“Mission without spiritual formation and virtue is impossible. But spiritual formation without mission is solipsistic.” – Greg Thompson, heard by author Reflection In my last post I suggested that vocation is God's invitation for us to join Him in His mission of restoring the world's ecology of shalom by using our gifts, talents, credentials, resources, and opportunities to make culture that is rightly ordered by love of God and love of neighbor. If this is the case, how then should we think of our distinct … [Read more...] about Vocatio Christi: The Contours of Our Callings (Scholar’s Compass)
spiritual formation
Missio Dei: The Context of Our Callings (Scholar’s Compass)
“Mission without spiritual formation and virtue is impossible. But spiritual formation without mission is solipsistic.” - Greg Thompson, heard by author Reflection What, if anything, does my spiritual life have to do with my work life? Better yet, what does my spiritual life have to do with my life's work? Is my specific vocation incidental or irrelevant to my spiritual formation? Or do these aspects of my life converge somehow? Similarly, are evangelical witness and the integration of faith and scholarship mutually … [Read more...] about Missio Dei: The Context of Our Callings (Scholar’s Compass)
A Spirituality of Graduate School: Mission and Formation (Scholar’s Compass)
Greg Thompson once said in my hearing, “Mission without spiritual formation and virtue is impossible. But spiritual formation without mission is solipsistic.” Head pastor of Trinity Presbyterian Church in Charlottesville, associate fellow at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture at the University of Virginia, and Executive Director of New City Commons (a think tank devoted to exploring the intersections of the Church's mission and contemporary culture), Greg is the consummate pastor-scholar and generally when he … [Read more...] about A Spirituality of Graduate School: Mission and Formation (Scholar’s Compass)
Book Review: Spiritual Direction
Spiritual Direction: A Guide to Giving & Receiving Direction By Gordon T. Smith My rating: 4 of 5 stars Many longing for a deeper awareness of the presence of God in their lives have rediscovered the special relationship known as spiritual direction. One of the needs that have existed is for a readable and concise treatment of the nature of this relationship. Gordon T. Smith has given us that account in this 96 page book packed with both a theological basis for and practical explanation of this form of … [Read more...] about Book Review: Spiritual Direction
Scholar’s Compass Navigating Beginnings: Relying on God’s Strength and Blessing Others
Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary. . . . He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might, he increases strength. – Isaiah 40:28-29 (ESV) Whoever brings blessing will be enriched, and one who waters will himself be watered. – Proverbs 11:25 (ESV) Reflection Earlier this week we looked at God's sustaining grace in the midst of new beginnings—times that can bring both excitement and … [Read more...] about Scholar’s Compass Navigating Beginnings: Relying on God’s Strength and Blessing Others