Best Book of Spiritual Formation, from Byron Borger, Hearts and Minds Bookstore
Have you joined a church or small group in hopes of experiencing real life change, only to be disappointed?
Have you sat through inspiring sermons about what is possible when Christians gather together in mutually edifying relationships, only to recognize how cynical you have become after many failed attempts?
Community may be one of the most over-promised, under-delivered aspects of the Christian life today. Individuals remain selfish and stuck in their ways. Communities become spiritually lifeless or even fall apart because we don't know how to experience transformation together.
Transforming community does not come primarily from listening to inspiring preaching or adding another church program. It emerges as we embrace a shared commitment to the attitudes, practices and behaviors that open us to Christ in our midst. And that's where Life Together in Christ comes in. Reflecting on the story of the two disciples who meet Christ on the Emmaus Road, Ruth Haley Barton offers this interactive guide for small groups of spiritual companions who are ready to encounter Christ in transforming ways—right where they are on the road of real life.
İçerik tablosu
Introduction: An Inconvenient Truth
1. Between the Now and Not Yet: Choosing to Walk Together
2. And Jesus Himself Came Near: Welcoming the Stranger
3. And They Stood Still Looking Sad: Choosing to Listen Rather than Fix
4. But We had Hoped . . . Gathering on the Basis of Shared Desire
5. The Women of Our Group have Astounded Us: Men and Women in Community
6. Was it Not Necessary that the Messiah Should Suffer? The Nature of the Spiritual Journey
7. He Explained to Them the Scriptures: Finding Our Story in His Story
8. Were Not Our Hearts Burning Within Us? Discerning the Presence of Christ
9. Then They Told What had Happened on the Road: You are Witnesses of These Things
Appendix A
Appendix B
Yazar hakkında
Ruth Haley Barton is a teacher, spiritual director, retreat leader and author. She is cofounder and president of The Transforming Center (www.thetransformingcenter.org), a ministry dedicated to caring for the souls of pastors. Ruth has ministered in several congregations, including Willow Creek Community Church. Her other books include Sacred Rhythms and Invitation to Solitude and Silence (both Inter Varsity Press). This book was previously published by Waterbrook under the title The Truths That Free Us.