Learning My Name [Paperback]

Pete Gall (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 23, 2009

When the prodigal returns home, the real relational work between father and son begins. Learning My Name is the harrowing chronicle of a fearful prodigal putting family relationships on the line as he learns to trust the love of both his dad and his heavenly Father for the sake of putting neurotic, addictive thinking to rest. But this book is more than the author's story; it is the story of humanity's interaction with God. Desperation becomes discovery, and light floods onto both the prodigal tendencies of evangelical faith, and the character of the Trinity whose love beckons us home. This is the story of finding that 'the love of the Father is far more durable than we've come to believe,' and discovering a new joy in God's goodness and love. It's a book for tired rebels, fearful followers, and anyone who longs to meet the God of laughter and adventure.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Pete Gall writes with an honesty and transparency that is simply unheard of. This time around, Pete writes about identity --- about learning who we really are. His insights are breathtaking, and his stories about as raw and naked as they come. -- Jeffrey L. Sparks, Executive Director, Heartland Truly Moving Pictures

From the Back Cover

When the prodigal returns home, the real relational work between father and son begins. Learning My Name is the harrowing chronicle of a fearful prodigal putting family relationships on the line as he learns to trust the love of both his dad and his heavenly Father for the sake of putting neurotic, addictive thinking to rest. But this book is more than the author's story; it is the story of humanity's interaction with God. Desperation becomes discovery, and light floods onto both the prodigal tendencies of evangelical faith, and the character of the Trinity whose love beckons us home. This is the story of finding that 'the love of the Father is far more durable than we've come to believe,' and discovering a new joy in God's goodness and love. It's a book for tired rebels, fearful followers, and anyone who longs to meet the God of laughter and adventure. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Zondervan (June 23, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0310283906
• ISBN-13: 978-0310283904
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,709,528 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What does God call you?, August 17, 2009

By 

P. Breedlove "son of the Father" (Knoxville, TN USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Learning My Name (Paperback)

So what name do you think God calls you when He's talking to you? Is it "My Child" or "Beloved" or something in a similar vein? What about "asshole," "loser," or "hopeless?" Does the Creator of the universe look at you and think "Wow, what was I THINKING when I made this creature?"

Pete Gall's second offering takes a different track than "My Beautiful Idol," looking at the events that shaped Gall into who he is and what he believes about God. Despite this change in focus, "Learning My Name" is no less brutally honest than what Gall revealed in his first book. There is no corner too dark for Gall to shine the light of truth and honesty into, and in doing so he opens the door for his reader to shine that same light on our own lives.

I recommend this book to both Christians and seekers, but also to anyone who suffers from an addiction of some type or knows someone who does. Gall refers frequently to his battle with over-eating and the causes that led him into it, but this isn't just an "addiction" book. Instead, as the title suggests, Gall talks about how this addiction and the events of his childhood led him to believe certain things about himself, to believe the titles that friends and family gave him, and ultimately about finding out his true identity from the Lord Himself.

Light on theology but heavily laden with what a relationship with the Creator looks, sounds, tastes and feels like, I highly recommend "Learning My Name" to Christian and seeker alike. 5 stars!

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Story-in-progress, September 19, 2009

By 

Michelle Van Loon - See all my reviews

This review is from: Learning My Name (Paperback)

I liked Pete Gall's first book, the memoir entitled My Beautiful Idol enough to write and tell him so. His funny, messy journey from his job in the advertising industry to world-changer bound to set the world on fire to burned-out ex-superhero was well-written and honest. Gall is back with the next chapter of his story-in-progress: Learning My Name (Zondervan).

Story-in-progress most definitely captures the feel of this book. It does not have a neat resolution featuring the five alliterative steps he took to get fixed. Instead, Gall's quest for emotional, physical and spiritual health form the narrative of this extremely personal, confessional memoir. Gall is battling obesity, and he begins the journey toward wholeness as he faces down the why of his condition.

His father's introduction at the beginning of the book brought me to tears. It alone is worth the price of the book.

This was not an easy book to read. Part of me wanted to walk away from the book, to cover Gall somehow - the confessions are so intimate and his wounds so raw that I found myself worried for the very public way in which he is processing his pain in real time. The other part of me, however, felt welcomed into the naked mess of his story. I am broken, too.

Gall is not certain whether his story will have a happy ending. He hopes so, but that hope is not the Braveheart triumphalistic kind of hope that we tend to see in Christian books. It's small and uncertain, and it's a costly kind of offering that actually looks more like true worship than a lot of the bombast that passes for it in other circles.

If you or someone you know is battling an addiction or facing down their own brokenness, this book might be a helpful companion. Even without the certainty of a happy ending.

Or maybe, especially because of it.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great story all men can relate to told in Gall's wonderful style, September 30, 2009

By 

Radford Harrell (Atlanta and Hong Kong) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Learning My Name (Paperback)

First bought Gall's first book (My Beautiful Idol) used on Amazon and loved it. The author has a very unique storytelling style that made it easy to get into his life. Learning My Name has that same feel, only better! Clearly Gall is improving his craft and abilities but what I loved about this book is how he approached the relationship with his dad. I could not only relate to his perspective and questions regarding that relationship, and all the baggage that comes with being on the planet for 30+ years (how old is Pete?), but how God gives us such a clear path to loving our fathers (and being loved by them) through the storm. Overall, I loved the book for many reasons and expect we'll see lots more from Pete. If this is an example of how far he's come, I think God will continue to keep Pete busy.