According to author Dave Gibbons in Xealots, a faith-filled life is the opposite of what you think it is. The author urges the reader to defy the conventional wisdom of relying only on your strengths and passions to navigate life, and also embrace and examine your weaknesses and pain. Explore the new and old domains of world that is constantly changing (says Gibbons), and you’ll experience life to its fullest.

What does Jesus mean when he promises “life to the full”?

Like many Christians, author Dave Gibbons thought “life to the full” meant just the positives – a life full of joy and happiness. After all, isn’t that what we’re taught in seminars, in self-help books, and even in psychological assessments to ascertain who is – and is not – a “good fit”?

We look for people with lots of successes and strengths, don’t we? Gibbons’ own beliefs on the subject were rocked when he took a long, hard, honest look at his own life and realized it was his failures that made him who is today. So he went back to the Scriptures, and kept his eyes open to truly see the people around him. That’s when he made a shocking discovery: when we embrace the painful areas of our lives we see the miracle that can happen when God redeems these areas of weakness and makes them beautiful.

“Now I see that ‘life to the full’ means a life that is open to all the colours and flavors of the human experience, the ability to feel with a fully alive heart, whether it’s in times of joy or pain.”

Xealots offers a refreshing new look at what it means to be fully human. This uplifting book enables you to transform your own “failures” into success in God’s eyes so that you can serve him with all that you are.

Xealots is a great book for leaders and features concepts tested in many business and non-profit settings including the Willow Creek Leadership Summit.