a balance between the legalism that he feels is often the image of Christianity and tendency of others to simply cling to the grace of God without ever changing our lives or attempting to conform to God’s commands. He also discusses the feeling that many have God doesn’t love them and how that keeps them from loving God before attempting to find areas where we can “partner” with God in our lives.
These areas are:
When you trust God’s love, then God will invite you to partner with him.
When you walk with Jesus, then God will help you look like Jesus
When you relax, then God will guide you
When you notice God, then God will reveal his presence
When you invest in God’s kingdom, then God will invest in yours
When you show kindness to others, then God will show them grace
When you place your hope in God, then God will give you hope
There’s also a study guide in the back with reflection questions, just in case you want to make his book into a four week study.
This is a good book in many ways. Much of the advice contained within is Biblical, and none of it is bad advice, although the book suffers from a continual leaning on the New Living Translation as a primary source for scripture.
Some chapters are scripturally sound, but others, such as “when you show kindness to others, then God will show them grace” seem to be based on a devotional understanding of just a few verses to create an underlying principle. It’s psychologically sound, and it sounds nice, but I’m not sure there’s a firm Biblical foundation. However, I do appreciate the ideas and anecdotes contained within the more devotional seeming chapters and found them to be inspirational.
I’m also not crazy about the terminology of “partnering” with God or the idea that these are things that we can do for/with God. As someone who likes to make lists and check off lists, this is something that is a little bit tempting to my works-based side. I also worry that it could be something that could create a struggle in someone’s faith. After all, this sounds works based, and even though the author attempts to explain that it isn’t, it still feels that way to me after reading the book.
Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
July 10, 2016
Please don't overlook WHEN YOU, THEN GOD as just another Christian adding another voice to the religious noise. While Rusty George's approach is low-key and conversational, the principles he has shared, solidly founded on scripture, can provide freedom and transformational insight for both the long-term Christian and for the newbie to a God-centered life. While Rusty does refer to a modern version of scripture, this choice only serves to emphasize how applicable and timeless God's promises truly are.
It's been a while since I dog-eared pages and underlined passages in a book the way I did when reading this one. I could relate all too well, also, to Rusty George's church-steeped upbringing that could lead to a works-based "earning" of God's favor that leads to frustration and exhaustion.
I highly recommend WHEN YOU, THEN GOD for those who yearn to know our Father God's love so well that we can partner with Him to connect our very hurting world with His power.
It's been a while since I dog-eared pages and underlined passages in a book the way I did when reading this one. I could relate all too well, also, to Rusty George's church-steeped upbringing that could lead to a works-based "earning" of God's favor that leads to frustration and exhaustion.
I highly recommend WHEN YOU, THEN GOD for those who yearn to know our Father God's love so well that we can partner with Him to connect our very hurting world with His power.
May 2, 2020
Living the Word, not just learning it
March 14, 2016
Christians often sink into a performance based life. There are certain things you have to do and certain things you cannot do before God will accept you. God's love comes with no strings and we cannot earn it. Instead, He is wanting to partner and work with us; we don't have to change the world all by ourselves. Rusty George shows what happens when we trust God in when you, then God.
Beginning with the illustration of a dad in a swimming pool trying to get his child to jump in, Rusty George shares how we have a problem with fully trusting God. Some things are easy to let go of, but we like to hold onto other things. We cannot expect God to do much of anything if we don't relinquish our desires to be in charge.
Using humor, personal stories, and, most importantly, scripture, when you, then God shows what it means to put your life in God's hands and what He can then do for you. It isn't that you will have a pain-free and easy life, but you will be joyful and content in Him.
Besides the good message, the book is easy to understand and well written. I also like the different designs of the title pages for each chapter. Many times, all the design goes into the cover and the content is just there. That was a nice change of pace from other books.
I received a free copy of this book from Tyndale House Publishers in exchange for this review.
Beginning with the illustration of a dad in a swimming pool trying to get his child to jump in, Rusty George shares how we have a problem with fully trusting God. Some things are easy to let go of, but we like to hold onto other things. We cannot expect God to do much of anything if we don't relinquish our desires to be in charge.
Using humor, personal stories, and, most importantly, scripture, when you, then God shows what it means to put your life in God's hands and what He can then do for you. It isn't that you will have a pain-free and easy life, but you will be joyful and content in Him.
Besides the good message, the book is easy to understand and well written. I also like the different designs of the title pages for each chapter. Many times, all the design goes into the cover and the content is just there. That was a nice change of pace from other books.
I received a free copy of this book from Tyndale House Publishers in exchange for this review.
March 11, 2016
I remember sitting in on a class about the promises in the Bible and how a lot of them come with a response that we should have before the promise is evident. So, I was interested in this book when I saw it. While this book is a bit more basic than that, going into things like "when you walk with Jesus, God will help you look like Jesus" and "when you show kindness to others, God will show you grace", it was still an interesting read. The author does a great job of weaving scripture verses and personal stories into the promises that he talks about. I appreciated what he had to say about financial blessings, since I do think that sometimes the blessing in financial problems is that God is there for us. I don't believe that God gives wealth to the righteous or because someone is righteous. I don't like that some people equate riches with how righteous you are. But, I digress.
Over all, this book has some great points and is an interesting read.
I received this book from Tyndale in exchange for my honest review.
Over all, this book has some great points and is an interesting read.
I received this book from Tyndale in exchange for my honest review.
October 27, 2016
When you read this book, then you will become wiser
Rusty lays out clearly, through stories drawn from his leadership of a vibrant and growing suburban Southern California congregation and his personal life story, how God blesses partnership with Him in His plan of redemption. Sharing his own struggles and mishaps, Rusty never fails to encourage and uplift his readers with God's faithfulness and love for His people.
Rusty lays out clearly, through stories drawn from his leadership of a vibrant and growing suburban Southern California congregation and his personal life story, how God blesses partnership with Him in His plan of redemption. Sharing his own struggles and mishaps, Rusty never fails to encourage and uplift his readers with God's faithfulness and love for His people.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews