Book Review By Margaret Lukasik

I enjoy reading unique Christian books that express God's love and at the same time helps Christians better understand God and what He expects from His children.  Well, Losers Like Us: Redefining Discipleship After Epic Failure by Daniel Hochhalter is one of those books!  It's a cleverly written account of the darkest times of the author's life mixed with a scriptural account of the twelve Disciples for the purpose of giving Christians great hope and faith that we can all be used by God. 

    For anyone who believes that service to God can only be accomplished by people who seem to "have it altogether," they need to think again!  Daniel brilliantly shares the character of each Disciple to bring understanding about their difficulties and failures.  He shows them as real people just like us rather than superheroes who were chosen by God because they were perfect.   Daniel makes learning about the Disciples an exciting adventure while at the same time eliminating the idea of using failure or having a flawed character an excuse for not serving God. 

     We all go through difficulties, but Losers Like Us teaches how to overcome the past by allowing God to fill our lives with His love, purpose and grace.  I'm not sure if the author understands just how much he's grown spiritually because of the pain he's endured and used to draw him nearer to God, but his writing reveals a man who is serving God daily by living for Christ in the way he thinks, speaks and treats others.  This type of transformation is perhaps the greatest way in which we can all serve God for the sake of sharing God's kingdom with others.   

    I highly recommend Losers Like Us!  It's a book that reflects the warmth of the author's character with just the right touch of humor throughout his story.   But what I found most inspiring was the depth of his honesty and vulnerability to share his true feelings.  The strength of his character literally builds throughout the book demonstrating that out of adversity comes great spiritual success! Christians need to examine their failures and mistakes from a Godly point of view rather than worldly in order to see them as opportunities to draw nearer to God and this is what Daniel has learned to do.  This is an inspiring book for all Christians, but especially for those who believe they're just too flawed to be used by God.