A Resilient Life: You Can Move Ahead No Matter What

This is one of the best books I have ever read! It was recommended to me by a friend and I am thankful for her recommendation! It's amazing how the author opens up about his own personal experiences in life and explains great principles with amazing simplicity. I just love his wrriting style, reading the book feels like talking to Gordon MacDonald face to face! There is much more I could say but my time is very limited. I definitely recommend it to anyone who is serious about turning their lives around and living for a higher purpose.

A through and practical guide to living the Christian life with endurance. Gordon honestly bears some personal life experiences and how older wiser believers helped him along the way. His time on the track team with a Christian coach molded him for the rest of his life.

The writing is rich and deep yet very simple to read and digest. I wish I would have read this years ago. There are gems on every page and I cant wait to get back into the book. I will be buying this book for both my kids and their spouses and using what I learn in my mentoring.

Gordon MacDonald, a sixty-something pastor, offers a lifetime of wisdom in "A Resilient Life." Freely admitting that he was born with a "quitters gene," he credits the influence of his high school cross-country and track coach with helping him onto the road of resilience. MacDonald defines "resilience" as the "toughened condition of both the body and the mind" and goes on to describe many characteristics of a resilient person. Perhaps most importantly, MacDonald offers hope. He is a firm believer that the second half of life is when God often has people make their greatest contributions, and that we are called to serve well into our senior years. Even if one's life to date has been less than ideal, "the Christian worships a God who can (and does) take the life of any person, turn it inside out, and use it to build a piece of His kingdom." MacDonald emphasizes that building resilience is a daily pursuit. It requires a regular self-assessment, the discipline of spiritual pursuits, and making the most of one's talents. It also takes place within whatever stage of life we find ourselves in at the moment. One of the most valuable sections of "A Resilient Life" is Chapter Seven: "Resilient People Foresee the Great Questions of Life's Passage." MacDonald interviewed several senior citizens (including people older than himself) to get a full picture of the big questions of life at each age. He comes up with a fairly comprehensive list. These questions shape our lives and the answers we come up with help make us who we are at every stage. Another important chapter is Chapter 9: "Resilient People Listen for a Call from God." A call "is an acknowledgment that one is accountable to God for the discharge of his life's duties." God calls each of us to fulfill our role in His plan. He gives us the tools we need to make our own particular contribution to the world. It can be difficult to know what God is asking of us, but when we are on that right road, it will generally be confirmed by others. There are also the results. When we answer the call, we help to make the world a better place. MacDonald also emphasizes that not everyone is called to do something that will attract attention. "Men and women have obeyed God's call and become martyrs. Others have undertaken unspeakably difficult and discouraging tasks and barely survived. Many more have lived the relatively common life between home and job. They hammer nails, sell widgets, create software or fix things. But in the process they make a difference in the existence of the people around them. And they, too, are called." "A Resilient Life" offers an in-depth look at the characteristics that make up a resilient person, a person ready to be faithful for the long haul. While we are all works in progress and very few will possess all of these characteristics, this book gives us something to strive for. Patrice Fagnant-MacArthur is editor of The Spiritual Woman Newsletter [...]

Gordon MacDonald does it again with his latest "A Resilient Life". The heart of the book is the powerful chapter on practicing repentance followed by many practical insights on staying in the faith race over the long haul. MacDonald writes as a guy who has been there -- a pastor once fallen - now restored. The power of his words is intensified by the witness of MacDonald's life. God used this book to speak powerfully to me -- what more can I say? Highly recommended.