#59 Empty Shelf Challenge 04 [101 in 1001]

Book: So Long, Insecurity. You've Been a Bad Friend to Us .

Author: Beth Moore

Info: Copyright 2010:  Carol Stream, IL:  Tyndale House Publishers

Where acquired: Checked out of public library.

Why:  Chronic insecurity is one of the results of  being unhealthy and overweight.  I actually saw this book at the library while I was looking for something else.  I already knew that Beth Moore was a solid Bible teacher, so I trusted that the book would do exactly what it set out to do:  be a practical Biblical guide to dealing with insecurity.

Rating (on a scale of 1-4 hashtags):  # # # #

What it's about:  Moore deconstructs insecurity into it's basic elements:  the whats and whys of insecurity.  This book is part autobiography, part Gallup poll, part psychological lecture, and part campmeeting.  Her focus in on women, though she does garner information from men as well and addresses some of their insecurities along the way.  This is not a self-help book, but quite the opposite.

Favorite Quotes: 

For fear of quoting the whole book, I'll restrict myself to three or four quotes.

"I don't think that any male in my life would claim that I harbor repressed anger at his gender.  (And if he did, I have a mind to hit him square in the middle of his forehead with a slingshot and a bottle of Midol.)"  - p. 6

"At the root of chronic insecurity is often the primal fear that no one will take care of us."  - p. 65

"Truth is the first casualty in a media-crazed society" - Dr. Rick Rigsby p. 97

"Insecurities do not attract.  They repel.  Insecurities do not invite intimacy.  They invite uncertainty. They do not work for us on any level at all, except to open our hearts and minds to the healing, securing strength of Christ.  Through Him we have acquired the human unction upon which every life pivots; the power to choose." - p. 238

What I Liked:

• I am drawn to authors whose messages come from practical experience.  If I didn't know any better, I'd swear this woman lived in my house and wrote this book about me.  It's written in a conversational style, rather than in condescending, "I've got it all together so what's wrong with you?" clinical psychobabble.
• Unlike other books I've read, Moore doesn't simply say "here's the problem, now get over it."  She conveys great sympathy and empathy for both men and women dealing with insecurity.  But she doesn't leave us there.  She goes on to present the cure, which is not an instant one, but an exercise in persistent recovery strategies.
• This book was good enough for me to pay library late fees to finish it.  I'm cheap thrifty, so that says something.

What I didn’t like: 

• Not really a dislike, but maybe a nit-picking.  When she first mentions that she surveyed men for their opinions on insecurity, she says that she didn't require them to give their ages, yet all through relaying their comments, she gave their ages.  So, I guess she meant that the question was optional?  Just confused wording, but it just niggled at me as I read.

To sum up: My main takeaway from the book was this:  God says in Proverbs 31:25 says that He clothes women in strength and dignity.  I better learn how to put my clothes on!

 

 

Update (2017):  I have now purchased a copy of this volume for my personal library.

Update (2019):  I reread this volume.  It was just as good as the first read, though I had a few more critical points for it.