Catch Blessed Are The Misfits: Great News For Believers Who Are Introverts, Spiritual Strugglers, Or Just Feel Like Theyre Missing Something Presented By Brant Hansen Volume

at my blog: sitelinkBabbling Books

“Pretty sure Ill be seated at the misfits table, Pretty sure there wont be any nonmisfit tables, now that I think about it, ”

I was having a low point when I decided to click “Read Now” on this book on NetGalley, and Im glad I did, You know those books that make you feel like someone has reached deep into that lonely, aching place of your heart and given it that extra special squeeze it so desperately needed, well, this is one of those books.


I didnt know anything about the author, Brant Hansen, before choosing this book to read, I found out through reading it that the author is speaking from many of the perspectives hes writing to, hes a misfit just like us, Dealing with Aspergers syndrome, nystagmus and being an introvert, hes able to come alongside the misfit believers and talk to us in a way others cannot, It was clear from the title that the misfits were meant to represent those who struggled to feel that they were connecting with God spiritually, They didnt understand emotional worship, they thought they were missing something when they saw other believers who seemed to “have it” and they didnt get why they were so introverted in their faith when others werent.
This was the beauty of the “misfit” Hansen was appealing to, Ive never read a book that honestly sought after these people, my people, me, And so thats why I gave the book five is because the author really manages to get after and talk to these people in the kingdom of God.
He laughs with us and teaches us

at the same time,

Alive with laughter, practical biblical knowledge and warm friendship from someone who understands the struggle, Hanson is able to capture the unique beauty and grace of being a misfit.
He illustrates Gods love for the marginalized through Jesus, the radical and uncommon nature of Christs choosing the unknown and unlikely people and how in most cases God did not look for the people everyone expected, but chose the people no one wanted.
His stories are immensely relatable, things those of us on the outside, the questioners and seekers have all wondered if others felt but never dared to reveal ourselves, His assurances that emotions are not the end all is a refresher to the push of culture today and he breathes new life into the idea that being awkward, introverted and a struggler are not the worst things in the world to be.
Sometimes these things are what draw you closer to the arms of the Father, One of the many quotes I highlighted in this book was the one below and I love it because it reminds me of a truth Ive known but never been able to express.
The truth that there is more and sometimes, when youre a misfit, you know it and you seek it from God all the time and when others dont it makes you feel like youre wrong, but Hansen is here to tell us that maybe thats just not the case.

“Lovers yearn, but religious people dont, Religious people have their rules, and they have them in full, Theres nothing to yearn for, But God calls us to relationship, and that means yearning, ”

The writing style of this book is unique, Honestly the best way I can describe it is like sitting down to have a conversation with a friend and just letting the conversation go where it goes because sometimes thats just how it feels, like talking to a friend.
Hansen can be a little jumpy in his writing and some of his stories seemed out of place for the narrative, but these are nitpicks to the overall wonderful message he was able to get across with this book.
While I can disagree with him that God has favorites and I agree that God is a healer but sometimes, because of the fallen nature of man, not everyone will be healed, I cant explain enough how wonderful it is to read a book that really resonates with me.
Right now, so many Christian books are about watered down gospel and watered down struggle, But this author is willing to tackle the real struggles while still staying true to the God of Scripture, A humble thank you to him for this book, for his honesty in writing it, and his wisdom in sharing it, Ill leave this review with one last quote, and its another really good one, Being a misfit means youre often left out and kept out, but so was Jesus and you know what, that didnt stop Him from loving the world anyway, Hansen writes in his book about this great love for the marginalized and how we as misfits need to remember that Christ was a great misfit too, He died for everyone, the misfits and the nonmisfits, so that they may know eternal life,

So, in sum:

, Humans make no sense Love them anyway.

I received an eARC of this book through NetGalley from Thomas NelsonW Publishing in exchange for an honest review,RTC
ARC received courtesy of Netgalley and the Publisher, in exchange for an honest review

To say that this was simply a “good read,” would be an understatement.
IMO, this book was a refreshing breath of air, given by an author who is unpretentious in his musings and more than relatable to his audience of misfits, square pegs, ragamuffins, and other weird folk, who dont quite fit in with popular church culture.
As a selfproclaimed “ragamuffin” chica, I loved reading this book, so much so that I went ahead and purchased his previous book, “unoffendable, ”

Giving this one:brilliant,

I've been a fan of Brant Hansen's writing for quite a long time, I can still remember my first encounter with his words over a decade ago: a blog post declaring that he and his family were giving up church attendance in favor of a different sort of gathering with other people of faith.
At that time, he kept a blog called Letters From Kamp Krusty, where he sometimes poked fun at the strangeness of church culture, at other times tackled more serious issues such as acceptance and doubt, and at other times engaged in outright silliness such as singing sometimes literally the praises of toast.


What I always noticed and appreciated even in those earliest days was Brant's repeated observations that many Christian circles don't often know what to do with those who don't quite fit the mold.
It's easy to welcome and accept and engage with the ones who seem well put together, those who carry themselves confidently or who articulate faith issues well, It's more difficult to do so with the shy or awkward, those struggling with disorders or disabilities, the ones who dare to express doubts or questions,

In that sense, Blessed Are the Misfits: Great News for Believers who are Introverts, Spiritual Strugglers, or Just Feel Like They're Missing Something is a culmination of what Brant has been writing about for years.
The warning he includes at the very beginning partially quoted above names that he wants to speak to all those who have often or always found trouble trying to relate to fellow believers in traditional contexts or ways.


Much like the title, many of this Blessed Are the Misfits's chapters follow the model of the Beatitudes in the Gospel of Matthew, declaring various groups of misfits "blessed, " He addresses groups such as those who can't easily access their emotions, those who struggle with prayer, those who struggle with "imposter syndrome," skeptics, and those on the autism spectrum, among many others.
Every chapter provides a combination of personal anecdote, scriptural insights, and assurances that one shouldn't feel so lone that in fact there are many others wrestling with similar issues, and that God loves them all regardless.


Brant himself is quite open with his own struggles throughout his book, As a selfconfessed introvert, skeptic, and "Aspie" person diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome, he weaves his own story into many chapters, This is not a memoir per se, but one of the reasons he wants to include and reassure many of the groups that he does is because he himself falls into them.
He knows the issues well, and his form of selfconfession and exploration allows the reader dealing with similar things to enter into what he shares more easily,

I found Blessed Are the Misfits a wonderful exploration of why so many don't feel like they fit into traditional church culture or ways of expressing faith.
He helps show that such things don't mean they aren't or can't be loved by God, In fact, he says, we often see that Jesus tends to spend more time with the outcasts, the square pegs in the culture's round hole, who have been deemed unfit, unclean, and unworthy.
As he has been doing for years, Brant wants to show that what was good news for Jesus' original audience is still good news for many who need it today.

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