I could relate to so much of what Billups wrote in this exploration of faith and church. While I was able to listen to this one, I know it’s a book I want to have in print and reach for again.

Publisher's Weekly, in their review of Orphaned Believers, said "Billups is a sharp critic of the evangelical church, and readers will be heartened by her thoughtful advice on how to chart a brighter future for the faith."

I tend to agree -- Billups is a sharp critic of the evangelical church, and she most certainly doesn't shy away from sharing her thoughts and feelings in this book, and yet you can tell throughout that she may be critical but she loves 'the capital C Church.'

There were portions that I resonated with personally, others that rang as too heavy-handed, and a few places where the flow of the book just didn't work for me/were confusing... but the tie-in with her father offered a unique, personal, touching angle that set the book apart from others.

I'm interested in all the buzz around "deconstruction", so the title of this book quickly caught my eye. "Orphaned Believers: How a Generation of Christian Exiles Can Find The Way Home", by Sara Billups, is all about children of evangelicals and their struggles to find their own way in the faith. Billups details her upbringing by her formerly Jewish father who was very rigid in his beliefs and expected his children to be as well. She details orphaned believers as being orphans both culturally and spiritually and describes the main failure that has seeped in to the church as an obsession with the end times, culture wars, and consumerism.

While there were some parts of the book that resonated with me more than others, I particularly appreciated Billups' conclusion at the end of the book. When describing why she is still a Christian, she simply states the following: "I am a Christian because there is nowhere else for me to go. I am a Christian because of the still, small voice . . . I am a Christian because, even though I am made to wander, I walked for miles until there was no trail left. My spirit felt at rest in a meeting of the Holy Spirit. Simply, I am a Christian because of God's free, infinite love."

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

"When we are tethered to Christ, we can withstand not just personal afflictions and suffering but also cultural tides."
Based on the title, I was expecting a different book. This book is largely the author's view on all that has gone wrong that has corrupted the American evangelical church. Her main three points are end times obsession, culture wars and consumerism/capitalism. It is very current with mentions of the pandemic, Christian nationalism and past presidents.
I do wish that the book was organized a bit better as I felt a little confused while reading, wondering what she was saying, to whom and why. There is alot of research and discussion of end times beliefs at the beginning sprinkled with a bit of memoir about her relationship with her Dad and how their faith journeys are different yet they remain close.
She does speak a bit of her church experience growing up. "Church may not have infused me with spiritual formation, but it was social... Jesus stayed a character in an illustrated children's Bible instead of a God who could transform our lives and change the way we saw other people." If you grew up in a white, evangelical church you may find a kindred spirit. It does point to Jesus and may give you hope but I was hoping for a more personal look at many examples of orphaned believers and their journeys back into communities of faith and this is not that.
If you are one who is confused about the state of the evangelical church in America then the ideas in this book may help you to understand the motivations behind certain behaviours or the differing views she holds with her father may help you to understand the views held by other believers and see them in a different light so the book is not without merit at all.

This book was not at all what I expected. I was searching for proactive items for people who had been hurt by churches. I was even more disillusioned with this book. I understand the problems with organized religion. I wanted hope which I did not find.

I was hoping for more "path forward" and less history in this book. I certainly learned some things I didn't know and if I hadn't live through being a young Christian in the 90s, it would have been essential to understanding. If you're looking for a magic wand to solve your issues with organized Christianity, this is not it(there isn't a magic wand), but the advice is practical and real. I especially like the focus on deeper formation, as I definitely recognize that need in my own walk. I would recommend this book to pastors as well as Christians of my generation.

Thank you to NetGalley and Baker books for the advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Orphaned Believers
How a Generation of Christian Exiles Can Find the Way Home
by Sara Billups
Pub Date 24 Jan 2023
Baker Books
Biographies & Memoirs | Christian



I am reviewing a copy of Orphaned Believers through Baker Books and Netgalley:


Following the Culture wars f the 1980s and 1990s, many young evangelical Christians found themselves untethered, disillusioned, and ultimately orphaned as they grappled with the legalistic, politically co-opted churches of their youth. Maybe you are one of the ones who ended up with feelings of disillusionment. Perhaps, like Sara Billups, you have felt alone, misunderstood, and maligned in the American church, longing for a more loving, more biblical expression of the faith and discipleship taught by Jesus.



Orphaned Believers is part spiritual memoir of an apocalyptic childhood and part commentary on growing up as an evangelical kid during the culture wars. Orphaned Believers follows the journey of a generation of Christian exiles reckoning with the tradition that raised them and searching for a new way to participate in the story of God. Because for all the baggage, we still belong, and a bigger, more beautiful story awaits.


I give Orphaned Believers five out of five stars!


Happy Reading!

Wow. Disillusioned not by Christianity but by other Christians, this book was a gift. It was thoroughly researched and personal. I appreciated Sara’s continued efforts to point readers to Jesus. No matter what problems the Church faces (fear, politics, consumerism…), Jesus is better. I will read this again slowly to take in her words and her insight. Very well done. “The church only needs one thing in order to revive, and it is totally out of human hands. The church requires the Spirit of God. The role of Christians in this work is clear: we are called to heal from any pain we have experienced, repent for any wounds we have caused, and embody a better way forward.“

What a lighthouse of a book.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Orphaned Believers: How A Generation of Christian Exiles Can Find The Way Home, by Sara Billups

I've enjoyed following @sara.billups on Instagram for a couple of years and her words have always been like a balm. They have connected with my heart many times as my husband and I navigated leaving our evangelical church over two years ago in search of something deeper, richer, purer.

Orphaned Believers walks through the unique perspectives and experiences Christian Millenials have most likely encountered and observed since childhood, while growing up in church - the fear mongering surrounding the "end times", the hysteria of manufactured and politically-charged culture wars, and the inexplicable link between capitalism and the evangelical industry.

Weaving both personal memoir and journalistic narration, Billups consistently affirms that the point and beauty of Christianity is Jesus alone. The rest is noise. Amidst the damage and ruin that has been done by those carried away by nationalism and blinding, shallow certainty, because of the active and working love of God, reformation, change, and restoration is possible - for those of us who have been battered and bruised by the religious systems we've experienced, and for the American church at large.

This book isn't just another Christian self-help read that undermines spiritual pain and abuse with empty platitudes or bypassing. Rather, I was often met with the beauty of her message that #orphanedbelievers have never left the heart of God, even if they've had to walk out the doors of church institutions.

10/10. A true gift. Happy release week to this book and congratulations to the author for this beautiful work. I haven't highlighted and taken so many notes from a book in a while. It is convicting, comforting, and when you survey the current climate of American evangelicalism, these words feel more relevant and necessary than ever. This book releases tomorrow, January 24th, and if you pick it up, I'd love to hear your thoughts!

(Many thanks to Baker Books for providing a digital advanced reader copy! All thoughts my own and offered freely.)