Raising Giant Killers {Review}

  Much of my parenting journey has been birth out of intentionality.  I remember being pregnant with my oldest and realizing what a special gift it was to be his mom.  From the very beginning of my life as a parent, I wanted nothing more than to be intentional in my interactions and choices with my children.  So when I heard about this newest book by Bill and Beni Johnson, I was intrigued.  And hopeful.  Releasing my child into his divine destiny?  Sign me up!

  But coming away from this one, I have many mixed feelings.  I wanted so badly to whole heartedly endorse this book; I struggle to put into words the strange mixed bag of emotions that I'm stepping away with.  Let's try to break it down:

Pros:

• The Johnson put a special emphasis on being intentional in our parenting.  As parents, we can't live in reaction to our children.  Through prayer and guidance, we need to take active, intentional steps in preparing for this journey.
• Speaking life over our children.  In today's world, so much is breaking our children down.  It's become the norm, not only to speak poorly of ourselves, but to speak poorly of others.  There is very little filter and often that leads to breaking others down with our words and attitudes.
• Praying over our children from a young age.  It's never too early, or too late, to be praying over our children, their identity, and the lives they will live in, and out, of our homes.

Cons:

• There were some questionable verses taken out of context that sent up red flags right away.  I often felt a check in my heart that things just didn't line up.
• The authors make some far fetched guesses as to the background of some prominent Biblical characters, potentially skewing the intended message to fit their agenda.

This is one of those books that I struggled with reviewing.  There was so much good focused on being intentional, speaking identity, and building up our children with our words and attitude.  And for that, I am extremely grateful for this book and the Johnson's message.  But there was just too many red flags popping up left and right concerning the theology that is the backbone of this book.  So I think for a seasoned parent that's looking for refreshment and refocusing, this could be the answer.  But for a new parent, or a new Christian, I really hesitate to recommend this book.  In all reality, Raising Giant Killers has some great meal, but it filled with bones.  Chew carefully.

*Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.  All opinions are my own.