Permission To Speak Freely

Permission to Speak Freely

Patent shoes, promises and pain abound here. This is not the kind of book you 'enjoy'. Jackson's raw honesty is engaging and beautifully crafted in style, design, words and art. This book emerges from a tidal wave of responses to a question asked on her blog:- What is one thing you feel you can’t say in the church? Hundreds responded and this publication is the resulting reflection including much of her own experiences. I think one of the reasons, I was caught up in the book, is that so much of what Anne writes about is so very sadly true and painfully real. People hurt, and too often the church disguises the hurt, or refuses to acknowledge the hurt. Brokenness is so huge a part of the human experience, but is buried or has a temporary plaster applied to it, rather than let the Holy Spirit get about the work of healing. The book engages powerfully yet sensitively with fear. Anne writes: ‘I realize fear isn’t only affecting me, but humanity as well. As I look around today, I see him looking into many people I encounter. Their hearts are fighting for their dreams, yet fear claws away at their spirits, telling them their dreams are impossible,........ but fear soaks into their bloodstream like a paralyzing virus and prevents them from taking a step in the beautiful, wonderful, difficult life in front of them.’
‘Fear wants to stop our stories........’ and this book is filled with people’s honest statements, doubts, struggles and hope. Too often churches cause everybody to dress up their brokenness and hide their pain. Jackson draws back the curtain to show us what’s really happening in the hearts and minds of many people. As the book moves along, Anne paints a very practical picture of the steps necessary to walk in freedom. She writes about the power of admission and confession: and the importance of knowing the difference. ‘Admission is just sharing something that’s wrong so you can get it off your chest. Confession, on the other hand, is the beginning of transformation.’
Celebration, rescue and transformation are the heartbeat of this book. Jackson writes about getting the facts out into the light, and then allowing the truth of God to bring the freedom. Fear, confession & grace abound. Maybe not enjoyable but this book is so needful as a liberating and rare contribution to the marketplace, by an attractive author and publisher partnership. Unique and challenging!

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