When Doing Isn't Enough

by Mary Detweiler

Are you waiting for something or someone? If so, did you choose to wait, or did God place you in a crock-pot to simmer for a while? As we walk with Christ, there are times he calls us to wait, and there are times he calls us to act. At various times during her walk with Christ, Mary has experienced both times of waiting and times of acting. This book is about the waiting times. Waiting is not popular in our modern society; immediate gratification is popular. We want what we want now, and we do everything possible to get whatever it is we want right away and avoid waiting. God, however, appears to like waiting and seems to require it of anyone who will be used by him, particularly those who will be used in a significant way. He uses these times of waiting to grow our character. With the exception of Jesus, each of the individuals (both biblical and modern-day) discussed in this book is an ordinary human being. They are not superheroes or extraordinary people. They are ordinary human beings called to do extraordinary things and prepared by God to accomplish these things. Part of that preparation was a time of waiting.

Genres: Nonfiction, Christian, Religion, Self Help

132 pages, Paperback

Published March 3, 2015

About the author

I love books. I love to read books. I love to write books. All of the books I have written were birthed in my own life experiences.

My writing journey began in 2005 when I started to write a book about how Celebrate Recovery had helped me overcome multiple hurts, habits and hang-ups I struggled with as a result of having grown up in an unhealthy family. It took me three years to write that book due to working full-time and parenting two teenagers. The result was When Therapy Isn’t Enough, published in 2008 by House to House Publications and in 2011 by Tate Publishing Company. My second book, When Religion Isn’t Enough, was published in 2012 by Tate and explains the difference between having religion and having a personal relationship with God. It also chronicles my journey from religion to relationship. I then wrote When the Glass Ceiling is Stained which was birthed in an experience I had in the fall of 2004 when I was removed from a church leadership position I firmly believed God had called me to. That book discusses the differences between ordination and anointing, as well as the differences between leading and managing. I also raise the following question: “Is Jesus the head of your church body or denomination? You may think he is, but is he really? How can you tell? The definitive mark of whether or not human beings are truly allowing Jesus to be the head of the church is when individuals who are gifted to lead, lead, and individuals who are gifted to preach, preach: regardless of their gender.” I decided to share that experience and the lessons I learned from that experience in the hope that other women who have been given the spiritual gift of leadership would benefit from it.

I served in leadership in various Celebrate Recovery ministries for 10 years. In 2013 I had both of my knees replaced (one in June and one in October) and stepped out of the Celebrate Recovery leadership role I was serving in at that time. Throughout the following winter (as my knees were healing) I waited on God to let me know what he wanted me to do next and wrote When Doing Isn’t Enough, published by Tate in 2015. In July 2014 God lit a fire in my heart to help his daughters be set free from belief systems and practices which reinforce the inequality of the sexes. In response to that fire being lit I wrote When Going with the Flow Isn’t Enough, incorporating much of Glass Ceiling into it.

As I worked with Tate Publishing Company during the publishing process of Doing, I saw a number of red flags which made me very uneasy about continuing my relationship with them. Therefore, as I was writing Going with the Flow, I began to look for another publishing company and found Credo House Publishers. Credo published Going with the Flow in 2017.

Another happening which occurred in 2017 is that Tate Publishing Company went bankrupt. Before they went out of business they offered to sell a print ready file of each of the author’s manuscripts to the author for a small fee. I purchased the print ready file for Doing and Credo re-published it. Glass Ceiling had already been incorporated into Going with the Flow, AND, I decided to write one new manuscript from my first two, Therapy and Religion. Though the new book is titled When Therapy Isn’t Enough, it is very different (and better if I do say so myself) than the earlier book of the same name.

Over the last few years, I have written When Success Isn't Enough, which discusses the differences and similarities between living a successful life and a purposeful life, and Do You Have an Exit Strategy? which outlines how to get right with God before you die. I have also written a 2nd edition of When Religion Isn't Enough, which is an expanded version of the first edition.

Reviews

[Carol · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an enjoyable read and I can tell that Mary Detweiler has thought her ideas on religion for herself. I took a course on the Philosophy of Religion in my undergraduate years and it made me more open to consider all opinions. And this book does some of the same. She uses the analogy of the crockpot, as when we are in a long period of waiting on what will happen. I never thought of it that way before. I don't agree with everything that she wrote but now I learned a few things from the Bible that I missed in my own reading and my bible study teachers left out. So now, I feel the richer for it.

She touched on the 12-step program principles that are used by substance abuse programs like Alcoholics Anonymous which is ignored in other religious self-help books and I applaud that. My brother committed suicide when he was young and I have always thought that some way of helping him to stay alive would be similar to the crockpot approach. Therefore, I highly recommend this book to all people contemplating suicide.

[Emmanuel Jeremiah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is very insightful. I love the author’s style of description and storytelling. I particularly loved how she explained the love of Christ Jesus towards us as demonstrated on the cross. We all, at some point in our life, wait. It could be by our choice or sometimes induced by circumstances beyond our control. The author has described such waiting moments of our lives as seasons when God places us in a “Crock-Pot,” where we wait for His next direction. The author has narrated accounts of biblical waiters and “21st-century waiters” who trusted God and God came through for them. I recommend this work. It will teach you to trust God, knowing that God is always in control of every event in your life.

[Kea4 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book overall. I liked the point of waiting and acting for Christ. Some good examples. Makes one think.

https://theworldisabookandiamitsreade...

[Debra Hicks · Rating 5 out of 5]

When Doing Isn't Enough by author Mary Detwiler is a guide to help us through times when it seems that we are stuck, or just standing still. As she states it, we are in a crockpot simmering until God let's us know what to do, or gives us an answer.

[Charlene · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a short book to inspire the reader to faith in Christ. One theme is that there are times of waiting and times for action. In our modern society we find it hard to wait. We want instant gratification and not waiting for God's time.

[Amy Ingalls]

I won a copy of this book in a Goodreads Giveaway.

[Virginia · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.