Help for those struggling with perfectionism and guilt in their Christian walk.
Many Christians, often without even realising it, struggle with a type of Christian perfectionism. We strive to please God but are plagued with anxiety about making mistakes. We want to do God’s will but live with a self-berating inner voice even as we seek to serve him. We sincerely believe the gospel and love Jesus but struggle with never feeling good enough before God.
How can Christians wholeheartedly pursue God without an undercurrent of guilt, fear or anxiety? How can imperfect people experience God's peace while seeking to obey his perfect standards?
Author Faith Chang addresses the struggles of her fellow "Christian perfectionists" through meditations on God’s character. With nuance and care, she writes for those who seek to grow in Christ and live for God’s glory yet live in fear of failure. She explores the Bible to show that as God deals with us as in-process people, he is far more merciful, righteous and patient than we may have imagined. As we consider how he interacts bountifully with us, the weary and scrupulous Christian perfectionist will be freed to serve God while experiencing his love and peace.
There are prayers between each chapter for specific situations Christian perfectionists face, such as “A Prayer for When You Feel You’re a Fake.” Reflection questions are included for those reading the book in small groups or one to one.
Introduction
1. The Perfectionist’s Ache
A Prayer for Rest
2. Knowledge
A Prayer for When You Fear You’re a Fake
3. Mercy
A Prayer for When You Hear the Voice of Condemnation
4. Law
A Prayer for When You Feel Like You’re Always Doing Something Wrong
5. Peace
A Prayer for When You’re Afraid to Pray
6. Patience
A Prayer for When All You Can See Is All Your Failures
7. Providence
A Prayer for When You Fear Missing His Voice (For All That’s Left Undone)
8. Love
A Prayer for When Your Best Doesn’t Feel Good Enough
9. There Remains a Rest
Appendix: Discussion/Journaling Questions & Resources for Further Study
| Contributors | Faith Chang, Esther Liu |
|---|---|
| ISBN | 9781784989866 |
| Format | eBook |
| First published | April 2024 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | The Good Book Company |
Relief—that was my experience of reading this wonderful book. Faith has expertly weaved her personal struggles and cultural background together with gospel truth and historical example to produce a deeply comforting and fresh exploration of Christian perfectionism.
New authors have a way of bringing fresh perspectives to stubborn struggles. That is what Faith Chang does with perfectionism. If you’ve found yourself pursuing a good goal (holiness) in an exhausting way (perfectionism), Peace over Perfection offers a fresh voice and fresh perspective. Through the hope of the gospel, you’ll learn to pursue godliness in a way that rests in the reality that God is for you—as a good Father. A book rooted in prayer, Peace over Perfection invites you to talk with God about your journey and enjoy his presence in your in-process life.
Faith Chang is a natural storyteller, a gifted writer, and insightful and encouraging. In my anxious pursuit of perfection, Chang points me to Christ—the founder and perfecter of our faith—and his perfect love casts out my fear.
I listened to the audiobook version of this, and found myself wanting to soak every word so deeply I also bought a physical copy to annotate so I could easily return to it.
I didn't expect much, but the outlay of the book spoke to me. I definitely struggle with perfectionism insofar as I understand the perfect standard of Christ, and feel my deep lack and shortcoming before it. Especially being in a season of young children, all ability I previously had to chase that standard feels like it has withered away.
But in this season, messages like this one from Faith have been so life giving. Reminders to rest firmly in my God-given identity. To view myself as God views me first and foremost: loved and redeemed by the work of Christ on the cross.
One aspect that Faith excels at in her writing is pulling out that truth. A trademark of my own perfectionism is the phrase 'I know'. 'I know' what's expected, 'I know' how it should be done. Faith takes hold of these assumptions of knowledge by those who struggle with Christian perfectionism and gently says 'You know, but let me help you understand'.
God has promised peace to his people, and Faith lovingly reminds and affirms it is not an empty promise.
Chang shares in such vulnerable, relatable way. Showing us the sinful base and desires of perfectionism as well as the hope we have in Jesus Christ. The author shares many perfection shifts and practical tips to combat perfectionism. The gospel is presented in all it's grace.
"As you take steps to find help for your perfectionism, you don't carry the weight of your own deliverance."
"Our temptation in the shadow of the fall is to deny our sinfulness or try to fix it on our own. Knowing both options are deadly, God makes us confront the painful reality of our situation."
I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
This is an encouraging and helpful book! I found I didn't relate to it as much as I expected - my struggles with perfectionism come from a different place than the author's - but that does not diminish its value. I still found it helpful, and I expect many others will as well. And I enjoyed the prayers!
I found this book through a promotional email. Curious to see what it was about, I clicked on the link that took me to a sample. After reading the introduction, I felt as though someone had reached into my heart and articulated a deep struggle that I feel like I wrestle with nearly daily. So many perspectives on perfectionism seem to stem from the "no one is perfect, rest on Christ alone, and live in the moment"....BUT what is you already agree with all of those statements. What if you're not striving to be perfect, but desperately want to know that your life is a fragrant offering to the Lord? What if you know that God loves you and accepts you based on the imputed righteousness of Christ, but you feel like God is apathetic towards you? What if you know that we all have blindspots due to our sin, but that becomes borderline paralyzing in trying to make a sound decision for your life?.....then this book is for you. It was like a pressure release valve opened in my heart. I keep it by my bed to read again the sections that truly are soothing balm for my heart and mind
Thoughtful discussion so relevant to those with struggles in areas of perfectionism, conscience and discouragement. Excellent.
This book opened my eyes to the way I was thinking about myself - I was surprised to find I could identify closely with five out of the eight chapters.
Each chapter helpfully examines one aspect of the internal struggles some experience, doing so from a broad Biblical perspective. Then, at the end of the chapter, there is a prayer which draws everything together with tremendous insight, weaving Scripture into those prayers and homing in on the main way in which the struggle manifests itself. Thus, the chapter on God's patience ends with "a prayer for when all you can see are your failures," and the chapter on the way God shows his love to us ends with "a prayer for when your best doesn't feel good enough."
This is a tonic for weary souls, especially for those who wearied by a voice of condemnation from within. It is refreshing and deeply encouraging.
I received Peace Over Perfection compliments of The Good Book Company in exchange for my honest review.
Peace Over Perfection is the debut title by Faith Chang and one that I greatly enjoyed. I’m not sure if it’s because I’m a firstborn, but I’ve always considered myself to have a Type A personality. In many ways, and for many years, I’ve put pressure to perform on myself in ways that the Bible doesn’t. Peace Over Perfection was such an encouraging read for me. This is a book I can see myself reading again because of how helpful it is. I felt like Faith was with me as a friend gently guiding me to the beauty and freedom of the gospel.
As I read, I felt understood and also relieved that many burdens I’ve placed on myself aren’t actually mine to carry. One of the greatest encouragements to me from the book is how Faith gently addresses perfectionists. Rather than just assuming that every Christian who struggles with perfectionism is prideful, Faith acknowledges that those who struggle in this way often have the best intentions and truly do want to honor the Lord.
I found the chapter, Providence, particularly encouraging, comforting, and freeing. It was a sweet reminder of God’s sovereignty over my imperfections and the beauty of His redeeming power in them. Each chapter concludes with a prayer for the perfectionist written by Faith and the prayers are drawn from Scripture.
Additionally, Faith is an excellent writer which added to my enjoyment in reading. If you are a Christian who struggles with perfectionism, you will be greatly encouraged by Peace Over Perfection. I’m pleased to give it my highest recommendation and eagerly anticipate reading more by Faith.
This book was a God-send. I have struggled with perfectionism all my life including in my relationship with God. The author's words spoke to and comforted me greatly. It saddened me to learn that others feel and think as I do, but in some ways it also helped to know that I am not alone. I am grateful for her vulnerability in sharing her struggle and her courage to share what God has spoken to her. I hope she writes more in the future. Thank you Faith Chang.
I found this book encouraging, empathetic and refreshing. Faith seemed to understand my inner dialogue and internal wrestles and spoke wise, grace-filled, gospel saturated truth into these struggles. I found the prayers really helpful to pray. I have already recommended this book to others- who I am sure will also benefit.
I never saw myself as a Christian perfectionist until I read this book. Perfectionist is not even a word that I would use to describe myself. Do I have areas that I am organized and like those things to stay that way? I most certainly do, but I do not have a great organizational system. It was not until Chang pointed out that Christian perfectionist often struggle with not "getting it right" all the time that leads to this type of perfection.
I often struggle with maybe if I would have shared the gospel in a better way then that person would have become a Christian. Maybe if I knew more about Theology then I would have been able to answer that question. Through reading this book, I was able to see that I often rely on my own power to save a person rather than relying on God. This was a book that I did not know that I needed to read because it pointed out areas in my life that I am not fully putting my trust in the Lord. Instead I spend my time contemplating the "what ifs."
Through out the course of this book, Chang uses her own personal struggles to show we are not alone in our fight against Christian perfectionism. I am grateful for her willingness to share her personal struggles with the world. This book would not have had the same impact on my life if it was not for Chang's vulnerability.
If I am honest, I felt like the prayers at the end of each chapter were very surface level. After being convicted in many ways, I would come to the time of prayer at the end of each chapter and I felt as if those prayers were nothing in comparison to how I was feeling after reading each chapter. Each chapter showed me areas where I was trying to save the word from a life in Hell without the one who can save them.
