Missional Spirituality: Embodying God's Love from the Inside Out [Paperback]

Roger Helland and Len Hjalmarson convincingly argue that authentic Christian spirituality is necessarily missional. In the process, they firmly bridge any gap between spiritual formation and missional identity that had thus far been evident in the rapidly growing body of missional church literature. The authors root their work in a rich soil of theological reflection which blends the careful study of scripture with a variety of relevant examples from Christian tradition, all the while remaining highly conversant with today's cultural trends and dynamics. To top it off, the authors relay many of their personal life experiences and offer a tremendous array of helpful practices, suggestions, and resources to help the reader, through the Spirit's forming grace, to "embody God's love from the inside out."

Roger and Len have provided us with a rich resource that is rooted in Scripture, informed by church history and born from the school of hard knocks - no ivory tower academics here! They have done a great service to the church by beautifully weaving together spirituality and missionality. Through the matrix of the Jesus Creed/Shema, they provide a clear pathway forward for Christ-followers to take - a pathway that will continually fuel and form the church to be a people on the move.

MISSIONAL SPIRITUALITY
By Roger Helland and Leonard Hjalmarson

'Missional Spirituality' places the onus directly on every Christian individual and gives a step by step process toward achieving the goal of having a heart filled with God's love. This love will then overflow to those around us around us mushrooming out to neighbors, community, church and ultimately the whole world.

Because the world is constantly changing, we need God and His Word to give us stability and enable us to move forward. We are challenged by the world's effect of the spiritual tension between good and evil as well as the separation of the sacred realm from society as a whole.

Life itself is a gift from God; a gift to be celebrated. Institutional religion can be that of living more in the head and brain than in the body. It can be used to control others producing a missional church but not a missional people.

Modern technology has taken away the knowledge of The Word, which was face to face then in print. Technology has now created individuals who have distanced themselves from the original and left the door open for perversion to creep in. While we need to learn, reflect and obey, we need to engage the culture. All believers are called to be priests empowered by the Spirit to flood the whole world with God's glory, presence and love.

'Missional Spirituality' calls us to action bringing Christ into community and communities to Christ, consistent with many of the early church that practiced religion based on baptism, communion, Scripture, prayer, Spirit and relationships, hospitality and service, community and worship. True discipleship is learning to bear fruit by learning to live in Christ, not just learning about Christ and by obeying His commandments.

Obedience to Jesus' commandments is fundamental allowing us to live with humility and prepares the soul for living in trust. Jesus calls us not to lord it over one another, but, as His followers, to lead from among and from below not from above. We are to love God and others from the inside out, practicing an interface among Scripture, prayer and Spirit relationships with an outward dimension.

'Missional Spirituality' is a book that should be read not just by church leaders but by all Christians. It teaches the use of heart, mind, body and soul to embrace God's love with well-being, joy and purpose and then sharing this with those around and beyond us.