Revelation is not rejection.
How God uses relational pressure to show you who you are, and make faithful action possible. A book for the moment after the reaction, and for a church that has learned to expose people first and restore them never.
Paperback · Hardcover · Ebook · Interactive Workbook
A sharp comment at the kitchen counter. A meeting where you heard yourself agree to something you did not agree with. A screenshot, a group chat, an announcement from a pulpit, and a room full of people who learned your worst moment before you could tell it yourself. And afterward, the question you would rather not ask: where did that come from?
Pressure is a mirror. It puts nothing on your face; it shows what was already there. And most of us read what we see as a verdict: if I really trusted God, I would not have reacted like that.
Following Israel’s long encounter with the Philistines, from the day the ark was lost to the day Samuel raised the stone called Ebenezer, and drawing on twenty years of clinical work with people who have just seen themselves clearly, Dr. Donetta D. Quinones names exposure culture for what it is, separates it from the way God reveals, and shows that revelation is not rejection. The God who asked “Where are you?” in the garden had not lost track of anyone. He asked so they would come out. Then He covered them.
What pressure does, what public exposure does, the five sentences shame says, and the eight ways we survive.
Samson, Saul, the crowd in the valley, and David: four people in front of the same mirror, not villains and heroes.
1 Samuel 7, one movement at a time: put away the idols, gather, confess, ask, stay, own what you did, know when to leave, raise the stone.
The book ends every chapter with three things: questions to answer, one faithful step to take, and a line for the Ebenezer Log. The workbook is where you actually do them.
The Six Questions card, from the book and the workbook
Church and small-group orders (ten or more copies, with the leader guide): hello@graceroot.institute
Dr. Donetta D. Quinones, PhD, LMHC, LPC, is a licensed mental health professional with a background in forensic psychology and the founder of GraceRoot Institute, a trauma-informed, Christ-centered psychoeducation organization in Houston, Texas. She is the author of books for adults and teens at the intersection of psychology and faith.
It is a book about what pressure reveals and what grace makes possible. Chapters 2 and 3 name exposure culture in the church directly, and Chapter 15 draws the line at abuse, but the book is written to the person in the kitchen, not to the institution.
It is a single web page that opens in any browser. After purchase you receive a private link. Your writing is saved on your own device; you can export a file to keep or move it, and print any part of it.
Yes. Appendix D of the book is written for leaders, and a free leader guide with a discussion plan for every chapter is available at graceroot.institute. Group orders with the workbook are available by email.
The Christian Standard Bible (CSB).
GraceRoot courses are psychoeducational learning programs, not emergency care, legal advice, or a replacement for therapy. Certificates document GraceRoot completion. Court, employer, board, or continuing education acceptance should be confirmed before purchase unless a page states a specific approval.