hanging at the pdym-slc - parker, austin, emmah and adam
last summer while at the student leadership conference at saddleback we had the chance to hangout with alot of cool folks – one person in particular was austin gutwein. austin is a humble guy. yet he’s had a huge impact on so many in his short life and the impact just keeps growing. most recently he has completed his first book …take your best shot… scheduled for release in early september.
austin joined us for a skype conversation during the dare2serve mission trip in june. had a great conversation with our students. you can watch it
here.
here’s the promo video for the book. so cool.
here’s my take on the book…take your best shot is a great read. many good stories about finding your place in God’s Story. what makes the books so good is that its “just” a story about a pretty typically “normal kid”. but as austin admits he’s gotten “swept along on an adventure that’s totally abnormal.” something he hadn’t planned on at all. and its out of that honesty that the book is a real encouragement to seeing how God can use the humble heart of anyone. The core for me is the reminder from austin that the adventure that we are all called to be a part of looks like this…
- we realize the world actually does not revolve around us
- we realize that we only have one life to live, only one chance to make it count.
- we start off by focusing on who we are rather than what we do.
- we discover that doing something bigger than ourselves begins with Someone bigger than ourselves
- we do a major motivation check.
- we embrace our own passions and adopt our own purposes.
- we are willing to dream big and act small.
- we partner with others who are going in similar directions.
- we prepare for desertion, opposition, and distraction.
- we celebrate like crazy when cool things happen around us.
- we willingly join this group of people who are taking their best shot and doing things that are bigger thant themselves.
take your best shot is a book that everyone will enjoy. students – to help them see that they truly have something to offer and the world is just waiting for them to act…and adults – realizing they have something to offer our youth.. that we see how important it is to risk in the ideas, heart and passion of those around us…whether our own children or youth at church. the quote from abraham lincoln near the end of the book that sums it all up ” in the end, its not the years in your life that count. it’s the life in your years.”
what life is in your years? Review Grade: A
you can order the book by clicking on the image above. you can also follow austin and his exploits on twitter.