During this past year, I read through Alan Jacobs' book Original Sin: A Cultural History. Jacobs was a professor of mine at Wheaton College and is an astute cultural commentator and author. In the midst of Jacobs' comparison of the original innocence of Adam and Eve with our own original sinfulness, he makes an interesting …
Study and Worship
This post continues my reflections on Dallas Willard's book, The Spirit of the Disciplines. As a follow-up to yesterday's post on disciplines of abstinence, here I look at two basic disciplines of engagement. These two spiritual practices, study and worship, are foundational to the active participation in the life with God. Study In study, we …
Solitude and Silence
This post continues my reflections on Dallas Willard's book, The Spirit of the Disciplines. Here, I look at two disciplines of abstinence that are critical to our entry into the deeper life with God are solitude and silence. Solitude Solitude is our intentional choice to step away from interaction with others, whether in person or …
The Spirit of the Disciplines
Recently, I re-read Dallas Willard's book The Spirit of the Disciplines. It's a great book on entering into the deep life with God. Willard is never an easy read, but this book is well worth sustained attention. Willard challenges the typical approach to the spiritual life for most evangelical Christians. Before I jump into some …
Busyness: A Love/Hate Relationship
I struggle with busyness. I hate it, yet I love it. Being busy refreshes me, but it can also suck the life out of my soul. In my recent reading of a biography of Henri Nouwen, an amazing writer on the spiritual life who was also a professor at Yale and Harvard, I came across …
Matthew Erickson 