Interview with Frank Viola about his new book “God’s Favorite Place on Earth”

Last updated on: May 1, 2013 at 9:26 am by Andrew Farley

Interview with Frank Viola about his new book “God’s Favorite Place on Earth” 2013-05-01T09:26:43-05:00 Andrew Farley

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

What is this book about?

I’ve written 14 books so far and God’s Favorite Place on Earth is different than anything I’ve ever penned. It’s a work of biblical narrative that combines story with non-fiction. It’s a quick and easy read.

The premise of the book is simple and 100% Biblical: when Jesus was on the earth, He was rejected everywhere He went . . . from Bethlehem, to Nazareth, to Jerusalem. The only exception was the little village of Bethany.

The curtain opens with Lazarus, who is now ready to die, telling the incomparable story of Jesus’ interactions with him, Martha, and Mary. God’s Favorite Place on Earth blends drama, devotion, theology, biblical narrative, and first-century history. Within each narrative, the common struggles that we Christians face are addressed and answered. 18 specific ones in fact.

These are struggles that I’ve faced in my own Christian life, so I offer solutions that I’ve discovered in my own spiritual journey. The struggles are on the subject of How To . . .

Gain God’s peace and presence in the midst of your worst storm.
Grow to the place where you are beyond being offended.
Truly forgive and release those who have rejected you.
Learn how to live life without fear of anything.
Trust God when He doesn’t meet your expectations or doesn’t appear to fulfill His promises.
Increase your faith and overcome doubt.
Defeat discouragement with a new perspective on Jesus.
Find out what Jesus means and doesn’t mean by the command, “Follow Me.”
Be set free from a guilty conscience and delivered from spiritual burn-out.
Learn how we’ve been misinformed about Mary and Martha and why this is important for your own walk with God.
Handle rejection, misunderstanding, and unjust criticism, especially from fellow Christians.
Be set free from bitterness.
Discover what God is looking for beyond everything else, solidifying the vision for the Christian life into “one thing.”
Identify what touches the heart of Jesus the most. (It may surprise you.)
Be inspired to serve the Lord with renewed vigor and zeal.
Have your heart awakened with newfound love for Jesus by seeing Him afresh.
Find deliverance from materialism (consumerism) and discover the meaning of “wasting yourself” on Jesus.
Respond wisely to well-meaning friends when they give you poor advice during your suffering.

What motivated you to write the book?

The message of the book changed my life. So I wanted to put it into print so it could do the same for others. In addition, the narrative of Bethany and what it meant to Jesus is little known today. I believe it’s an inspiring story whose time has come.

What do you hope readers will take away from the book?

Besides helping them to tackle those 18 struggles with new tools and perspective, it’s to jar them out of their Christian rut wherein they are given new eyes to see EVERYING differently . . . especially Jesus.

One person said they never felt so close to Him as when they read the book. Others said they were delivered from bitterness. Others said that they saw Jesus’ humanity like never before and it enabled them to relate to Him more easily.

How can readers get a taste of the book?

Readers can go to GodsFavoritePlace.com and read a book smaller that contains 20% of the book, a short video trailer, and the reactions from 47 different authors, including you. 😉

Plus, if your readers order the book between May 1 and May 7, they will receive 25 free books and audios by 15 different authors, including a joint article that you (Andrew Farley) and I wrote, an amazing audio series by Pete Briscoe, books by Bob Christopher, DeVern Fromke, Leonard Sweet, and many more.

Uncategorized

Previous Post

April 12, 2013

Redirecting Pleasantville

Next Post

June 6, 2013

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Uncategorized

Select a Month July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 December 2023 April 2023 March 2023 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 April 2019 February 2019 January 2019 November 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 December 2016 November 2016 June 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 August 2014 May 2014 December 2013 October 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Which Assyrian king threatened Jerusalem and received a prophecy from Isaiah?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Sennacherib Tiglath-Pileser Nebuchadnezzar Shalmaneser