Drawing on the imagery of the natural rhythms of the created order, Sacred Rhythms explores the practices that spiritual seekers and growing disciples have used throughout history to grow closer to God. In a similar way, the disciplines of the spiritual life are the basic components of the rhythm of intimacy that feeds the soul, keeping Christians open and available to God's surprising initiative in their lives. In this six session video-based study (DVD/digital video sold separately), Ruth Haley Barton provides guidance for you and your group in a way that links the disciplines of the Christian faith to the most compelling desires of the human soul. Each of the following sessions offers specific practices that allow you to experience each discipline and incorporate it into your life. Sessions include: Longing for More Creating Space for God Engaging the Scriptures Flesh and Blood Spirituality Bringing My Whole Self to God A Rule of Life Designed for use with the Sacred Rhythms Video Study (sold separately).

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.

In our frenzied culture, the possibility of living in balanced rhythms of work and rest often feels elusive. This rings especially true for pastors and leaders who carry the weight of nonstop responsibility. Most know they need rest but might be surprised to find within themselves a deep resistance to letting go and resting in God one day a week, let alone for longer seasons of sabbatical. The journey to a meaningful sabbath practice is slow and gradual, and it is a journey we need to take in community. Sharing her own story of practicing sabbath for the past twenty years, Ruth Haley Barton offers hard-won wisdom regarding the rhythms of sabbath, exploring both weekly sabbath keeping as well as extended periods of sabbatical time. Embracing Rhythms of Work and Rest grounds us in God's intentions in giving us the gift of sabbath, providing practical steps for embedding sabbath rhythms in churches and organizations. Each chapter concludes with "What Your Soul Wants to Say to God," an opportunity to reflect and engage God around your own journey with the material. Sabbath is more than a practice-it is a way of life ordered around God's invitation to regular rhythms of work, rest, and replenishment that will sustain us for the long haul of life in leadership. Includes a conversation guide for small groups and communities.

Women and men are designed to work together in fulfilling God's mission on earth. Yet God's original intent for equal partnership has been so distorted that churches and organizations continually struggle to foster healthy mixed-gender ministry collaboration. Is it even possible to return to the Genesis ideal of co-laborers in today's contexts? Longtime ministry leader Rob Dixon knows it's possible-though it takes intentionality, courage, and wisdom. Based on qualitative field research among ministry practitioners, Together in Ministry offers a prophetic roadmap for individuals and communities as they seek to develop flourishing ministry partnerships for women and men. Organized around the key domains of inner life, community culture, and intentional practices, this model identifies ten key attributes of partnerships that are both personally satisfying and missionally effective. For each attribute Dixon presents research findings and biblical examples, along with benefits, barriers, and practical next steps. With plenty of real-life stories from ministry leaders and reflection questions in each chapter, Together in Ministry casts a compelling-and encouraging-vision for flourishing partnerships and equips teams and individuals with next steps for making that vision a reality.

When we experience frustrations in daily life, many of us hold ourselves to blame. Self-criticism is often our default setting. But we can have a more gracious posture toward ourselves. We can practice disciplines of self-kindness. Editor and spiritual director Cindy Bunch calls us to self-care through greater compassion for ourselves. She helps us pay attention to the frustrations that bug us in order to identify negative thinking about ourselves or others. As we do so, we can discern what we need to let go. This allows us to lean into the things that bring us joy. Each chapter is filled with spiritual practices and creative exercises for reflection and celebration. The pages of the appealing smaller book format are illustrated with photographs and art from the author. Be kind to yourself. And discover new opportunities to embrace joy.

Although women have unprecedented opportunities and options today, their lives are still often filled with the mundane, the difficult, the downright tragic. And the challenges of life become even more difficult when there doesn't seem to be any purpose for them.
Without a sense of purpose, our lives can become unmanageable and unfulfilling. These studies will help you discover God's purposes in your life--in your creation, your salvation, and your giftedness; in your work and home life--and will give you the framework you need to live a purposeful life that brings glory and honor to him.

Spiritual formation is the key to the survival of our faith. There is an urgent need today for church services that are substantive and purposeful. Stigmatized by scandal, the church in North America and throughout Europe has been branded as useless and irrelevant. To stem the tide of nominal Christianity, we need to get serious about making disciples who can make other disciples. Rory Noland is a worship leader who has led in contexts ranging from megachurches to small retreat settings such as the Transforming Center with Ruth Haley Barton. Combining discipleship and worship-what Noland calls transforming worship-he offers a vision for worship as spiritual formation. We need to reclaim our worship services as a formative space, and through that we will become the light of Christ in a dark world.

There's a difference between praying and living prayerfully. This book guides you through three time-proven ways that millions of Christians throughout history have discovered make a difference. You, too, will see your prayer life spill over into everything you do so that your entire life becomes prayerful. As the author shares his own personal stories and passes along wisdom on prayerful living from other Christians of today and the past, you will sense God's invitation to you to live prayerfully by praying with other people's words, praying without words, and praying with your own words. Included are explorations of these three ways of prayer and guides for readers to experience them.

In the quiet places of your heart, do you ever yearn for something more? Many Christian women, if we are honest, feel discontented about aspects of our lives. Some of us long to be married, while others long to escape from marriage. Some of us struggle with our roles in the church, wondering why God would give us gifts that are not allowed to flourish. Some of us feel we have no voice. Others of us have no idea what we would say if we did. Ruth Haley Barton believes that what lies underneath all our confusion is a longing for freedom--not the freedom to do as we please, but the freedom to discover our full identity in Christ and use our gifts to serve God. With wisdom and charity Barton's exhilarating book explores the many areas of a woman's life that need the freeing touch of Christ such as vocation, relationships, spirituality, identity, sexuality, singleness, marriage and motherhood. Avoiding both feminist and fundamentalist trappings, she affirms our longings as important markers which point us toward God's renewing love. Barton's honesty, biblical insight, practical examples and loving encouragement combine to form a powerful, empowering book that will transform the way you live out your identity and purpose in God's kingdom.

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.

Winner of a 2006 Logos Book Award Do you long for a deep, fundamental change in your life with God? Do you desire a greater intimacy with God? Do you wonder how you might truly live your life as God created you to live it? Spiritual disciplines are activities that open us to God's transforming love and the changes that only God can bring about in our lives. Picking up on the monastic tradition of creating a "rule of life" that allows for regular space for the practice of the spiritual disciplines, this book takes you more deeply into understanding seven key disciplines along with practical ideas for weaving them into everyday life. Each chapter includes exercises to help you begin the practices--individually and in a group context. The final chapter puts it all together in a way that will help you arrange your life for spiritual transformation. The choice to establish your own sacred rhythm is the most important choice you can make with your life.

M. Robert Mulholland Jr. defines spiritual formation as "the process of being formed in the image of Christ for the sake of others." Compact and solid, this definition encompasses the dynamics of a vital Christian life and counters our culture's tendency to make spirituality a trivial matter or reduce it to a private affair between "me and Jesus." In Invitation to a Journey, Mulholland helps Christians new and old understand that we become like Christ gradually, not instantly. Not every personality is suited to an early morning quiet time, so Mulholland frees different personality types to express their piety differently. He reviews the classical spiritual disciplines and demonstrates the importance of undertaking our spiritual journey with (and for the sake of) others. This road map for spiritual formation is profoundly biblical and down to earth. In the finest tradition of spiritual literature, it is a vital help to Christians at any stage of their journey. This edition is revised and expanded by Ruth Haley Barton with a new foreword, spiritual practices and study guide, to provide spiritual direction for individuals and groups seeking spiritual companionship for one another on the journey of transformation.

As you journey deeper in the Christian pilgrimage, you come to realize that the Christian life is more than merely replicating particular spiritual disciplines or practices. You begin to understand that at the core of Christian faith is the transformation of your very identity. M. Robert Mulholland Jr. exposes the false selves that you may be tempted to hide behind and helps you to instead discover the true self that comes from being hidden with Christ in God. If the goal of the Christian journey is Christlikeness, then you must reckon with the unhealthy ways that you root your sense of being in things other than God. Along the way, you will discover a growing sense of intimacy and abandonment to God. Not only will you encounter the joy of discovering your own self, you will also find a greater love for others and compassion for the world. The expanded edition includes a study guide for individual reflection or group discussion.