{"id":4648,"date":"2014-12-01T10:40:21","date_gmt":"2014-12-01T17:40:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/takeandread\/?p=4648"},"modified":"2014-12-01T11:03:19","modified_gmt":"2014-12-01T18:03:19","slug":"heavens-muscle-a-qa-with-author-bren-hughes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/takeandread\/2014\/12\/heavens-muscle-a-qa-with-author-bren-hughes\/","title":{"rendered":"Heaven’s Muscle: A Q&A with Author Bren Hughes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"Bren<\/a>\u201cMy mission is to encourage people to love in spite of their pain, to sense the closeness of God despite their doubts, and to glimpse their full potential in Christ. I do this by offering myself as a faithful conduit \u2014 a conduit of love flowing from the heart of God and of wisdom flowing from his scriptures.\u201d \u2014 Bren Hughes, author, Heaven\u2019s Muscle<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Heaven\u2019s Muscle<\/a>, <\/em>by\u00a0attorney and academic writer Bren Hughes, is\u00a0the personal story of the author\u2019s\u00a0journey from evangelist to atheist and back. \u201cGod has led me on a journey from biblical scholar to atheist to campus minister to Spirit-filled attorney,\u201d Hughes says. \u201cAlong the way, I\u2019ve shucked off the husk of bad religion and discovered the joy and empowerment that comes from embracing God\u2019s indwelling Spirit. The Lord gave me Heaven\u2019s Muscle<\/em> to help you find the joy and love that I\u2019ve experienced.\u201d<\/p>\n

We asked Hughes a few questions about his book for the Patheos Book Club<\/a> this month.<\/p>\n

Briefly describe Heaven\u2019s Muscle<\/em>, the book itself.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"HeavensMuscle<\/a>It\u2019s not too long, about 180 pages, but it\u2019s jammed full of meaty biblical teachings. The engine that drives the book is my own personal story of changing from an incredibly religious young minister-in-training to an unbeliever, and from there to discovering a new kind of faith through my personal interactions with Jesus. My story essentially provides the skeleton upon which I hang the real meat of the book.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s your thesis, then?<\/strong><\/p>\n

The essential message of the book is that religion, including many aspects of American Christianity, has become a tool for hurting and oppressing people. Our spiritual enemy has taken something good, the church, and often twisted it into something hurtful. The antidote is to realize you don\u2019t need anyone to mediate God for you. He is present within you, and his presence can transform your personality and your perspective, if you\u2019ll invite him to do so.<\/p>\n

Who is this book for?<\/strong><\/p>\n

It\u2019s for Christians who want to deepen their experience of the Spirit and their knowledge of God\u2019s long-term plan and the spiritual warfare it involves. It\u2019s not an academic book by any means, but it assumes the reader knows his or her way around the Bible. The people who have responded most powerfully to the book have been those who, like me, grew up in strict conservative churches \u2013 churches where people sometimes used guilt and shame and obligation to manipulate people\u2019s behavior. I feel the Lord has gifted me with being able to show there is another way \u2013 a way of freedom and empowerment and fearlessness.<\/p>\n

Is there anything else you\u2019d like to add?<\/strong><\/p>\n

This book is really full of warmth and hope. I don\u2019t criticize anybody but the Devil. I think the antidote to bad religion and bad theology is just to preach the good stuff. And that\u2019s what God\u2019s doing through me in this book. I know this message will lift people\u2019s spirits and change lives.<\/p>\n

Visit the Patheos Book Club<\/a> to read an excerpt from Heaven\u2019s Muscle, and to learn more\u00a0about the book.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cMy mission is to encourage people to love in spite of their pain, to sense the closeness of God despite their doubts, and to glimpse their full potential in Christ. I do this by offering myself as a faithful conduit \u2014 a conduit of love flowing from the heart of God and of wisdom flowing […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[350],"tags":[112,115,111,146,136,116,108],"class_list":["post-4648","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-author-qa","tag-american-christianity","tag-christianity","tag-evangelicalism","tag-evangelism","tag-god","tag-memoir","tag-spirituality"],"yoast_head":"\nHeaven's Muscle: A Q&A with Author Bren Hughes<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\""My mission is to encourage people to love in spite of their pain, to sense the closeness of God despite their doubts, and to glimpse their full potential\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link 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