Sun Stand Still: What Happens When You Dare to Ask God for the Impossible

I came to this book, having stumbled on Steven Furtick's YouTube videos a few years ago while researching other popular ministries. He is an amazing speaker, probably the best of this generation. And he has grown greatly as a preacher, and as a person in the 10 years since this book was written. Just compare his early videos to the work he does now. There has been an amazing transformation.Pastor Furtick has been the man of the hour during the 2020 pandemic, continuing his weekly services by live stream with an empty building. His inspiring messages have become a beacon of light for a panic stricken world.I purchased Sun Stand Still back in 2017, and it sat in a pile of books I was planning to read someday, until about a week ago.I am no stranger to believing God for some pretty big things, and seeing Him come through for me. But this book has inspired me to let God into some of the nooks and crannies of my life.Steven Furtick opens up in this book about parts of his life rarely mentioned in sermons. One of his grandfathers was a preacher, and one was an alcoholic who took his own life. Steven's father was also an alcoholic who finally gave his life to the Lord when Steven was in his late teens, and never took another drink.His grandmother developed Alzheimer's and spent the last 12 years of her life in a nursing home, sometimes screaming obscenities at family members she no longer recognized.His life has not been quite as perfect as it seems on the surface, although he admits he was a virgin on his wedding day.As I said, this is a book about real faith.My plan is to go back to page one with a Bible handy, and delve more deeply into the scriptures.This book is highly recommended, whether you are going through major challenges, or just dealing with everyday life.The original Sun stand still videos from 2010 are still available on Youtube and they are highly recommended as well. They are brief films that expand on the content of the book, and bring the book into the realm of everyday life.

Before I start this review, I need to tell you that I was a big fan of Steven Furtick before he put a single word down on paper. I first heard him speak last September on The Nines, an online conference put on by Leadership Network...Now, I realize that he may or may not be your cup of tea - he's definitely got a "grew up in the South & around church" vibe - but that video cut through a morass of self-pity & frustration in my ministry & life. He blends "inside baseball" humor (well, "inside ministry life" humor) with great expository teaching & incredible encouragement.In November of 2009, I was given a free ticket to the National Outreach Convention in San Diego... and Steven was the final speaker. You can read one of the points of his message in his blog post, Give Me My Rocks... but there was more to what he said. This gawky 29 year old kid (yes, the fact that he would have been in one of my youth groups makes me a little crazy) challenged & encouraged a group of convention-weary pastors/leaders with humor, passion & capital "T" truth.A bit ashamed of myself for groupie-like behavior, I went up after the convention was done to meet him & tell him how much his video on The Nines had meant to me. And here's why I'm not sure I can give his book a completely objective review - Steven hugged me (was NOT expecting that) and prayed for me, right there in the middle of a crowd of well-wishers. I don't remember much of what he said (still stunned from the bear hug) but his humility & exuberance won me over... in part because it's all too easy for me to live/minister out of pride & duty. Some days, it seems like my passion for Christ & for people has been boiled down to simply getting the job done.So, with all that background/biographical information, now I'll attempt to review Steven's first book, Sun Stand Still: What Happens When You Dare To Ask God For The Impossible.Early on, Steven declares his purpose for writing this book on faith:"This book is not a Snuggie. The words on these pages will not go down like Ambien. I'm not writing to calm or coddle you."With God's help, I intend to incite a riot in your mind. Trip your breakers & turn out the lights in your favorite hiding places of insecurity & fear. Then flip the switch back on so that God's truth can illuminate the divine destiny that may have been lying dormant inside you for years. In short, I'm out to activate your audacious faith. To inspire you to ask God for the impossible. And in the process, to reconnect you with your God-sized purpose & potential."I figure the best way for me to review a book by an author that I'm rooting for is to try & judge the book by this simple question: does he accomplish what he set out to do?The short answer, at least for me, is "Yes."The book is based on the passage in Joshua 10 where God causes the sun to stand still in order that the Israelites can complete the victory that He has promised them. We can all debate the possibility of miracles some other time. (Furtick doesn't even bother here in the book - he simply makes the same assumption that I do: we're dealing with the same God who resurrected Jesus from the grave... if He can intervene there, He can easily do so here.)From there, the author takes us along on his personal journey as the pastor/church planter of Elevation Church... and shares multiple stories of people whose lives have been changed by audacious faith.One of the things I really liked about the book is Steven Furtick's willingness to rewind a bit & make sure that the reader is understanding the terms/words as he is using them... and even to deal with some faith issues that often get ignored in this type of book. What do I mean by "this type of book?" Well, due to my past experience with Christian publishers, lots of books on faith are simply "rah-rah, believe more & get more, name it & claim it" (and so on) and gloss over areas of difficulty that Furtick plunges into head first:*how can I have a big vision when I'm just an "ordinary" follower of Jesus (aka "not a pastor")?*is this simply a "baptized" way to perform prayer rituals to get God to do your bidding*what happens when God doesn't answer your audacious & faithful prayers?With his characteristic humor & solid Biblical foundation, Steven has written a book that manages to encourage followers of Jesus to passionately ask God to move on our behalf for His glory... and to do so without using false guilt to motivate people to pursue faith.Note: this is not a book that's going to appeal to those who are struggling with the reality of God... it is written to a Christian audience. For those who are growing closer to God - whether they've crossed the line of faith or not - I think this is an inspiring look at real "rubber hits the road" faith & prayer can be.

I have to admit that when I first read the description of this book, I was leery. I saw it at my local Christian bookstore and in the Kindle store, and hestitated for quite awhile before ordering it. I thought it would just another "name it claim it" and "if you aren't healed, it's because you don't have enough faith." type of book. I thought it would like so many other books out there on this topic. But I was very wrong. This is hands-down of the best books on this subject that I've ever read. I think this book strikes a nice balance between trusting God for the impossible, and acknowledging that sometimes, no matter how much you hope and pray, sometimes, the miracle simply doesn't come. The author of this book is very passionate about this subject, it is obvious to me that he has done his homework and that he truly believes what He is saying. There were many times as I read this book that I had to set it down and think about what I'd just read. The author also makes it very clear that what he calls "Sun Stand Still" prayers is not a guarantee or a magic formula. Sometimes God answers our prayers the way we would like, and sometimes, for reasons that can be incredibly difficult to understand and reconcile, His answer is no. This book goes very indepth and yet is very readable. There are certain authors that have a great capacity to take complex subjects and break them down in a way that is easy to understand. To me, that is is what Steven Furtick does very successfully in this book. I would recommend this book to anyone who is sick and tired of the pat answers and false promises of the "name it, claim it" and the health and wealth gospels. This book is solid and biblical. Scripture clearly teaches that with God, all things are possible and nothing is too hard for Him. But it also teaches that God is sovereign and doesn't always answer the way we would like or expect Him to. I would like to read other works by this author.

Wouldn’t recommend this book from a biblical perspective!

Better than expected.Book was new, no signs of previous reads...

Great book on faith, and praying with faith and conviction. Furtick doesn't sell false hopes and promises, and includes how to deal with situations when things don't go our way even when we ask for them in faith.

you'll learn more about the coulisse of elevation Church its beginning and about Steven Furtick.. Sometimes you see the fufillement of an hard work.But most important is the hard work.A good book in which you can face all the challenges issues and questions of a leader about people good and a secret prayer life

Well written representation of what everyday faith in a miraculous God looks like.