Kim Walker-Smith, the lead singer for the world-renown band Jesus Culture, is sharing her personal story of encountering God’s love in her debut book, “Brave Surender: Let God’s Love Retell Your Story.”
In it, Walker-Smith encourages Christians to do a better job at representing the love of God while telling unbelievers about the truth of Jesus.
From shame to sharing God’s love
Walker-Smith has not always stood on a stage singing to thousands about the love of God. In fact, part of the reason she wrote “Brave Surrender” was because she wanted to share her own personal experience of going from a place of fear and shame in her life to a place of learning to trust God’s providence.
“I realized that after countless interviews and Q and A-type sessions, I had never shared my whole story of what God had done in my life,” she told Faithwire. “So, I decided to take the leap and do it, in hopes that it would encourage others.”
“I love to hear other people’s story of redemption and what God has done in their lives,” she added. “It always inspires me, encourages me, and gives me hope for my own breakthrough.”
In “Brave Surrender,” Walker-Smith writes: “When we encounter God’s love, it changes the way we see. And when we learn to see what He sees, we will never be the same again.”
The importance of experiencing the love of God
When Walker-Smith was 11 years old she encountered the love of God for the first time at a church camp, but she shared that it wasn’t until she was in her twenties that she “could fully understand what was happening and what it meant for my life.”
“God told me how much He loves me and what He was thinking when He created me,” the worship leader shared. “I could never be the same after that.”
Walker-Smith hopes that through reading her book, more people would understand the importance of surrendering to God’s love, and letting Him take over your life.
“I wrote this book for everyone,” she said, “but if you are struggling with getting free from the past, forgiveness, or accepting God’s love for you, this is a good book for you.”
The power of vulnerability
A large theme in “Brave Surender” is the topic of vulnerability. Walker-Smith places an emphasis on how truly powerful learning to be vulnerable is, and how it can change your walk with God.
“When we walk in that, we invite others to be authentic and real with us as well,” she said. “To be able to communicate not just our strengths, but also our struggle is to show our humanity and humility.”
In an age where moments can be tailored to fit whatever image you want to portray on social media, it can be hard to live in a vulnerable and authentic state.
“The age that we live in is one in which we can portray whatever we want on social media,” Walker-Smith said. “It leaves a feeling of wondering what is real and what isn’t.
“I think it’s refreshing to be vulnerable and be around others who are living vulnerably too,” she added. “It requires a lot of courage and that kind of bravery is beautiful.”
Raising children to be brave and bold in their faith
Not only is Walker-Smith a well-known worship leader, but she is also the mother of three beautiful kids. While speaking with Faithwire, she pointed out how teaching her children to be brave is extremely important to her.
“We have many conversations in our family about being brave,” she shared. “We encourage our children to face their fears and we live this out in front of them.”
Walker-Smith also added that in order for children to understand the importance of being brave and courageous, she needed to be honest with them about her own personal story.
“When we received our first copies of the book, they celebrated with me,” she said. “Much to my surprise, they ran to get crayons and paper and told me they wanted to make their own books and be brave too.”
“In our house, we teach our kids that to live vulnerably is to be willing to acknowledge our feelings, communicate them in a healthy way, and value the feelings of others,” she explained.
God will meet you where you are
If Walker-Smith has one point to drill down, it is that you are never too far gone, or too complicated for God.
“You don’t have to remain stuck,” she said. “God is a loving father who wants to meet us right where we are and He gives us what we need to walk out forgiveness in our life.”
“He is patient and kind and loves us through the whole process. I would encourage you to be bold and surrender to God, trusting Him with your every piece of your heart,” she urged.
You can order Walker-Smith’s book here and follow along with her on social media here.