Book Review: You’re Not Enough (And That’s Okay)
Allie Beth Stuckey has a new book out. It’s everything I had hoped it would be and more!
To anyone who has ever read, watched, or remotely believed anything that has stemmed from the minds of Rachel Hollis, Rhonda Byrne, Bob Proctor, Joel Osteen, or others of their ilk, I’m sorry. That’s truly depressing and must be incredibly tiring, both emotionally and physically. You should all forget that New Age silliness and read this new book from Stuckey that makes so much more sense.
Disclaimer: I’ve written previous articles reviewing the Girl books from Hollis as well as other posts critiquing the ideologies espoused by Byrne, Proctor, and others. I’m heavily biased in my opinion about how nonsensical, selfish, and antithetical they are to Christianity. Particularly the Hollis books.
Enter: You’re Not Enough.
If the Hollis, Byrne, Proctor, and Osteen-style ideologies are an emotional overdose of selfish, middle-class-related concerns, then this book is the intellectually-consistent and Biblical reversal agent.
You’re Not Enough dives into the ideological, religious, and cultural problems of self-love Christianity, particularly the Prosperity Gospel and what Stuckey calls “Hipster Jesus Christianity.” Stuckey doesn’t pull any punches, either; she drops names, quotes, and reference sources to support her position, and does it all quite gracefully while simultaneously slapping the self-love proponents in their literary faces.
While reading this book, I took notes and highlighted a lot with the intention of referencing them heavily for this review. I have since changed my mind, partly because it’s a lot of material to parse through, partly because Gabby (who’s the best wife of all wives) says my articles are better when they’re less than 600 words, and partly because it would just be better for you to read the book for yourself.
Among other large sections of her book, I think this is one of the more clarifying assertions she makes:
“This is the how “morality” within the Cult of Self-Affirmation works: the only standard of right and wrong is how you feel. In the cult, there is nothing inherently good about fidelity or exclusive commitment to a single person. All that matters is that people are happy. This is why, for many people, the Cult of Self-Affirmation is much more appealing than normal religion. It encourages people to do what feels good and removes restrictions and responsibility to others. It values self-love over sacrifice, self-care over service, and self-interest over selflessness. It asks us to give up only that which doesn’t please us, and in exchange, it lends us a sense of righteousness.
This is why Christianity and the Cult of Self-Affirmation can’t coincide. The values of the Christ follower aren’t authenticity and autonomy. They’re Christlikeness and obedience. We have an objective standard of right and wrong found in the Bible, which means we’re not ruled by cultural trends or our feelings. God’s moral standards lead to peace. The cult’s lead to chaos and pain.”
Stuckey, Allie Beth. You’re Not Enough (And That’s Okay) (pp. 41-42). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.
But seriously, if you find the self-love stuff to be exhausting and inconsistent, that’s because it is. Read this book. It’s the refreshing break we all need.