Two things the previous version of this review left out, both of which change how you should read this book.
It has more than one author. The old post credited James Bryan Smith alone. Lynda Graybeal co-wrote it, and Richard J. Foster is credited on the book as well. Graybeal in particular was left out entirely.
It is a Renovaré resource, and it is deliberately ecumenical. The full subtitle says so: “An Ecumenical Guide to Six Traditions with Practical Study Plans.” That is not incidental. It is the entire design.
What the six traditions are
The workbook is built on six streams that Foster identifies in the life of Christ and in church history: the Contemplative, the Holiness, the Charismatic, the Social Justice, the Evangelical, and the Incarnational.
The argument is that every Christian tradition has majored on one or two of these and gone thin on the rest, and that a whole Christian life needs all six. So a group works through each in turn, including the ones that feel foreign.
Practically, it is a beginner’s workbook for starting a spiritual formation group: guidelines for getting a group going, study plans for the first nine sessions, and a questionnaire that helps a person see which streams he is already strong in and which he has neglected.
What Renovaré is, and the honest caveat
Renovaré, from the Latin for “to renew,” was founded by Richard Foster, best known for Celebration of Discipline. It exists to give churches a practical small-group strategy for spiritual growth.
Foster’s work has real critics among evangelicals, and you should know that before you order this. The concerns center on the contemplative tradition: on practices like silence and contemplative prayer, and on Foster drawing appreciatively from Catholic, Orthodox, and mystical writers. Critics argue this imports practices Scripture does not teach. Defenders argue those practices are ordinary Christian inheritance and that the criticism is largely unfamiliarity.
CalledToBetter is non-denominational evangelical. We are not going to settle that argument here. What we will do is tell you it exists, because the old review recommended the book without a word about it, and a man ordering this expecting a standard evangelical study will be surprised by chapter two.
Worth saying fairly: the ecumenical breadth is the point of the book, not a smuggled agenda. It says so on the cover. Whether that breadth is a strength or a problem is a judgment you get to make with the information in hand.
Honest notes
The previous review described real-life testimonies in the workbook and cited what “one reviewer mentioned” and what “reviewers have highlighted.” None of that was sourced and I could not verify it. Removed.
The exercises, the nine session plans, and the questionnaire are real and verified. Reflection questions are consistent with the format but I could not confirm their specific form. Check the preview.
It is also a beginner’s workbook and short by design. A group that wants depth will finish it and need something else.
Who should use it
A men’s group that keeps doing book studies and wants to actually practice something instead. Someone who suspects his Christian life has gotten narrow and wants a map of what he is missing. Groups comfortable with shared leadership, since any member can lead a session.
Skip it if you want a study that stays inside one tradition, or if contemplative practice is a line you have already decided not to cross.
A Spiritual Formation Workbook on Amazon