Henri Nouwen understood the spiritual life as a journey of faith and transformation, marked by distinct movements and corresponding disciplines, and deepened by accountability, community, and ministry. This book provides readers with an experience in spiritual direction with Nouwen, well-known author, priest, and guide. Readings, stories, questions for personal reflection and guided journal inquiry as articulated by Nouwen in his courses on spiritual direction/formation and in his personal and group spiritual direction sessions are gathered to provide an unparalleled resource on a thoughtful spiritual life. Following a familiar structure which reappeared in his many lectures and books, Nouwen suggests that four simple changes will reorient our lives, opening the door to true spiritual transformation.

Spiritual Direction: Wisdom for the Long Walk of Faith

Religion & Spirituality

Michael J. Christensen

Rebecca J. Laird

henri-j-m-nouwen

Christian Books & Bibles

Harpercollins

Henri Nouwen, the world-renowned spiritual guide and counselor, understood the spiritual life as a journey of faith and transformation that is deepened by accountability, community, and relationships. Though he counseled many people during his lifetime, his principles of spiritual direction and formation were never written down. Two of Nouwen's longtime students, Michael Christensen and Rebecca Laird, have taken his famous course in spiritual direction and supplemented it with his unpublished writings to create the definitive series on Nouwen's thoughts on the Christian life. The first book in the series, Spiritual Direction, introduced readers to the core concepts of Nouwen's approach to the spiritual life. Book two, Spiritual Formation, showcases Nouwen's life-long effort to re-construct the five classical stages of spiritual development as movements in the journey of faith. The five classical stages are these: 1. Awakening (our desire) 2. Purgation (purifying our passions) 3. Illumination (of God) 4. Dark Night (of the Soul) 5. Unification (with God) Readings, stories, questions for personal reflection, and guided journal inquiry as articulated by Nouwen will provide readers with an experience in spiritual formation with the well-known author, priest, and guide. The third and final book in the series, Spiritual Discernment, is planned to release in 2012

Spiritual Formation: Following the Movements of the Spirit

Nouwen, Henri J.M.

HarperOne

C. s. Lewis on Scripture - His Thoughts on the Nature of Biblical Inspiration, the Role of Revelation And the Question of Inerrancy

Hodder and Stoughton

Experts on congregational life tell us that ministry in the next century will depend more on called, trained, and committed lay leadership than it has since the days of the early church. But how will congregations recruit these lay leaders? How will they develop new models for training and equipping them for all the ministries of the church? What will the role of clergy be in adopting this new partnership that Leonard Sweet calls “ancient-future ministry”? Equipping the Saints seeks to help congregational leaders answer these and other questions related to mobilizing lay ministry in the years ahead. The chapters include: “Shall We Abolish the Clergy or the Laity?" by Michael Christensen; “Team Building Through Spiritual Gifts" by Brian Bauknight; “The Loss and Recovery of the Biblical Basis for Ministry” by Russell Moy; “Out of the Pew, Into the World” by Jessica Moffat; “The Seeker Service in the Mainline Church" by Eric Park; “Circuit Riding in the 21st Century" by Rob Duncan; and, “Life Together: Reclaiming the Ministry of Small Groups” by Christine Anderson. Key Features: • Responds to emerging trends that promise to be determinative of the shape of ministry in the next century • Addresses an important practical need in congregations • Offers help in formulating new models for congregational ministry Key Benefits: • Readers will understand the important emerging need for called, trained, and committed laypersons to engage in ministry • Readers will learn how to recruit and train lay leaders • Readers will identify a new model of clergy/lay ministry partnership

Equipping the Saints: Mobilizing Laity for Ministry

ABINGDON PRESS *

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Books by Michael J. Christensen