Our vocation is the outworking of how God has made us. It is not a goal on the horizon but a present reality that we are called to discern and explore. However, in the midst of our daily lives, finding meaning can prove both difficult and elusive, and we are often left wondering if we are missing out on God's purpose for our lives. Gordon Smith invites us to reflect on our vocation and step into God's call in the present moment. When discerning our vocation feels overwhelming, Smith offers a simple question as a way forward: "At this time and place, who am I meant to be, and what am I called to do?" Theologically and historically grounded, Your Calling Here and Now offers theological reflections and spiritual practices that will help you discern God's call on your life. Whether you are navigating career transitions or looking for meaning in the ordinary, God has a purpose for your life for the here and now.

What does it mean to provide leadership for the church in an increasingly secular context? When religion is privatized and secularism reigns in the public square, Christians are often drawn toward either individualist escapism or constant cultural warfare. But might this context instead offer a fresh invitation for the church to adapt and thrive? Gordon Smith is passionate about the need for capable, mature leaders to navigate and respond to a changing society. In this book, he draws on his extensive experience as a university president, pastor, and international speaker to open a multidisciplinary conversation about the competencies and capacities essential for today's leaders. After analyzing the phenomenon of secularization in the West and charting common Christian responses, Smith introduces four sources of wisdom to help guide us through this new terrain: the people and prophets of Judah during the Babylonian exile, the early church in its pagan environment, contemporary churches across the Global South, and Christian thinkers in post-Christian Europe. From these resources he identifies practices and strategies-from liturgy and catechesis to mission and hospitality-that can give shape to faithful, alternative communities in such a time as this. In cultures fraught with fear and division, Smith calls for leaders who can effect change from the margins, promote unity and maturity among Christians, and provide a non-anxious presence grounded in the presence of Christ. Educators, church leaders, and those seeking to understand the times will find this book to be an indispensable resource for cultivating distinctively Christian leadership.

Institutions matter. They give us an opportunity to have an influence for the common good that far outlasts us. But we often assume that institutions are at cross-purposes with dynamic communities, with personal vocational calling, and with core human values. We view them somewhat cynically as, perhaps, a necessary evil. Institutions, far from that, remain essential to human flourishing. They are the very means by which communities thrive, individual vocations are fulfilled, and society is changed for the good. As a result, we all need to learn how to work effectively within institutions. That is just what Gordon Smith provides. He unpacks the core of institutional intelligence-the wisdom of working effectively within an organization. At the same time, he shows how team leaders, directors, executives, board members, key stakeholders, and employees can avoid what is often their greatest source of stress on the job-working with the institutional character of their organizations. Focusing on the nonprofit sector, Smith unlocks the essential elements of how institutions function in a productive, healthy manner. Church staff, educators, and those in service agencies can all thrive by understanding these dynamics instead of fighting against them. By developing this essential vocational capacity, we and those around us can not only fulfill ourselves but also a mission that is larger than we are.

This volume offers much-needed theological reflection on the phenomenon of conversion and transformation. Gordon Smith provides a robust evaluation that covers the broad range of thinking about conversion across Christian traditions and addresses global contexts. Smith contends that both in the church and in discussions about contemporary mission, the language of conversion inherited from revivalism is inadequate in helping to navigate the questions that shape how we do church, how we approach faith formation, how evangelism is integrated into congregational life, and how we witness to the faith in non-Christian environments. We must rethink the nature of the church in light of how people actually come to faith in Christ. After drawing on ancient and pre-revivalist wisdom on conversion, Smith delineates the contours of conversion and Christian initiation for today's church. He concludes by discussing the art of spiritual autobiography and what it means to be a congregation.

Logos Bookstore Association Award for Christian Living One of the most basic and vital dimensions of the Christian life is the practice of prayer. Frequently our prayers begin with a petition or request, so the content of our prayers is informed by our circumstances. But what if the opposite were true? What if we allowed our prayers to inform our lives? What would our lives be like if prayer altered our living and began to shape the contours and content of our daily experiences? Gordon Smith invites us to learn three movements of prayer-thanksgiving, confession, and discernment-in order to be formed and transformed by prayers that seek God's kingdom "on earth as it is in heaven." Whether you are a beginner in the life of prayer or further along, this small book is a resource for deepening your prayer practice.

Institutions matter. But we often view them somewhat cynically, perhaps as a necessary evil. In truth, institutions remain essential to human flourishing. They are the very means by which communities thrive, individual vocations are fulfilled, and society is changed for the good. We all must learn the wisdom of working effectively within institutions-what Gordon Smith calls institutional intelligence. In this book Smith unlocks the essential elements of how institutions function in a productive, healthy manner. Focusing on the nonprofit sector, he shows how team leaders, directors, executives, board members, key stakeholders, and employees can avoid what is often their greatest source of stress on the job-working with the institutional character of their organizations. Church staff, educators, and those in service agencies can all thrive by understanding these dynamics instead of fighting against them. By developing institutional intelligence, we and those around us can not only flourish personally but also fulfill a larger mission.

World Guild Award Winner As the renowned scholar Thomas Oden noted, "No subject of Christian teaching is more prone to fanaticism and novelty and subjectivism than that of the Holy Spirit." The Bible's own metaphors for the Spirit are as elusive as they are evocative-wind, oil, flame, water, dove-making pneumatology a mysterious study. But shying away from the topic is no solution. Gordon Smith encourages us to seek both fresh understanding and fresh experience of the Spirit through openness to learning more, no matter what our theological tradition. In this way, as we hold biblical convictions firmly but gracefully, the guiding principles of discernment and humility will help us intentionally live Spirit-responsive lives day by day. Welcome, Holy Spirit is a much-needed master class with a trustworthy and encouraging teacher. How can we cultivate an understanding of the Holy Spirit that helps us experience the presence of the Spirit in worship, in witness, in joy and sorrow, in seasons of blessing and times of difficulty alike, all the while honoring the fullness of the Trinity? An attentiveness to the Spirit need not replace Christ as the focus of our lives and worship but can rather bring us truly into the presence of the living and ascended Lord. It is to this end that we pray, "Welcome, Holy Spirit."

Christianity Today Award of Merit Best Book of Spirituality—Academic, from Byron Borger, Hearts and Minds Bookstore Evangelicals are known for their emphasis on conversion. But what about life after conversion and beyond justification? Desperately needed is a comprehensive theology of the Christian life from beginning to end, along with the means of formation and transformation. In Called to Be Saints, Gordon Smith draws on a distinguished lifetime of reflecting on these themes to offer us a theologically rich account of our participation in the life of Christ. Both profound and practical, this book is a trinitarian theology of holiness that encompasses both justification and sanctification, both union with Christ and communion with God. Smith unfolds how and why Christians are called to become wise people, do good work, love others and enjoy rightly ordered affections. If holiness is the ongoing journey of becoming mature in Christ, then there is no better guide than Smith. Christians in every walk of life will find this a rich resource for learning what it means to "grow up in every way . . . into Christ" (Ephesians 4:15).

"Saints are made by good conversions." In this challenging and provocative book, Gordon T. Smith contends that a chief cause of spiritual immaturity in the evangelical church is an inadequate theology of conversion. Conversion, he says, involves more than a release from the consequences of sin--the goal is spiritual transformation. But there is little transformation without a complete and authentic conversion. The key is beginning well. In this age of false starts and stunted growth, maturing Christians need help reflecting on and interpreting their own religious experience. Christian leaders need to rethink the way that conversions happen. Beginning Well is a catalyst toward this end. Surveying Scripture, spiritual autobiographies and a broad range of theologies of conversion (Protestant and Catholic, Reformed and Wesleyan), the author seeks to foster in the Christian community a dynamic language of conversion that leads to spiritual transformation and mature Christian living. In the process he moves us from a short-sighted "minimalist" view to one that recognizes seven elements necessary for good conversions. This book--a stirring call to rethink the relationship between conversion and transformation--is a must read for pastors, evangelists, spiritual directors, seminary professors and others who are concerned about the nurture and development of Christian converts, and the nature of authentic religious experience.

How might our worship recapture and reflect the enchanted world of God's nearness in Jesus Christ? In this first volume in IVP Academic's Dynamics of Christian Worship series, John D. Rempel offers a vision for this kind of transformative worship. A theologian and minister in the Mennonite Church, Rempel considers the role of the sacraments and ritual within the Free Church tradition. While the Free Churches rightly sought to cleanse the church of the abuses of sacramentalism, in that process they also set aside some of the church's historic practices and the theology behind them, which ultimately impoverished their worship. In response to this liturgically thin space, Rempel appeals to the incarnation of Christ, whose taking on of flesh can help us perceive the sacramental nature of our faith and worship. By embracing life-giving and peacemaking practices, the worship of not only the Free Church tradition but of the whole body of Christ might be transformed and become enchanted once again. The Dynamics of Christian Worship series draws from a wide range of worshiping contexts and denominational backgrounds to unpack the many dynamics of Christian worship-including prayer, reading the Bible, preaching, baptism, the Lord's Supper, music, visual art, architecture, and more-to deepen both the theology and practice of Christian worship for the life of the church.

What on earth is God doing? Who are you? What is your stage of life? What are your life circumstances? What is the cross you will have to bear? What are you afraid of? We ask these six critical questions-and then we ask them again-at points of transition in our lives. They all lead us to the one core question: What is the good work to which I am called? Gordon T. Smith, author of Courage and Calling, writes: "It is a good question because our work matters to us, to others and, of course, it matters to God. Work itself is good. It is vital to our human identity; and we are most ourselves, most who God calls us to be, living in what it means to know the salvation of God, when we know the grace of work well done." However, Smith acknowledges that this is not a simple question to answer in the midst of our very complicated lives. That's why he has written this brief and accessible book-to offer the support and insight we need as we ponder these six core questions in community with God and others. As a steward of your life, in attentiveness to the calling of God, how is God inviting you to engage the world?

Evangelical. Sacramental. Pentecostal. Christian communities tend to identify with one of these labels over the other two. Evangelical churches emphasize the importance of Scripture and preaching. Sacramental churches emphasize the importance of the eucharistic table. And pentecostal churches emphasize the immediate presence and power of the Holy Spirit. But must we choose between them? Could the church be all three? Drawing on his reading of the New Testament, the witness of Christian history, and years of experience in Christian ministry and leadership, Gordon T. Smith argues that the church not only can be all three, but in fact must be all three in order to truly be the church. As the church navigates the unique global challenges of pluralism, secularism, and fundamentalism, the need for an integrated vision of the community as evangelical, sacramental, and pentecostal becomes ever more pressing. If Jesus and the apostles saw no tension between these characteristics, why should we?

This study guide is designed to be used alongside Gordon Smith's book, Courage and Calling. You are invited to discover your vocation by listening to God and becoming a coworker with him. Working through this book will help you pray about and discern such difficult questions as: What is my calling? How do I live it out in the midst of difficult relationships or moral challenges? Will my vocation change as I enter a new stage of life? As I cope with competing needs and demands, how can I craft a balanced, ordered way of living? Where do I find the courage to follow God's call?

Imagine you're longing for a cool refreshing drink of water . . . And there, right in front of you, is a full glass, crystal clear, just waiting to be picked up. You study the tantalizing trail of droplets as they work their way down the side. You talk to people who have drunk from the glass and even tell others how wonderful it looks. You're convinced that this water will be deeply satisfying. You've done everything short of bringing the glass to your lips and drinking for yourself. Your longing continues for a cool, refreshing drink of water. Everyone is thirsty spiritually. "My soul thirsts for God," says the psalmist. And Jesus, knowing our longing, offers us Living Water. But how do we actually drink this water so that it can begin to satisfy our souls? For centuries, Christians have practiced spiritual disciplines to develop a deeply satisfying relationship with God. These disciplines are like the glass, bringing Living Water to our parched souls. Gordon Smith recognizes that authentic spirituality often looks dramatically different from one believer to the next. Still, there are certain disciplines that are essential for any Christian who wants a deeper, more satisfying relationship with God. ON THE WAY will help readers identify those essentials and develop a spirituality that encompasses every area of life such as work, friendships, and recreation.

God calls us first to himself, to know and follow him, and also to a specific life purpose, a particular reason for being. This second call or "vocation" has implications not only for our work or occupation, but also includes our giftedness, our weaknesses, our life in community and what we do day to day. In this book Gordon Smith invites you to discover your vocation by listening to God and becoming a coworker with him. What is my calling? How do I live it out in the midst of difficult relationships or moral challenges? Will my vocation change as I enter a new stage of life? With competing needs and demands, how can I craft a balanced way of living? Smith addresses these questions and many more in the pages of this book. This new edition has been revised and updated throughout with two expanded chapters and a new chapter on four specific areas of calling. Here is rich insight for all who long for the ears to hear and the courage to follow God's call.