Martin - Falling free: rescued from the life I always wanted

Be prepared to have your atrophied, tired notion of God propelled into a new and spacious place. With humor, grace, and not a little jostling of your comfort zone, Shannan Martin will introduce you to the mess at the margins. See Jesus in the lowly place, St. Ignatius writes. You will see Him, in this book, as never before. We are invited here to stare at our shared ruin, so that we can walk away, astounded that we belong to each other.

G REGORY B OYLE , FOUNDER OF H OMEBOY I NDUSTRIES ; AUTHOR OF T ATTOOS ON THE H EART : THE P OWER OF B OUNDLESS C OMPASSION

I love this book! My wish is for us all to live as passionately, humbly, and lovingly as the Martins do!

B OB G OFF , N EW Y ORK T IMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF L OVE D OES

Engaging, funny, and convicting. Shannan and her family woke up from the American Dream to find the upside-down reality of God better and more beautiful than anything theyd known before. This book shook up my soul and invited me into the adventure of taking Jesus at his word.

E LLIE H OLCOMB , SINGER-SONGWRITER

Shannan Martin takes what is regular, ordinary, and small about our story and carries it through the lens of Gods invisible kingdom, reminding us that the more we often long for might actually be found in less. She can turn a phrase into something so surprising, so stunning, it will both catch your breath and break your heart. Shannan Martin is one of my favorite writers and Falling Free is an exquisite work.

E MILY P. F REEMAN , AUTHOR OF S IMPLY T UESDAY : S MALL -M OMENT L IVING IN A F AST -M OVING W ORLD

Shannan Martin is quickly becoming one of my favorite people. Not just because of what she writes but because of who she is. That said, Falling Free is not only convicting and challenging, its a refreshing look into her story where we will no doubt find a piece of our own story. Its a book that will lead you to encouragement and freedom by following God whenever to the wherever.

B RANDON H ATMAKER , AUTHOR OF A M ILE W IDE AND B AREFOOT C HURCH

Read this book, if you dare. Through beautiful prose and glorious storytelling, Shannan has laid out the gospel for us. You cannot read this and walk away as if nothing happened. The Spirit of God is crackling with transformative power in these pages. Open this book. It will open your heart and unlock the wonderful mystery of living the gospel in all of its upside down-ness.

D EIDRA R IGGS , SPEAKER AND AUTHOR OF O NE : U NITY IN A D IVIDED W ORLD

Shannan is a rare and beautiful soul. The way she has moved through pain without bitterness, and lives with deep joy is an inspiration. Falling Free is her honest storyand it shows us that trust can be terrifying, hope can hurt, and love can set you free.

D R . J OHN S OWERS , AUTHOR OF T HE H EROIC P ATH

Falling Free answers the question we all have when we sense God is asking us to give up our dreams: Will I be okay? The answer is a resounding YES! In fact, well be freer and more fulfilled. Through Shannans open and funny writing, I feel like I understand what true freedom in Christ looks like: its following him with our whole hearts and joining him in his mission to make the world wholeway better than a farmhouse sink and shiplap.

O SHETA M OORE , SPEAKER , BLOGGER , AND HOST OF THE S HALOM IN THE C ITY PODCAST

Shannan Martin is the best friend we all hope for: funny and comforting when the chips are down, but a straight-talker who can also pinpoint the exact hard thing we need to hear. The thing about our version of freedom is that we never fully have it, and Shannan is here to guide us as we learn to give up on our quest to be good enough, middle-class enough, or faithful enough. Her gorgeous words both challenged me to my core and made me float with happiness at all the ways God uses chaotic, messed-up people like myself to bring his kingdom. She is my new favorite theologian, and my new favorite best friend.

D. L. M AYFIELD , AUTHOR OF A SSIMILATE OR G O H OME : N OTES FROM A F AILED M ISSIONARY ON R EDISCOVERING F AITH

Reading Falling Free is like having a dear friend knock the rose-colored glasses from your face only to replace them with a true, crisp visionsomething about freedom that is far more beautiful and surprising, terrible and healing than you could imagine. This isnt the way of a better quiet time or tidier thinking. Falling Free is the rip-roarious story of Jesus in the life of Shannan Martin. Its the ravenous, impossible love of God that heals, unhinges, goes for broke, cobbles together, and leads home.

A MBER C. H AINES , AUTHOR OF W ILD IN THE H OLLOW

Shannan, through the words in these pages and in the way she lives out her life, pushes me to betterment. The best thing? She never heaps on the guilt in the process. She just lives her life and tells her story beautifully, and in doing so, she calls us all out of our comfort zones and asks us to examine our choices: Am I living to be comfortable? Or am I willing to make a difference in an ordinary but important way? Im so grateful for her words."

T SH O XENREIDER , AUTHOR OF A T H OME IN THE W ORLD AND N OTES FROM A B LUE B IKE

2016 by Shannan Martin

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Published in Nashville, Tennessee, by Nelson Books, an imprint of Thomas Nelson. Nelson Books and Thomas Nelson are registered trademarks of HarperCollins Christian Publishing, Inc.

Published in association with the literary agency of Wolgemuth & Associates, Inc.

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In rare instances, a name has been changed to protect the privacy of the person described. Events and conversations have been constructed from the authors memory.

Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation. 1996, 2004, 2007, 2013 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked NIV are from the Holy Bible, New International Version, NIV . Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com. The NIV and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.

Scripture quotations marked THE MESSAGE are from The Message. Copyright by Eugene H. Peterson 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.

ISBN 978-0-7180-7747-1 (eBook)

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Martin, Shannan, 1976- author.

Title: Falling free : rescued from the life I always wanted / Shannan Martin.

Description: Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 2016.

Identifiers: LCCN 2016004537 | ISBN 9780718077464

Subjects: LCSH: Christian life.

Classification: LCC BV4501.3 .M27635 2016 | DDC 248.4--dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016004537

16 17 18 19 20 RRD 6 5 4 3 2 1

For Cory.
Lets never stop falling together.