Small groups can an effective tool to deepen our spiritual
lives, examine our own spiritual practices, and even bring renewal to our
congregations. A number of the groups
using my book, A Spirituality of Service
have reported positive results. I have
been interested to hear feedback and am "promoting" the book for this
purpose - thanks to all who have sent in their comments.
The following is part of a message from Debora Baker from
Concord, New Hampshire, whom I didn't
know until I got her message. She
belongs to an Episcopal church where our friends Darrell and Bunny Huddleston
are members. Darrell is a retired
Episcopal priest and has been a mentor to me for many years. I thought it might be good to share these
comments with others and encourage you, if you have a group, to use the book as
a spiritual formation resource in a small group. Deb wrote:
"I am a part of Darrell Huddleston's Spirituality of
Service discussion group at St. Paul's Church in Concord, NH. We met for
several weeks before church to share our stories as we read the book, and it
was such a wonderful experience that we've decided to try to continue to meet
-- although the timing is challenging as Darrell does a lot of summer supply in
other churches.
For me personally the book was a catalyst to think more deeply about God's presence in my everyday life; I am trying to focus less on what I am doing to be more spiritually mature and more on noticing what God is doing. I was also part of another educational group at St. Paul's in the spring and our concluding activity there was to write a personal Rule of Life, so when I got to your "cornerstones" chapter it helped me to hone that.
I also really appreciated getting to know others at church more deeply and sharing our spiritual journeys. The group appreciated that your book offered encouragement grounded very strongly not only in faith, scripture, and teachings of great thinkers and writers, but also in practical day to day life, and we felt your generosity in sharing your own experiences -- including times when you felt frustrated or things didn't go perfectly -- made our spiritual work feel less daunting.
Thanks for your time and for sharing your journey of spiritual service.
All good things,
Deb Baker
For me personally the book was a catalyst to think more deeply about God's presence in my everyday life; I am trying to focus less on what I am doing to be more spiritually mature and more on noticing what God is doing. I was also part of another educational group at St. Paul's in the spring and our concluding activity there was to write a personal Rule of Life, so when I got to your "cornerstones" chapter it helped me to hone that.
I also really appreciated getting to know others at church more deeply and sharing our spiritual journeys. The group appreciated that your book offered encouragement grounded very strongly not only in faith, scripture, and teachings of great thinkers and writers, but also in practical day to day life, and we felt your generosity in sharing your own experiences -- including times when you felt frustrated or things didn't go perfectly -- made our spiritual work feel less daunting.
Thanks for your time and for sharing your journey of spiritual service.
All good things,
Deb Baker
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