Everyone Has a Story | Robert K. Cheong shows readers how each of their stories matters and is a part of God’s bigger story
Greensboro, NC—What unanswered questions do you have about your life? Some of us struggle to find meaning, others wonder about identity, and all of us want to be loved. A person’s story—the events and relationships that define them—will guide how they answer these questions. But God has a story too. His story is about sending Jesus to this broken world to mend all that is broken. In Restoration Story: Why Jesus Matters in a Broken World (New Growth Press/September 27, 2021), Robert K. Cheong helps readers connect their story to God’s story, transforming how they live and love.
We all have our own back story—our sometimes unconscious beliefs—that have been shaped by our families, relationships, and life experiences. Our stories shape the personal narratives we live out: “I am not loved.” “No one cares for me.” “I have to be better than everyone around me.” “How I look is the most important thing about me.” Our back story guides us in how we relate to God and others. But are these reference points true? And how are they affecting our lives today? Cheong helps readers unpack their story and learn to live out of God’s new story. Readers will discover how to retell their story based on who God is, what he’s done, and the call to love him and others.
“Culture places value in exploring and sharing stories. As people seek answers to who they are, why they do what they do, and their purpose in life, they tend to look for the answers in their own stories. People also long for change—change in how they love and how they live,” shares Cheong. “I wrote this book because the church needs a practical, yet gospel-centered resource that helps them to see how God’s story not only answers these timeless questions but also helps them to understand their past, present and future story.”
Through the stories of four individuals, readers will learn how the dynamics of creation, fall, redemption, and consummation shape their past struggles, confirm their future hope, and ensure their ability to live in God’s power in the present. At the intersection of God’s story and their own, they’ll find that his love sustains them in their weariness, guides them in their confusion, and comforts them in their suffering. The story of his love will compel readers to live for him.
“God’s story from Genesis to Revelation serves as a never-changing framework that will help you navigate life’s storms. When it feels like you’re drowning, God guides you through the chaos. When you find it easy to drift, he sets you upon his intended course,” Cheong explains. “God’s story not only captures the reality of life in this fallen world but, more importantly, reveals his reality and his heart for his people.”
Author and speaker Paul David Tripp writes, “There is always a need for rich, practical, and transformative gospel resources, and Robert Cheong’s Restoration Story is one of the best I’ve seen. This book takes people on a heart-exposing, faith-igniting, and life-changing journey. This seasoned pastor has invested years helping people see their story through the lens of Scripture’s gospel story. I am so glad that, because this work is now in print, countless more will journey through God’s story and find themselves, find their Savior, and find their way to healing of heart and mind, and with it find a brand-new way of living.”
Restoration Story can also be used alongside Cheong’s Restore: Changing How We Live and Love companion study guide. The study guide was designed to be used in a small group setting, and helps participants examine and process their stories more fully.
Restoration Story: Why Jesus Matters in a Broken World
by Robert K. Cheong
September 27, 2021 / Retail Price: $17.99
Print ISBN 978-1-64507-165-5
Religion/Christian Ministry/Personal Growth
For review copy and interview information, contact:
Audra Jennings – audra@newgrowthpress.com – 903.874.8363
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Robert K. Cheong, PhD, serves as the Pastor of Care at Sojourn Church Midtown in Louisville, KY. He has a passion for helping the church to be confident in Jesus, and he is the executive director of Gospel Care Ministries, which trains leaders in churches, networks, and mission organizations for discipleship and care in community. Cheong also serves as a Council Member for the Biblical Counseling Coalition. He is the author of God Redeeming His Bride: A Handbook for Church Discipline, Restore: Changing How We Live and Love, and Restoration Story: Why Jesus Matters in a Broken World. He enjoys life with his wife, Karen, their grown children, and their adorable grandchildren.
Learn more about Robert K. Cheong and Gospel Care Ministries at www.gospel.care, Facebook (@gospelcareministries), Twitter (@GospelCareMn) or Instagram (@gospelcareministries).
SUGGESTED INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
- When it comes to sharing stories, what did you see going on within the church that sparked the inspiration for writing Restoration Story?
- If God knows every detail of our stories, and knew every aspect of our lives before we were born, does that mean we have no choices? If we can choose, how do our stories continue to fit with his?
- You tell the stories of four people as you make your way through the book as examples for readers to identify with. How are these stories similar? How do they differ?
- How do you describe common struggles? What are the common struggles we all face?
- What are the other types of struggles we face?
- Even though we share many experiences or struggle in many ways, why do we not reach out to others to talk and build supportive relationships?
- Describe how you walk through the four movements of the gospel—creation, fall, redemption, and consummation.
- It seems that we would obviously know our own stories, but how do we often times avoid our stories? Why do we need to acknowledge and understand our stories?
- We all desire love, but what do we misunderstand about it?
- How does Jesus restore our stories?
- What is the most important thing to know about God’s story and how our story is a part of his?
- How does Restoration Story stand out as different from other discipleship resources?
- How do Restoration Story and your previously released Bible study, Restore, work together?
