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    Just Do Something: A Liberating Approach to Finding God's Will
    Just Do Something: A Liberating Approach to Finding God's Will
    Just Do Something: A Liberating Approach to Finding God's Will
    Ebook132 pages2 hours

    Just Do Something: A Liberating Approach to Finding God's Will

    By Kevin DeYoung

    4.5/5

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    OVER 300,000 COPIES SOLD!

    Why won’t God reveal his special will for my life already?

    Because he doesn’t intend to... So says Kevin DeYoung in this punchy book about making decisions the godly way.

    Many of us are listening for the still small voice to tell us what’s next instead of listening to the clear voice in Scripture telling us what’s now. God does have a will for your life, but it is the same as everyone else’s: Seek first the kingdom of God. And quit floundering. 

    With pastoral wisdom and tasteful wit, DeYoung debunks unbiblical ways of understanding God’s will and constructs a simple but biblical alternative: live like Christ. He exposes the frustrations of our waiting games and unfolds the freedom of finding God’s will in Scripture and then simply doing it. 

    This book is a call to put down our Magic 8-Balls and pick up God’s Word. It’s a call to get wisdom, follow Christ, be holy, and live freely. To just do something.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMoody Publishers
    Release dateMar 21, 2014
    ISBN9780802490346
    Author

    Kevin DeYoung

    Kevin DeYoung (PhD, University of Leicester) is the senior pastor at Christ Covenant Church in Matthews, North Carolina, and associate professor of systematic theology at Reformed Theological Seminary, Charlotte. He has written books for children, adults, and academics, including Just Do Something; Impossible Christianity; and The Biggest Story Bible Storybook. Kevin’s work can be found on clearlyreformed.org. Kevin and his wife, Trisha, have nine children.

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    Reviews for Just Do Something

    4.5/5

    142 ratings15 reviews

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    • 3/5
      This could be a useful book for Christian college aged students or younger adults when thinking about decision making. The advice is practical and theologically sound. I gave it a slightly lower rating because the author claims more than once that this advice could be useful for anyone facing major decisions, but I think most older readers will find the examples geared to a fairly young audience (i.e. unmarried, childless, probably still in school).
    • 5/5
      The most best, and briefest, book I've read on biblical decision-making. An easy, yet challenging and instructive, read for non-readers. This is a great book for pastors to recommend to others
    • 3/5
      While I can fully understand DeYoung's intentions, the book is incredibly repetitive. What could have been said in the course of two or three chapters is dragged out for an entire book. I also gather the impression that he is preaching to the converted – his book would have been so much more helpful if it had been written for Pentecostal and charismatic brothers and sisters, rather than the Reformed who agree with him anyway. Finally, while I completely agree that we should not rely on any of these things to find out God's will when we have the Bible, I cannot fully deny that the Holy Spirit, may if he wishes, work in other ways: we should always test these things using the Bible and should never see them as being infallible, but he does not dwell on these things at all. We should not expect these things, and yet, they do at times happen. Wittily written and with plenty of healthy anecdotes. I would read more of his books.
    • 4/5
      A treatise on God's will and the ability of believers to understand it. The author takes aim at the popular conception of "God's will" as often perceived among Evangelicals: trying to beg God to have Him tell them precisely what decision they should make between various options. Instead, the author demonstrates how God's will involves the sanctification of the believer, and therefore, when it comes to many major life decisions, it is more important to serve God in whatever circumstance the believer finds himself. Rather than, say, worrying about whether living in city x or city y is "God's will," one should seek to do God's will while living in city x or y.The author is a confessed Calvinist, and so the predeterministic view comes out at times. On the whole, however, the book does well at showing the relationship between the believer and God's will. Certainly worth a consideration.
    • 4/5
      Flying can be an extremely convenient means of travel, but one of the downsides has got to be all the waiting around in the airport. This week I flew back home from a conference I had been attending. I had brought books to read and I had packed my iPod full of music. Fortunately I also had a few good audiobooks stored that I wanted to listen to as well. At just right around 3 hours of listening time, Kevin DeYoung’s book Just Do Something seemed to be a workable choice for my downtime. Narrated by Adam Verner, Just Do Something had me engaged from the book’s introduction. DeYoung tackles a question that every Christian finds himself or herself asking at some point along their spiritual journey: “How can I determine what God’s will is for my life?”Listening to the book, I couldn’t help but think how Just Do Something would make a great gift for the two high school seniors at our church that will be graduating this year. DeYoung makes the argument that while the easy answers to life’s questions can’t always be found in the pages of Scripture, the principles are certainly there. The book seems geared for college and post-college aged Christians, but the decision making wisdom offered will be helpful for other generations as well.Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Christianaudio as part of their Reviewers Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.
    • 5/5
      This book is brilliant. It blew me away, blew apart some of my life, and is possibly my most unexpected but useful and awesome book of the year. I reread it three times before writing this review, am rereading it again, and would encourage you to. The book, to give it its full title of 'Just Do Something: A Liberating approach to finding God's Will OR How to make a Decision Without Dreams, Visions, Fleeces, Impressions, Open Doors, Random Bible Verses, Casting Lots, Liver Shivers, Writing in the Sky etc', is by a chap called Kevin DeYoung, and the foreword (Which is worth reading on its own!) is by Joshua Harris. Now, that may put you off. But please don't let it.The basic premise of the books is that if we are living in a resurrection life, praying through stuff, living in step with the Spirit, and so on, then faffing about major decisions is foolish and unbiblical. The book is filled with biblical references to provide a backtrack for the argument. It demonstrates that God has shown us much of his will, and that we do need to just get on with it alot of the time. However, rather than carry on ranting, I will furnish you with some of the really resonant stories, anecdotes and quotes from the book. Then, when you have finished reading this, GO AND BUY A COPY. Well, maybe not, but you should.'we need to be careful that we aren't using God as the trump card in all our decisions. Just because you pray doesn't mean your decisions are beyond objection... If we say "God told me to do this" or "God's leading me here", this puts our decisions out of reach from criticism or concerns' - This is brilliant to point out because this is very common, and God rarely does this. So we should stop hiding behind it.'I'll never forget my poor beleaguered roommate talking with me after he took a risk and told a nice young lady that he liked her... He was pretty sure she would reciprocate his declaration of affection. But it turned out she wasn't interested. She was a sweet girl, a good Christian. She didn't mean to have bad theology. But instead of just saying "I'm not interested" or "I don't like you" or "Quit stalking me" or something she went all spiritual on him. "I've been praying alot about you", she demurred, "and the Holy Spirit told me no." "No?" my confused roommate asked. "No ... never", she replied. Poor Guy - he got rejected, not only by this sweet girl, but by the Holy Spirit. The third person of the Trinity took a break from pointing people to Jesus to tell this girl not to date my roommate... God's will is frequently employed as an excuse for difficult relationship decisions... If you aren't interested in dating or courtship or marriage or whatever, just say "No Thanks" or "Not now", but please don't make God the bad guy in your relational messes'. - This section had me cut to the core. So common to my own situation, to my own experience, and that of many around me. This book is right on the money.'God's will for your life is not very complicated. Obviously, living a Christlike life is hard work, and what following Jesus entails is not clear in every situation. But as an overarching principle, the will of God for your life is pretty straightforward: Be holy like Jesus, by the power of the Spirit, for the glory of God'. - Amen. And wow.(Regarding special revelations and visions) 'When he [Paul] did experience a special revelation, seeing a vision of a man calling him to Macedonia, he obeyed. But the special revelation of God was a rare and unique experience, even for Paul... Special revelation came at a time when God wanted to lead them apart from the normal ways in which His people make life choices'. Spot on. So brutal. So simple. So rational!I leave you with the close of the book, one of the most liberating things I have ever read, and something that resonated in me to the core.'So the end of the matter is this: Live for God. Obey the Scriptures. Think of others before yourself. Be holy. Love Jesus. And as you do these things, do whatever else you like, with whomever you like, wherever you like, and you'll be walking in the will of God'WOW.Cheers Kevin. Cheers God. Lets get on with it. Maybe you need to do something. I just sent a message to someone. What will you do?
    • 4/5
      Short and incisive, and dead on target.
    • 5/5
      This is the first book I've read in quite a while that, as I was reading it, I was thinking of all the people I'm eager to recommend it to. Everyone between the ages of 15 and 35 ought to read this right away, and everyone older would probably enjoy reading it at some point.The book deals with the epidemic of indecision that exists among young people (35 and under) in the church today. DeYong's advice ("do something") is as Biblical as it is helpful. It's a delightful read full of laughs and sound counsel.The Kindle version has some editorial errors and layout issues but is a great value at ~$6.
    • 5/5
      I want to start out by saying that Joshua Harris makes me mad. I'm not mad at him for anything bad but because he gives this book a great review in the foreword, almost taking the thoughts right out of my mind! ;-) Really though, this short book (122 pages) is a quick and excellent read. I don't know that it is necessarily unique since John MacArthur has written similar thoughts in his book "God's Will Is Not Lost," but what makes this book such a great resource is that DeYoung has a talent for bringing this topic down to where even a layperson such as myself can fully understand what he is talking about. His writing is clear and concise and he has a knack for bringing humor into a very serious topic. I am sure, in fact, that even those who hold to the view he is critiquing will find the book useful. And what view is he challenging here? The view that God's will is some mysterious thing we need to fret about. He credibly maintains that so long as you are not violating God's commands, then you are free to make decisions as you desire...to use your freedom in Christ! Again, what God commands we must do and what He forbids we must not do, but apart from this, do whatever you think is right to do! But let me share from the introduction by Joshua Harris so that you will get an even better idea of what exactly this book is about:"It is God's will for you to read this book. Yes, I'm talking to you. What are the odds that you would "just happen" to pick up this book and flip open to this page and start reading? Obviously it's a sign. Of all the millions of books in the world, you found this one. Wow. I have chills. Do not pass up this divinely orchestrated moment. If you miss this moment there's a good chance you will completely miss God's will for the rest of your life and spend your days in misery and regret... If you're prone to think of God's will in the way I so threateningly described it, this book will help set you straight..." Classic don't you think? Well I think so, and this little book is definitely a keeper, one I will no doubt consult every so often. Buy it and read it, you will not regret it!
    • 5/5
      This is an exceptional book! I love its structure, its flow, its pithiness, its humor, its clarity, its simplicity, its God-centeredness and its superb ending. I'm more convinced than before that a tinkering generation is bad; bad for oneself, bad for the church, bad for the society.
      God bless you, Ps. DeYoung. You've got a big fan over here.
    • 5/5
      Brilliant and much needed at this time in the church. DeYoung encourages to jettison our obsession with finding "the path" and rest in providence. Brutally he points out how we seek to save face with others under the guise of being spiritual. Oooo... It hurts to be called out on my lack of faith.
    • 5/5
      I will certainly be reading this book again! It has been very helpful to me.
    • 5/5
      I really loved this book. I think it's one of the best books on this topic. I really would recommend it to all young people. Thank you Kevin for writing this book, it surely was God's will!
    • 4/5
      I read this book per the suggestion of a friend who read it in high school. If you are in a phase of your life when you are needing to make a decision this book shed light on how I can make decisions that are honoring to God but also encouraged me to keep walking with Him. Great book for a graduate that is on the fence about their faith in the midst of a culture that is self seeking.
    • 5/5
      Biblical and practical

    Book preview

    Just Do Something - Kevin DeYoung

    Publishers

    It’s been over ten years since the release of Just Do Something. That’s hardly enough time to write a ponderous essay about a relatively short book. I would never claim that this simple volume has instigated a revolution, introduced a new school of thought, or plowed new theological ground.

    And yet, perhaps there is something enduring about a call to shake off passivity, follow the straightforward commands of Scripture, and just do something. Whether this particular book necessitates a twentieth- or thirtieth-anniversary volume, or whether it serves the Lord in its half-generation, remains to be scene. The vehicle is not as important as the destination.

    What matters is that we not lose sight of the freeing (and challenging) message of Scripture; namely, that when it comes to finding God’s will, the Lord of the universe does not mean to hide anything from us. There are divine mysteries we will never understand this side of heaven and a myriad of ways God guides our steps here on earth. But let us not forget we serve a generous God, a loving heavenly Father, a Good Shepherd. He expects us to know His will, and by His grace, He expects us and empowers us to do it.

    God does not send us out on a fool’s errand, expecting us to discern His will like an old man listening to his aching knees to discern the weather. Rather than wallowing in a pseudo-spiritual state of wandering and disease, God wants us to get about the business of living.

    For our good and for his glory. Which means putting aside fretting about First World problems, putting one foot in front of the other, and pleasing God with ordinary faithfulness.

    Over the past ten years, I’ve heard from hundreds of people who read Just Do Something. I especially like the stories of teenagers reading the Bible with new eyes, college students moving ahead with life, couples getting married, retirees finding new purpose, and lots of Christians telling me they have found new freedom in obeying Christ and His word.

    If there has been complaint about the book—or at least one about which I’m sympathetic—it’s that I made some young men feel like everything is their fault. That was certainly not my intention, and I tried to add enough caveats so that my challenge to loafer males was not an indictment of all males. Still, a number of young men have expressed to me their honest efforts to find work, settle down, and get married—all without success, especially on the last part. I wouldn’t take anything away from my challenge to young men in the book, but I do want to make clear that we do not always have as much to show for just doing something as we would like.

    I’m grateful to Moody for their continued support and to all of you unnamed readers who, apparently, continue to resonate with the cultural diagnosis and scriptural exegesis laid out in these pages. Now that my oldest children are approaching college and all the major life decisions that come with that stage of life, I feel an even more personal connection with the book. It’s my prayer that God will use the truths of his word to help them, just as I was helped by these truths twenty years ago, and just as many seemed to have been helped by these truths over the past decade.

    Kevin DeYoung

    Fall 2019

    I grew up playing with Tinkertoys. Like most Americans over the past one hundred years, our family had the classic long tube full of sticks, wooden wheels, and colored connectors. Hitting the market in 1913, Tinkertoy (now owned by Hasbro) has sold about 2.5 million construction sets per year for almost a hundred years. The impetus for Tinkertoy construction sets—which initially sold for sixty cents and were called by the less-than-catchy name Thousand Wonder Builders —came from Charles Pajeau and Robert Petit, who dreamed up the toy as they watched children tinkering around with pencils, sticks, and empty spools of thread.

    With almost a century gone by, there’s still nothing fancy about Tinkertoy sets, especially in a digital age where children seldom go anywhere without microchips of entertainment close at hand. Kids still like Tinkertoys because kids like to tinker.

    And apparently, so do adults.

    In the book After the Baby Boomers: How Twenty- and Thirty-Somethings are Shaping the Future of American Religion, Robert Wuthnow describes twenty-one to forty-five-year-olds as tinkerers.¹ Our grandparents built. Our parents boomed. And my generation? We tinker. Of course, as Wuthnow points out, tinkering is not all bad. Those who tinker know how to improvise, specialize, pull things apart, and pull people together from a thousand different places. But tinkering also means indecision, contradiction, and instability. We are seeing a generation of young people grow up (sort of) who tinker with doctrines, tinker with churches, tinker with girlfriends and boyfriends, tinker with college majors, tinker living in and out of their parents’ basement, and tinker with spiritual practices no matter how irreconcilable or divergent.

    We’re not consistent. We’re not stable. We don’t stick with anything. We aren’t sure we are making the right decisions. Most of the time, we can’t even make decisions. And we don’t follow through. All of this means that as Christian young people we are less fruitful and less faithful than we ought to be.

    Granted, youth tends to come with a significant amount of youthfulness. And with youthfulness comes indecision and instability. Young adults who tinker are not confined to any one generation. Baby boomers, and probably even builders (the generation that grew up during the Great Depression and fought in World War II), tinkered around with God and life when they were young adults. The difference, however, with my generation is that young adulthood keeps getting longer and longer. It used to be that thirty seemed old and far removed from youth, but now it is not uncommon to hear of folks coming of age at forty.

    Consider this one statistic: In 1960, 77 percent of women and 65 percent of men completed all the major transitions into adulthood by age thirty. These transitions include leaving home, finishing school, becoming financially independent, getting married, and having a child. By 2000, only 46 percent of woman completed these transitions by age thirty, and only 31 percent of men.² It’s stunning for me to think that less than a third of men my age are done with school, out of the house, married with kids, and have a job that pays the bills. Adultolescence is the new normal.

    Now, I know there are lots of good reasons why someone may still be in school past thirty. After all, multiple college degrees take time. And I realize there are legitimate reasons why a thirty-year-old might have to live with his parents (e.g., illness, unexpected unemployment, or divorce). Concerning marriage, maybe you have the gift of celibacy. And as for a family, maybe you’ve been trying to have kids but can’t. There are lots of reasons for delayed adulthood. I understand that. Just because you’ve been on the planet for one-fourth to one-third of your life and still haven’t completed the transition to adulthood doesn’t mean you’re automatically a moocher, a lazy bum, or a self-indulgent vagabond.

    But it could mean that. It is possible that your unparalleled freedom to roam, experiment, learn (or not), move on, and try again has not made you wiser, cultured, or more mature.³ Perhaps your free spirit needs less freedom and more faithfulness. Maybe your emerging adulthood should … I don’t know, emerge.

    But let me be clear: This is not a book just for young people. I’m not going to attempt a generational analysis of my fellow thirtysomethings. I’m not issuing a new manifesto for baby busters and mosaics. This book is much simpler than all that. This is a book about God’s will—God’s will for confused teenagers, burned-out parents, retired grandparents, and, yes, tinkering millennials … or whatever we’re called.

    I bring up this whole business of adultolescence because it is related to the spiritual issue of God’s will. You’ll find in this book some of the typical will-of-God fare—how to make wise decisions, how to choose a job, whom to marry, etc. But answering these questions is not really the aim of this book. My goal is not as much to tell you how to hear God’s voice in making decisions as it is to help you hear God telling you to get off the long road to nowhere and finally make a decision, get a job, and, perhaps, get married.

    The hesitancy so many of us (especially the young) feel in making decisions and settling down in life and therefore diligently searching for the will of God has at least two sources. First, the new generations enjoy—or at least think they enjoy—unparalleled freedom. Nothing is settled after high school or even college anymore. Life is wide open and filled with endless possibilities, but with this sense of opportunity comes confusion, anxiety, and indecision. With everything I could do and everywhere I could go, how can I know what’s what? Enter a passion to discern God’s will for my life. That’s a key reason there is always a market for books about the will of God.

    Second, our search for the will of God has become an accomplice in the postponement of growing up, a convenient out for the young (or old) Christian floating through life without direction or purpose. Too many of us have passed off our instability, inconsistency, and endless self-exploration as looking for God’s will, as if not making up our minds and meandering through life were marks of spiritual sensitivity.

    As a result, we are full of passivity and empty

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