Tuesday, July 24, 2012

The Hard Way by Jeremy Donovan

*Have you ever screamed out the words, “My Life Sucks!”?

* Have you ever been in a destructive pattern of behavior that you knew – if you did not change – would end up killing you?

* Have you ever sunk so deep into an addiction rut that you were sure you would never be able to get out?

* Have you ever been plagued with torturous thoughts that screamed at you, condemning you to a life of failure and hopelessness?

If any of the above describes you and your life up to this point, be encouraged. The book entitled The Hard Way written by recovered addict – and now youth pastor – Jeremy Donovan points the way to help you get out of your rut. Out of your destructive lifestyle.

Author Jeremy Donovan has been there; done that. He wrote The Hard Way because he wants to show others the way out.

“I had no one to show me the way,” Jeremy says. “In my hours of desperation, I came across so many books and guides to help me become successful in life. Success was not what I was looking for when lying at rock-bottom of my rut. I just wanted someone to show me how to be normal.”

Why the title The Hard Way? By Jeremy’s own confession, all through his life, he always had to learn by doing things the hard way. He sees the same behavior patterns in others who are trapped in addictions.

In The Hard Way you will find stories of Jeremy’s addictions and bondage; as well as the struggle and pain of breaking free from the bondage. The book also provides a guide that anyone can follow to break free from whatever bondage you may find yourself in.

“There’s a huge difference between bondage and temptation,” Jeremy points out. “I know the pain and absolute agony of desperately wanting to be free, and yet not knowing how to find that freedom.”

Thousands of addicts on a daily basis are screaming out, “My life sucks!” Family and friends fail to understand why that person cannot resist temptation. The problem is, the individual who is in bondage is past the point of fighting. There is no fight left in them. Jeremy knows and understands that level of desperation.

A father at the age of nineteen, he couldn’t support his baby son, the baby’s mother or himself. At age twenty-one Jeremy suffered a brain aneurysm that nearly killed him. His life journey took him in and out of mental institutions, through attempted suicides, and finally to a rehab center where he came face-to-face with his loving Heavenly Father and his life was forever changed.

Ten years out of his drug addition, on the road to health and wholeness, Jeremy’s heart-desire is reach out a helping hand to others who are still in the pit of bondage.
In The Hard Way, Jeremy pours out his heart in order to tell his story as honestly and forthrightly as possible. “The pain I went through is worth it,” he says, “if that pain can help even one person out of their bondage.” Then he adds, “You don’t have to learn the hard way. Let The Hard Way supply you with the needed tools to break forever free!”

My review:
I am signed up with a few places that email me with special deals on Kindle books, most of them free. That is how I found this book. I thought it sounded worth reading, so I grabbed it, and am glad I am. What a story.

Jeremy is brutally honest as he tells his story. It is an inspiring and encouraging story. That someone could go so far as he did, be involved in all that he was, and yet God reached down and rescued him and made something of him - what an encouragement.

The book is more than a story of God rescuing a young man from a life of sin. Jeremy also wrote the book to help others who are where he was. He has several steps people need to take. There is advice on everything from how to kick smoking to finding a job you can excel at and enjoy.

I have never done drugs, thank God, but there was a lot in the book I could relate to. This is the kind of book that everyone should read, but especially anyone who has a struggle of any kind, and is letting life and circumstances keep them down.

I really enjoyed reading Jeremy's story. I was inspired, encouraged, and even convicted by it. This is way more than a memoir. It is also a handbook, and I plan on applying some of Jeremy's advice to my own life. I highly recommend this book.

About the author:

Jeremy Donovan grew up as a pastor’s son in the Philadelphia area. His life was dramatically changed when at a young age he was sexually molested by a close friend of the family. This pattern continued from the time he was nine to age thirteen.

 Because of that violation, and unbeknownst to those closest to him, Jeremy was slowly being consumed with an intense inner anger.

By age of sixteen he had exited the church and all that it represented. He abandoned his calling and started on a slippery slope to rock bottom. He became a drug dealer and an addict plying his trade on the seamy streets of Philadelphia. The anger surfaced in a number of destructive behavior patterns.

At twenty-one Jeremy suffered a brain aneurysm that almost – and the doctors said should have – killed him. After barely recovering from this near-death experience, he went right back to his addiction. Right back to the rut.

It was in a rehab center that he encountered God and began the healing process. Jeremy Donovan has gone on to become the youth pastor of Destiny Life church, a multi-campus church in the Tulsa, Oklahoma area.

In 2008, he along with friend and ministry-partner, Matt Moore, founded “The SOZO Movement.” Sozo is a series of testimonies from everyday people sharing the love and power of Jesus Christ. http://jeremydonovan.me/sozo-move/

Jeremy is highly involved in Master’s Commission, USA, the Bible College/Discipleship program he attended after coming out of a rehab program.
He has served as a guest host on “Praise The Lord, Tulsa” on the TBN Network. CLICK HERE TO WATCH

The Hard Way is Jeremy’s first book.

Jeremy is most proud of his family. His wife Annie and their two amazing children Cadence and Cale.

www.twitter.com/jeremy_donovan

www.facebook.com/jeremydonovan

www.twitter.com/thehardwaybook

http://jeremydonovan.me/
CLICK HERE TO SEE JEREMY DONOVAN’S TESTIMONY VIDEO FROM SOZOMOVE

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