Living before God: Deepening Our Sense of the Divine Presence - Softcover

Johnson, Ben Campbell

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0802846521 ISBN 13: 9780802846525

Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2000

Synopsis

This book seeks to help individuals live constantly in God's presence. Writing in the tradition of Brother Lawrence and those authors concerned with the realization of God's presence amid the daily round, Ben Campbell Johnson offers a collection of traditional spiritual practices that Christians have found helpful in fostering a more consistent relationship with God. Following introductory discussion of the reality and nature of spiritual awareness, including a fascinating excursus on the "art of wondering," each chapter of this book describes a spiritual posture that can aid people in recognizing and nurturing God's presence in their lives. Johnson explores ways of being with God, listening to God, and attending the divine presence. Each chapter concludes with suggestions for journaling designed to let readers experience each specific posture in a concrete way.

About this title

About the Author

Ben Campbell Johnson is professor emeritus of Christian spirituality at Columbia Theological Seminary in Decatur, Georgia.

Reviews

Johnson (Professor of Christian Spirituality at Columbia Theological Seminary and author of Listening for God) explores the constant awareness of being in and enjoying God's presence. He begins by urging his readers to wake up to life and to God, instead of going through the motions of living in a state of "life-sleep," and encourages them to discover "wonder" as a noun and as a verb. In his chapter about meeting the Word (Jesus) through the words of Scripture, Johnson provides instructions for lectio divina, an ancient monastic practice gaining popularity among present-day Protestants. Then Johnson confronts the temptations and the fears facing anyone striving for spiritual development and distills such problems into the issue of trust--whether one truly trusts God to be God. From these developmental chapters, Johnson moves into various issues within Christian spirituality, including how to listen to God, how to find God in the here and now and Christian freedom. Each of the 10 chapters offers discussion and reflection questions at the end, as well as an exercise for keeping a journal, making this a suitable book for individual or group study. Johnson writes honestly about his own spiritual journey, candidly presenting his faults and shortcomings along with his sincere joy when he makes progress. (Feb.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.
• Publication date: 2000
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0802846521
• ISBN 13: 9780802846525
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 152