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Faith that is relational is entering into the deepest love relationship that one can ever know, have, or experience . . . A relational faith is the response of one individual accepting, trusting, and believing in a living, loving God who cares for and communicates with him or her!
Faith is being seized by love."
-- Excerpt, page 75
Many Christians know Becky Tirabassi for her previous exercise videos and books on prayer (Let Prayer Change Your Life and My Prayer Partner Notebook). Now she introduces us to the power and passion behind her ministries and life -- faith in Christ -- and invites us to experience that power and passion ourselves.
In Let Faith Change Your Life, Tirabassi writes to both seekers and believers, carefully developing the reasons that make her faith in the Lord Jesus Christ so powerful: it is relevant, relational, radical, and revolutionary.
Faith in Christ is relevant because the Lord meets everyone right where they are, no matter what their income, intellect, stage of life, or health. Faith in Christ is relational, introducing us to the God who longs to hear our prayers and speak personally to us. Putting one's faith in Christ also puts us into an earthly family of believers -- the church -- where we can find encouragers and companions "with skin on" for our daily lives of faith.
Tirabassi shares several testimonies from people who have found faith to be a radical force for change in their lives. Yet she doesn't mince words when describing the tensions that a vital faith produces in the believer's life -- a tension with culture's norms, and the personal tension of recognizing sin in one's own life that requires repentance and change.
She also shows that faith has a revolutionary power to change the believer's life for good.
Endurance, obedience, and forgiveness are just some of the gifts God gives to formerly hopeless causes, Tirabassi says. Supernatural power and miracles are more signs of faith's revolutionary power, but perhaps the most revolutionary change is the ability to love others simply for Christ's sake.
Let Faith Change Your Life is liberally illustrated with examples from Tirabassi's own life. But one caution: her own immediate deliverance from alcoholism, drug addiction, and sexual impurity following her conversion is not always the norm. Seekers or discouraged believers should keep in mind that the Lord works in different, very personal ways with each of us, and loves us no less than He does those for whom change is immediate.
Especially helpful is Tirabassi's review of the claims of Christ and the Bible -- that Jesus lived in bodily form, died and rose again; that the Word of God is authentic and true; that it is real and not romantic; that it provides an unchanging moral code for people because they need it! Quoting from well-known modern apologists like Charles Colson and Josh McDowell, she gives seekers excellent reasons to believe.
For believers, Let Faith Change Your Life is a great resource for witnessing to non-believers. It is a refreshing recall to our "first love," reminding us of the power, excitement, and growth present in a vital relationship with Christ. If those things are missing from your present walk with the Lord, Tirabassi's enthusiasm will help you rediscover the joy of your faith.
Marilyn McDonald is a freelance writer from Saint Lous, MO.
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