When it comes to life, we want to get it right. As the only son of child and family psychologist Dr. James Dobson, Ryan Dobson grew up in the hot spotlight of what felt like Christian celebrity culture, with his dad’s proponents and opponents alike wanting to know if “Doc” actually practiced what he preached. As a teenager, Ryan was curious about that too: sure, his parents talked a good game, but would they back up their beliefs with action?
Like many adolescents, Ryan pushed the limits on his parents’ boundaries, seeing just how far they’d stretch. He questioned their faith, their rules, their values, and their “truth,” determined to sort out life for himself. The journey wasn’t a pretty one, but it was beneficial in the end. Because once Ryan held up his parents’ core principles to the intense gaze of scrutiny, he discovered how right they’d been.
In Wanting to Believe, Ryan discloses the key messages imparted to him by his folks, sensible parents wanting to pass down truth to a stubborn son, covering topics like faith, finances, responsibility, identity, marriage, parenting, and the power of our words. With irrepressible wit and wisdom, Ryan admits how he violated the hard-won lessons he’d been handed . . . and how he wound up loving them as his own in the end. Through Ryan’s words, you’ll also discover that when what you preach is true, and when you’re faithful to practice what you preach, you can more readily honor God with your life, which is the goal of every follower of Christ.