Some Kind of Crazy

An Unforgettable Story of Profound Brokenness and Breathtaking Grace

By: Terry Wardle

Narrated by: Terry Wardle

Length: 7 hrs and 20 mins

Publisher's summary

An unforgettable story, in the tradition of Hillbilly Elegy and Educated, that reveals how a careful look at a broken past can open a path to profound healing and a satisfying future.

Terry Wardle grew up in the Appalachian coalfields of Southwestern Pennsylvania, part of a hardscrabble family of coal miners whose cast of characters included a hot-tempered grandfather with a predilection for blowing up houses, a distant and disapproving father, and a mother who disciplined him with harsh words and threats of hellfire.

After enduring a crazy childhood, Terry graduated to a troubled adolescence, and then on to what seemed like a successful transition into adulthood, earning multiple degrees and founding one of the country’s fastest growing churches. But all was not well.

All his life, he felt he was never enough. Plagued by a truckload of fear no matter what he accomplished, he fell down the ladder of success into the deepest ditch of his life - ending up in a psychiatric hospital. Fortunately, that’s when he discovered that Jesus has no fear of ditches.

In fact, Jesus does some of his best work with people who find themselves there. In sharing his remarkable journey, Terry offers hope that healing and wholeness are possible no matter how broken a life may be. His larger-than-life story will help you move forward along your own healing path.

©2019 Terry Wardle (P)2019 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“Too often there’s a giant chasm between what we believe about God and what we experience in life. That’s true whether you’re a Christian or you don’t believe in God at all. Terry’s utterly honest, surprising, and powerful personal story fuses those two disparate worlds together like no other book I’ve read. If you want to know where God is in the painful reality of your life, Some Kind of Crazy is a must-read.” (Carey Nieuwhof, author and founding pastor of Connexus Church)

“Telling the entire truth of our lives is painfully difficult if we take the task seriously. To flourish, we must tell our stories truly - in all their longing, grief, pathos, and joy - for the entirety of our story to meet the one true Storyteller. He is the One who heals, convicts, and liberates us to live the lives he intended for us to live before the foundation of the world. With Some Kind of Crazy, Terry Wardle has given us the great gift of telling his story truly so that we might do the same. I cannot say it strongly enough: read this book, know the Truth, and discover your life of liberation and grace.” (Curt Thompson, MD, author of The Soul of Shame and Anatomy of the Soul)

“Some Kind of Crazy is raw and funny, and it will capture your heart. I couldn’t put the book down! Terry’s real-life story is worth a thousand sermons because it demonstrates the possibility of God’s amazing grace in your own life. This book is a powerful invitation to freedom from shame, performance, and failure.” (Dr. Juli Slattery, author of Rethinking Sexuality)

Some Kind of Crazy

Listening to Dr. Terry Wardle tell “His” story was riveting. Knowing Terry, and hearing his own voice read through the pages of this inspirational and emotionally gripping story had me welling up with tears one moment and laughing uncontrollably the next. Terry’s wisdom, transparency, compassion and gentle humor invites us to listen to our inner teacher and follow the leading toward a sense of real meaning and purpose. The insights Terry gained from his dark night of the soul and depression as well as his fulfillment of joy, illuminates a pathway to experience God‘s Grace, His Forgiveness, and His restoration. For all who seek the true calling of their lives this book penetrates the soul and will definitely stir you to explore more of your own inner territory.

A breath of fresh air or (truth)

What an authentic, real, and raw story! It brought so much truth that I have desperately been looking for. I have heard a great many pastors from many denominations. And this is the truest Gospel I have ever heard or seen. I recommend this book to anyone who is looking for answers in their personal life. Jesus is not a religion that you can only find in a building (church). Jesus is intent on making himself personal to you, myself, and literally everyone in the world. I especially recommend this book to pastors. Thank you Lord for true revelation!!

The Healing Journey

Terry reveals the honest journey through. pain and fear to his discoveries of the powerful, all-embracing presence of God, as step by step he embraces his true identity as beloved child of God. This is a compelling invitation to freedom and day- by- day healing open to us all, wrapped in humor and tears. Couldn't put it down!

Perfect timing!

This book in many foundational ways describes much of my own journey. Yet, I have still felt mostly alone and misunderstood, not accepted in it by many especially on an emotional and spiritual regard. God brought me to purchase this book even when I was unsure if I really wanted too. I now understand why. Thank you Mr. Wardle for sharing your journey. The message that we find the love of God through our own dying, our own cross, through paths of rejection and brokenness is a truth being restored that we need to hear and share.

Lifetime top 5 books

If there is ever a time when those I love ask me to name my most important and favorite books I’ve read, I am claiming this to be in my top 5, if not on my top three including the Bible!

Never have I been so moved by the Holy Spirit during a reading or listening to a book. The message is profound, the vulnerability of sharing so touching. So grateful the author has been courageous in his sharing. I look forward to reading/listening again and I’ve not ever said that about another book.

great read.

we need to here more stories like this. Terry's story shows the true healing power of Jesus

Compelling, authentic, hopeful, and inviting!

This story is affectionately real and the author/narrator gives a compelling account of his life's journey through the darkest valleys. In a world where our emotions are taught to be bottled up, Terry reminds us that we have permission to be human in the safe arms of Jesus. This book unravels the depths of one man's soul and the love of a Savior who led him through trials from his past to unleash lavishing grace for his present and future. Follow Terry and witness the power of a living God to open up and heal the closed places of one's heart and give new perspective from impossible to Triumph!