Journey Back to Joy (Paperback) by Dai Hankey

Sin is serious because God is Holy. Even if we are trusting in Jesus as our Lord and Savior, the burden of our sin can quickly rob us of our Christian joy.

So what should we do when we've done wrong in the eyes of God? This is the question that famously faced King David. In this brutally honest and hugely helpful book, Dai Hankey helps us to consider David's spiritual journey. We'll see the mess of David's sin and the depths of his brokenness, but we'll also see that hearing God's word and responding in repentance turned David's life around. Dai 'grabs us by the scruff of the neck' to do likewise and turn to God. As we do, we'll experience afresh the joy of being forgiven, no matter how far we may feel we've fallen.

Praise for the book:

"With such compelling exposition and honest application, Journey back to Joy can't fail to do your soul good. It certainly did for me. Read it in an hour, let its message change you for a lifetime. Quite brilliant." Dave Gobbett, Lead Minister, Highfields Church, Cardiff

Title

Journey Back to Joy
Author(s)

Dai Hankey
Series

Union
ISBN

9781911272816
Format

Paperback
Publisher

10Publishing
Topic

Holiness
Audience

Adults
Pages

64
Published

11/01/2017

Overall rating

4.0 based on 2 reviews

A short call to repent

Dai Hankey looks at the life of David to show how easy it is too fall into sin, but then God graciously calls us to repent and turn to him, whatever we have done. As David found, hiding sin is not a solution. True repentance is painful, humbling, but leads to greater joy in Christ and the Gospel. It should also lead us to ask how our lives will be different having repented. The book is aimed at Christians, but it definitely brings the Gospel to bear. Only four stars because it is so short that more could be said about the different aspects of repentance, but still helpful.

Stephen Ayre

Honesty, humility, and a dose of good humour

If you are anything like me, you will know how hard it is to face up to your greatest failures. Sadly, you will also know how running from repentance can rob you of the deep, spiritual joy of God’s presence. This was something that King David knew all too well, as he did all he could to hide his affair with Bathsheba. In Journey Back to Joy, Dai Hankey helps us to consider the spiritual journey from David’s greatest high – dancing joyously and unashamedly in the streets as the ark is brought into Jerusalem – to his greatest low in adultery with Bathsheba. With brutal honesty, Dai shows how we can all, at times, face the same dilemma as David – to hide from the depths of our sin and brokenness, or to face the painful yet liberating journey back to joy through repentance. Dai pulls no punches as he tracks David’s journey. With honesty, humility, and a dose of good humour, this book helped me rediscover, as David did, the supreme importance of listening to and acting on God’s Word. True, lasting joy is found not merely in salvation, says Dai, but in the Saviour we run to. As helpful as it is short (at only 63 pages) it can be read in an hour, but the lessons within will be remembered for a long time to come. No matter whether you currently identify with David’s joyful dance through Jerusalem, or his painful fall, this book has timely lessons and reminders for us all. (Originally printed in the Presbyterian Herald, March 2018 edition)