In Unglued, Lysa TerKerst uses grace, humour and examples from her own life to understand our reactions to raw emotions and to make wise choices in the midst of them. This book explores 4 types of unglued reactions that cover the whole range of how emotions are processed and acted out. Some of this I already knew about myself, but I realized that like most people I deal differently with different people (meaning Matt sees a different side of unglued me than a stranger at the grocery store). Lysa gives practical advice for each reaction type and goes on to explore root issues and triggers for raw emotions. Managing these feelings sure gets easier if you can figure out where they are coming from! Like the pain that causes us to reflexively pull our hand back from a hot stove, strong emotions can be a warning of danger to our emotional health. Finding the roots can help us address identity issues, unspoken fears and areas of brokenness we didn’t realize need fixing.
In some ways, Unglued could be classified as a self-help book, but it comes with a Godly perspective on breaking destructive patterns and very practical advice for moving forward. Lysa uses the language of “imperfect progress” to describe our goals in moving from unglued to gracious, Godly and resilient. Thanks to this book I have a new perspective on my emotions and how I deal with them.
This book is also lovely because it describes our need for transformation but also teaches grace and understanding for others when they come unglued. The better acquainted we are with our own insecurities and vulnerabilities that trigger raw emotions, the more compassion we can have for others when their crazy comes out.
This is a book I would definitely recommend to anyone who comes unglued – whether privately or publicly, in the form of anger, anxiety, bitterness or despair. Our identity should not be based on our low points or bad moments, and finding hope for wholeness makes the journey so much easier!
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher through BookSneeze.com® in exchange for my honest review. The opinions I have expressed are my own, and I was not compensated in any other way.