Becoming Free Indeed

My Story of Disentangling Faith from Fear

De: Jinger Vuolo, Corey Williams

Narrado por: Jinger Vuolo

Read by the author.

New York Times Bestseller on disentangling faith but keep your belief in Jesus intact. Jinger Vuolo, the sixth child in the famous Duggar family of TLC's 19 Kids and Counting and Counting On, recounts how she began to question the unhealthy ideology of her youth and learned to embrace true freedom in Christ.

When Jinger Duggar Vuolo was growing up, she was convinced that obeying the rules was the key to success and God's favor. She zealously promoted the Basic Life Principles of Bill Gothard,

• fastidiously obeying the modesty guidelines (no shorts or jeans, only dresses),
• eagerly submitting to the umbrella of authority (any disobedience of parents would place her outside God's protection),
• promoting the relationship standard of courtship, and
• avoiding any music with a worldly beat, among others.

Jinger, along with three of her sisters, wrote a New York Times bestseller about their religious convictions. She believed this level of commitment would guarantee God's blessing, even though in private she felt constant fear that she wasn't measuring up to the high standards demanded of her.

In Becoming Free Indeed, Jinger shares how in her early twenties, a new family member—a brother-in-law who didn't grow up in the same tight-knit conservative circle as Jinger—caused her to examine her beliefs. He was committed to the Bible, but he didn't believe many of the things Jinger had always assumed were true. His influence, along with the help of a pastor named Jeremy Vuolo, caused Jinger to see that her life was built on rules, not God's Word.

Jinger committed to studying the Bible—truly understanding it—for the first time. What resulted was an earth-shaking realization: much of what she'd always believed about God, obedience to His Word, and personal holiness wasn't in-line with what the Bible teaches.

Now with a renewed faith of personal conviction, Becoming Free Indeed shares what it was like living under the tenants of Bill Gothard, the Biblical truth that changed her perspective, and how she disentangled her faith with her belief in Jesus intact.

Honoring and thoughtful

I don’t know when I have ever read a more wonderful autobiography. Thank you Jinger Vuolo for telling your story so eloquently and transparently while also bringing honor to your Heavenly Father and also to your earthly family. I watched every single episode of both reality shows. I have actually prayed for your family! I am so impressed with your words and your thoughtfulness with those word. I am married to someone who grew up in a family that followed IBLP and your book is very helpful to me. I too searched for rules to follow because it often seemed easier than cultivating a personal relationship with a God I couldn’t physically touch or see. Over recent years my husband and I have both learned so much about our gracious and loving Heavenly Father who is more concerned about our heart posture than any set of rules we can check off. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. God bless you, Jeremy and your children.

WOW - Thank you!

It takes a lot to be open and raw…it takes even more to speak your mistakes and misgivings. I don’t necessarily relate to the faith aspect for myself but I absolutely understood and resonated with the crippling anxiety and performative nature of who a person can become.

Thank you Jinger!

A Very Inspiring Book

Jinger did an amazing job in writing and reading her book. So thoughtful, respectful and inspirational in the way she told her story of breaking away from man made religions. Jesus is the only way. He is the truth, the life and the light.

Great Personal Journey.

Beautifully, honestly written. Very inspiring if you are going through your own journey. well done.

Enjoyed

Really enjoyed your book Jinger, I feel we now know more about your family’s values and where they came from.

Spot on!

Wonderfully encouraging and inspiringly humble account of how Jinger was able to dissect and escape the cult that ensnared her. What’s truly amazing and bears witness to her deep and abiding faith in God, is the honest way she explains the difference between man’s false religion and the freedom that a true relationship with the Lord looks like. Well done, Jinger!

Excellent!

I found this to be very well written. Jinger treated her material with respect and transparency, while providing sound biblical basis for her arguments. Having once served with a flawed Christian organization, I appreciate her honesty in the difficulties in disentangling false teachings from what the Bible really teaches about our wonderful, merciful Savior!

Such a Godsend!

I grew up in a similar way to Jinger, big family (though only 12 kids), didn’t know how to interact with the world without them, southern Baptist, stuck in pride & legalism in so many ways, but there was *so* much hypocrisy behind closed doors. I’ve spent many years in my adulthood “disentangling,” as she calls it, and I have siblings who have walked away from God completely. This book has been so helpful to me, encouraging me along my journey, and best of all, pointing me to Christ.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone who struggles with fear of doing or saying the wrong thing, sees God as angry or just waiting to punish them, or is in the process of deconstructing. This personal story has a rock-solid scriptural thesis as its foundation. Please listen with an open heart! You may be very glad you did.

Excellent

The clarity and humility of her heart is inspiring. She was very transparent about everything and brought great perspective for continuing to seek after God with abandon.

Thank you for sharing your story!

Jinger, thank you for sharing your journey of disentanglement. You’ve inspired me to begin my journey to do the same.