The Big Relief: The Urgency of Grace for a Worn-Out World

by David Zahl

Publisher:

Brazos Press

, 2025

Overview

We could all use a little--or a lot--of relief from the pressures of life. And there is no bigger relief than the grace of God.

Think of grace as one-way love. A gift with no strings attached. Favor when you least expect or deserve it. Knowing that you don’t have to do anything to earn God’s approval.

In The Big Relief, popular author David Zahl spotlights grace as the most important, urgent, and radical contribution Christianity has to offer the world. Zahl helps readers understand the beauty and depth of grace, outlining how it provides relief from the guilt, status anxiety, and accelerating demand that characterize so much of modern life. Drawing on the witness of Scripture and a panoply of contemporary examples, he unpacks the theology of grace in fresh and exciting terms, exploring its many fruits--such as freedom, play, surrender, humility, rest, surprise, and joy--in the process.

Zahl invites us to embrace Christianity as a refuge rather than as a project, a beacon of hope instead of a vehicle of shame, and a harbor of refreshment in a worn-out world. Ultimately, he welcomes everyone to receive the gift of relief we so desperately need.

From the Back Cover

Real Relief in a World That Demands Performance and Perfection

We could all use a little--or a lot--of relief from the pressures of life. And there is no bigger relief than the grace of God.

In The Big Relief, popular author David Zahl spotlights grace as the most important, urgent, and radical contribution Christianity has to offer the world. He helps us understand the beauty and depth of grace, outlining how it provides relief from the guilt, status anxiety, and accelerating demand that characterize so much of modern life. Drawing on the witness of Scripture and a wide variety of contemporary examples, he unpacks the theology of grace in a fresh way, exploring its many fruits--such as freedom, play, surrender, humility, rest, surprise, and joy.

Zahl invites us to embrace Christianity as a refuge rather than as a project, a beacon of hope instead of a vehicle of shame, and a harbor of refreshment in a worn-out world.

"The central hope (and scandal, and paradox, and challenge) of Christian faith, brought down brilliantly to ground level for all of us weary souls."
--Francis Spufford, author of Unapologetic and Light Perpetual

"The Big Relief is more than a good read; it’s a breath of fresh air and a burden lifted all at the same time. Zahl calls us to lay down the heavy loads of performance and anxiety and reminds us--once again--that all is grace."
--Hannah Anderson, author of Turning of Days: Lessons from Nature, Season, and Spirit

"The Big Relief reminds us that grace is a party, a piñata exploding with God’s best candy, a free and never-ending gift. This book just might help you fall back in love with the weirdest, wildest theological concept in all creation."
--Harrison Scott Key, author of How to Stay Married and The World’s Largest Man

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Contents

Contents
Introduction
1. Grace: The Relief from Deserving
2. Forgiveness: The Relief from Regret
3. Favor: The Relief from Rejection
4. Surrender: The Relief from Control
5. Atonement: The Relief from Guilt
6. Imputation: The Relief from Status Anxiety
7. Rest: The Relief from Keeping Up
8. Play: The Relief from Productivity
9. Rescue: The Relief from Captivity (and Death)
Conclusion: Love and Mercy

Product Details

• Title: The Big Relief: The Urgency of Grace for a Worn-Out World
• Author: David Zahl
• Publisher: Brazos Press
• Print Publication Date: 2025
• Logos Release Date: 2024
• Pages: 176
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Ebook
• ISBNs: 9781493449620, 9781587435577, 1587435578, 1493449621
• Resource ID: LLS:9781493449620
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Metadata Last Updated: 2025-04-22T23:46:13Z

About David Zahl

David Zahl is the founder and director of Mockingbird Ministries, editor-in-chief of the popular Mockingbird website, and cohost of The Mockingcast. He and his family live in Charlottesville, Virginia, where he also serves on the staff of Christ Episcopal Church. Zahl is the author of A Mess of Help: From the Crucified Soul of Rock N' Roll and coauthor of Law and Gospel: A Theology for Sinners (and Saints).