Embrace the God Life

Review of The Sacred Journey by Charles Foster

Many moons ago, the good folks at Thomas Nelson sent me a copy of The Sacred Journey to review. This is the final installment in The Ancient Practices Series. I have read and reviewed most of the series already and was eager to receive this volume to engage the ancient practice of pilgrimage.

There are two kinds of books that are quite easy to review: books you love and books you hate. Both of these categories create an emotional response that leads to an easily written review. However, I find books that I neither love nor hate to be harder to review. The Sacred Journey falls into this category for me.

This text is Foster’s attempt to “articulate a theology of pilgrimage.” Christianity is about journeying with God, following Jesus on the way, and the practice of pilgrimage captures this essential component of the faith. For Foster, pilgrimage is not a metaphor, but setting out on an actual journey—packing the barest essentials, leaving behind normal commitments, heading out on an unplanned journey, wandering into the unknown, and discovering more of God in the process. The pilgrimage journeys recounted in this book remind me of a mix between an Australian Walkabout (recounted in the old Crocodile Dundee movies) and the journeys of Frodo and Sam in the Lord of the Rings Trilogy. “It’s a dangerous business,” says Bilbo,”going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.”

Of course there are lessons to be learned on pilgrimage. Foster writes that “Pilgrimage, done properly, is one of the best-known antidotes to gnosticism.” Gnosticism mistakenly separates the spiritual from the physical: spiritual good; physical bad. Christianity, the religion of the good creation, incarnation, and bodily resurrection calls for a spiritual-physical wholeness. The spiritual is embodied in the physical. The extreme physicality of the pilgrimage journey offers a constant reminder of the importance of the physical that strips away the lure of gnosticism. This is good stuff that Foster offers.

Yet two concerns lingered for me throughout this book. The first is the extreme nature of the pilgrimage journeys that Foster recounts. Must one leave behind commitments to jobs and relationships in order to practice pilgrimage? Is there a way to enter the lessons of pilgrimage while remaining at home? Can we approach our daily routine through the eyes of one on a life-long pilgrimage with Christ? Unfortunately Foster does not adequately address the pilgrimage life as lived among daily commitments.

A second concern: Foster frequently explains pilgrimage as understood among other religious traditions. This in itself is not a concern; Christian practice can be enriched through examining practices of other traditions. My concern is that, at times, I lost the connection between an Islamic or Buddhist understanding of pilgrimage and a thoroughly Christian understanding of pilgrimage.

The invitation to embark on a journey is an essential component of the story of Israel in the Old Testament and the life of Jesus in the Gospels. Followers of Christ would be wise to considered what it means to journey with God, even in the daily routines of life.

Missional Spirituality: Abstract

Posting here, for those who desire to peer farther into the abyss, the Abstract of my Professional Project Missional Spirituality: Practices for Developing Missional Disciples Among Emerging Adult University Students.

Abstract

The prayer of Jesus in John 17 invites all who follow Jesus into a way of life marked by radical intimacy with the triune God, authentic community with the members of the church, and mission in the world in the way of Jesus. These three elements of missional spirituality form disciples to partner with God in God’s mission. Indiana Wesleyan University seeks to enable students to become world changers who partner with God in God’s mission in the world. This Professional Project argues that developing world changing students necessitates that emerging adults develop the practices of a John 17 missional spirituality, forming them to become missional disciples, with missional imaginations, who follow the call of Christ to reveal the present reality of the Kingdom of God.

Chapter one proposes that the inherited cultural imagination of emerging adults impedes them in becoming world changers who join in the mission of God. Instead of understanding their lives as part of the unfolding narrative of biblical Christianity, many emerging adults are instead following a counterfeit religion masquerading as Christianity. Chapter two provides a review of missional literature, including the writings of Leslie Newbigin and the Gospel and Our Culture Network, highlighting the historical development of missional theology and practice. Chapter three develops a missional hermeneutic of the Bible leading to a framework for missional spirituality based on the prayer of Jesus in John 17.

The remaining chapters develop practices of missional spirituality. Chapters four and five provide an argument for the importance of spiritual practices, calling for a move from information based to formation based discipleship. Chapter six presents research results of site visits and interviews with pastors of four missional congregations. The missional practices of these congregations inform the development of a rule of life for emerging adult university students, found in chapter seven. This rule of life leads students in practicing the three components of a John 17 missional spirituality, forming them to develop missional imaginations and partner with God in God’s mission. Chapter eight presents ideas for expanded implementation and further research. 

Dissertation Acknowledgements

My Professional Project/Dissertation Missional Spirituality: Practices for Developing Missional Disciples Among Emerging Adult University Students is finally fully wrapped up. The defense has been passed, edits have been made, and the final copies are submitted to the library. It has been quite a journey—years of thinking and research followed by many months of intense writing. Though I’m the one who receives the title “Doctor,” I could not have completed this process on my own. I am so grateful to those who have supported me along the way. I thought it fitting to publicly share the acknowledgements section of this work.

Acknowledgements

The Christian life is not a solo endeavor. The triune God who is an eternal community calls His people to the shared life of community that reflects His nature. This Professional Project develops the missional importance of Christian community. But even more, this project was written as an expression of Christian community. As this project progressed, I became more and more aware that this project would never be completed without the support and encouragement of the Body of Christ. For that I am thankful.

To each of the pastors interviewed as part of this project—thank you for making time in the busyness of ministry to share your knowledge with me. Your missional hearts continue to inspire me. It is a privilege to count you as colleagues in ministry. May God continue to lead you and your congregations as you incarnate the Kingdom in your neighborhood.

To the members of my Professional Project Committee, Dr. Juanita Leonard, Dr. Guy Brewer, and Dr. Bruce Mac Murray—thank you for investing in me. Your partnership in this project will further its benefit for the Kingdom. Dr. Leonard, this project would not have been completed without your patience and support as Committee Chair. I am grateful for all of your well timed encouragement.

To the members of Faith Community Church, Grayson, GA—you will always have a special place in my heart. Thank you for granting a young pastor a place to grow in ministry. It was as your pastor that I first became aware of many of the ideas presented here. You were always a deeply supportive community through the learning process. “I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.”

To my current ministry community, Indiana Wesleyan University—I am so blessed to be part of this community. Dr. Jim Lo and the Dean of the Chapel staff, your support during the last months of writing is greatly appreciated. You regularly encouraged me to spend time writing despite all the other needs of ministry. It is a privilege to share ministry with you. Thanks also to each student who shared a book or resource you discovered that was relevant to my research. The sources you shared have greatly shaped this project. Those of you who expressed excitement to someday read this work often brought encouragement when it was most needed. Thank you. Students, it is a joy to see Christ being formed in you daily.

To my family, Alison, Eliana, Ashlyn, and Ian—sharing life with you is the best part of my life. This project could not have been completed without your support. Thank you for believing in me and the importance of Daddy’s “big paper.” This has truly been a family effort. May our lives together reflect the fullness of the triune God.

To the triune God, Father, Son, and Spirit—it is beyond comprehension that You choose to invite us into the divine life as partners in Your mission. May my life, and this project, bring glory to Your Kingdom.

Have you backed up your computer recently?

I know a student whose laptop was stolen recently.
The good news: the laptop was recovered the same day.
The bad news: the hard drive had already been erased.

So, let me ask: Have you backed up your computer recently?
Do you have a plan to deal with a data disaster?
What would you do if you lost all the work you have done this week?

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DMIN Project Preview

I’m focusing all my writing energies on completing the Professional Project for my Doctor of Ministry Degree (similar to a dissertation for a PhD). I hope to complete it in the next couple of weeks, then I’ve got all kinds of fun writing projects in mind for this blog.

In the meantime, here’s a preview paragraph from my DMIN Poroject.

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Scripture Readings for the 12 Days of Christmas

Looking for suggested Bible readings for the 12 Days of Christmas (Dec 25-Jan 5)?
Here you go!

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Family Prayer for the 12 Days of Christmas

Today (Christmas Eve) is the final day of Advent. Tomorrow (Christmas Day) begins the celebration of Christmas, which lasts for 12 days: Dec 25-Jan 5. Here is the prayer guide my family will be using for prayer before meals as we celebrate the birth of Christ for 12 days. We’d love it if you used the prayer guide to pray along with us!

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Christianity is not primarily a belief system whose individual adherents hold a certain set of beliefs, but is rather a way of life for a community of people who live a certain way, informed by the beliefs that they hold together.