Telling Yourself the Truth [Paperback]

William Backus (Author), Marie Chapian (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1980

William Backus and Marie Chapian team to show readers how to be genuinely happy by dealing with our "misbeliefs", according to Bible guidelines.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Dr. William Backus offers practical help and training to those who want to learn effective and loving interpersonal communication. "It seemed to me," Backus said, "that many people were talking to one another without much concern for the truth and love in what they were saying, and thus weakening the power of communication in the home, the Church, and other communities.

He received a B.A. and a Bachelor of Divinity degree at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, Missouri. After receiving the degree of Master of Sacred Theology, he was called to serve as pastor of St. Paul's Lutheran Church, St. Louis. In 1956, he began serving a Lutheran Parish in Pleasant Hill, California.

In 1963, Backus was awarded the generous Wheat Ridge Scholarship for psychological studies, and in 1969 received the Ph.D. degree in Clinical Psychology from the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis.

After five years on the staff of Hennepin County General Hospital, Minneapolis, Minnesota, where he directed a program of training for clergymen of the area, Backus founded the Center for Christian Psychological Services.

Dr. Backus has conducted follow-up studies of his clients that show a 95% improvement rate, compared to a 67% success rate for other methods of therapy. The difference, Dr. Backus says, is "discovering our misbelief and replacing it with truth."

In addition, he serves as an assistant pastor on the staff of North Heights Lutheran Church, Roseville, Minnesota, where he has founded and directed a lay-staffed free counseling clinic.

Dr. Backus has authored several books, including Telling Yourself the Truth and Why Do I Do What I Don't Want to Do? with Marie Chapian, Telling the Truth to Troubled People, and Finding the Freedom of Self-Control. His latest book, Untwisting Twisted Relationships, offers help to those who would like to mend relationships that have been damaged or broken.

Backus lives with his wife, Candy, in Minnesota. The four Backus children have established homes in various parts of the midwest.

Marie Chapian is an author, speaker, and a psychotherapist. Educated at the

University of Minnesota, Moody Bible Institute, and Metropolitan State University,

she holds a Ph.D. in psychology. Marie has been the recipient of several awards in the areas of poetry, fiction, and design, and has been nominated for the Ten Outstanding Women of America Award.

Marie is best known as the author of over twenty-five books, including the bestseller

Free to Be Thin, which she co-authored with Neva Coyle. With over one million copies sold, this book received the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association's Platinum Book Award. Recently updated, the All-New Free to Be Thin includes current dietary and weight-maintenance research.

Marie Chapian's books have sold throughout the world, and have been translated into more than two dozen languages. Her other titles include Telling Yourself the Truth,.co-authored with Dr. William Backus; Mothers and Daughters, a guide for teens and their mothers; and Am I the Only One With Faded Genes?, a teen devotional. Marie has also written the five-book devotional series, A HEART FOR GOD.

Marie travels extensively and speaks to women's groups, retreats, banquets, and other meetings throughout the United States. She is also known and loved as a speaker in Europe, Mexico, and Canada. Also a fitness aficionado, she writes about health and fitness and leads seminars and workshops teaching the Free to Be Thin Lifestyle. She makes her home in California.

size : 5.2 x 8 --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 185 pages
• Publisher: Bethany House Pub; Trade Paperback edition (May 1980)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0871235625
• ISBN-13: 978-0871235626
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (52 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,305,346 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A book everyone should read., September 23, 2005

By 

M. Brenneman "truth lover" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Telling Yourself the Truth: Find Your Way Out of Depression, Anxiety, Fear, Anger, and Other Common Problems by Applying the Principles of Misbelief Therapy (Paperback)

The step by step information in this book changed my life. Even as a faithful Christian and successful business owner, I had a significant problem with anger. My wife, family and friends and have seen a dramatic change. This powerful book addresses the negative self talk that almost all people have. More importantly it gives biblical instruction on how to stop it and the destruction that it causes.

51 of 54 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Face the Truth About Yourself, October 6, 2003

By 

Michael Taylor "Michael Taylor" (Indian Trail NC) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Telling Yourself the Truth: Find Your Way Out of Depression, Anxiety, Fear, Anger, and Other Common Problems by Applying the Principles of Misbelief Therapy (Paperback)

Backus' book is an excellent read for knowing how to properly handle our thoughts and reactions to others.

Among the points Backus covers include:

1. We do not have to strive for the approval of others.
2. When beliefs change, behavior will change.
3. Truths about anger and pleasing others.
4. We are not victims, we can make choices!
5. Be careful of manipulation.
6. Misbeliefs and truths about being indispensible.
7. Truths about taking chances.
8. Unlearning old thinking.

Bakcus accurately states that much of what happens to us results from the way we think.

Read and be encouraged to change your inappropriate thoughts!

70 of 76 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Truth Liberates, October 27, 2003

By 

Dr. W. G. Covington, Jr. (Edinboro, Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Telling Yourself the Truth: Find Your Way Out of Depression, Anxiety, Fear, Anger, and Other Common Problems by Applying the Principles of Misbelief Therapy (Paperback)

To improve the quality of your life improve your thought life. The truth sets you free from depression, guilty, confusion, and anxiety. This book shows you how to replace self-defeating thoughts with healthy thoughts that build you up. It is based on principles from the Bible.
We're told early in the book, "you'll believe what you tell yourself" (p. 18). Consequently it is important not to be decieved. Self-deception can hold a person back from living the abundant life Jesus sacrificed to give us.
In laying the background for the rest of the book, he tells us on page 21:
"In emotional and mental health, what you believe is all important. It makes a difference what you believe. Other people, circumstances, events and material things are not what make you happy. What you believe about these things is what makes you happy or unhappy."
Actions grow out of beliefs. You will behave, based on what you believe. In fact, the chemicals in the physcial brain are affected by the thoughts one thinks.
Chapter 3 does a masterful job of explaining how negative thoughts are deceptive. In the chapter's summary, he writes, "Remember, any thoughts that reflect hopelessness, desperation, hate, fear, bitterness, jealousy, or envy are the words and thoughts generated by demonic falsehood" (p. 35).
Chapter 5 contains a nugget on effective prayer, "Instead of praying the problem, pray the answer" (p. 61).
The book takes a negativity and exaimes how it is a deception. For example, anger or fear. As a person realizes the truth, the negative is replaced with the positive.
Read this book and grow healthy mentally.