The Art of Spiritual Listening

The Art of Spiritual Listening: Responding to God's Voice Amid the Noise of Life by Alice Fryling
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed this study guide. It had a great format, combining brief life lessons with scripture and open questions. I feel this study guide is relevant for Christians of all ages and at all levels of faith. I look forward to incorporating it into my Youth Group studies next year.

On a personal level, I really enjoyed going through this study. I learned a lot about reading scripture and putting the Bible into a "real" place in my head. I learned a lot about working with other people as a Christian - both guiding and receiving guidance. Most importantly, I learned how to create the spaces where God needs to speak to me, to extend that invitation to Him and receive what He has to say. We'll work on actually doing those things next...



 Synopsis: Life shouts. God whispers. How can we hear God’s whispers when the struggles and worries of life distract us? How can we quiet our souls?

The Art of Spiritual Listening is about learning to listen to the gentle, persistent voice of God and help others hear God’s voice as well. With insightful and creative reflections, Alice Fryling guides us through Scripture passages that teach us how to experience and hear God more fully. Here you will find ways to:

·Become more attentive to God’s spirit
·Understand how to hear God’s voice in your own life
·Learn how to help others develop the discipline of listening to God’s leading

With an emphasis on spiritual direction, The Art of Spiritual Listening includes Bible study questions, prompts for personal reflection, and notes for leaders who wish to use the book in a group. If your life is too noisy to hear God, or if you want to hear his voice more clearly, The Art of Spiritual Listening will guide you to a deeper understanding of what it means to respond to God’s invitation to listen.  

Surrender to Love

Surrender to Love: Discovering the Heart of Christian Spirituality by David G. Benner
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I enjoyed reading this. It was a brief but intense look at the concept of Christian love. A very nice balance of story telling and essay. I enjoyed the "think about it" at the end of each chapter. I also appreciated the numerous references to scripture.

Summary: "Only God deserves absolute surrender because only God can offer absolutely dependable love." In our self-reliant era, most of us recoil from the concept of surrendering to a power or authority outside ourselves. But surrender need not be seen as threatening, especially when the One to whom we surrender is the epitome of goodness and love. God doesn't want his people to respond to him out of fear or obligation. Rather, he invites us to enter into an authentic relationship of intimacy and devotion. And so God calls us to move beyond mere obedience--by surrendering to love. In this profound book, David Benner explores the twin themes of love and surrender as the heart of Christian spirituality. Through careful examination of Scripture and reflection on the Christian tradition, Benner shows how God bids us to trust fully in his perfect love. Writing with mature wisdom gleaned from many years of integrating psychological and spiritual insight, Benner demonstrates keen perception and sensitivity to the realities of spirtitual formation. In each chapter he includes meditative exercises to guide you into a greater experience of trust and spiritual transformation. God is love, and he intends for you to live in his love.Surrender to Love will lead you to an unexpected place, where yieldedness to God frees you to become who he created you to be.  

Hiding From Love

Hiding from Love: How to Change the Withdrawal Patterns That Isolate and Imprison You by John Sims Townsend
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is one of those books that's hard to review. This book took me on an emotional journey from the start. There were literally weeks where I couldn't read because I was overwhelmed with discovery, with letting go, with recognizing the parts of me that were injured, that were broken, the parts that needed LOVE.

God set me on this journey last summer when He put the desire for marriage, for a committed companionship, onto my heart. I've spent much of that wondering why. Why would He bring me to this and I would still be alone? Why would He bring me here and not bring my intended spouse here as well? Crazy, but Here is not the end of my journey. Here is where I have the desire to fill God's plans for me, to fix the brokenness... to not just accept God and His love, but to be able to accept another choosing me.

I highly recommend this book to anyone struggling with relationships, anyone who wants a relationship, and anyone who is in a relationship.

Synopsis: When you experience emotional injury, fear, shame, or pride your first impulse is to hide the hurting parts of yourself from God, others, even yourself. Often you've learned these hiding patterns during childhood to protect yourself in a threatening environment. The problem is that when you hide your injuries and frailties, you isolate yourself from the very things you need in order to heal and mature. What served as protection for a child becomes a prison to an adult. In Hiding from Love, Dr. John Townsend helps you to explore thoroughly the hiding patterns you've developed and guides you toward the healing grace and truth that God has built into safe, connected relationships with himself and others. You'll discover: The difference between 'good' and 'bad' hiding, Why you hide the broken parts of your soul from the God who can heal them, How to be free to make mistakes without fear of exposing your failures and imperfections, How to obtain the joy and wholeness God intends you to have through healthy bonding with others. Hiding from Love will take you on a journey of discovery toward healing, connected relationships, and a new freedom and joy in living.