Becoming Free Indeed: My Story of Disentangling Faith from Fear

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It’s been a lot of years since that time and so I was intrigued by the Duggar daughters who have grown up and seemingly parted from some of the more stringent beliefs their family held. I follow a couple of them on social media, Jinger included. This book was a great peek into her journey and I loved her use of disentangling her faith rather than deconstructing. Maintaining a faith in Jesus while recognizing some teachings you’ve had and followed are not biblical is a complicated process. What I most appreciated about this read from Jinger is that she combats Gothard's false teachings with scripture in an unapologetic manner, while at the same time demonstrating grace and love, particularly towards her family. This leaves the door open for relationships. This book is an excellent example of how to speak truth in love, without dabbling into the realm of a Tell All. Prince Harry could take a note or two from her tone.

Jinger Vuolo, the sixth child in the famous Duggar family of TLC's 19 Kids and Counting and Counting On, recounts how she began to question the unhealthy ideology of her youth and learned to embrace true freedom in Christ. The way she shames any person that decided to leave the church completely isn't very Christian in my opinion. We all have different spiritual journeys and clearly the only option she thinks women should have is to just disentangle their beliefs just like her. A lot about this made me cringe, but the quote that made me cringe the most was, 'A woman's identity is in Jesus'. Which isn't surprising given she failed to quote any verse about any of the amazing women mentioned in the Bible or the fact she belongs to a church where women cannot share the Word as pastors. I have never been so glad to have been raised in a Christian faith that is accepting and told me I was my own person. edited after finishing 03/06: I understand a lot of where Jinger is coming from, though a lot of it comes across as hypocritical when she is still involved in a church that support one man over God, as well as her various thoughts on the LGBT community while she preaches about loving everyone.After the family’s show was canceled in July 2015, Jinger, along with sisters Jessa Seewald and Joy-Anna Forsyth and most of their large brood, documented their lives on the spinoff series, Counting On. Jinger remembered feeling “a lot of pressure” from the outside world when she began her courtship with Vuolo. “Jeremy was the last guy to ask my father if he could court me,” she wrote, admitting that she felt “a bit intimidated” by her now-husband at first. “He was unlike the previous guys in nearly every way.”

The apostle Paul gives us a further implication of “we are free indeed” (John 8:36). After expressing that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1), Paul adds that in Christ Jesus we have been set free from the law of sin and death (Romans 8:2). Because of that new freedom, we are no longer in bondage to sinfulness, and now we can choose righteousness (Romans 9:12–15). Peter adds a caution that we use this freedom not as an excuse for evil but that we use this freedom to walk in devoted service to God—as bondslaves (1 Peter 2:16). If you were taught Bill Gothard's principles or absorbed them in a church community like I did, or if you were raised in some kind of Christian subculture that taught something other than the pure gospel of grace alone by faith alone in Christ alone, then you'll find this book helpful to separate fact from fiction. I commend it for that reason. In Becoming Free Indeed, Jinger shares how in her early twenties, a new family member—a brother-in-law who didn't grow up in the same tight-knit conservative circle as Jinger—caused her to examine her beliefs. He was committed to the Bible, but he didn't believe many of the things Jinger had always assumed were true. His influence, along with the help of a pastor named Jeremy Vuolo, caused Jinger to see that her life was built on rules, not God's Word.It is clear that Jinger has no real grasp of the deconstruction movement or the real reasons people left IBLP and Christianity. When Jinger Duggar Vuolo was growing up, she was convinced that obeying the rules was the key to success and God's favor. She zealously promoted the Basic Life Principles of Bill Gothard,• fastidiously obeying the modesty guidelines (no shorts or jeans, only dresses), When one fan asked how the first day went, the Matchbox Coffee collaborator replied, “It went well. Happy I’ve got a few days before round 2,” adding a smiley face emoji. Jinger then revealed to another fan that it takes three days to record the full book. When Will Jinger Duggar’s Book Be Released?

That is the anti-gospel. It's legalism at its worst. And even though I learned it secondhand, it still did decades of damage to my faith. I didn't realize that you live the your entire Christian life by grace through faith in Jesus. Can I just start this off by saying, go Jinger! As a longtime watcher of 19 Kids and Counting and Counting On, I've followed many of the older sisters for years and years. I always appreciated that the Duggars were Christians, but I knew there was something a little...off with the IBLP stuff their family followed. Jinger Vuolo, the sixth child in the famous Duggar family of TLC’s 19 Kids and Counting and Counting On, recounts how she began to question the unhealthy ideology of her youth and learned to embrace true freedom in Christ. Alongside sadness that the show was ending, I felt grateful to have been a part of it. I had countless wonderful experiences thanks to the show. … There are dozens of places and cultures I wouldn’t know anything about if not for the show,” Jinger wrote, confessing that she also felt “relief” to no longer be in front of the camera. “In many ways, the show’s end was the last leg of a journey that 10-year old me could not have dreamed would occupy so much of my life.” Telling her story. Jinger Duggar grew up in the spotlight, but there was still plenty TLC fans didn't know about her life — until now.She sidesteps really delving into the true horrors of Gothard's abuse, as a story too graphic or details too hard to reshare. We got the call on June 26, 2021 that TLC was canceling Counting On. When the call ended, I wrapped my arms around Jeremy and cried. Hard,” Jinger recalled. “So many emotions poured out of me that day. I felt sad. Filming had been a constant in my life since I was around 10 years old. When the show was on break, and the crews didn’t come around for a few months, I missed the energy and excitement of interacting with all the creative people. The producers worked with my family to come up with ideas for episodes. It was fun to think of creative ways to give audiences a glimpse into our day-to-day lives.” You can’t rate someone’s life, but this was so helpful. Jinger is brave and honest whilst staying respectful, kind, and full of godly love. Her pain is palpable, but so is her new freedom. I’m incredibly grateful for her willingness to share. She didn’t write a tell-all dissing her family. Instead, she wrote a tell-all of God’s grace. I think that’s beautiful.

Jinger’s definition of deconstruction is disappointing. It’s fine if she wants to use the word disentangling, and the visual of pulling out dried putty from your hair resonated with me. But she has a very narrow understanding of deconstruction. And while I don’t want to say she hasn’t “deconstructed enough” because everyone is on their own journey, I am concerned about a few of her beliefs. She has disentangled from extreme fundamentalist Christianity (can I say cult?) to very conservative evangelical Christianity. She attends John MacAurthur’s church and quotes him and John Piper. She states that suffering is from God and he causes our suffering. She believes love means giving all of yourself and being selfless and other focused. And she obviously still believes women are to be submissive and men are “servant leaders”. There’s nothing new here beyond what every evangelical heard growing up. If you're looking for a tell all, this isn't it. I think we all know the only 'Duggar' we may get a tell all from is Amy or maybe Derek/Jill. It’s been definitely a challenging process to write this book, but as I’ve said before, it’s the most important thing I’ve ever done,” Duggar exclusively told Us Weekly before the book hit shelves, adding that she hoped her words help “even just one person” find freedom. “I think in this book I’ve been more open and vulnerable than I ever have before.” We wholeheartedly agree with TLC’s decision not to renew Counting On and are excited for the next chapter of our lives,” the message continued. “We look forward to continuing our creative journey in Los Angeles and seeing what the future holds.”

Telling her story. Jinger Duggar grew up in the spotlight, but there was still plenty TLC fans didn’t know about her life — until now. Now with a renewed faith of personal conviction, Becoming Free Indeed shares what it was like living under the tenants of Bill Gothard, the Biblical truth that changed her perspective, and how she disentangled her faith with her belief in Jesus intact. Product Details I wish I was surprised that it's clear Jinger has gone from one cultish sect of Christianity, IBLP, to another one, Calvinism. She went right from one conservative, transphobic, homophobic, and anti-women sect to another. It takes a lot of courage to call out a man who was both your childhood hero and who dominated your religious life. This is a good start to publicly calling out an abusive leader who ruined many, many lives.