Book Description
We know life is more a marathon than a sprint, but we’ve emerged from the pandemic expecting a smooth track, only to find formidable challenges still ahead. Here, Greg Funderburk reframes the obstacles we all face with a Gospel mindset and a dose of Stoic philosophy, suggesting that the hurdles we encounter aren’t incidental to the race—they are the race.
In each of these accessible, story-driven chapters, we’re asked to consider what if, rather than losing heart as we come to them, we used the hurdles to develop spiritual momentum? What if we began to think of our lives not as we might wish they were—long straightaways free of trials and pain—but as they really are, realizing that it’s in the hurdles that we cultivate strength and beauty in our personalities, discover opportunities to offer grace to one another, and connect more closely to God through the very nature of the obstacles we face.
Book Reviews
Greg Funderburk is a masterful storyteller with a gift for pairing story and application. His writing is compelling, his books almost reading themselves to you. I’ve been eager for another book by Greg, and Hurdles—rich in insight for life after almost any trauma—doesn’t disappoint. On every page, Greg conveys words of wonder, compassion, and encouragement to the heart, mind, and soul.
—Eric Black
Executive Director, Publisher & Editor, Baptist Standard
Reading Greg Funderburk’s book Hurdles was not only enlightening, but also—do I dare say it—fun! Each chapter was a perfect length where one can read it, understand it, discuss it, and retain the knowledge found there. He uses other writers for inspiration effortlessly whether they be as far apart as Winston Churchill or the Brothers Grimm. Greg shows scriptural insight while sharing stories from his life experiences. I am so glad I read his book. It helped me to soar over today’s hurdles.
—Ragan Courtney
Author of Do You Still Do Things with Clay and Holy Ghosts
Coming out of my own Covid experience—the pandemic, the isolation, and my own Covid—reading Hurdles was like being given beams of light on the path of recovery. Greg Funderburk has gathered wisdom from a wide spectrum of thinkers, writers, and personal relationships, and has integrated that wisdom into his own life experience. He is a trusted and faithful guide, not only for the challenges of recovering from a traumatic season, but for keeping the faith in daily life. Hurdles is a gift of encouragement, a practical manual of soul nourishment.
—Jeanie Miley
Author of Fierce Love: Radical Measures for Desperate Times
Greg Funderburk at his finest. Intelligent. Insightful. Relevant. Encouraging. When Greg writes, I read.
—James Randall O’Brien
Former Provost, Baylor University
President Emeritus, Carson-Newman University
Author of Set Free by Forgiveness and Would Moses Throw a Chair?
If you are seeking, or at least are open to finding, insightful, prayerful meditations on life and faith, then allow me to commend to you Gregory Funderburk’s Hurdles. By teaching us techniques, offering us training, and calling us to tenacity, Funderburk fits us to run well the race that is before us, hurdles notwithstanding. Funderburk’s sixty, substantive reflections found herein are humane, wise, and welcome, leading us to love God, others, and ourselves more fully and joyfully. One of the silver linings of Covid was the birth of Greg Funderburk as a published author. As the pandemic continues to wane, let us hope that Funderburk’s work will continue to wax.
—Todd Still
Charles J. and Eleanor McLerran DeLancey Dean &
William M. Hinson Professor of Christian Scriptures
Baylor University, Truett Seminary