INTRODUCTION

so what’s this hex?

Everything I thought I knew about

how to live the Christian life

turned out to be wrong.

(Everything. Wrong.)

I was clear about my eternal destiny.

Heaven is my home.

I understood I was forgiven

through faith in Jesus.

And I knew the Bible is inspired by God.

I got that down.

But I misunderstood “the Christian life,”

what it is and how to live it.

I thought I was saved by GRACE

but had to grow by EFFORT.

I thought I was supposed to MAKE it happen.

You know,

to be a follower of Jesus.

Disciple.

Mature Christian.

After receiving God’s free gift of salvation

through Jesus, I thought

I was now obligated to do all the stuff

it seemed God expected of me.

And the list of stuff I thought I was

required to do kept growing.

Soon, my obligations as a Christian became a problem.

They crowded out everything

the Bible said I should be experiencing.

God’s grace

Freedom

Love of God

Joy

Peace

Relationship with Jesus

Something was missing.

Something was wrong.

Really wrong.

The pressure of trying hard to live the Christian life began to suck

the life out of me. What was once joyful and energizing turned

into an obligation.

A big obligation.

An unsustainable obligation.

I focused on my own spiritual development.

I looked at diagrams that others said would help.

I followed principles I read in books.

After all, isn’t that what I was

supposed to do?

Aren’t we supposed to try hard to be like Jesus?

Aren’t we supposed to follow Him?

Aren’t we supposed to be a disciple?

Aren’t we supposed to…?

Pray a lot

Read our Bible every day

Share our faith

Tithe regularly

Show up at some/most/all church services

Join a life group

Serve my local church

Listen to Christian music

Support world missions

Is this it? Is this why Jesus came?

Did Jesus leave Heaven,

come to this earth,

live a perfect life,

endure a horrible crucifixion

and rise from the dead

so that we could live a life of

never-ending Christian obligations?

(Really?)

Did I misunderstand how this works? (YES.)

THAT is what this book is about.

It turns out I was under a HEX

and didn’t know it.

And there is no freedom under the hex.

(HEAVENS TO BETSY!)

what Paul tells the Galatians…

How foolish can you be?

After starting your new lives in the Spirit, why are you now

trying to become perfect by

YOUR OWN HUMAN EFFORT?

Galatians 3:3 (NLT)

THE GALATIAN COUNTY LINE

Welcome to Galatia County.

Galatia County is a nice place to visit but

you would NOT want to live there.

Galatia is a big county with numerous cities and towns.

It’s doing well financially. Lots of hustle bustle.

There are lots of Christians here.

Several notable congregations.

(But there is a BIG PROBLEM here.)

You will find that the people here are religious.

They believe in Jesus. They know He is the Son of God. They understand that Jesus was crucified for their sins. They know He rose from the dead and ascended into Heaven.

The Christians in this county are under…well…a spell.

Some would call it a “curse.” Others would call it a “hex.”

No matter what you call it, it’s not good.

It is odd, because the people here are not practicing the occult.

There are no psychics. No witchcraft. No fortune-telling. No crystal balls.

And yet…the Bible says they are under a hex.

How is that possible?

It turns out that the Christians in Galatia County are not doing anything weird. In fact, they are doing something almost every Christian does on a regular basis.

They are trying to add to the finished work of Jesus on the cross.

They don’t know Jesus killed the way of religion on the cross.

They never saw the obituary.

They think if they

try a little harder,

do a little more,

then God will notice and bless

their extra commitment/dedication.

We call it the TRY-A-LITTLE-HARDER-DO-A-LITLLE-MORE SYNDROME.

Or as the book of Galatians calls it: “the hex.”

They just think they can use their religious efforts to complete

what Jesus started. They want to do stuff to get closer to God.

No big deal.

(Scratch that!)

It’s a VERY BIG DEAL!!!

Actually, they lived in the first century Roman empire so we don’t know exactly how they were trying to do this. But we can easily speculate about how they would do it if they lived in our day.

They would have discipleship programs.

Christian life principles.

Bible reading plans.

Charts and diagrams to learn.

Services and schools to attend.

Ministry strategies to master.

And anything else to…

make them more like Jesus,

help them be better Christians,

grow them into spiritual maturity.

You see how this works?

Add-ons.

Do more stuff.

Press in.

Try harder.

Do NOT make your home in Galatia County.

This place will beat the joy out of you.

Suck the life out of you.

Drain your enthusiasm for living.

Don’t get dragged into the whole

the-cross-is-not-enough-for-me-

so-I-have -to-add-more-to-it HEX. 

This book is about

hightailin’ it out of Galatia County

to enjoy life with

God your FATHER.

Breaking The Hex: Life with God After the Cross Killed Religion

Breaking The Hex
The Cross of Christ

about Breaking The Hex

The Fields Brothers have crafted a unique tool to remind you not to fall for the lies of religious performance but to continue to rest in God’s provision of grace and relationship. You’ll enjoy the simplicity, the humor, and the wisdom in these pages. —WAYNE JACOBSEN, author of He Loves Me, Finding Church. Co-author of The Shack

Gee whiz, I really liked this book. It covers a lot of ground in a friendly, accessible way and unpacked a lot of baggage for me as a Christian with a serious “dead works” problem. Funny in places, like being given the straight dope by your smarter, cooler brother in others, it’s a genuinely solid read. Typography and layout keep it light and fun while still delivering the intended message.–TROY DEVOLLD, TV Producer

My growth as a Christian began when I received an intimate, personal relationship with Jesus Christ. This book affirms that. Acting and being religious left me empty, obligated and unfulfilled. Thanks, Jeff and Roger, for helping me get back on track.–DOUG FLYNN, 2-time World Series Champion (1975,76 Cincinnati Reds) 1980 Gold Glove Award winner

Fabulous book! Almost every Christian believes that we are saved by grace but everything else is hard work…and this book exposes the danger of that theology. The book will be offensive to some who have spent their life and energy in the religious world. But the beauty is that every word is backed up by the Bible. As someone has accurately said, if you want to mess up your theology, read the Bible. The Fields brothers have a message to ear. “Let him who has ears hear.”–HON. TIM PHILPOT, Family Court Judge

This book will free your mind, heart and spirit.–MINDI THORE

CHAPTER TITLES

obituary

so what’s this hex?

I. How The Cross Disrupted Everything

1. I was tryin’ hard

2. so what day is it?

3. spray painting your new ferrari

4. the day that killed religion

5. the big oops!

6. it’s a wonderful death

7. our nike swoosh

8. snake on a stick

9. timing is everything

10. gimme a k.i.s.s.

11. bait & switch

12. ripped by God

II. How Religion Tricks Us

13. doing the splits (ouch!)

14. christian big foot

15. religion freak, control freak

16. stop squirming

17. all inclusive guilt trip

18. how rules backfire

19. hamster wheelin’ it

20. all ‘bout me

21. spitting on the sabbath

22. this is your crummy, miserable life

23. whack-a-mole religion

24. hot grace, cold self

25. moses and the dead cat bounce

26. talkin’ bout dead stuff

27. with friends like these…

28. chutes & ladders

29. navel gazer

30. the lost commandment

31. martha gone wild

32. you don’t owe God nuttin’

III. How God Made You New

33. kickball

34. don’t let this go to your head, but…

35. the doctor will see you now

36. the idol of spiritual growth

37. you are here*

38. i quit trying to live the christian life

39. captivated by Jesus

40. who stole your identity?

41. fish ‘n chips

42. good news: you died

43. why i’m not a follower of Jesus

44. swingin’ emotions

IV. How Grace Sets You Free

45. Jesus plays the game through us

46. a rather personal question

47. and agony on me

48. “@#$!% delmar’s been saved!”

49. …and no additives

50. license to sin

51. that is sooooo 1st century b.c.

52. dripping faucet

53. zombie zone

54. which tree you pickin’ from?

55. going under

56. shame junkie

57. big windshield

58. good works are not bad

59. mystifying command

V. How Our Father Adores You

60. a world of orphans

61. nascar christianity

62. you do not matter to God

63. this time…it’s personal

64. reversing the flow

65. at home in your world

66. the gospel of gomer pyle

67. religious blackjack

68. God is not a book

69. meeting rick

70. God’s happy place

71. Father’s love

72. taco prayers

73. the crazy dad

74. search & rescue

waking up tomorrow morning

author bios

once upon a time

contact page