Confessions of a Pastor: Adventures in Dropping the Pose and Getting Real with God [Hardcover]

Craig Groeschel (Author)

Book Description

Release date: September 30, 2006

The Dark Side of a Pastor’s Life—A Breath of Fresh Air

Are you tired of pretending? Living walled up? Going only skin deep? Craig Groeschel , pastor of the thriving LifeChurch.tv, sure was. And in his refreshingly raw and real book, he comes clean. Not that he has anything other than typical, human stuff to confess. Check out a few of his musings: I have to work hard to stay sexually pure, I hate prayer meetings, sometimes I doubt God , and I can’t stand a lot of Christians . Through his incredible honesty, he opens the door for you to follow suit. Are you ready to dig deep and let God shine through the genuine you? No more living just to please others. No more hiding. You can be who God called you to be. You can live for an audience of One.

Is the real you getting lost

because the fake you is just so annoyingly

impressive?

“Stepping onto the platform to preach that morning, I admitted to myself that I was not a pastor first, but a regular, scared, insecure, everyday guy whose life had been changed by Jesus. And if Jesus really loved me as I was (I knew He did), then why should I go on trying to be someone I wasn’t?”

Why do we fake it so much? Why do we spend so much time trying to please everyone else and make so little effort trying to please God? When Craig Groeschel asked himself those questions, he couldn’t come up with a good answer. So one day he decided to drop the act and start getting real. With that one choice, his life began to change in a big way. And yours can too. Craig’s passionate, funny, warts-and-all confessions—and the lessons he learned from them—will help you find your own path to authentic living and a deeper relationship with God (you know He’s on to you anyway!).

Story Behind the Book

“For too many years my life had been a show—my lines well rehearsed and every performance polished. By college, I played so many different roles I lost track of the real me. I began to wonder if there was a real me. Exhausted from playing the parts, I finally took off the masks—and met a God who loved me unconditionally. Confessions of a Pastor reveals in graphic detail my inner struggles, questions, doubts, and fears—to inspire others to abandon lives of pretending—and to meet the authentic love of God like never before.” — Craig Groeschel

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Craig Groeschel is the founding and senior pastor of LifeChurch.tv, one of the country’s first multi-campus churches, with thirty-seven weekly worship experiences at nine locations. Craig, his wife, Amy, and their six children live in the Edmond, Oklahoma, area where LifeChurch.tv began in 1996. Craig and Amy’s passion, to lead people to become fully devoted followers of Christ, is the driving force behind his down-to-earth teaching that touches thousands of people weekly. Craig earned his BA in marketing from Oklahoma City University and his MDiv from Phillips Theological Seminary.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Multnomah Books; 1st edition (September 30, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1590527208
• ISBN-13: 978-1590527207
• Product Dimensions: 5.6 x 0.8 x 8.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (53 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #311,478 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Craig Groeschel is the founding and senior pastor of LifeChurch.tv. Meeting in multiple locations around the United States, and globally at Church Online, LifeChurch.tv is known for the innovative use of technology to spread the Gospel.

With a passion for serving the Church and partnering to reach people for Christ, LifeChurch.tv develops and shares resources and applications with churches worldwide.

Craig, his wife, Amy, and their six children live in the Edmond, Oklahoma area where LifeChurch.tv began in 1996. He speaks at conferences worldwide and has written several books, including his recent release: The Christian Atheist: Believing in God but Living As If He Doesn't Exist.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Purpose Driven Rant November 14, 2006

By Randy Rice

Format:Hardcover

I'm not using "rant" in a bad context, but this was my thought as I read Craig's confession in the first chapter about not liking a lot of Christians. Some people may find the candid comments about how we Christians can appear to non-believers (especially how Christians come across on the "Bad Preaching Channel"), but it's time to take an honest look at ourselves through a pastor's eyes. I've read a lot of Christian books and in most of them the writers took great care not to be controversial. However, I think this book reflects the same attitude of Jesus that caused him to upset the merchants' tables in the temple. Once you start reading this, the passionate message makes it hard to put down. This book is a must-read for Christians to get one pastor's perspective about the Church, but more importantly to learn about his own inner struggles. The ultimate things I took away from this great book are that 1) my pastor is not some guy in a lofty place that has it all together, and 2) he tells how he deals with the very same struggles that the rest of us experience, such as fear of failure, sexual temptation and setting the right priorities.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A Pastor's Confession March 16, 2007

By Heather Zempel

Format:Hardcover

The more I read from Craig Groeschel, the more I like him. I read Chazown about a year ago, so I was thrilled when I got Confessions of a Pastor. This book is a quick read (I read it in one day) and it is authentic. Craig tells it like it is and doesn't hold back. He's a real guy sharing his real struggles, hopes, failures, and victories, and that's why I identify with him. But more importantly, he shoots straight about what God expects of us. That's why I like him.

Revolving around 10 confessions, this pastor of LifeChurch.tv pours out his own struggles and challenges all of us to stop hiding behind spiritual masks and start becoming the people God has created us to be. I wasn't really blown away by the book, and I didn't make many underlines or comments in the margin (which is typically an indication that I've really enjoyed the book). However, the author invites us into his life in a way that is simultaneously grace-giving, truth-giving, and challenging. Reading this book was more like an honest conversation with a friend than a lecture of important details to remember or a set of pithy sound-bytes to highlight and live by.

Personally, I found the chapters on loneliness, inadequacy, and criticism particularly helpful.

One of the quotes that I identified with the most was, "I had become a full-time minister and a part-time follower of Christ."

I was expecting this book to be written primarily to pastors. While it certainly comes from a pastoral perspective and highlights some of the unique challenges that pastors face, this book shoots straight to everyone-- pastors, lay leaders, and committed Christ-followers.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Wake-Up Call for Church Leaders May 18, 2007

By Richard Riccioli

Format:Hardcover

I was looking for a book to use in my introductory pastoral counselling course. The kind of book I needed was one that would challenge students to be in touch with humanity. One that would help them be authentic people who could have the empathy needed for counselling. I certianly found that in this book and so much more... it ended up challenging me and doing more good for me than I expected. I started reading it and couldn't put it down. It's so down-to-earth and practical. The author is talking to the reader as to a friend. It's a definite book for church leaders today!