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Dear Friends, I know that if you homeschool your children, you care deeply about their education. However, you also face the need to regularly review their curriculum, books, and other learning materials. We want to help make that just a little bit easier. Every homeschool family approaches educating their children in their own way. It is with that in mind that we offer up this WaterBrook Multnomah Homeschooling Sampler. Inside you will find selections from a handful of books from WaterBrook Multnomah, the Christian division of Penguin Random House, including fiction for young readers, books for teens, and several nonfiction books about practical and biblical Christian parenting. I hope you find content here that is useful to your family in your homeschooling journey! My Warmest Regards,
Alexander Field
Alexander Field Vice President and Publisher, WaterBrook Multnomah A Division of Penguin Random House
ABOUT WATERBROOK & MULTNOMAH WATERBROOK MISSION WaterBrook publishes Christian books that seek to intensify and satisfy a reader’s elemental thirst for a deeper relationship with God. We seek messages that draw on the Bible, experiential learning, story, practical guidance, and inspiration to help readers thrive in their faith. MULTNOMAH MISSION Multnomah publishes Christian resources that proclaim the Gospel and equip followers of Jesus to make disciples. We seek timeless messages from trusted Christian voices that challenge readers to approach life from a biblical perspective. Sign up for our email newsletter at www.waterbrookmultnomah.com to find out about new releases, special promotions, and book related events.
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Excerpt from Kingdom’s Dawn © 2001, 2006 by Chuck Black Excerpt from Do Hard Things © 2008, 2013 by Alex Harris and Brett Harris Excerpt from Hiding in the Light © 2015 by Fatima Rifqa Bary Excerpt from No Fear © 2015 by Anthony R. Perkins Excerpt from Stand Strong © 2014 by Nicholas James Vujicic All rights reserved. First published by the WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group, a Division of Penguin Random House. First Printing, 2016 Copyright 2016 All rights reserved
REGISTERED TRADEMARKS Printed in the United States of America Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book. PUBLISHER’S NOTE This publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party Web sites or their content. The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.
Contents KINGDOM’S DAWN . . . . . . . . 1 by Chuck Black DO HARD THINGS . . . . . . . 15 by Alex and Brett Harris HIDING IN THE LIGHT . . . . 29 by Rifqa Bary NO FEAR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 by Tony Perkins STAND STRONG . . . . . . . . . 63 by Nick Vujicic
THE KINGDOM SERIES by Chuck Black The Kingdom Series is a series of six Christian allegorical novels set in the mythical land of Arrethtrae, a medieval world that has fallen away from the plans of its great ruler and God-figure, the King.
“W
hen my six kids’ eyes glossed over during a reading from the Bible, I paused to explain the significance of redemption to a sin-sick soul. I was rewarded with patronizing elephant nods and more blank stares. Shortly thereafter, I awoke in the middle of the night with a medieval story enveloping my mind. I wrote it down and later read it to my children. Their waning attention transformed into complete anticipation. I was amazed and disappointed. Why did it take a fictional story, not a Bible passage, to get that response? Then I realized— that is how Jesus taught! Parables are powerful! I penned the Kingdom series to help young people get excited about the supremely significant story of Jesus Christ and His mission to save mankind.” —Chuck Black
KINGDOM’S DAWN (Book #1) 978-1-59052-679-8 • 160pp. • $9.99/$12.99 Can.
“I loved it. I have passed up other allegorical books because they used witchcraft and magic to represent things in the Bible. We felt this was wrong. I have been longing for a book to keep my children mesmerized for a long time. This did it. It is hard to get some kids interested in being read to or to read on their own. Some kids need an exciting story. This book did it for our children. They look forward to getting the rest of the series! We also brought up the stories in the Bible that this book represented. It led to some great conversations.” —D.G. Astoria, OR
OTHER BOOKS YOU MIGHT ENJOY BY CHUCK BLACK:
CHUCK BLACK, a former F-16 fighter pilot and tactical combat communications engineer, is the author of thirteen novels, including the popular Kingdom Series and The Knights of Arrethtrae Series. Chuck and his wife, Andrea, have six children and live in North Dakota.
SIR ROWAN AND THE CAMERIAN 978-1-60142-129-6 • 192pp. • $9.99/$10.99 Can.
KINGDOM’S HOPE (Book #2) 978-1-59052-680-4 • 160pp. • $9.99/$11.99 Can. KINGDOM’S EDGE (Book #3) 978-1-59052-681-1 • 144pp. • $9.99/$12.99 Can. KINGDOM’S CALL (Book #4) 978-1-59052-750-4 • 160pp. • $9.99/$12.99 Can. KINGDOM’S QUEST (Book #5) 978-1-59052-749-8 • 176pp. • $9.99/$12.99 Can. KINGDOM’S REIGN (Book #6) 978-1-59052-682-8 • 176pp. • $9.99/$10.99 Can. Discussion Questions included For more books by Chuck Black, go to: www.waterbrookmultnomah.com
LADY CARLISS AND THE WATERS 978-1-60142-127-2 • 208pp. • $9.99/$12.99 Can. SIR BENTLEY AND HOLBROOK COURT 978-1-60142-125-8 • 208pp. • $9.99/$12.99 Can. SIR DALTON AND THE SHADOW HEART 978-1-60142-126-5 • 176pp. • $9.99/$12.99 Can. SIR KENDRICK AND THE CASTLE 978-1-60142-124-1 • 208pp. • $9.99/$10.99 Can. SIR QUINLAN AND THE SWORDS 978-1-60142-128-9 • 208pp. • $9.99/$10.99 Can.
KINGDOM’S DAWN by Chuck Black
S
ixteen-year-old Leinad thought he was a common farmer’s son, nothing more. He wondered why his father had trained him for years to master the sword—not exactly a tool of the trade for farmers—but one tragic event initiates a world of revelation. He’s just a young man, but that doesn’t change the truth: He was chosen. Swords, knights, and battles define this captivating tale that parallels biblical events from Genesis to Revelation, in which the King and His Son implement a bold plan to save their kingdom; where courage, faith, and loyalty stand tall in the face of opposition; where good will not bow to evil— and the future of a kingdom lies in the hands of a young man. CHUCK BLACK, a former fighter pilot and tactical combat communications engineer, is the author of thirteen novels, including the Kingdom Series and The Knights of Arrethtrae Series. Chuck and his wife, Andrea, have six children and live in North Dakota. Multnomah • Trade Paperback • 978-1-59052-679-8 • 160pp. • $9.99/$12.99 Can. eBook: 978-0-307-56267-8 1
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This is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogues are products of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. KINGDOM’S DAWN published by Multnomah Books © 2001, 2006 by Chuck Black Published in association with The Steve Laube Agency, LLC 5501 North Seventh Avenue #502, Phoenix, AZ 85013 International Standard Book Number: 978-1-59052-679-8 Interior illustrations by Marcella Johnson “Expedition” music © 2002 by Emily Elizabeth Black; lyrics © 2002 by Chuck Black Interior design and typeset by Katherine Lloyd, The DESK Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from: The Holy Bible, New King James Version © 1984 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Published in the United States by WaterBrook Multnomah, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York. MULTNOMAH and its mountain colophon are registered trademarks of Penguin Random House LLC. Printed in the United States of America ALL RIGHTS RESERVED No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without prior written permission. For information: MULTNOMAH BOOKS 12265 ORACLE BOULEVARD, SUITE 200 • COLORADO SPRINGS, CO 80921 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Black, Chuck. Kingdom’s dawn / Chuck Black. p. cm. -- (The kingdom series ; bk. 1) ISBN 1-59052-679-1 I. Title. PS3602.L264K557 2006 813'.6--dc22 2006005686 15—14
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Prologue
Voyage to the Edge The occasional cool mist of the sea quietly reminds me of the unyielding truth of my journey. I am too far from battle to feel the rush within my muscles and yet too close to sleep. The ship I am on is a grand ship and is only one of many. The night breeze chills my moist face as I gaze across the rhythmic mass and see the outline of hundreds of other gallant ships. Gallant ships carrying gallant knights. As I lean upon the mast, the creak of the timber and the melodic swish of each wave breaking against the bow tug upon my memories. I am Cedric‌Cedric of Chessington. You and I are alike in that we are on a journey. I am not referring to my trek upon this ship, although it is the final leg of my journey. No, my journey began a long time ago, when I was just a boy. At ten years old, my heart was full of dreams and adventure. An old man by the name of Leinad enticed my appetite 9
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for adventure with his stories. His impact on my life was powerful, though I did not realize it at the time. I believed him as a boy, humored him as a young man, and honor him now, for the stories he told of his life were true. They were of a truth that lost its believability as I grew into the reality of life and dared not believe. And yet, here I am on an adventure every bit as unbelievable as Leinad’s. As I close my eyes, the moist air reminds me of the damp smell of spring nearly twenty-five years ago. There was a small stream east of Chessington that meandered south until it emptied into the vast sea. I loved to play upon its banks with my friend William. Our swords of willow clicked in the morning sunlight as we rescued the fair lady from the clutches of the Dark Knight. William had been warned by his parents to stay away from the “crazy old man” who lived in a hut near the river, but I could not. He was odd for sure, but he was not dangerous at all. His tales of valor drew me to him. He was a mentor and a friend, and the memory of his voice has been a companion to me often, especially now that I know how his life fits so perfectly into the King’s plan for the kingdom. He had the voice of a seasoned knight… “Sit down, lad, and share a slice of apple,” Leinad said as my mouth became wet in anticipation of the tart fruit. His worn hands worked the knife firmly and delicately to produce eight perfect slices. “Sir Leinad, please tell me again about the mighty sword,” I pleaded as he slid a cracked wooden bowl across the table with the green apple slices. I thanked him and took a small nibble of my first slice to allow my mouth a 10
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Voyag e to t h e E d g e
chance to recover from the blast of sweetness that flooded my tongue and cheeks. His silver hair seemed to betray the heart of a mighty warrior within. Though he was old, his shoulders were broad and his arms were strong. The firewood he chopped was an easy challenge for him, and the blade of the ax landed on its target every time. His gentle brown eyes were framed by tan wrinkles that ran toward his temples. They were eyes that I could gaze into and not turn away from. At times during his orations they became a living canvas that revealed love, pain, courage, and fear. The years of age only slightly masked what I knew was once a very handsome young man. “Ah, Cedric, my dear boy,” he said and lowered himself into an adjacent chair on my right. It faced him toward a window that looked south to the sea, which was just beyond one’s vision. “That is a story worth its telling.” A veteran hand landed on my shoulder, and his smile accompanied a wink. “It was a new beginning for the people, the dawn of a new kingdom…” Leinad’s story is one of knights, swords, treachery, and love. There is no story like it, and though it is my beginning, it is his story—a story that must not be forgotten.
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Chapter one
Vision Search The razor-sharp tip of the sword screamed deathly close to Leinad’s chest as he quickly recovered from a foolish overextended thrust aimed for his opponent’s torso. I’ll never underestimate his speed again, thought Leinad as he carefully took up his position, once again facing the older man. A quick exchange of cuts and parries ensued with no clear advantage. The older man advanced an attack with seasoned experience, carefully but aggressively. Leinad countered each attack with precision and confidence as he gave slightly, waiting for the expended energy to take its toll on the muscled frame of the older man. At sixteen years old, Leinad was just a boy to some, but his daily training by his mentor had developed strength and discipline in him before his time. There it was—the first hesitation in his opponent’s volley of cuts was a clear indication to Leinad that his attack 12
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was ending. He had studied his opponent carefully and knew that if he was to be victorious, he had to capitalize on such a moment as this. As he deflected the last cut to his left, Leinad quickly rotated his body one full circle, which doubled the force of his blade as it raced toward the older man’s stomach. He risked the momentary unprotected exposure of his back based on the fatigue he sensed in his opponent. If he miscalculated, he would die. If he was successful, he would be the victor. As he neared completion of the circling maneuver, Leinad turned his head to locate the target for his following sword to strike, sure that it was impossible for the older man to retreat quickly enough to avoid his deadly blow. He was suddenly gripped with fear. His sword was screaming toward nothing but air; his opponent was gone. The older man had dropped to one knee and raised his sword for protection as he saw the deadly arc of Leinad’s sword coming toward him. Leinad knew in an instant that he had miscalculated once again. “Observation and experience build prediction, for if you study the past, you will know the future.” Leinad recalled this lesson from his mentor, and now he was about to die as a consequence of forgetting it. The speed of the sword was too great for him to change its direction, and yet once the sword passed over the head of his adversary, he would never be able to recover in time to stop the fatal thrust from his opponent that would surely follow. As the sword approached the vacant target just above the head of the master swordsman, Leinad pulled and jumped with all his might, using the momentum of the 13
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sword to catapult him, as though he were mounting a horse, over the top of the older man. The last-chance maneuver sent Leinad tumbling on the ground behind the older man, but he was able to regain his footing before his opponent could turn and attack again. The two swordsmen faced each other once again with sweat-soaked tunics and brows that could no longer hold the salty fluid that fell from their foreheads. The lush green meadow that hosted this fight seemed to wait patiently for its interrupted peace to return. The fight had lasted much longer than either of them had experienced before, and there was still no sign of a champion. Leinad looked into the eyes of the older man—eyes that revealed experience, wisdom, and patience. He sensed a mutual respect for each other’s skill as a swordsman and for each other’s character as a man. “That was a bit daring, son!” Leinad’s father said as he yielded his sword to his scabbard. Leinad smiled and knew that his father had just rebuked him for his carelessness. “I’m sorry, Father. I will be more careful in the future,” Leinad said as he too found a home for his sword in his own scabbard. Leinad had been trained by his father every day for the past four years in the art of the sword. Peyton was a master swordsman, and Leinad saw his father’s commitment to pass this mastery on to him through these lessons. Leinad also learned from his father that sword training alone was more devastating than helpful to a young man were it not tempered with discipline, honor, integrity, loyalty, and 14
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honesty—the very qualities his father demonstrated each day. Today Leinad revealed his proficiency, and he knew he was fast becoming a master swordsman like his father. Leinad was of average height but still growing. With dark hair that curled when wet, he bore a strong resemblance to his father, which even included the slight dimple in his chin. His smile was slightly higher on the left and accentuated the handsome features of a maturing young man. He felt himself growing stronger each day, but he knew his boyish look was still quite evident. Leinad was glad that his voice no longer cracked when he talked. He found it difficult to say the right things to folks other than his father, and attempting conversation with a voice that cracked didn’t help matters. Leinad’s eyes were different than Peyton’s though, for the deep, sharp eyes of his father gave way to the compassionate eyes of his mother. Leinad remembered his mother, although the image of her delicate face had become faint with the passing years. This upset Leinad, and he clung to the memory of her love for him all the more. Dinan had died when Leinad was eight. Even then Leinad could sense a deep ache in her heart that never seemed to leave her. The winter she fell sick and died was too grievous a time for Leinad to talk about. He assumed that was true for his father as well since he talked only of the pleasant times they once had as a family. Although it was not complete, his father’s gentle love was enough to carry Leinad into manhood without his mother. His father fulfilled both roles as well as any man could. Leinad knew this and responded with respect and loyalty. As they walked toward a favorite sprawling oak tree for 15
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a time of recovery, Peyton placed his arm around Leinad’s shoulder. “Excellent lesson today, son. After our rest, how about we clean up and make a trip to town for some supplies?” Leinad looked up slightly to meet his father’s eyes, for he was nearly equal in height, and smiled. Any time there was a break in the routine labor of the farm, Leinad enjoyed it. At first that was why he loved the lessons in sword fighting. But later he came to love the training because he had reached a point where he knew he was quite competent with the sword. Although he knew he was far from his father’s level of mastery, Leinad loved the fact that he was a challenge to him. For a long time he ignored the question that never left his mind: What does sword fighting have to do with farming? The young lad loved to be in the presence of his father. There he felt secure. Not that Leinad ever felt threatened, for all he had ever known since he could remember was a peaceful life in the land. Unlike many youths of sixteen, Leinad never saw his father as an overbearing fool. He could see the depth of wisdom that resided in his father, and he never questioned the truth and sincerity of his love for him. Peyton was a tall man with a well-seasoned muscular frame. His dark hair was accompanied by wisps of gray near his temples, and his eyes were deep and sharp but not harsh. His hands were large and leathery from long hours of working the land. Early on Leinad knew that his father’s hands were fashioned for a different purpose—they had not always been the hands of a farmer. It was in the last four 16 10
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years that this was made obvious to him since his father had begun teaching Leinad skills quite different from those required to grow food from the land. After each had taken long drinks from their water flasks, they dug into a knapsack and enjoyed the sweet taste of fresh fruit. Now that peace had returned to the meadow, so had the songs of the birds. Leinad and his father lived in the Plains of Kerr, which was along the western shore of the kingdom. The Great Sea bordered the kingdom on the west and down to the south as well. Most of the inhabitants of the Plains of Kerr were farmers. The town of Mankin served as a central community for the people as well as a place of trade for travelers from other regions of the kingdom. Leinad’s farm was a half-day’s walk north of Mankin, and the Great Sea was just as far to the west. It was lush, beautiful country. The farm rested on the northern edge of the Plains of Kerr. Rugged wilderness and forested country filled with wildlife was north of the farm, which afforded Leinad and his father many days of excellent hunting. Just to the east of the farm was the gentle meadow in which their lessons of the sword usually took place. It was in this meadow that they now were enjoying a moment of rest. “Your sword skills have greatly improved, Leinad,” Peyton said. “Do not become impatient with the fight. Impatience breeds recklessness, and recklessness will end in defeat against a skilled opponent. It is the patient perfecting of the fundamentals that wins battles. That is why I have worked with you to improve your strength and focus your mind, but you must decide that you will discipline 17
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yourself to use them.” “I understand,” Leinad said. “Father, may I ask you a question?” “Certainly.” “What does sword fighting have to do with farming?” Peyton finished a draw on his flask and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “No matter what a man’s occupation, he must be ready to fight for the King. One never knows if he will be called upon to serve the King in battle.” Peyton paused and looked at Leinad. “But honestly, son, for you it will mean much, much more.” He did not wait for the next inevitable question. “Come. Let’s clean up and get to town so we can return home before dark.”
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From NFL all-star and author of Through My Eyes: A Quarterback’s Journey
S HA K E N
DISCOVERING YOUR TRUE IDENTITY IN THE MIDST OF LIFE’S STORMS TIM TEBOW—Heisman Trophy-
winning athlete, a television personality on ESPN, a New York Times bestselling author—has accomplished many great things but it’s his identity as a Christian that supersedes all else.. Identity is the topic of his newest book, Shaken, in which Tebow traces the highs and lows of his life and career in conjunction with his enduring faith. He encourages his fellow Christians to define themselves in terms of their relationship with Christ rather than earthly successes or failures, and reaches out to those struggling with their faith to reveal the revolutionary effects of building one’s identity with Christ as its cornerstone. By sharing his own most vulnerable moments, Tebow inspires and reminds us of our incredible value in the eyes of God.
TEBOW AD TK
TIM TEBOW is a homeschool graduate who went on to become a two-time national champion, first-round NFL draft pick, and Heisman Trophy winner. He is currently a college football analyst for SEC Nation, a traveling pre-game show. Tebow also contributes to a variety of ESPN platforms including SportsCenter, ESPN Radio, and the network’s Heisman Trophy coverage. Prior to joining the SEC Network, Tebow played three years in the NFL for the Denver Broncos, New York Jets, and New England Patriots. Tebow is active in a variety of philanthropic activities through his Tim Tebow Foundation.
SHAKEN
Discovering Your True Identity in the Midst of Life’s Storms by TIM TEBOW with A.J. Gregory WaterBrook Press • HC 978-0-7352-8986-4 • 224pp. $25.00/$34.00 Can. Also available as audiobook download, audiobook CD, and an eBook.
AVAILABLE OCTOBER 2016
Books by Robin Jones Gunn Christy Miller Collection Christy Miller navigates the excitement and disappointment of one’s high school years— from shifting friendships to blossoming romance—all while maintaining and building her relationship with Christ. CHRISTY MILLER COLLECTION, VOLUME 1 978-1-59052-584-5 ∙ 496pp. ∙ $16.99/$19.99 Can. CHRISTY MILLER COLLECTION, VOLUME 2 978-1-59052-585-2 ∙ 496pp. ∙ $15.99/$17.99 Can. CHRISTY MILLER COLLECTION, VOLUME 3 978-1-59052-586-9 ∙ 480pp. ∙ $15.99/$18.99 Can.
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CHRISTY MILLER COLLECTION, VOLUME 4 978-1-59052-587-6 ∙ 496pp. ∙ $16.99/$19.99 Can.
Sierra Jensen Collection Being the new girl is never easy, as Sierra Jensen learns when her family uproots and moves to Portland. She has to make new friends, juggle school with her other responsibilities, and deal with an annoying older sister— but through her faith she’s able to do it all. SIERRA JENSEN COLLECTION, VOLUME 1 978-1-59052-588-3 ∙ 432pp. ∙ $15.99/$17.99 Can. SIERRA JENSEN COLLECTION, VOLUME 2 978-1-59052-589-0 ∙ 432pp. ∙ $15.99/$17.99 Can. SIERRA JENSEN COLLECTION, VOLUME 3 978-1-59052-590-6 ∙ 480pp. ∙ $15.99/$17.99 Can. SIERRA JENSEN COLLECTION, VOLUME 4 978-1-59052-591-3 ∙ 464pp. ∙ $15.99/$17.99 Can.
ROBIN JONES GUNN has had more than 4.5 million copies of her books sold worldwide. Her frequent speaking engagements have taken her around the globe. Robin and her husband live in Hawaii and have a grown son and daughter. For more books by Robin Jones Gunn, go to: www.WaterBrookMultnomah.com
DO HARD THINGS by Alex and Brett Harris
D
o Hard Things is the Harris twins’ revolutionary message in its purest and most compelling form, giving readers a tangible glimpse of what is possible for teens who actively resist cultural lies that limit their potential. Combating the idea of adolescence as a vacation from responsibility, the authors weave together biblical insights, history, and modern examples to redefine the teen years as the launching pad of life. This rallying cry from the heart of an already-happening teen revolution challenges a generation to lay claim to a brighter future, starting today. ALEX and BRETT HARRIS speak regularly to audiences of thousands, host an active online community on TheRebelution.com, and have been featured on CNN, MSNBC, NPR, and in The New York Times. Raised in Portland, Oregon, Alex is attending Harvard Law School and Brett is pursuing further writing.
Multnomah • Trade Paperback • 978-1-60142-829-5 • 320pp. • $14.99/$19.99 Can. eBook: 978-1-60142-161-6 • N Audio: 978-1-4159-4694-7 15
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DO HARD THINGS PUBLISHED BY MULTNOMAH BOOKS 12265 Oracle Boulevard, Suite 200 Colorado Springs, CO 80921 All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the ESV® Bible (the Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked (MSG) are taken from the Message. Copyright © by Eugene H. Peterson 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc. Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Italics in Scripture quotations indicate the authors’ added emphasis. The stories featuring teenagers in this book have been used by permission. Trade Paperback ISBN 978-1-60142-829-5 Hardcover ISBN 978-1-60142-112-8 eBook ISBN 978-1-60142-161-6 Copyright ” 2008, 2013 by Alex Harris and Brett Harris Foreword copyright © 2008 by Chuck Norris All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Published in the United States by WaterBrook Multnomah, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York. MULTNOMAH® and its mountain colophon are registered trademarks of Penguin Random House LLC. The Library of Congress has cataloged the hardcover edition as follows: Harris, Alex, 1988– Do hard things : a teenage rebellion against low expectations / by Alex and Brett Harris. — 1st ed. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 978-1-60142-112-8 1. Self-actualization (Psychology)—Religious aspects—Christianity. 2. Self-actualization (Psychology) in adolescence. 3. Expectation—Religious aspects—Christianity. 4. Adolescent psychology. I. Harris, Brett, 1988– II. Title. BV4598.2.H36 2008 248.8’3—dc22 2008006226 Printed in the United States of America 2016—First Trade Paperback Edition 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 SPECIAL SALES Most WaterBrook Multnomah books are available in special quantity discounts when purchased in bulk by corporations, organizations, and special interest groups. Custom imprinting or excerpting can also be done to fit special needs. For information, please e-mail SpecialMarkets@WaterBrookMultnomah.com or call 1-800-603-7051.
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Introduction to the Five-Year Edition
looking baCk , looking ahead
O
nly yesterday, it seems, two teenage brothers got excited about a big idea that young people were being under-
estimated—badly, and with devastating consequences. What made it worse, the brothers believed, was that a whole generation of teens had bought into a culture of low expectations. Kids everywhere were essentially being groomed for failure before they had ever been tested for success. Before they’d ever
been invited to set their minds, wills, and hearts on making a mark for God in the world. How tragic!
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And history showed it didn’t have to be that way. History showed, in fact, that the teen years were meant to be a season of daring, of high hopes and real achievements, a one-timeonly opportunity for a guy or girl to set a course for a truly remarkable life. The brothers—okay, that would be us, Alex and Brett— came up with a plan to change all that, then invited other young people and their parents to join in. And that was the beginning of the Rebelution. What a difference five years have made! What started as a blog (TheRebelution.com) became a best-selling book, Do Hard Things, which led to youth conferences around the country every summer. And all of that, by God’s grace and a lot of hard work, had spawned an international youth movement with this red book as its manifesto. To date, Do Hard Things has been translated into over a dozen languages, including French, Korean, Czech, and Portuguese, sparking sister campaigns in Europe, Asia, and South America. Young people from New York to Los Angeles, from São Paulo to Manila, are rebelling against low expectations for the glory of God. “Regards from snowy Poland,” reads a recent e-mail from sisters Kornelia and Eunika Chojeckie. They wrote to say they had just finished a “do hard things” presentation in Lublin. The Chojeckie sisters are two of the founding members of a Rebelution-inspired youth campaign spreading across
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Looking Back, Looking Ahead
Eastern Europe. They’re sponsoring events and a growing, multilingual social networking site with users from Poland, Hungary, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Moldova, and Kazakhstan. Here in the United States, rebelutionaries have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for missions and charity, won prestigious film festivals, earned Grammy Award nominations, fought human trafficking around the world, and been invited to speak at the White House on multiple occasions. “Do hard things” is slowly entering the national consciousness, making cameo appearances in ESPN The Magazine, nationally syndicated comic strips, blockbuster feature films, as well as in the speeches of major political leaders from Senator John McCain to President Barack Obama. But the true engine of the Rebelution has been the steady, long-term faithfulness of thousands of young people you’ve never heard of, quietly stepping outside their comfort zones, going beyond what is expected or required, investing their teenage and college years in undertakings of real and lasting consequence, and never backing down from hard things worth doing. Across the globe—from Parisian neighborhoods to Ivy League classrooms—a generation of rebels is rising through steady, one-foot-after-the-other, daily obedience to Jesus Christ. This is a quiet, worldwide revolution, and you’re invited. Our mantra is “do hard things,” and our mission statement is 1 Timothy 4:12, “Don’t let anyone look down on you because
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you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity” (NIV). We were eighteen when we wrote Do Hard Things. Since then we’ve been able to travel and speak in dozens of major cities in the United States, Canada, Switzerland, and Japan— reaching hundreds of thousands of teens, parents, and youth workers through live events and media appearances. We’ve been able to preach the gospel to our generation and seen thousands of bold professions of faith in Jesus Christ. We’ve written another book called Start Here, a field guide for putting the “do hard things” mind-set into practice. We attended and graduated from college (Patrick Henry College, Purcellville, Virginia), becoming the first in our immediate family to do so. We watched our mother bravely battle cancer and go to be with Jesus on July 4, 2010. We’ve fought our own personal battles against sin, wrestled through questions of calling, and for long stretches of time, stepped out of the limelight to just practice what we preach. And we both got married—Alex to Courtney, and Brett to Ana. All together, the last five years have been the most significant and challenging years of our lives. We’ve been stretched, pushed, and strengthened. We haven’t backed down, and we haven’t let up. It’s been hard—and it’s been good. Which brings us to the fifth anniversary edition you’re holding. When WaterBrook Multnomah approached us about
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an update, we were faced with some important questions: How do you update something without changing it? How do you offer something new without compromising what made the old so effective? In the end, we opted for a conservative approach, leaving the original content untouched while adding new material as appendixes. It’s the same book, but better. And whether you’re a first-time reader or a long-time rebelutionary, we think you’ll really like it. This new content begins with “Questions (and Stories) to Get You Started,” which delves into the queries we hear most often: • “I’m ready to get started—on something! What should I do now?” • “Do small hard things really count?” Next you’ll find the list “100 Hard Things” to get your own creative juices flowing. These are real-life examples of hard things young people just like you have done—from making care packages for members of the military, to starting an after-school Bible study, to training for and running a marathon. Finally, we’ve included a Do Hard Things study guide for personal or group use, along with information about downloadable video resources we created with LifeChurch.tv. We think you’ll find these new tools helpful and encouraging as you champion the vision of teenage high
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expectations in your area and apply your heart, mind, and strength to the adventure ahead. G. K. Chesterton once wrote, “The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting. It has been found difficult; and left untried.” Our hope and prayer is that you would join us in doing hard things, that together we would be the generation of Christian young people who find it difficult to follow hard after Christ…and yet still try. Together for His glory, Alex and Brett Harris
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Most PeoPle don’t a different kind of teen book
M
ost people don’t expect you to understand what we’re going to tell you in this book. And even if you under-
stand, they don’t expect you to care. And even if you care, they don’t expect you to do anything about it. And even if you do something about it, they don’t expect it to last. Well, we do. This is a different kind of teen book. Check online or walk through your local bookstore. You’ll find plenty of books
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rethinking the teen years
written by fortysomethings who, like, totally understand what it’s like being a teenager. You’ll find a lot of cheap throwaway books for teens because young people today aren’t supposed to care about books or see any reason to keep them around. And you’ll find a wide selection of books where you never have to read anything twice—because the message is dumbed-down. Like, just for you. What you’re holding in your hands right now is a challenging book for teens by teens who believe our generation is ready for a change. Ready for something that doesn’t promise a whole new life if you’ll just buy the right pair of jeans or use the right kind of deodorant. We believe our generation is ready to rethink what teens are capable of doing and becoming. And we’ve noticed that once wrong ideas are debunked and cleared away, our generation is quick to choose a better way, even if it’s also more difficult. We’re nineteen-year-old twin brothers, born and raised in Oregon, taught at home by our parents, and striving to follow Christ as best we can. We’ve made more than our share of mistakes. And although we don’t think “average teenagers” exist, there is nothing all that extraordinary about us personally. Still, we’ve had some extraordinary experiences. At age sixteen, we interned at the Alabama Supreme Court. At seventeen, we served as grass-roots directors for four statewide political campaigns. At eighteen, we authored the most popular Christian teen blog on the web. We’ve been able to speak
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Most people don’t
to thousands of teens and their parents at conferences in the United States and internationally and to reach millions online. But if our teen years have been different than most, it’s not because we’re somehow better than other teens, but because we’ve been motivated by a simple but very big idea. It’s an idea you’re going to encounter for yourself in the pages ahead. We’ve seen this idea transform “average” teenagers into world-changers able to accomplish incredible things. And they started by simply being willing to break the mold of what society thinks teens are capable of. So even though the story starts with us, this book really isn’t about us, and we would never want it to be. It’s about something God is doing in the hearts and minds of our generation. It’s about an idea. It’s about rebelling against low expectations. It’s about a movement that is changing the attitudes and actions of teens around the world. And we want you to be part of it. This book invites you to explore some radical questions: • Is it possible that even though teens today have more freedom than any other generation in history, we’re actually missing out on some of the best years of our lives? • Is it possible that what our culture says about the purpose and potential of the teen years is a lie and that we are its victims?
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• Is it possible that our teen years give us a once-in-alifetime opportunity for huge accomplishments—as individuals and as a generation? • And finally, what would our lives look like if we set out on a different path entirely—a path that required more effort but promised a lot more reward? We describe that alternative path with three simple words: “do hard things.” If you’re like most people, your first reaction to the phrase “do hard things” runs along the lines of, “Hard? Uh-oh. Guys, I just remembered that I’m supposed to be somewhere else. Like, right now.” We understand this reaction. It reminds us of a story we like to tell about a group of monks. Yep, monks. On the outskirts of a small town in Germany is the imaginary abbey of Dundelhoff. This small stone monastery is home to a particularly strict sect of Dundress monks, who have each vowed to live a life of continual self-denial and discomfort. Instead of wearing comfy T-shirts and well-worn jeans like most people, these monks wear either itchy shirts made from goat hair or cold chain mail worn directly over bare skin. Instead of soft mattresses, pillows, and warm blankets, they sleep on the cold stone floors of the abbey. You might have read somewhere that monks are fabulous cooks? Well, not
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these monks. They eat colorless, tasteless sludge—once a day. They only drink lukewarm water. We could go on, but you get the picture. No matter what decision they face, Dundress monks always choose the more difficult option, the one that provides the least physical comfort, holds the least appeal, offers the least fun. Why? Because they believe that the more miserable they are, the holier they are; and the holier they are, the happier God is. So these miserable monks must be poster boys for “do hard things.” Right? Wrong! We’re not plotting to make your life miserable. We’re not recommending that you do any and every difficult thing. For example, we’re not telling you to rob a bank, jump off a cliff, climb Half Dome with your bare hands, or stand on your head for twenty-four hours straight. We are not telling you to do pointless (or stupid) hard things just because they’re hard. And if you’re a Christian, we’re certainly not telling you that if you work harder or make yourself uncomfortable on purpose, God will love you more. He will never—could never— love you any more than He does right now. So that’s what we’re not doing. What we are doing is challenging you to grab hold of a more exciting option for your teen years than the one portrayed as normal in society today. This option has somehow gotten lost in our culture, and most
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people don’t even know it. In the pages ahead, you’re going to meet young people just like you who have rediscovered this better way—a way to reach higher, dream bigger, grow stronger, love and honor God, live with more joy—and quit wasting their lives. In Do Hard Things, we not only say there is a better way to do the teen years, we show you how we and thousands of other teens are doing it right now and how you can as well.
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HIDING IN THE LIGHT by Rifqa Bary
R
ifqa Bary grew up in a devout Muslim home, obediently following her parents’ orders to practice the rituals of Islam. But God was calling her to give up everything. Hiding in the Light is the story of Rifqa’s remarkable spiritual journey from Islam to Christianity. It is also the untold story of how she ran from her father’s threats to find refuge with strangers in Florida, only to face a controversial court case that reached national headlines. Most of all, it is the story of a young girl who made life-changing sacrifices to follow Jesus—and who inspires us to do the same. RIFQA BARY moved from Sri Lanka to the U.S. as a child, where she converted from Islam to Christianity. When her family discovered this, she ran away—and her story made national headlines. Living in an undisclosed location, Rifqa’s passions are prayer, missions, and people.
WaterBrook Press • Trade Paperback • 978-1-60142-698-7 • 240pp. • $15.99/$21.99 Can. eBook: 978-1-60142-697-0 • N Audio: 978-1-101-91372-7 29
HIDING IN THE LIGHT by Rifqa Bary
Hiding in the Light Published by WaterBrook Press 12265 Oracle Boulevard, Suite 200 Colorado Springs, Colorado 80921 All Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Certain names and details have been changed to protect the identities of the persons involved. Any resulting resemblance to real persons is coincidental and unintentional. Trade Paperback ISBN 978-1-60142-698-7 Hardcover ISBN 978-1-60142-696-3 eBook ISBN 978-1-60142-697-0 Copyright © 2015 by Fatima Rifqa Bary Cover design and photography by Kelly L. Howard All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Published in the United States by WaterBrook Multnomah, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York. WaterBrook® and its deer colophon are registered trademarks of Penguin Random House LLC. The Library of Congress has cataloged the hardcover edition as follows: Bary, Rifqa. Hiding in the light : why I risked everything to leave Islam and follow Jesus / Rifqa Bary. — First Edition. pages cm ISBN 978-1-60142-696-3 — ISBN 978-1-60142-697-0 (electronic) 1. Bary, Rifqa. 2. Christian converts from Islam—Biography. I. Title. BV2626.4.B36A3 2015 248.2'46092—dc23 [B] 2015001464 Printed in the United States of America 2016—First Trade Paperback Edition 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Special Sales Most WaterBrook Multnomah books are available at special quantity discounts when purchased in bulk by corporations, organizations, and special-interest groups. Custom imprinting or excerpting can also be done to fit special needs. For information, please e-mail SpecialMarkets@WaterBrookMultnomah.com or call 1-800-603-7051.
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One
M
y skin shone like caramel in the summer sun as I played in the garden outside our home in Sri Lanka. Honeysuckle sweetened the air. I drew in a breath and let it fill my lungs, small as they were. I was only five, such a little girl in a world so big, yet I felt carefree and safe. Joy bubbled within me. I raised my arms and imagined them as wings. I was a mighty bird drifting across the cloudless sky. Running in circles with my wings spread full, I gasped, laughed . . . And then stood still. For in that moment I felt something strange and new. A Presence, quiet and comforting, hovering, nearly tangible. It pressed in closer and closer. I had never experienced anything like this before. But I wasn’t scared. I felt strangely protected, cherished, even loved. Peering closer toward what seemed to be its direction, I half-expected to see the empty air staring back at me with noticeable face and features. Instead I saw nothing. But I knew Someone was there, a strong Man who seemed to stir the breeze as He moved. Too visceral to be invisible. Goose bumps broke out on my skin, and powerful excitement filled my tiny frame. Resuming my play, I looked back, still expecting to see a physical person. Again there was no one. I laughed. It became a game. Play, turn back, giggle. Play, turn back, giggle. This Presence was so enticing, so warm. I didn’t want our time to end. And even when it did, somehow I knew He would come back again.
I was a happy little girl growing up in Sri Lanka, especially when I was with my mother, my “Mummy.” I always wanted to be by her side. Her
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big, beautiful smile warmed me, and her hearty laugh echoed throughout the house. If I close my eyes, I can still picture her in the long cotton gown she wore at home, remembering how she tried to get me to eat when I was very young. I reached for her long, curly black hair, teasing her with my mischievous eyes. “One more bite, little Rifqa,” she said in Tamil, our native language. Opening my mouth wide, I let her feed me with her hands. I savored the taste—rice balls flavored with curry. “Okay. Let’s make this one an airplane! Open wide, Rifqa!” Mummy’s plane delivered its payload. I chewed open-mouthed and let out a squeal. She made meals fun, knowing it was the only way she could get me to eat. Airplane after airplane flew across the table and into my mouth. Back then my mother occasionally spoiled me when Daddy was out of the house. Sometimes she let me try on nail polish, even though my Muslim family did not allow me to wear it because they say it makes us unclean. But she let me keep a stash that I would hide and then wear when no one could see. I knew once I was old enough to pray, I would not be allowed to use it anymore. Still, I would never forget the twinkling of my fingernails in the dim light of my room. Early memories of my dad aren’t as easy to recall. But I do know I adored him. I thought he was huge! I now realize his height is average, but back then he was the biggest person in my little world, which made me believe he was safe and would keep me out of harm’s way. I loved his attention whenever I could get it, and more than anything, I ached to be special to him—like a prize he would forever treasure. My father supported us by selling gemstones, often to dealers in America. It was not unusual for him to be away for months at a time on business. I didn’t understand as a child why he was gone for so long, but I remember my joy when he returned. Once when he came home after one
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of his lengthy trips, he looked different. His normally clean-shaven face was dark and fuzzy. I reached up to feel his cheek, then put my own cheek against his prickly face, squealing with delight. Instead of running away, I rubbed my other cheek against his and shrieked some more. He smiled at my fascination with his beard. Over the next few years he frequently brought me clothes or candy from his faraway travels. Though I delighted in those, the real treats for me were the rare times he stayed home for more than a few days in a row. Those were the times when we could all be together. Despite being gone often, my dad was a faithful leader at our mosque. It was both his honor as a man and his duty as a Muslim. Just as I was born Rifqa Bary, just as I was born Tamil, I was also born a Muslim. Of course I was too young to understand, at five, what Islam really meant for me and the people around me, but it was quite clear that this was who we were, what we would always be. The strict Muslim culture was all I had ever known, so I accepted it as normal. Every person and every day belonged to Allah. That’s just the way it was. Who would ever feel the need to question something so settled and certain? My devout family followed all the required rituals of Islam: the five daily prayer recitations, the fasting and feasting, the memorization of the Qur’an. Some of my earliest memories involved getting up at three or four in the morning during the holy month of Ramadan, eating a meal before sunrise that my mother had prepared, then going back to bed, under orders to say a special, memorized prayer that I recited to myself as I tried drifting back off to sleep. By as early as age seven, I was expected to participate in the all-day fasting—no food at all, not even a drink of water— until seven or eight at night when we were allowed to break our fast with some dates as well as a Sri Lankan soup my mother made every day for the occasion. I also remember the Imam coming to our house each week. Even though he taught me to “read” the Holy Book, I had no idea what any of
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it meant. I spoke Tamil and a little English, but I couldn’t read in either language. The Qur’an is written in Arabic, and to translate it is considered unholy by the Muslim leaders where I grew up. We only had to be able to quote from it—perfectly, in Arabic—to earn the approval of our elders and the mosque leaders. But although its language and mystery was a source of great confusion to me, my father’s praise made all the hours spent studying worth it. I tried for his sake to be a good student of Islam, as did my big brother, Rilvan. Rilvan is two years older than I, so our relationship (like most siblings who are similar in age) swung wildly between close friendship and redfaced hatred. He was my closest companion, and I loved him dearly, even if I wouldn’t admit it then. I would shadow him around the house until he finally snapped in annoyance, and I would run away only to return undaunted. When he was in a more tolerant mood, we would play tag and run around the house together, shouting and laughing, taunting and teasing. One day shortly after my sixth birthday, my father returned home from a business trip with a little metal airplane he’d been given at the airport. Rilvan was playing with it, and I demanded a turn with it too. “No, Rifqa,” he said. “Daddy gave it to me. You can play with it later.” “Let me see it!” I shouted. “Just for a minute!” I said, before unsheathing my secret weapon. “I’ll tell Mummy!” “No,” said Rilvan, hugging the plane to his chest. “Mummy, he’s—” “All right,” Rilvan said, groaning and heaving the airplane straight at me. I remember seeing it cruising toward me, but after that things are a blur. All I remember is the blood. So much blood, everywhere, running down my face, soaking my orange dress. My mother, hearing my cries, rushed at me from another room, while Rilvan stood silently, horrified, staring in disbelief at his hands, like, How in the world? All I did was— Time felt like it had stopped. In fact, the last sight engraved on my
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memory that day was the hands on the clock, each pointing straight up, exactly 12:00 noon . . . before my world went pitch black. What happened next was a swirl of detached, floating images, weaving into and out of themselves in waves of trauma and consciousness. I remember hearing my grandfather’s voice: “Help! Somebody please help!” I remember the faint, frantic echoes of doctors and nurses, one of them, I guess, announcing to my family, “We cannot take her here, I’m sorry. Her wound is too serious. She’s bleeding too much. You’ll need to take her to the other hospital that can perform the kind of surgery she needs. But hurry! She might not make it if you don’t get her help right away!” I ached for my mother’s comforting presence. Limp and lifeless, I lay in my grandfather’s arms, moaning for breath. Not till several days later would I fully recover my senses. All but one. My right eye, so badly damaged from the metal plane’s sharp edge, would never respond to the various surgeries and treatments they employed in hopes of restoring its function. Despite weeks in the faraway hospital, under the care of its supposedly more highly trained staff, my sight in that eye failed to return. It never has. Its caramel brown color faded to a milky gray. But as distressing and disorienting as my partial loss of vision proved to be—gone at only six years old—the oddest loss came from somewhere else, somewhere equally (if not more) unexpected. From that point forward, I felt as if I had been marked. I couldn’t quite wrap my head around it, but something had changed. As soon as we returned from the hospital, my family began to treat me differently. When they looked at me, the warmth in their eyes would cool. Where before they would laugh at my stubbornness or persistence or whatever, now they would much more likely chide me to behave myself and keep quiet. Why? I wondered. I mean, it’s not like my injury had crippled me. I’d been able to adapt and adjust and pretty much do everything I could do before. I was still the same Rifqa, I knew. But their behavior toward me
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had changed all the same. They seemed to feel that I had become a burden. It was as if every time they looked into my blemished face, they saw something in me they just couldn’t acknowledge. In any case, even the most minor mishap or demand of mine could now invoke their sharp anger, resulting in serious consequences. Although physical discipline was common in my culture, I hadn’t witnessed it in my own family until this time. I remember clinging to my mother’s skirt hems one afternoon, begging her to play with me. I must have whimpered one time too many, because she finally just snapped. With a jerking lunge, she scooped me up and threw me. I crashed down on the cold concrete floor, scraping my knees and banging my elbows. “Stop it!” she screamed. “I do not have time for you today, Rifqa. Go!” At first I craved her attention more and more. But as the bruises and the shouting matches began to increase, I started to hide from her. Her rage would surface without warning, and if I did something she didn’t like or took too long to finish my chores, I could expect a stern reprimand. Even accidentally spilling milk or something would earn me a stinging cheek. There was no denying the growing hardness in my mother’s heart.
I remember finding a stray kitten, for example, roaming around our neighborhood. He was gray and covered in white splotches, and his eyes would shine brightly when he craned his neck to look at me. I named him Ajay. He limped on his back left leg and would tense up whenever I touched him, so I could tell he had been abused or neglected somehow. I held him for hours and hours in the yard, trying to imagine why anyone would abandon him. He was so friendly; he couldn’t have possibly meant anyone any harm. He just wanted attention . . . and maybe a bit of milk. Whatever happened, I was intent on keeping him alive. I was the only one who could. Every day I brought him a bowl of milk because my parents wouldn’t
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let him inside. They told me he was unclean, like so many other things were, and wouldn’t even allow me to touch him in their sight. I offered to give him a bath if he was so unclean. But they said that wasn’t what they meant. “It’s ugly, that thing,” Mummy would say. “It could have rabies. We don’t know. Just . . . just leave it alone, Rifqa. Leave it where it is.” One morning, however, my mother’s mind seemed to change toward Ajay. We were leaving for the market when she said I could bring the kitten along. I was ecstatic. Finally, I had worn her down! I scooped up Ajay and climbed into the yellow rickshaw my mother had chartered. The ride was boring but the market was grand. There were more tents and pavilions than I could count, and the air was thick with merchants crying their wares and with shoppers trading gossip. Every now and then a breeze would stir up a little column of road dust that would tumble down the aisles, as if it were shopping as well. The gathering was large but welltended to. Tall palm trees lined up like armed guards behind the endless rows of shops, and low shrubs fenced in the area from the nearby highway. Ajay recoiled against me when we first came upon the crowd, but as we wandered through the market, he eventually poked his head out to investigate the savory smells and strange noises, to which he added his own mewling. My mother walked beside me without saying a word. She consulted her list and methodically found our groceries. We completed our shopping and walked back to the waiting fleet of taxis and rickshaws, carrying our parcels, Ajay at our heels. But Mummy’s eyes, I could see, were like stones for some reason. She was tired, impatient, and strained. Then, suddenly, with one frustrated sigh, she stomped on the ground as hard as she could, trying to scare the cat away. Ajay stiffened, arched his back, and darted into the tall grass by the road. Gone. It was the last I ever saw of him. I stood there in shock, staring into the empty air. Why? Why would my mother do that? But with no other word of explanation, she grabbed
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me, swung me up roughly into the rickshaw, and motioned for the driver to take off. “Rifqa,” she said. “I told you not to go near that thing. I let you play with it all afternoon, but that’s enough. It’s gone. We’re leaving.” The memory of that day burned into my mind, as it probably would into yours, not only because of my heartbreak at losing Ajay, but because, in a certain way, the image fits my mother (and my father) so perfectly. Voices stern and eyes void of emotion, their message self-evident: Go away, go away, go away. It was another early lesson in life. My family was not to be trusted.
When I was about seven or eight, a distant uncle came to my house to watch me one day while my mom and brother left to go somewhere. He had dark skin and jet-black hair that was always gelled to the side. His almost black skin seemed darker against the white shirt he was wearing. The stench of his body odor filled the room. I was uncommonly small for my age. And my uncle, perversely recognizing the contrast in our strength and size, took advantage of my inability to defend myself and sexually violated me that day. Even though I didn’t understand what was happening, the ordeal made me feel disgusting. I knew better than to cry. I wanted to be strong. But I felt weak and scared. Something inside me died that day. The next time my parents sent me back to be watched by him, my uncle told me he would kill me if I ever told anyone what he had done. I believed him, yet I couldn’t stand carrying this secret. I didn’t want to ever be left alone with him again, so I later told my mother what happened. But rather than comfort or defend me, as I’d hoped or expected, she simply started wailing with grievous tears, “Don’t tell your father! Don’t tell anyone!” My father found out anyway. And he was enraged. But not so much
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at my uncle. In some Muslim cultures, like mine, this kind of violation is a great source of dishonor. Yet the shame is not attached to the abuser; it is cast on the victim. So not only was I viewed now in my parents’ eyes as a half-blind picture of imperfection, but I was also a shameful disgrace to the Bary name. My mere presence and appearance were a stain against the most important thing of all—our family honor. In this way, I was sort of like the kitten. Dirty. Devalued. Unclean. And in my naive mind I wondered if I, too, would be chased away. I could only guess at what would ultimately become of me, because we never talked about this episode or my feelings again. We simply ignored it and moved on. Literally. Two weeks later my father announced that we would all be going with him the next time he left for America. This sudden change of plans took our tight-knit community by surprise. In the following weeks our home was filled with a rotating circle of friends, acquaintances, and other well-wishers, all of whom exhibited varying degrees of curiosity. My parents were well-regarded at the mosque and around the town, and their abrupt interest in emigration struck many of our neighbors as suspicious. Mummy and Daddy wore guarded smiles all through those weeks, embracing their friends a bit too tightly and laughing at their jokes a bit too loudly. They told me to keep to myself and not bother the grownups, but I understood what they really meant, the subtle, underlying message. They worried I might say something embarrassing. About my uncle? I didn’t know. I never really knew. But better to keep quiet. I understood that much, loud and clear. Actually my parents might have been right to worry about the impression they were giving their neighbors. Some people just couldn’t resist the potential for gossip. Our more inquisitive visitors, with perfect nonchalance, oblivious to the social discomfort they created, would wonder aloud about our reasons for leaving.
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“For Rifqa,” my father would reply, when pressed to explain. “Better hospitals in America. Better surgeons too.” He would look at me, warning me with his eyes. “If we can’t find help for Rifqa there, we won’t find it anywhere.” That couldn’t have been the real truth, however. The last doctor to examine my blinded eye had frowned and told us that beyond some cosmetic corrections and other procedures to prevent pain and infection, there was very little that medicine could do for me in my home country or any other. But the word America seemed to hold some sort of bewildering power over people that allayed further questions. We were leaving. That was all. So we left for the United States in 2000 on a temporary visa, though my father’s plans in moving were never temporary. We ended up staying without the necessary legal paperwork after the visa expired. As for me, I’d lost so much of myself in those first few years of life, I didn’t really mind leaving my homeland behind. I remember watching out the window of the airplane as my island grew smaller and smaller, swallowed up by the ocean’s waves and the coming night. I never returned to Sri Lanka. And I don’t think I ever returned to being a child.
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NO FEAR by Tony Perkins
N
o Fear draws you inside the stories of young, ordinary believers who stood up for their religious convictions. Tony Perkins pairs each story with a biblical example, and gives practical ideas for building a “no fear” perspective every day. Today, Christians face more opposition to their beliefs than any generation in American history. Yet even in the current cultural and political environment, it is an exciting time to stand firm in the faith. You have been chosen to live in this important hour and reading these stories will inspire you to the same kind of fearlessness. So what are you waiting for? TONY PERKINS is president of the Washington, DC-based Family Research Council and a former member of the Louisiana legislature. Perkins hosts a radio program called Washington Watch with Tony Perkins. Perkins and his wife, Lawana, have five children.
WaterBrook Press • Hardcover • 978-1-60142-741-0 • 208pp. • $17.99/$23.99 Can. WaterBrook Press • Trade Paperback • 978-1-60142-742-7 • 208pp. • $14.99/$19.99 Can. eBook: 978-1-60142-743-4 41
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no Fear PublisheD by WaTerbrook Press 12265 Oracle Boulevard, Suite 200 Colorado Springs, Colorado 80921 All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked (niv) are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica Inc.TM Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com. Hardcover ISBN 978-1-60142-741-0 eBook ISBN 978-1-60142-743-4 Copyright © 2015 by Anthony R. Perkins Jacket design by Kristopher K. Orr All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Published in the United States by WaterBrook Multnomah, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York. WaTerbrook and its deer colophon are registered trademarks of Penguin Random House LLC. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Perkins, Tony. No fear : real stories of a courageous new generation standing for truth / Tony Perkins. — First edition. pages cm ISBN 978-1-60142-741-0 — ISBN 978-1-60142-743-4 (electronic) 1. Courage — Religious aspects — Christianity. 2. Fear — Religious aspects — Christianity. 3. Witness bearing (Christianity) 4. Christian biography. I. Title. BV4647.C75P47 2015 243 — dc23 2015008739 Printed in the United States of America 2015 — First Edition 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 sPecial sales Most WaterBrook Multnomah books are available at special quantity discounts when purchased in bulk by corporations, organizations, and special-interest groups. Custom imprinting or excerpting can also be done to fit special needs. For information, please e-mail SpecialMarkets@WaterBrookMultnomah.com or call 1-800-603-7051.
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What are you afraid of ? We all have our fears, right? The dark. Snakes. Sharks. Monsters. Things that go bump in the night. The kinds of fears that Hollywood has made a fortune exploiting. Those are the fun fears, the ones we like to talk about or weave into campfire storytelling. What about another kind? A deeper fear that grips you in its icy hands, preventing you from doing the right thing. You know what to do, but you’re afraid, mostly about what others will think of you. Remember Peter? An intrepid follower of Jesus, until it really mattered, until it might get him killed. “I do not know the Man!” he said of his friend and Savior. What are you afraid of ? I stumbled upon the topic of fear in my personal Bible study a few years ago, and what I discovered absolutely fascinated me! Repeatedly throughout Scripture, whenever God was up to something big — on the eve of a great, history-changing event — He spoke a clear, concise command to ordinary people who were about to do extraordinary things through Him.
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“Fear not!” With few exceptions, when God presented a great opportunity or mission to a particular individual, the assignment came with those two powerful words. “Fear not,” He said to • Abraham when He called him out of Ur to pioneer a new nation (Genesis 15:1) • Moses, who was to bring God’s people out of bondage (Numbers 21:34) • Joshua, the one who was to lead the people into the promised land ( Joshua 1:9) • Mary, who would give birth to the hope of mankind (Luke 1:30) • Simon Peter, who would become the apostle of hope (Luke 5:10) • Paul, who was to be the instrument through which most of the New Testament books were written (Acts 27:24) This strong admonition to courage was reserved not only for individuals but for entire groups of people as well, like the children of Israel when God set the land of promise before them (Deuteronomy 1:21), or the disciples when Jesus sent them out for the first time to spread the good news (Matthew 10:28). History-changing manifestations of God’s power and promise were preceded by a command to overcome the fear that greets those who stand at the threshold of such monumental opportunities. One of the things that jumped out at me as I studied the “fear nots” of the Bible is that I had never really empathized with the fears of these biblical heroes. I assumed that they obeyed God without any thought of the consequences of their obedience.
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Why? Because I knew the end of their stories. They all succeeded! There’s nothing like success to make us forget the fear they had to overcome — fear of failure, fear of rejection, even fear of death. We know the outcome, but they didn’t. They were ordinary people subject to the same fears you and I would have if we were in their shoes. Imagine Moses, outnumbered by an enemy king’s army, yet God told him to fight them anyway. How would you feel if you faced what aith says, “I can do appeared to be certain defeat? You’d all things.” Fear says, be afraid, just as he was, but God said, “What will they think of us? “Fear not.” This command from the Lord is What will they do to us?” a common thread woven throughout the pages of Scripture. An old Bible teacher once said that when something is repeated a lot in the Bible, you need to ask yourself, “What’s it there for?” So why the focus on fear? Why not “Be careful” or “Be nice to everyone”? What is it about fear that would cause God to bring it up so much? Because He wants us to be faithful and knows that fear cancels out our faith. Think about it. Faith says, “I can do all things.” Fear says, “What will they think of us? What will they do to us?” Faith says, “If God commands it, I’ll do it.” Fear says, “Maybe He didn’t mean that literally.” Faith and fear are opposites — it is impossible for faith and fear to equally coexist in your life. You can’t step out in faith if you are shrinking back in fear! Take for instance Joshua, Moses’s assistant, whom modern military leaders have studied because of his military prowess. Moses, the one whom God called from the backside of the desert
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to lead His people out of bondage, was not allowed to enter the Promised Land because of disobedience. A new generation had come to maturity in the wilderness as the faithless and rebellious generation had died off. It was a history-changing time: time to enter the land of promise and see the formation of a new nation that would forever change human history. In preparation for this epic event, God promoted Joshua to lead the children of Israel across the Jordan into the land promised to generation after generation over the previous 470 years. As He had done in the past and continues to do today, God preceded His call to action with another order: “Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the lorD your God is with you wherever you go” ( Joshua 1:9). Even though God promised to be with him, Joshua had plenty of reasons to be afraid. The promise to enter the “land of milk and honey” had been passed down from generation to generation with hope and anticipation. It was a promise that no doubt many had held on to in those dark days of bondage in Egypt. But that same promise had been true forty years earlier when the children of Israel refused to cross over into the promised land, choosing instead to believe the report of the ten faithless spies who feared the supersized enemy. Their fear canceled out their faith in God. As a result, the unfaithful spies died almost immediately, and the rest of their generation, with the exception of Joshua and Caleb, spent the next forty years withering away in the wilderness. Those same giants still inhabited the fortified cities on the other side of the Jordan, giving Joshua plenty to fear, if he chose to. Instead, he chose to listen to God, not his fears. The only way to counter the fear of man is with faith in God,
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which provides the courage and the strength that God requires for His world-changing work. That doesn’t mean we’re never afraid. Only a crazy man swims against the current of his day without a sense of his humanity and the limitations that come with it. Having faith in God means you overrule your fear with a greater fear of disappointing the One who created you and called you to be a world changer. As a marine squad leader, a policeman, and an elected political leader, I have known fear — even the fear of physical violence. But maybe even a greater fear is the fear of he only way to the unknown, and greater than that, the fear of ridicule or rejection from others. counter the fear Fear is real, but so must be our faith. Roman philosopher and statesman Marcus Tullius of man is with faith Cicero said, “A man of courage is also full in God. of faith.” Fear wasn’t limited to the Old Testament. The early Christians faced intense spiritual and physical opposition. For example, the disciples were strictly warned to stop their preaching in the name of Jesus. The Jewish leaders threatened them with severe punishment if they did not immediately stop what they were doing, and the disciples had a pretty good idea what might be at stake if they didn’t back down. Just weeks prior the authorities had organized a kangaroo court that led to the execution of their beloved Lord. After they were released from prison on this occasion, you would think “common sense” would prevail. Get as far away from that place as possible. Don’t rock the boat. Instead, the Bible says the disciples gathered together in that same city to pray. Not for deliverance or the defeat of their oppressors, but for boldness
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so that they could go right back to proclaiming the word of the Lord, whatever the cost. They faced their fears with their faith, and as a result they “turned the world upside down” (Acts 17:6). And so can you. The disciples demonstrated the key to conquering the fears that hold us back and rob us of our potential to be salt and light in a decaying and dark world. Despite the threats, despite the hatred, despite the rejection, they decided to obey God rather than man. In other words, they chose to be empowered by a reverent fear of God rather than to be paralyzed by a cowardly fear of what others might think, say, or do in response to their following God. Today, I see a swelling wave of younger people choosing to do the same thing. In the pages that follow I will share their stories of courageous obedience to God and look at other biblical characters who stood strong in their faith. I am so encouraged by this new generation of followers of Jesus who aren’t backing down from the hostility and vitriol they face for standing firm in their faith. If God is about to once again change the course of history through those who fear Him rather than man, I am convinced He will use these brave new disciples and anyone else who will stand firm in their faith. What are you afraid of ?
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NO FEAR by Tony Perkins
2 A Heartbeat of Courage
The afternoon was beautiful. Sunny. It was not yet officially spring, but in Santa Monica, almost every day feels like it. The palm tree–lined promenade wasn’t nearly as busy during the week as it was on the weekends. The farmers market always drew big crowds on Saturdays and Sundays. Still, during the week there were plenty of shoppers strolling through the variety of specialty boutiques. Others were conducting business or engaging in casual conversations, as they sipped on mochas and lattes at outside cafés that dotted the sidewalks. A few children raced out of an old-fashioned candy store that sold licorice pipes and candy necklaces, favorites from a more innocent time. But the warmth of the March sun didn’t quite take away the chill as Lila made her way to her destination on 3rd Street Promenade. As Lila walked down the sidewalk in her old jeans and flip-flops, her shoulder-length brown hair was pulled back in a short ponytail. Lila wore an oversized T-shirt, designed to conceal her age and her waistline. It was not the temperature or the steady breeze fluttering in from the Pacific Ocean that
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prompted the occasional shiver; it was one of those deep, anxious shudders that comes from the anticipation of danger that lay just ahead. The eighteen-year-old was about to stare down the abortion giant Planned Parenthood for the first time. Face to face. After stepping into a building’s atrium, she pressed the button on the elevator, taking her to the second floor at 1316 3rd Street. Paying little attention to anyone standing close by, she continued rehearsing her story: I’m fifteen years old and I am pregnant by my boyfriend who is twenty-three years old, and I need help. The tale had been crafted carefully because such a scenario was not only a lie; it was a felony under California law. Regardless of the circumstances, a fifteen-year-old having sexual relations with a twenty-three-year-old is considered statutory rape. Under California law, as in most states, facilities like Planned Parenthood are required to report suspected cases to law enforcement authorities, something Planned Parenthood is notorious for not doing. Why? It would get in the way of their chief aim: conducting an abortion. The recording device hidden under Lila’s T-shirt picked up the sound of her racing heart as thoughts and fears of the “what ifs” flooded her mind. What if they discover I’m really eighteen and not the fifteenyear-old I am claiming to be? What could happen to me behind the doors of this clinic if they catch on to our undercover operation? The thoughts were coming almost as fast as her heart was racing. “Lord, give me the courage to overcome my fears,” she whispered out loud as she walked toward the clinic’s busy lobby.
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This was the first time Lila had stepped into an abortion clinic, but it was not her first step of courage in a journey that is changing the way America views Planned Parenthood and the abortion industry. Life as a child was normal for Lila, as normal as growing up with eight siblings can be. Born on July 27, 1988, in San Jose, California, she was the third of eight children born to John and Annie Rose. Lila’s parents placed a priority upon both the spiritual and academic development of their children, choosing to educate their children at home and exposing them to the classical teachings of the ancient ord, give me scholars and church fathers. the courage to But it was not all textbooks and lessons. As with most homeschooled families, activi- overcome my fears. ties in the Rose household revolved around faith and family. Although they were active in their church, the greatest lessons of faith that shaped young Lila were not just taught on Sunday morning but were caught at home as she watched her parents. Similar to the mostly bygone practice of apprenticeship, children at home learn their moral and spiritual priorities by observing their parents in a variety of settings. Two of those virtues Lila learned at home were a genuine respect for life and the practice of self-sacrifice. Throughout Lila’s adolescent years her parents provided awareness and exposure to the myriad issues confronting her world: homelessness, disease, hunger. The family was involved in building homes in Mexico as well as helping inner-city kids in the Bay Area. Lila took on her own project at sixteen, raising thirtyfive thousand dollars for food shipments for famine victims in
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Niger. But the fundamental issue of the right to life rose above all others for Lila. One afternoon in 1997, while at home perusing various books in the family’s library, Lila picked up Handbook on Abortion by Dr. Jack and Barbara Willke. As she flipped through the pages she came to a creased page. She unfolded it and saw an image that would have a profound and lasting impact on her. For the first time she saw a picture of an aborted baby, and it set the course for Lila’s future passion and activism. “How could anybody do this to a baby?” Lila whispered. As the question remained unanswered, the conviction to do something on behalf of the unborn children swelled. Writing in her journal a few years later at the age of thirteen she penned the words, “It’s time to do something about abortion!” That something came two years later when Lila launched the first Live Action group for teens throughout the Bay Area to bring attention to abortion and promote a culture of life. Lila began giving PowerPoint presentations wherever she found an opportunity, which was primarily before church youth groups. Little did she or anyone else realize that within ten years, Live Action’s resources would be on hundreds of high school and college campuses across America. Thousands of students engaged in the cause of life, striking fear in the boardroom of the nation’s largest and most aggressive abortion provider: Planned Parenthood. Her passion grew. When it came time for college, Lila didn’t seek a safe harbor for her outspoken views. Instead, she looked for a place where her deep convictions could expose the troubled waters stirred by the fabrications of the radical lost. Her choice? The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).
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Lila’s choice for an academic major was history, but her focus was pro-life activism. As a freshman in the fall of 2006, Lila expanded her activities to include writing for a pro-life magazine, the Advocate, published by the new UCLA chapter of Live Action that she had started upon her arrival at UCLA. The new publication was designed to bring the truth about abortion and the pro-life movement to the attention of students and faculty. Of course a magazine that advocates for life needed stories that would educate and expose. The Advocate marked the beginning of the investigative reporting that would become the hallmark of Lila and Live Action. Despite the ideologically liberal climate at UCLA, Lila was far from alone on the campus. On almost every university campus, there are students any are who hold to a core set of traditional moral and just afraid cultural values. Many are just afraid to speak up. Soon Lila met an ally in James O’Keefe III, to speak up. who would later make a name for himself when in September 2009 he exposed the corrupt practices of another government-funded organization with ties to President Barack Obama: ACORN. Rose and O’Keefe’s relationship was cemented by the shared experience of being trained in various aspects of activism. Lila received training at the Leadership Institute where O’Keefe was on staff at the time. Just outside Washington, DC, the Leadership Institute focuses heavily on reaching youth with the skills needed to succeed in the rough-and-tumble world of politics and culture. Back on campus, Lila noticed something odd. In the midst of this “hook-up” culture where promiscuity was the norm, there were no pregnant students. Although birth control was easier to
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obtain than a vending machine candy bar, you would still expect to see a pregnant student here or there. Why is someone always getting pregnant on popular TV shows like Glee, Parenthood, and The Secret Life of the American Teenager, but not at UCLA? she wondered. Were the policies and procedures of UCLA officials biased against pregnant students? Did campus officials promote abortion? There was a story here, somewhere. A story waiting to be told. Lila was sure of it. That plot came in part through the work of another longtime pro-life activist, Mark Crutcher. In 2002, Crutcher, the founder and president of Life Dynamics Inc., had a young woman, posing as a thirteen-year-old impregnated by a twentytwo-year-old man, call Planned Parenthood clinics seeking advice. The calls, which were recorded, repeatedly exposed clinic workers’ recommendation to lie about the circumstances, giving the “thirteen-year-old” assurances that the clinic staff would ignore the mandatory reporting requirements. The recorded evidence was irrefutable. Rose and O’Keefe were now set; the only difference would be that they would conduct business with the purveyors of abortion not over the phone but in person. In the fall of 2006, using a hidden recording device, Lila embarked on her first undercover investigation. The target? UCLA’s Arthur Ashe Student Health and Wellness Center. The recorded statements of UCLA’s head nurse, Ann Brooks, provided not only answers to the questions; it provided great copy for the inaugural issue of the Advocate. The story and the transcript of Brooks encouraging an abortion with advice on how to
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get “it” taken care of through Rose’s parents’ insurance without them finding out generated a lot of discussion on campus. That first undercover operation was a success, and it set the stage for the next investigation that was both bigger and bolder and would thrust Live Action onto the national scene. Lila stepped off the elevator on the second floor and walked to the entrance of the Planned Parenthood clinic, a blue metal door surrounded by a transom and side windows of opaque glass. The exterior of the clinic looked benign, an almost industrial look that gave no hint of what actually happened inside. She pressed the intercom button on the protruding chrome box fixed to the wall next to the door. A very matter-of-fact voice came through the intercom. “Can I help you?” Using her rehearsed line, Lila bent over toward the chrome box and said, “I am pregnant and I am only fifteen; can I talk with someone?” here was a There was a buzz, a click, and entrance to the abortion clinic was granted. story here, Stepping inside, Lila was greeted by somewhere. A story the expressionless faces of about a halfdozen women sitting in the small reception waiting to be told. area that matched the stolid exterior of the clinic. She scanned the room, her eyes focusing on the wall behind the young women waiting. The word Esperanza was painted there in large letters. Spanish for “hope.” It was clear from the downcast faces of the women waiting for their turn that hope was in short supply. “What’s your name?” asked the thirtysomething gatekeeper
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dressed in medical scrubs sitting behind the receptionist’s counter. Lila once again recited the statement that she had rehearsed dozens of times in her head. “I am fifteen years old and I think I am pregnant.” The Planned Parenthood staffer ushered Lila behind the reception counter to put some distance between her and others in the waiting room. Behind the counter Lila repeated her situation, adding that her boyfriend was twenty-three years old. In a hushed tone the receptionist said, “If you’re fifteen, we have to report it. If you’re not, if you’re older than that, then we don’t need to.” Lila responded, “Okay, but if I just say I’m not fifteen, then it’s different? So I could just say . . .” “You could say sixteen,” the woman suggested. “I could say sixteen?” “Yes.” “Okay, yeah. So I would just write sixteen?” “Well, just figure out a birth date that works.” With a shrug, the receptionist added, “And I don’t know anything.” Lila took the papers and sat down as if she were following the instructions. As other young girls, one by one, stood before the same counter answering questions, others were taken through another door into the back of the clinic where the examinations and abortions were performed. In the midst of the steady flow of activity, Lila slipped out of the door unnoticed with the recorded evidence that Planned Parenthood was aiding and abetting criminal activity. Because of her bravery, the Advocate now had hard evidence of illegal activity. And within days the video they posted on You-
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Tube went viral and the story became national news. Lila was interviewed by Fox News’s Bill O’Reilly and other news outlets. In full damage-control mode, Planned Parenthood resorted to legal intimidation of Lila, sending her a ila refused to yield cease-and-desist letter. The document stated that her undercover recordings vioto fear, no matter lated California law. They threatened to how strong the attacks sue her in civil court for five thousand dollars for each offense. Planned Parenthood against her. demanded she stop the undercover investigations, remove the existing video from YouTube, and turn the original recordings and all copies over to Planned Parenthood. The threat from the billion-dollar abortion giant was more than real to this young woman with only two hundred dollars in her bank account; it was overwhelming. But Lila refused to yield to fear, no matter how strong the attacks against her. After obtaining legal counsel from the organization Alliance Defending Freedom, Lila reluctantly accepted their advice to comply with some of Planned Parenthood’s demands. However, her undercover work against the organization continues. She has conducted numerous undercover operations exposing Planned Parenthood for rapists and sexual traffickers and for performing illegal late-term abortions. Her courageous work has made her a national leader in the pro-life community and has prompted state and federal investigations into Planned Parenthood’s practices. Live Action’s investigations of Planned Parenthood have fueled the effort at all levels of government to put an end to taxpayer dollars being given to the abortion giant, and most importantly, Lila’s work has saved the lives of babies and inspired others to do the same.
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The convergence of babies, political power, and justice is not new. In fact, this triumvirate of issues was central in the biblical account of Egypt’s oppression of Israel (Exodus 1). Knowing that the Bible is not just a compilation of great stories but a book of practical instruction on how to live (2 Timothy 3:16), what can we learn from Pharaoh’s reaction to the Hebrews? the vil prefers not to operate alone midwives’ response to Pharaoh? God’s reply to the midwives? but to draft others The Hebrew children were multiplying, and Pharaoh’s reaction is characteristic into its service. of a leader who is insecure and therefore fearful of the future. Operating from this fear the leader, desperate to hold on to power, uses any means possible, including the murdering of innocent people. The twentieth century speaks clearly to this as dictators like Lenin, Hitler, Stalin, Pol Pot, and others murdered millions of their own citizens out of fear of losing power or for ideological reasons. Evil prefers not to operate alone but to draft others into its service. In Pharaoh’s case he called in the “Hebrew midwives” Shiphrah and Puah. Most Old Testament scholars suggest these two were Egyptians who were midwives to the Hebrew women, rather than Hebrew midwives. Some even suggest the two women were the heads of organizations that oversaw midwives, which is a reasonable conclusion considering the Hebrew population was estimated to be close to two million people at this point in history. It is even possible that Shiphrah and Puah were over por-
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tions of a government health-care system — maybe one was the secretary of labor! The command from Pharaoh to the midwives was to kill the boy babies at birth, a form of sex selection, late-term abortion, or, more accurately, infanticide. How did these midwives respond to Pharaoh? While working among the Hebrew families, the midwives had apparently come to an understanding of God or possibly even have a relationship with Him. At a minimum the midwives placed a higher priority on the natural law established by God, which instructs that the killing of the innocent is wrong, than they did the fleeting edicts of Pharaoh. Whatever the source of their motivation, the result was that they had a greater fear of God than a fear of Pharaoh, so they refused to kill the Hebrew babies. Keep in mind that refusing to hey had a greater fear comply with “Pharaoh Care” was no of God than a fear of small matter. The risk they faced was much greater than an IRS audit or Pharaoh, so they refused to civil fines; they could lose not just kill the Hebrew babies. their livelihood but their very lives. Imagine the anxiety that must have enveloped them as they received a summons to Pharaoh’s court. They were called onto the royal carpet and asked why they were letting the male children live. Read their response:
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Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women; for they are lively and give birth before the midwives come to them. (Exodus 1:19)
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Was this claim true or were the midwives being deceptive? It was probably true in some cases, but it is unlikely that it was true in all cases. If all the Hebrew women were giving birth without the aid of the midwives, then fear of God on behalf of the midwives (verse 17) would not have been necessary. In fact, this whole narrative could have been left out of this historical account. The Bible makes clear the midwives acted in contravention to Pharaoh’s orders, with the result being the lives of babies were saved and many Hebrew families enjoyed the blessings of life. Some biblical scholars have struggled with the question of whether the actions of the midwives were justified or immoral. This is not an insignificant question considering what is happening in the US government with tax dollars going to the world’s largest abortion provider, Planned Parenthood, and public policies that mandate taxpayer-funded abortion. In determining the answer, we can look first at God’s reply to the actions of the midwives: “Because the midwives feared [revered] God, he gave them families of their own” (verse 21, niv). Are we misreading this passage? No, God blessed the midwives with the very object they helped the Hebrew women secure — families. But should the midwives have been upfront with Pharaoh and told him to his face that they feared God more than him and that they were not going to be a part of his evil plan? Possibly, but think about the potential consequences of directly confronting Pharaoh with their opposition from the outset. Such an approach may have put the lives of the midwives under their authority at risk, and it would have certainly not had the effect of sparing the lives of the children.
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The midwives did not deceive Pharaoh for personal benefit or gain. In fact, they were taking a great personal risk to spare the lives of the Hebrew children. If it were about them, the midwives could have just maintained status quo and continued to enjoy their standing in the community by retaining the favor of Pharaoh and enjoying a politically connected and economically comfortable lifestyle. The midwives were blessed, not for deceiving Pharaoh, but for having a greater fear of or reverence for God and for saving the innocent. It is important that we not see their actions as justified under a postmodern view of relative morality or situational ethics that says you can define right and wrong based upon the circumstances. There is justification here, but it flows from a biblical, objective view of morality that understands God’s law is higher than man’s (Acts 5:29). In other words, if in the process of saving the Hebrew babies, out of a fear of acting against God, the midwives deceived and disobeyed a command from Pharaoh, which violated the moral law of God, their actions were justified. (This is the principle of the double effect explained by Thomas Aquinas in Summa Theologiae.) Ultimately it is a question of whom we fear. The fear of man brings about cowardly actions that don’t just target the innocent as Pharaoh did, but the fear of man causes many good people to shrink back in silence when they should speak out. On the other hand, the fear of or reverence for God elicits the courage to oppose evil and the schemes that are launched against the most innocent and defenseless among us.
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MAKING IT REAL 1. Why is human life sacred and why should we protect it? Read Genesis 1:27.
2. Do you have an obligation to speak out for the innocent? Read Proverbs 24:11–12.
3. Not everyone is called to do what Lila Rose did in the battle against abortion. If you believe abortion is wrong, what would you be willing to do to save the lives of the unborn? What is your “fear level” when it comes to standing up for the unborn? How could your faith cancel out that fear?
4. Read Psalm 139:13–16 and consider God’s love for you. Then pray and ask God to give you an understanding and love for all human life.
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FINALIST FOR THE CHRISTIAN BOOK AWARDS®
STAND STRONG by Nick Vujicic
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ith no arms, no legs, and no defense, Nick Vujicic was once a bully’s target and knows what it feels like to be picked on and pushed around: It makes your stomach hurt, gives you nightmares, and feels like there is no hope in sight. But Nick shows how you too can overcome and rise above bullying. Nick has experienced bullying of all kinds for being “different.” But he’s learned that he doesn’t have to play the bully’s game–and neither do you. In Stand Strong Nick gives you strategies for developing a “bully defense system,” so you can handle bullies of all kinds by building your strength from the inside out. NICK VUJICIC is an international and New York Times best-selling author, evangelist, motivational speaker, and the president of the organization Life Without Limbs. A longtime resident of Australia, he now lives in southern California with his wife, Kanae, and their two sons, Kiyoshi and Dejan. WaterBrook Press • Trade Paperback • 978-1-60142-782-3 • 224pp. • $12.99/$15.99 Can. WaterBrook • Hardcover • 978-0-307-73093-0 • 224pp. • $17.99/$20.99 Can. eBook: 978-0-307-73094-7 • N Audio: 978-0-8041-9131-9 63
STAND STRONG by Nick Vujicic
Stand Strong Published by WaterBrook Press 12265 Oracle Boulevard, Suite 200 Colorado Springs, Colorado 80921 Scripture quotations are taken or paraphrased from the following versions: The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The King James Version. The New American Standard Bible®. © Copyright The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995. Used by permission. (www. Lockman.org). The NET Bible®, copyright ©1996–2006 by Biblical Studies Press LLC, http://netbible.com. All rights reserved. The Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica Inc.TM Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com. The New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. Details in some anecdotes and stories have been changed to protect the identities of the persons involved. Trade Paperback ISBN 978-1-60142-782-3 Hardcover ISBN 978-0-307-73093-0 eBook ISBN 978-0-307-73094-7 Copyright © 2014 by Nicholas James Vujicic Cover design by Kristopher K. Orr; cover photography by Mike Heath, Magnus Creative All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Published in the United States by WaterBrook Multnomah, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York. WaterBrook and its deer colophon are registered trademarks of Penguin Random House LLC. The Library of Congress has cataloged the hardcover edition as follows: Vujicic, Nick. Stand strong : you can overcome bullying (and other stuff that keeps you down) / Nick Vujicic. — First edition. pages cm ISBN 978-0-307-73093-0 — ISBN 978-0-307-73094-7 (electronic) 1. Violence— Religious aspects—Christianity. 2. Bullying—Religious aspects. 3. Christian teenagers—Religious life. I. Title. BT736.15.V85 2013 248.8'3—dc23 2013039728 Printed in the United States of America 2015—First Trade Paperback Edition 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Special Sales Most WaterBrook Multnomah books are available at special quantity discounts when purchased in bulk by corporations, organizations, and special-interest groups. Custom imprinting or excerpting can also be done to fit special needs. For information, please e-mail SpecialMarkets@WaterBrookMultnomah.com or call 1-800-603-7051.
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Why Me? Why You? You are not alone. Bullying is a global epidemic.
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am a bully’s dream, no doubt about it. No arms. No legs. No defense. Born without limbs for reasons never determined, I was blessed in so many other ways. My greatest blessing was a loving and supportive family. They sheltered and encouraged me for the first years of my life. But once I left the protective shelter of family for the hallways and playgrounds of elementary school, I felt like I had a target on my chest that said, “Bullies, aim here.” I felt alone in my fear of bullies, but I wasn’t alone. And neither are you. If you’ve been bullied, the first thing you need to understand is that their attacks, taunts, and mean acts aren’t really about you, any flaws you might have, or anything you might have done. Bullies have their own issues. They pick on you to make themselves feel better, to vent their anger, to feel more powerful, or even because they can’t think of anything else to do. Vujic_9781601427823_xp_all_r1.indd 1
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I know it’s lame, but it’s true. When I was a teenager, I wasted a lot of time trying to figure out why bullies picked on me. There was one guy in particular who really got inside my head. He bullied everybody, but for some reason I took it personally. I obsessed over his motives. Finally I realized that his bullying wasn’t about my problems. It was about his. You may have a bully who has had the same impact on you, getting inside your head, knotting your stomach with stress, and tormenting your dreams because you can’t figure out why you are the target. I’m here to ease your mind and lighten that burden. Your bully’s motives don’t matter. You do. Your safety and your happiness are important to me and everyone else who loves and cares about you; so instead of focusing on why a bully is picking on you, let’s focus on helping you feel secure and happy again. Does that sound like a plan? I think so! But before we move on, I want you to know that there is no single infallible strategy for dealing one-on-one with bullies. And I certainly don’t recommend you resort to violence if you can help it! Don’t ever let a bully lure you into a fight. If a bully attacks you, defend yourself but get away as fast as you can. If you have any reason to think a bully is going to harm you physically, you need to talk to an adult who can help you before that happens.
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Th e B u l ly i ng e pi de m ic It’s important to understand from the beginning that many people share your pain in dealing with this problem. Being bullied, sadly, is as common as catching a cold or stubbing your toe. I travel all over the world talking to young people about this issue. No matter where I go, bullying is a major topic of concern. Teens in every school in every town and every country tell me they have mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual pain because of being bullied. A teen in China told me that he’d tried to commit suicide eight times because of being bullied at school. A cute little Korean girl in Boise, Idaho, came up to me crying after I gave a speech on bullying. She said, “I get teased every day about being Korean because I’m the only Asian in the whole school.” I hear similar stories from bullying victims in Chile, Brazil, Australia, Russia, Serbia, and around the world. Bullying is everywhere, and it takes many forms. Most of us are familiar with childhood bullies who threaten to beat us up, make fun of us, or turn friends against us. Adults may experience bullying in the form of sexual harassment or as discrimination based on race, religion, sexual identity, or disabilities. Bullies can be your boss, coworkers, teachers, coaches, boyfriends, or girlfriends— anyone who abuses his power or position. It’s sad to say, but parents can be bullies too. Suicides are a
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major problem among young people in Asia, and part of the problem is that many teens are under incredible pressure to earn top grades so they can make it into the best schools and get the best jobs for the most pay. Parents naturally want their children to do well, but when a mother and father give love and support only if their child is successful in their eyes, it is a form of bullying. There was one case in which the parents burned their child with cigarettes because her grades were not up to their standards. That’s an extreme case to be sure, but I’ve encountered similar stories around the world. The most common bullying experience is being taunted or ridiculed for being “different” in some way. I’m the poster child for this. For most of my life, I’ve been a bully magnet. I’ve heard every imaginable nasty comment about my lack of limbs. Cruel jokes. Even physical threats.
Still, if you are being bullied, it hurts. It didn’t help that my family moved a couple of times when I was in school. We went from one side of Australia to the other, then we moved to the United States and back again. At each new school, I wasn’t just the only kid with no arms and no legs; I was usually the only kid in a wheelchair. When we moved to the United States, I hit the bully-target trifecta: I was the only
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kid in my school with no arms and no legs, the only kid in a wheelchair, and the only kid with an Australian accent! Different? Me, mate? Sure, I stood out from the crowd, and the fact that I was often the new kid without friends made me an even easier target. But I realized early on that bullies would find a reason to pick on anyone. They called the smart kids “nerds,” the tall kids “bird legs,” and the short kids “runts.” If perfect people existed, bullies probably would mock them for being “too perfect.” Still, if you are being bullied, it hurts. It’s a terrible experience that often seems like it will never end. As someone who endured it throughout my teenage years and still runs into it from time to time, I want to give you hope and peace. You can rise above and beyond it.
R isi ng A B ov e God put you on this earth because He loves you and He has a plan for you. With His help and the guidance offered in this book, you will be able to put your bullies in their proper place so their taunts and shunning won’t matter to you. My experience proves that anyone can rise above bullying and have a ridiculously wonderful life. I know you can do the same. To help you begin, I want to plant a thought in your brain. This is blatant mind control, of course; so if you want to block
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it, go ahead and put tinfoil around your head. (It will look silly, but that’s okay with me if it’s okay with you.) The thought I want you to consider is that while being bullied is an awful thing to go through, it can also be a great opportunity. I know what you are thinking: Nick must have been kicked in the head by a kangaroo! No, it was a wallaby. But aside from that, I believe you can turn your evil bully into a source for good in your life. Instead of letting your antagonist drive you nuts, depress you, dog your every thought, ruin your sleep, and stomp all over your dreams, why not turn the tables?
While being bullied is an awful thing to go through, it can also be a great opportunity. Bullies want to abuse you. Instead of allowing that, you can use them as your personal motivators. Power up and let the bully eat your dust. In the pages that follow, I will help you build your antibully antibodies. This is a process that works by building strength from the inside out, from your deepest thoughts and feelings—your heart and soul—to the way you see the world, make decisions, and take actions. You build your bully defense system from the inside out by 1. figuring out who you are so no bully can tell you differently or make you feel badly;
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2. taking responsibility for your own behavior and happiness so bullies have no ultimate power over you; 3. establishing strong values that no bully can shake; 4. creating a safety zone within yourself where you can go mentally to draw strength and comfort; 5. building strong and supportive relationships to stand up for you against bullies; 6. learning to monitor and manage your responses to the emotions triggered by bullying; 7. developing a spiritual foundation to help you be at peace and be strong against bullying; 8. taking the opportunity to learn from your bullying experience so that you can become stronger, wiser, more confident, more faith filled, and more prepared to handle any challenges; 9. creating your bully defense strategy so you are prepared to handle bullies of all kinds; and 10. mastering empathy so you are aware of the needs of others and serve them whenever possible to help them overcome bullying. Once all those things are in place, you will have your own bully defense system. Then you can join me in working to eradicate the epidemic of bullying so no one else has to suffer. Together, with God’s help, we can bring an end to the bullying epidemic.
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Too often people who are bullied become bullies themselves. It’s a vicious cycle, and one of my goals in writing this book is to break it by first helping you so you can then help me and all the others around the globe dedicated to ridding the world of bullying. We can do this. We can band together and make this a bully-free world. In 2012, I visited a school in Hawaii to talk about bullying. About a year later, the headmaster sent me a letter saying that my visit had changed the school. He said they did not have a single instance of bullying for an entire year after I talked to the students! You are taking the first step in joining this campaign by reading this book. Please, when you are done, pass it on to others. Share what you’ve learned from it with your siblings, friends, parents, teachers, and anyone else you think might benefit. If you are a teen and you are overwhelmed by bullying in any form, this book will help you understand that the game bullies play is designed to make you feel bad so they can feel superior. Refuse to play that game. Instead, believe those who love you when we say you matter to us and to your Creator. You are a child of God, created in His image. You are beautiful. You are the perfectly unique you. That doesn’t mean you are flawless, but that’s the beauty of it. We are all perfect and imperfect at the same time. God
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designed us this way because there is beauty in both, and purpose too. After reading this book, you will be able to make the following statements with confidence and clarity: • Bullies can’t hurt me or define me because I have defined myself. I know who I am and where I am going. • I don’t give anyone else the power to make me feel badly. I take responsibility for my own happiness. • My values are unshakable. I have a plan for my life guided by them. • My strength comes from within, and no bully can make me feel insecure. • I know my family and friends will always stand up for me, just as I will for them. • I am aware of my emotions, especially anger and fear, and I control my response to them so that I stay positive in my thoughts and actions. • My spiritual life is strong and empowering. I know I was created for a purpose and I am loved unconditionally. Where I am weak, my Creator is strong. • I find something positive to take away from every challenge, including being bullied. • I reach out to help others at every opportunity, especially those who are being bullied in any way.
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Together we will build your bully defense system. You will feel stronger than you’ve ever felt, and you will be better prepared to face all the challenges life might throw at you. I love you.
Nick ’s No t es f or C hap t er One n Bullying is a global epidemic. So if you are being bullied, you are not alone—and there is plenty of help available. n When a bully picks on you, it isn’t about you or any flaws you might have; it’s about the bully’s own issues. So try not to take it personally. n There is no single infallible strategy for dealing with each and every bully. Your best bet is to work on building strength from within and strategies for every scenario you might face. n If a bully attacks you, defend yourself but get away as fast as you can. If you have any reason to think a bully is going to harm you physically, you need to talk to an adult who can help you before that happens.
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