Book Review: Spiritual Disciplines Devotional: A Year of Readings

Spiritual Disciplines Devotional A Year of Readings

I just finished reviewing the first chapter in book from the IVPress Formatio series called Spiritual Disciplines Devotional: A Year of Readings By Valerie E. Hess. While I have not yet seen the whole of this work, what I saw I liked very much. Her writing style is clear and vivid, with an accessible feel. She is not overly verbose but succinct and filled with very practical examples both of concepts and practices.

I particularly appreciate the way in which she addresses issues in North American Christian Culture with out the need for defining the long baggage associated with an issue. She presents the tension within protestant Christians today about Spiritual Formation, and especially in some very specific areas like meditation. Hess succinctly differentiates between Christian Meditation and other forms of meditation. I felt that her work deserved a full quote.

“If the idea of Christian meditation seems like an oxymoron to you, then let me assure you that it is not at all the same thing as non-Christian forms of meditation. In those practices, many of which have become popular in the last twenty-five or thirty years, the focus is on emptying the mind. In Christian meditation we seek to clear our minds of the clutter that prevents us from focusing fully on God. We push aside that which keeps us from filling our minds with God’s Word and his work in creation, the world and other people.”

There is no question that Hess’s work is based in an orthodox expression of Evangelical Christianity. She repeatedly identifies important elements that are necessary for these disciplines to be fully and uniquely Christian practices and not trends that have drifted in from other spiritual traditions. One example is found in the follow, “We must be careful what we fill our minds with. It is very important that meditating on Scripture be our first priority.” Her concern to keep the discipline of mediation rooted in a the biblical tradition is apparent. And there is a practical reason for this it keeps us attuned to voice of the Lord, knowing his word allows us to hear the living Word. It is important to remember that this is the foundation and not the end, Hess builds on the discipline of meditation by asking us to meditate on what God is doing in our lives and in the lives of people we know, and even in considering God’s creation.

One of the elements that Hess builds upon is the need for the disciplines to be practiced in community, not in isolation. Hess indicates that what we find revealed to us in the time of meditation must be shared with the body of Christ lest we lose our way; the body of Christ provides an essential anchor and corrective for our selfish treks of will and sin.

Hess also provides useful suggestions for how a person may explore the discipline of meditation. They are insightful and practical in nature, and this is a boon to a reader who seriously whishes to deepen their life in faith. There is also a section of suggestions for each discipline geared for children, and this is indeed a delight. Consider how many of use actually received instruction as children in spiritual disciplines. Now imagine how life may have been different if we had received such training, such spiritual formation as children.

Remember this is a daily devotional, and it is a good devotional with readings, scriptures and thoughts for each day. The daily readings are not long, but they are rich. They are of sufficient length to allow a reading and time for meditation. It works well together. From what I have seen, I highly recommend this devotional.