Title:
Steve Lawson
Author: Giant Killers: Overcoming Obstacles and Seizing Opportunities
Publisher: Independent
Pages: 144
Genre: Christian/Christian Living/Personal Growth
Author: Giant Killers: Overcoming Obstacles and Seizing Opportunities
Publisher: Independent
Pages: 144
Genre: Christian/Christian Living/Personal Growth
It seemed a lopsided battle. On
one side, a small shepherd with a sling and five stones. On the other, a
heavily armored ten-foot giant whose taunts and challenges immobilized an army
of seasoned warriors. The story of David and Goliath has become an almost
universal underdog story; but in reality, Goliath never stood a chance.
In Giant Killers, emotional intelligence speaker, consultant, and
author Steve Lawson identifies the five vital emotional and social skills David
possessed: identity, discipline, graciousness, action, and hope. When combined
with the power of God’s grace, these strengths made it possible for David to
defeat Goliath, build a mighty army out of social rejects, and establish the
greatest kingdom in the history of Israel.
Identity. Discipline.
Graciousness. Action. Hope. These five important emotional skills establish how
we perceive and express ourselves—and how willingly we seize the opportunities
God provides. Who better to demonstrate these powerful traits than David, who
slew his own giant?
We all face giants in our
lives—challenges and obstacles that intimidate us, limit our potential, and
keep us from moving forward. It’s easy to feel like David fighting Goliath. And
that’s good—because David won. Like David, we can overcome any challenge,
seizing with confidence the opportunities God places in our path. Giant Killers teaches you how to do so,
providing a foundation on which you can build success after success. It all
begins with you—and your willingness to trust in God’s grace.
For More Information
- Giant Killers: Overcoming Obstacles and Seizing Opportunities is available at Amazon.
- Discuss this book at PUYB Virtual Book Club at Goodreads.
About the Author
A former small-business owner and church planter, Steve
Lawson recently stepped down as the senior pastor of Grace
Community Church
in Greenville, Texas,
to focus on his writing, speaking, and leadership training activities.
He holds a doctor of strategic leadership degree from Regent
University, a master of divinity
degree from The King’s University, an MBA from Amberton
University, and a bachelor’s degree
in business administration from the University
of North Texas.
Lawson owns Leadership Transformation Inc., providing
emotional intelligence training and consulting to organizations of all sizes.
More information on his consulting services is available at www.leadershiptransformation.net.
An avid blogger and writer, Lawson is available for speaking engagements in
churches, seminars, and conferences. You can contact him at www.stevelawson.us.
He and his wife, Karen, live in Greenville,
Texas. They are the parents of three grown
daughters.
His latest book is the Christian/Christian living/personal
growth book, Giant
Killers: Overcoming Obstacles and Seizing Opportunities.
Steve Lawson Talks About His
Cover
Giant Killers
began as the final project for my doctorate in strategic leadership. For that
project, I wrote a manuscript showing how God’s grace informs and empowers each
of the five main components of emotional intelligence.
Because my book was originally my final project for my
doctoral degree, it read way too much like an academic document to be anywhere
close to ready for publishing. In addition, I had to find an angle that would
appeal to a larger audience. I mean a book on how God’s grace informs and
empowers emotional intelligence isn’t the most attractive of concepts to the
general public. So in a moment of inspiration, I chose the story of David and
Goliath as my launching point for the book, and continued to use David’s life as
a great warrior and King as my running metaphor.
I wanted to show how important it is to develop the skills
related to emotional intelligence and how they impact everyday life. I wanted
to show how they not only enable us to overcome difficulties, but also how they
set us up for success. In addition, I see so clearly how an understanding and
acceptance of God’s grace brings supernatural power to the process. So the
story of a teenage boy killing a giant seem like a good place to start. It is a
story familiar to many, and is very inspirational to those of us facing our own
giants in life.
The story about my cover could be a long story filled with
false starts, wasted money, and stupid decisions. I chose to self-publish my
book and actually went through three self-publishing companies (insert long
story here) before landing with Amazon’s Create Space.
I actually began with a company called Winepress. According
to their website and several review boards, Winepress had been in the
self-publishing business for decades. They actually designed my cover, and that
is still basically the cover that I’m using today. Unfortunately, they suddenly
went out of business before we got much more done than the cover design.
It actually turned out to be good for me that they went out
of business, but I’m going to leave that in the “stupid decisions” category and
let that story remain a mystery for now. However, I like the cover that
Winepress designed. So when I teamed up with the designers at Create Space, I
sent them the photo used in my cover. They then sent me two options, one of
which was with my photo and some improvements on the cover. I really like their
improvements and stuck with my original cover design.
Giant Killers is
about breaking glass ceilings. It’s about discovering who you really are, who
you are meant to become. But it’s more than just self-discovery, it’s about
personal development and change. It’s a book that helps you develop the skill
set necessary to face the struggles in your future with confidence. So having
David’s sling as the focal point on my cover made perfect sense.
I’m very passionate about the message of Giant Killers and its ability to be
transformational in someone’s life. All of us face obstacles. All of us deal
with struggles that we can’t seem to overcome. And all of us, at one time or
another, have had opportunities pass us by because we weren’t prepared or
confident enough to take them on.
I believe that can change. I believe that we can develop the
skills and character qualities necessary to take on both obstacles and
opportunities with confidence. And I believe with all my heart that God’s grace
has tremendous power that we have yet to understand. And I am convinced that He
is not only willing and able, he wants us to experience that power more than we
ever will. And I believe that the combination of the skills and character
qualities found in emotional intelligence combined with the power of God’s
grace have the potential to make us an unstoppable force.
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