Fighting Forward: Your Nitty-Gritty Guide to Beating the Lies That Hold You Back

Hannah Brencher is literally like the cheerleader with the huge sign in the middle of the race - when you are at your most tired she is waving the sign with all the hope filled affirmations you could ever need.This book is all about finding rhythms to add to your life. Hannah has the relational voice that makes you feel seen and heard. I asked myself constantly how does she know this about me? It was all so relatable.2020 was a darkroom of sorts for me and in fighting forward the constant theme of the anthem is wrapped around each page - an anthem of hope in the midst of the fight to move forward. Hope didn't find the back exit.The hope in this book is about bravery and self worth and committing to the long haul.The thing about the darkroom is that the process is patience - it takes time and light for the picture to fully appear. Small steps and continuing to show up and stay in fight cause who God made you to be is not about perfection but about showing up again and again and again. Hannah gives you tools to remember what you have is too important to the world to give up on.You need this book on your shelf. It will be an anthem you'll want to re-listen to over and over and over.

I loved Hannah Brencher’s newest book Fighting Forward. She shares the “fight songs” and anthems that helped her through struggles and dark periods in her life. It’s about fighting forward, despite and because of the lies we latch onto, to find our way back home. Her powerful messages are refreshing and life-giving. They shake you up to a new reality-minus the fears, doubts, and lies that attempt to tether you to places you’ve been stuck or held back.Hannah Brencher stresses that it’s the incremental steps you take that develops consistency, which is key. This creates a shift and then little by little you’ll eventually see movement. It’s about showing up no matter the cost.I loved this quote from the book, “It’s not about perfection, it’s about resilience.” As she mentions, everyone has fifteen minutes to take out of their day to take steps toward the vision and calling on your heart.The author shares Scripture, personal stories and struggles, action steps, and powerful truths to bring her message home. One that we all need to hear. I’ve struggled with doubts and fears that have grabbed hold of me and won’t let go. I have found that fear can be paralyzing, especially when paired with the lies that brought me face to face with my fears-the ones that taunt me over and over.I love the author’s engaging and down-to-earth approach in her writing as if we were sitting across the table for coffee. I love how she sprinkles humor throughout the pages. She offers hope with her inspiration and bares her soul with authenticity and honesty.Hannah Brencher addresses our inner-critics, fears, and how we need to embrace our failures and grow and move on from them. There are nuggets of wisdom to be found within the pages of Fighting Forward. Anthem songs to learn when the going gets tough, as it always does. She is a cheerleader and truth-teller and I feel so inspired and encouraged by her powerful book. I think you’ll gain hope, insight, and clarity reading Fighting Forward and be energized to keep on fighting no matter what!

It’s no coincidence God planned this book for this season.Fighting Forward is the guide you need to overcome hurdles and start new rhythms. Hannah’s writing is as beautiful as ever, her honesty refreshing, and her practical steps for reclaiming truth and fighting forward are life-giving. Hannah’s storytelling disguised as lyrical, poetic prose will give you the words you need to describe your struggles. Her wisdom will give you to the steps you need to make a change.Because this book is divided up into small essays, I had intended to read a chapter each day. However, I loved it so much I read it over a weekend. I hope to read it in smaller chunks in the future because there’s so. Much. Here. You could really read it either way and multiple times, and gain new insight from it every time. Hannah writes the depths of truth in an way that is beautiful and accessible to all.Over the last 8 years of following Hannah Brencher, I’ve learned so much at the foot of her teaching; Fighting Forward is no exception. She is a master storyteller, preacher of truth, the friend to sit with you over coffee, and the cheerleader to encourage you to do the hard thing.Grab a pen and a notebook. Be ready to mark up this book. It’s a good one, and exactly the message we need to propel us into living on mission in 2021 and beyond.

If you only buy one book in 2021, it should be THIS one! Fighting Forward is an anthem of hope, encouragement, truth, and purpose — and don’t we all need that?Using personal stories, Hannah invites the reader to JUST START, and offers practical advice on how to develop daily rhythms that will keep you moving forward into the life God has called you to live. Fight the fear, name the lies for what they are – and fight forward. “Begin right where you are. In this very moment. And you can tell yourself, even if you don’t believe it at first, “I am showing up for progress, not perfection. I am showing up, regardless of the pieces I cannot see in the puzzle yet. I believe in the magic that will come from the slow and steady path forward.”I can already tell that this is a book I’m going to read over and over!

“It may be time for you to just start. To not waste any more moments. To not wait on perfection. But to just get up from the floor, with wobbly knees, and start moving imperfectly into that thing that is always trying to hold you back from.”When a book starts its first chapter with a message like that, you know you’re going to be in for quite a ride.There are very few practical, helpful guides to life in your 20’s that legitimately feel like you’re sitting across the table from a friend over coffee, pouring out your hearts to one another.Hannah Brencher’s “Fighting Forward” is just that.She walks you through moments she’s already lived through, reminding you that you can too. Most of her books do. But, this one is especially special.I think I can speak for everyone when I say that 2020 was one of the hardest years to make it through to the other side. Holding Hannah’s book in hand in 2021 feels that much sweeter.This book is more than just fight songs or mantras for the tough times we inevitably go through. It’s about setting yourself up with disciplines and rhythms so when the tough times do occur, you have a plan and a foundation of where to go, even when you don’t know what’s next. There are also Biblical principles and scripture to hold onto in the midst of rocky seasons.It’s about showing up, even when it’s painful and even when you don’t want to.It’s about committing to the first mile before you stress yourself out about everything that comes after that.It’s about putting your blinders on, ignoring the naysayers and going after that calling that God has placed in your heart. Because there will be people that talk or just flat out don’t understand the dream you’re going after.It’s watching out for the things that will steal your time, like social media or comparing your life to that of others.And so so much more.Hannah gets it. She has been there herself and wants to help equip other young women (and men). But, I don’t think it’s even limited to an age group. This is for anyone who has experienced pain and is literally in the fight of their life trying to make it to the other side.I have highlighted so many chunks of words and paragraphs in this book. I have a feeling that many of them will be quoted in my journal and will become mottos for me in the days to come. This, along with Hannah's previous works, will be comfort books that I turn to once again and reference in the very near future.