Foolproofing Your Life: Wisdom for Untangling Your Most Difficult Relationships [Paperback]

Jan Silvious (Author), Kay Arthur (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1998

The world is filled with difficult people. It is impossible to avoid them. (You may have one, in particular, in your life right now.) In dealing with such people, we often try a number of coping strategies. Unfortunately, our best attempts at making peace often fail. This is because the difficult people in our lives are often what the Bible calls "fools." And dealing with fools requires a special kind of biblical wisdom.

You've tried everything–from confrontation to passivity. You've found out what doesn't work; now discover what does. Gain the tools you need to get along with others and conduct your relationships in a manner that honors God–and preserves your sanity!–in Foolproofing Your Life: Wisdom for Untangling Your Most Difficult Relationships. Learn how new insights from the book of Proverbs can help you respond to those relationships that seem hard to untangle.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

The world is filled with difficult people. It is impossible to avoid them. (You may have one, in particular, in your life right now.) In dealing with such people, we often try a number of coping strategies. Unfortunately, our best attempts at making peace often fail. This is because the difficult people in our lives are often what the Bible calls
"fools." And dealing with fools requires a special kind of biblical wisdom.

You've tried everything–from confrontation to passivity. You've found out what doesn't work; now discover what does. Gain the tools you need to get along with others and conduct your relationships in a manner that honors God–and preserves your sanity!–in Foolproofing Your Life: Wisdom for Untangling Your Most Difficult Relationships. Learn how new insights from the book of Proverbs can help you respond to those relationships that seem hard to untangle.

About the Author

Jan Silvious is the co-host (with Kay Arthur) of Precept Ministries’ national radio program, “Precept Live with Kay and Jan.” She is also a counselor and popular keynote speaker at church and women’s events. Jan has authored several books, including The Five-Minute Devotional and Please Don’t Say You Need Me: Biblical Answers for Co-Dependency. She is a frequent guest host on Moody Broadcasting Network’s national programs, “Mid-Day Connection” and “Open Line.” A graduate of Radford University in Radford, Virginia, Jan today lives in TN with her husband and has three grown sons.

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: WaterBrook Press; 1st edition (September 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1578560063
• ISBN-13: 978-1578560066
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.7 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (36 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #446,290 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Jan Silvious is an author and speaker with a passion for offering hope and encouragement to those who are stuck in their life circumstances. She speaks at conferences and seminars both nationally and internationally. Jan was on staff at Precept Ministries for over a decade and co-hosted a live call-in radio program with Kay Arthur for five years. She leads women's seminars for Moody Bible Institute's conference ministry and is also a regular pre-conference speaker for Women of Faith. Jan has been married to her husband, Charlie, for thirty-five years. They make their home in Chattanooga, Tennessee..

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars God Blessed me with this book, May 8, 2000

By 

"jvgolfer" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Foolproofing Your Life: Wisdom for Untangling Your Most Difficult Relationships (Paperback)

In January I was in a lot of pain because of the inner struggle that my husband was going through and how it was effecting our relationship. Through a long chain of God-handed events, I attended a Moody Bible Seminar where Jan Silvious was the featured speaker. I couldn't believe that she was speaking directly to my problem. I got both her book and the tape and listened again to the wonderful way that she presented how to live with a "foolish" person. Her message is that there was a way to separate from the conflict without separating from the person, especially when he was otherwise so good. Through her words, I found a way to keep my husband's painful words in context, which enabled me to keep him in my heart and my life. Unfortunately, he died in April of a sudden heart attack, and now I can only be eternally grateful that I was able to share much happiness in those last few precious months with him, and not forever regret that I let words spoken from internal pain rob us of the short time we shared. He was only "foolish", and now, he sees clearly. I have given all 5 copies of the book that I got to friends who are also looking for some alternative ways to understand and deal with the "fools" in their lives and I am at this site again to order more copies. This book has been a great blessing in my life, and I hope that it will bless many more relationships with alternatives to leaving.

28 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gave me my life back, December 7, 2004

By 

Lesli Peterson (Atlanta, GA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Foolproofing Your Life: Wisdom for Untangling Your Most Difficult Relationships (Paperback)

I was at the point with my previous husband that I tried to kill myself. Didn't work. The next month I heard Jan speak on this topic and immediately got this book. I realized that I had been living with a fool all along, and that I had let him change me. Many people don't believe me when I say this, but after this book and much MUCH prayer, God let me leave my husband. I realized that what I was going through was abuse and God wanted me out of that situation. I am so glad that Jan wrote this book. Without it, I might have tried suicide again. With it, and God, I am healthy now with a new, wonderful, Christ-centered husband and 2 lovely children. Thank you Jan.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An EXCELLENT resource when you've run out of solutions, March 3, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Foolproofing Your Life: Wisdom for Untangling Your Most Difficult Relationships (Paperback)

Everyone has at least one person with whom it is difficult to maintain a relationship. When you've used up all the solutions you can think of and feel at your wit's end, Foolproofing Your Life can show you the better way to deal with your problem person. Whether you are in a close relationship, like marriage, or in a little more distant one, like a business associate, this book's suggestions offer real ways to cope and survive unscarred. This is a book that could help anyone who truly wants to find the right way to end the heartbreak caused by tempermental, angry people we find in our everyday world. A MUST FOR EVERY BOOKSHELF!