pages from strengthening spiritual relationships

8/2/2019 Pages From Strengthening Spiritual Relationships

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Aual pitsubsciptios o Centeredae $60 i Caadaad $80 o USA ad$60 (plus shippig) oIteatioal (outsideUSA ad Caada).

Aual electoicsubsciptios ae availableo $30 i a e-bookoat at

www.ubasactuay.ca.

Caada PostPublicatio

Ageeetb

OUr mISSIOn is toaticulate a biblicallysatuated, Chist-ceteed woldview that

will ecouage othesto gow ito the atuead ellowship o Chistad help the tellthei spiitual stoies.Ou dialogue will bedeived o Sciptuestudy, classical wisdoad pactice, at adothe expessios, adcovesatios aog a

couity o wites.

E-ail: [email protected]: www.ubasactuay.caFeedback: [email protected]

11525 23 AveueEdoto, AB 6J 43

el: 780-477-5731


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CenteredThoughts on evangel ica l sp ir i tua l format ion

SrEnGHEnInG SPIrIUALrELAIOnSHIPS:

SIX SESSIOnS FOr GrOUPS

Or InDIVIDUALS

Fo eveyoe who yeas to kow

the Fathe s deep del i ght

by Len hompson


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PUBLISHEr

Uba Cete oEvagel ica l Spi i tual Foatio

Printed in Canada by PageMaster Publication Services Inc.

EDIOrDaya mazzuca

LAYOU

Eic Topso

COVEr Ar

Julie DewJulie is a Edoto atist ad gaphic desige. You

ca view he wok at www.shedewit.co.

SrEnGHEnInG SPIrIUAL rELAIOnSHIPSCopyight 2009, by Uba Cete Publishes. Pited i Caada.

All rights reseved. no pat o this book ay be used o epoducedi ay ae whatsoeve without witte peissio except i thecase o bie quotatios ebodied i citical aticles ad eviews.Fo ioatio, addess Uba Cete, 11525 23 Ave, Edoto,

AB. 6J 43.


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CONTENTS

OrEwOrd ............................................................ 7

INTrOduCTION .................................................. 9

ChapTEr ONEMe o reltionsi .............................................. 15reection Qestions ................................................ 27

ChapTEr TwOSotie reltionsis .......................................... 33reection Qestions ................................................ 44

ChapTEr ThrEEdifclt reltionsis ............................................. 51

reection Qestions ................................................ 65

ChapTEr OurTelling te Tt ....................................................... 73reection Qestions ................................................ 85

ChapTEr IvEweing Stoies Togete ......................................... 91reection Qestions .............................................. 102

ChapTEr SIxGos Get design ................................................. 105reection Qestions ............................................. 117

Or urThEr rEadING

an annotte Book List ........................................ 125


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OrEwOrdFo Strengthening Spir i tua l

Friendships

I love huaity; its people I cat stad. Liusscoessio i the coic stip Peanuts, poits to oe othe geat challeges o cultivatig the spiitual lie: lovigelatioships. I oly we could ivest ou eots itolovig God without gettig sidetacked by havig to deal

with people! A distiguishig eatue o Chistia spiituality is

that uio with God occus oly as we seek uity withothes. While solitude is a ipotat disciplie i thespiitual lie, spiitual oatio is ot a solitay pusuit.Itiacy with the Fathe will eve ouish by cuttigoesel o o the est o the wold, o by seekig alteed

os o cosciousess though atas ad editatios.Its oly tue easue is ou gowth i love o oe aothe.Tis eality, at the heat o Jesus high piestly paye iJoh 17, is the ocus o the six sessios cotaied i thisissue oCentered.

odays techology akes it possible o goups opeople to shae the evets o thei lives istatly, ad igeat detail, without liitatios iposed by geogaphical

distace. Despite these advaces, geuie couityeais elusive ad ost o ou elatioships aesupecial.

Spiitual atuity coes by goig deepe with othes.By lookig at histoical exaples as well as eveyday casestudies, Le oe a pactical guidebook o StrengtheningSpiritual Friendships. As you ead though these pages,

evaluate the stegth o you spiitual iedships adcoside ways you ca gow i uity ad love.


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INTrOduCTION

whO IS ThIS BOOK Or?Tis is a book witte o Chistias who wode

i thee is aythig more to this lie o aith. It is opeople i the pew ad olks who have let the pew. Itis o the e ad woe who seve aithully i thechuch ad o those who have thow i the towel. It isa book o pastos, sall goups ad idividuals. It is abook that delves ito the why ad how o elatioshipsi spiitual gowth.

Tis book is o you i you would like toexpeiece beig oe with othe disciples as

Jesus eaestly payed. (Chaptes Oe adwo)

Tis book is o you i you wat to sot outdifcult elatioships ad lea to speak tuthi a lovig way. (Chaptes Tee ad Fou)

Tis book is o you wat to hea the iputo othes egadig you elatioal style ad

udestad how uch God has ivested ithe uity o the Body o Chist. (ChaptesFive ad Six)

I you get goose bups whe you ead Chistspaye i Joh 17 ad log o a expeieceo coplete oeess with othe disciples. I

you wat to ove past aith-aiteace adito Chist-like atuity, this book is o you.


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Strengthening Spiritual Relationships

hOw dOES ThIS BOOK wOrK?Tis book ca be ead i thee ways:

It ca be used as1. a study guide o

idividuals, sall goups o pastos watigto lead people though soe o the steps ospiitual oatio.It ca also be ead2. as a texto the atue ospiitual oatio.Fially, it ca be ead3. as a source of healingand hope. It speaks to how spiitual atuity

is closely liked to the quality o love we haveo each othe. It oes a pactical appoach tocoo pobles i elatioships. It speaksto the hope o heaig Jesus call us to ou tuehoe, ito the aily o God, ad it diectsus to copaios alog the way.

Each chapte begis with a look at oe aspect o Jesus paye o His disciples i Joh 17. Te payeis the basis o each the cocepts exploed i the book.Each chapte icludes a histoical illustatio o thecocept discussed. Te peise is that these ideas have

woked i dieet cultues ad tie peiods; they aeot coceived, utested, i soe ivoy towe. Te i

plai laguage - usig exaples o the wok o aspiitual diecto ad oe pasto ad cousello - theocus becoes oe o applicatio i a sectio called InMy Oce. You get to see how this woks i eal lie.

Fially, each chapte closes with eight reectioad Discussio Questios. Each questio coes o

specic quotes i the chapte ad ecouages you tothik o the ateial youve just ead. Dot eel tiedh i T b di i


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Introduction

Tis book epesets the visio ad adate o oea o the Cete o Evagelical Spiitual Foatio the Istitute o Evagelical Spiitual Foatio. Te

Istitute acts as a taiig cete o disciples o Chist,sevig ay deoiatios, chuches ad studets.Tus, this book is iteded ot oly o iteest-leveleadig, but as a istuctive text as well. FurtherReadingis ecouaged i aAnnotated Book Listat theback.

Tis book is the secod i a seies o books ospiitual oatio that will be available thoughthe Istitute o Evagelical Spiitual Foatio iEdoto ad olie.

whO wrOTE ThIS BOOK?Tis book is a collaboative eot. You, the eade,

ae ivited to paticipate alog the way, egage o apesoal level ad ake the ateial you ow.

WrIEr - Le Topso is a spiitual diectoad oude o Uba Sactuay ad the Cete oEvagelical Spiitual Foatio based i Edoto,

Albeta. Le is the aato ad supplies the cotet othe book. As a teache, oe cousello ad pasto, hespeaks o expeiece, his ow taiig ad study. Lebigs a pastoal appoach to the wok, ad has a heatto see Gods people walk i atuity ad eectiveess.I act, ate attedig Lay Cabbs School o SpiitualFoatio, Le has give his lie to the pusuit o thedisciplies o spiitual oatio. It bigs hi ad his

wie, Joa, lie. Let hi kow i this book spaks ayew questios i you ow lie


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ewspapes acoss Caada. She is a logtie devotee tothe Chistia classics (ad histoical ovels). Cuetly,she atteds a Aglica chuch i Edoto ad

seves o the boad o Albeta Po-Lie. She cosideshesel a othodox, evagelical, chaisatic, litugicalChistia ad says he hadest job i lie is aisig twosall childe without aisig he voice. By copaiso,editig Les ateial is a beeze.

GrOUP We woked though the ateial i

this book with ou dieet goups ove a peiod oyeas. Tei questios, eactios ad expeieces ityig to live out these cocepts has bought ueousevisios o this ateial util it is i the o that youhold i you had. Tese goups cosisted o peoplei Edoto, o ay dieet ages ad backgouds.Tey gave us seveal eveigs ad ivaluable eedback.

We have icopoated ay o thei coets itothis book, ad wat to ecogize thei cotibutio,sesitivity ad tie. Tak you.

Each stoy icluded i the sectio I my Ofcehas bee used with peissio. naes ad soe detailshave bee chaged o oitted to potect pivacy. Tak

you o weavig you stoy with each eade.

Te paye o those who have poued ito thecotet o this book is that it will be a blessig i youhads ad ot o you shel. Peace


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Introduction

JOhN 17

JESuS prayS Or hIMSEL1Ater Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and

prayed: Father, the time has come. Gloriy your Son, thatyour Son may gloriy you. 2For you granted him authorityover all people that he might give eternal lie to all thoseyou have given him. 3Now this is eternal lie: that they mayknow you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom youhave sent. 4I have brought you glory on earth by completing

the work you gave me to do. 5And now, Father, gloriy mein your presence with the glory I had with you beore theworld began.

JESuS prayS Or hIS dISCIpLES6I have revealed youto those whom you gave me out

o the world. Tey were yours; you gave them to me and they

have obeyed your word. 7Now they know that everythingyou have given me comes rom you. 8For I gave them thewords you gave me and they accepted them. Tey knew withcertainty that I came rom you, and they believed that yousent me. 9I pray or them. I am not praying or the world,but or those you have given me, or they are yours. 10All Ihave is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come

to me through them.11

I will remain in the world no longer,but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you.Holy Father, protect them by the power o your namethename you gave meso that they may be one as we are one.12While I was with them, I protected them and kept themsae by that name you gave me. None has been lost exceptthe one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be

ulflled.13

I am coming to you now, but I say these thingswhile I am still in the world, so that they may have the ull


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them rom the evil one. 16Tey are not o the world, evenas I am not o it. 17Sanctiythem by the truth; your wordis truth. 18As you sent me into the world, I have sent them

into the world. 19For them I sanctiy mysel, that they toomay be truly sanctifed.

JESuS prayS Or aLL BELIEvErS20My prayer is not or them alone. I pray also or

those who will believe in me through their message, 21thatall o them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and

I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world maybelieve that you have sent me. 22I have given them the glorythat you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: 23Iin them and you in me. May they be brought to completeunity to let the world know that you sent me and haveloved them even as you have loved me. 24Father, I wantthose you have given me to be with me where I am, and to

see my glory, the glory you have given me because you lovedme beore the creation o the world. 25Righteous Father,though the world does not know you, I know you, and theyknow that you have sent me. 26I have made you known tothem, and will continue to make you known in order thatthe love you have or me may be in them and that I myselmay be in them.


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