Bob Goff's "Everybody Always": A New Perspective on Life and Love
Bob Goff’s "Everybody Always" ends with these words: "Don't just love the people who are easy to love; go love the difficult ones. If you do this, Jesus said you'd move forward on your journey toward being more like Him. Equally important, as you practice loving everybody always, what will happen along the way is you'll no longer be who you used to be. God will turn you into love."
New York Times Bestselling Author Bob Goff is an insightful man with a vivid imagination and a lot of God-inspired courage. But when I think of all he's experienced, about which the chapters of his book reveal, I'm not inspired to become like him. I'm challenged to become more like Jesus, who fuels Goff's passion.
Uniquely Created and Equipped to Love
In each chapter, we gain insight into Bob's experiences as he writes about "Creepy People," "Meeting Carol," and "The Yellow Truck." From each experience, Goff draws several soul-searching questions, through which I got the distinct impression he was trying to tell us, not to do as he does in loving others, but to do as the Lord has equipped and gifted us to love others. Bob Goff shares we all have abilities, gifts, and passions that God wants to use to love others and make a difference right where we are. God created us to love others in unique and unexpected ways.
On page 91, he writes: "Don't ignore the green lights you already have. What delights you? What fires your imagination? What fills you with a deep sense of meaning and purpose? What draws you closer to God? What is going to last in your life and in the lives of others? Do those things. They're your green lights. Most of us already have more lights than we need. Don't wait to join a movement. A movement is just a bunch of people making moves. Be a movement. Figure out what your next move is going to be, then make it. No one is remembered for what they only planned to do."
Love and Faith
Goff also explains how God wants us to put our love into action. He discusses the struggle we have with hearing God’s voice to know what next steps we need to take. But Goff provides an interesting perspective when we can’t hear God’s voice—whether He is being silent or we are making too much noise to hear.
On page 136, Goff writes: "I've heard a lot of people say they wish they could hear from God about this or that…What we actually want is that extra nudge of confidence from God and the opportunity to move forward courageously to do those things we already know how to do. What a shame it would be if we were waiting for God to say something while He's been waiting on us to do something…Simply put, if we want more faith, we need to do more stuff."
Don’t wait for God to give you some great revelation or provide some great opportunity to make a difference. Take action with opportunities God has already put in your path to love others like Jesus did. Let those opportunities become your story.
A Call to Action
Goff skillfully knits the experiences of his life into revealing and compelling stories. His often-humorous quips can cause us to laugh out loud, but I found while I was laughing, he slipped in a truth that pricked my heart and stirred my soul. I found myself hating that the book was coming to an end. I wanted another story; some additional words of wisdom to add to my already stuffed "wisdom" chest. Then, the Lord began to smile and say, "Go make your own stories, or as Bob might say, 'Land your own plane.' I've taught you more than enough. I've invested Myself in you in ways you haven't even realized. You are ready. I trust you. Go take some risks for Me, like my son, Bob Goff, does every day of his life."
Goff writes on page 46: "Jesus told His friends that letting people see the way we love each other would be the best way to let people know about Him. It wouldn't be because we'd given them a lot of directions or instructions or because they memorized or studied all the right things. It would be because someone met you or me and felt as if they'd just met Jesus."
I believe that's the point of the book. To each of us, no story is as meaningful as the one God tells in and through our life. I believe Bob is challenging us: "Go love like you mean it! Become the love of Jesus to the people in your life, beginning with your own family. Regardless of how things have been, let love change them—starting with you!" Read Bob Goff’s "Everybody Always" and come to hear his special message this weekend (April 12-14), but don't stop there. Let God give you a new perspective. Let Him turn you into love!