Elaine A. Heath – författare

John Wesley gave the Methodist movement (and all Christians in general) a discipleship pathway to follow. Wesley began with Three Simple Rules (or “General Rules”), and followed this instruction a year later with the Five Marks of a Methodist (or “Character of a Methodist”). Wesley observed the need for continuous renewal of relationships with God and others, so he established a recurring annual process for God’s people to make One Faithful Promise: The Wesleyan Covenant for Renewal. The study by Heath turns to the practices at the center of Wesley’s understanding of spiritual growth: the means of grace.This book/study guides readers through the five means of grace that John Wesley called “instituted,” meaning these are spiritual practices in which Jesus himself participated and which he encouraged his followers to do. One of the beautiful aspects of Wesley’s theology is that spiritual practices are seamlessly integrated with practices of loving our neighbors well. This is why Wesley said there is no holiness but social holiness. A life of genuine prayer inevitably leads to a life of hospitality, mercy, and justice. Through this book/study participants will consider how each of the five means of grace help us as communities of faith to pray more deeply and live more missionally as followers of Jesus Christ. These means are the ordinary channels that God uses to draw us into a fruitful relationship. These five means or channels are:1. Prayer2. Searching Scripture3. Receiving the Lord’s Supper4. Fasting5. Conferencing (communion, fellowship)"Surely John Wesley wanted his teachings to be presented in clear and understandable ways. Elaine Heath’s teaching on the Five Means of Graceare simple and engaging with deep truths. Your group will love it!" -Jennifer Cowart (Executive pastor at Harvest Church, a United Methodistcongregation in Warner Robins, GA, near Macon. She co-preaches anddirects Discipleship and Emerging Ministries at Harvest UMC.)"ElaineHeath is one of the church’s great teachers and prophets. With engagingstories and clear understanding of Scripture she invites us toexperience God’s love through ancient practices that we desperatelyneed. I will be using Five Means of Grace with my congregationas an invitation for those seeking a deeper pathway into discipleship."- Rev. Jacob Armstrong, Providence United Methodist Church, MountJuliet TN. "Methodists are followers of Jesus who are guided by a “rule oflife”, a set of common spiritual practices that put us in a place wherewe are more likely to experience God’s transforming grace. This briefvolume is deceptively filled with guidance for those who would allow theHoly Spirit to guide them. I am grateful to Elaine Heath, whocontinues to lead us again to the ordinary channels where the streams ofmercy, justice and righteousness flow.” - Ken Carter, Resident Bishop,Florida Area, The United Methodist Church and co-author, Fresh Expressions: A New Kind of Methodist Church for People Not in Church

"While physical training has some value, training in holy living is useful for everything. It has promise for this life now and the life to come." (1 Timothy 4:8 CEB) Christians crave a deeper, more intimate relationship with God. The spiritual disciplines are historical practices that can guide us in our daily walk, bringing us closer to Christ. The Holy Living series brings a fresh perspective on the spiritual disciplines, enabling us to apply their practices to our current lives. Practicing these spiritual disciplines opens us to God''s transforming love.Prayer has always been a central component in the life of a Christian. For many people, prayer is as natural as breathing; for others, it''s a challenging task. No matter your comfort level or experience with prayer, this book will help you explore the purpose of prayer, the nature of prayer, and the results of a life of prayer. It leads you to be open to the transformation prayer can bring to your life and helps you better engage in prayer both individually and with others.This is one of series of eight books. Each book in this series introduces a spiritual practice, suggests way of living the practice daily, and provides opportunities to grow personally and in a faith community with others who engage with the practice. Each book consists of an introduction and four chapters and includes questions for personal reflection and group discussion.Other disciplines studied: Celebration, Confession, Discernment, Neighboring, Prayer, Simplicity, Study, and Worship.

"While physical training has some value, training in holy living is useful for everything. It has promise for this life now and the life to come." (1 Timothy 4:8 CEB) Christians crave a deeper, more intimate relationship with God. The spiritual disciplines are historical practices that can guide us in our daily walk, bringing us closer to Christ. The Holy Living series brings a fresh perspective on the spiritual disciplines, enabling us to apply their practices to our current lives. Practicing these spiritual disciplines opens us to God''s transforming love.So often we equate the spiritual practice of worship with the hour-long worship service we attend each week (or each month). But what happens when we no longer consider worship something we do, but a way we live? When we break the concept of worship outside the walls of a sanctuary, we find new energy for living a "Godward" life, a life of turning toward God for guidance moment by moment, day by day. Such a life is fuel for genuine worship. Living a Godward life opens us up to God''s transforming love and enables us to engage in practices of worship in locations and situations we never dreamed of before.This is one of series of eight books. Each book in this series introduces a spiritual practice, suggests way of living the practice daily, and provides opportunities to grow personally and in a faith community with others who engage with the practice. Each book consists of an introduction and four chapters and includes questions for personal reflection and group discussion.Other disciplines studied: Celebration, Confession, Discernment, Neighboring, Prayer, Simplicity, and Study.

"While physical training has some value, training in holy living is useful for everything. It has promise for this life now and the life to come." (1 Timothy 4:8 CEB) Christians crave a deeper, more intimate relationship with God. The spiritual disciplines are historical practices that can guide us in our daily walk, bringing us closer to Christ. The Holy Living series brings a fresh perspective on the spiritual disciplines, enabling us to apply their practices to our current lives. Practicing these spiritual disciplines opens us to God''s transforming love.Both the Old and New Testaments call the people of God to love God completely as well as to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. Jesus told his followers these were the greatest commandments. What if by "neighbor," Jesus literally meant the precious people who live in your neighborhoods? What if by "neighbor," Jesus meant all of your neighbors, regardless of age, socioeconomic status, or any other potentially divisive designation? This book first defines what is meant by the spiritual practice of "neighboring" and then looks at ways we can live into neighboring as a spiritual practice in our own lives and in the lives of our churches and communities.This is one of series of eight books. Each book in this series introduces a spiritual practice, suggests way of living the practice daily, and provides opportunities to grow personally and in a faith community with others who engage with the practice. Each book consists of an introduction and four chapters and includes questions for personal reflection and group discussion.Other disciplines studied: Celebration, Confession, Discernment, Prayer, Simplicity, Study, and Worship.

"While physical training has some value, training in holy living is useful for everything. It has promise for this life now and the life to come." (1 Timothy 4:8 CEB) Christians crave a deeper, more intimate relationship with God. The spiritual disciplines are historical practices that can guide us in our daily walk, bringing us closer to Christ. The Holy Living series brings a fresh perspective on the spiritual disciplines, enabling us to apply their practices to our current lives. Practicing these spiritual disciplines opens us to God''s transforming love.Many believers are familiar with the fruits of the Spirit Paul wrote about in his letter to the Galatians: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Discernment is a contemplative practice that opens us to these gifts. It offers us the capacity to see more clearly and touch the depth of our holy existence here on earth. This book introduces us to this ancient practice and helps us discover how practicing it can lead us to moments in which we sense meaning and purpose in our lives by desiring what God desires and embodying the love that is God.This is one of series of eight books. Each book in this series introduces a spiritual practice, suggests way of living the practice daily, and provides opportunities to grow personally and in a faith community with others who engage with the practice. Each book consists of an introduction and four chapters and includes questions for personal reflection and group discussion.Other disciplines studied: Celebration, Confession, Neighboring, Prayer, Simplicity, Study, and Worship.

"While physical training has some value, training in holy living is useful for everything. It has promise for this life now and the life to come." (1 Timothy 4:8 CEB) Christians crave a deeper, more intimate relationship with God. The spiritual disciplines are historical practices that can guide us in our daily walk, bringing us closer to Christ. The Holy Living series brings a fresh perspective on the spiritual disciplines, enabling us to apply their practices to our current lives. Practicing these spiritual disciplines opens us to God''s transforming love.In order to fully embrace study as a spiritual practice, we must first rid ourselves of the idea that study is a boring, dull, and unimaginative exercise. Study as a spiritual practice is, in fact, just the opposite: exciting, stimulating, and imaginative. It is a way to encounter and experience the living God; examine and discover more of ourselves in relation to God; and deepen our faith in God. It helps ground us in what God thinks and helps us reorder our priorities. It enlivens and energizes our faith. Study fills us with God’s words, and the more we study, the more of God’s words fill our hearts and minds and inform our thoughts, words, and actions. This book challenges our preconceptions of study and offers practical steps on how to develop the habit of study. This is one of series of eight books. Each book in this series introduces a spiritual practice, suggests way of living the practice daily, and provides opportunities to grow personally and in a faith community with others who engage with the practice. Each book consists of an introduction and four chapters and includes questions for personal reflection and group discussion.Other disciplines studied: Celebration, Confession, Discernment, Neighboring, Prayer, Simplicity, and Worship.

"While physical training has some value, training in holy living is useful for everything. It has promise for this life now and the life to come." ~ 1 Timothy 4:8Christians crave a deeper, more intimate relationship with God. Spiritual disciplines are activities and practices that guide you in your daily walk through life bringing you closer to Christ. They also help you to make a difference in our world. Practicing these spiritual disciplines opens you to God''s transforming love and help you experience Holy Living.At its core, the spiritual practice of simplicity enables us to eliminate from our lives all the things—both material possessions and thoughts, habits, and attitudes—that distract us from God so that God has complete freedom to work in and through us. Simplicity brings freedom, balance, and perspective to our lives and enables us to align our priorities with the priorities of God. It reorients us and allows us to be open to the present moment. Developing the spiritual practice of simplicity is key to a healthy, vibrant relationship with God and others. This book helps us know how to begin and implement this practice.This is one of series of eight books. Each book in this series introduces a spiritual practice, suggests way of living the practice daily, and provides opportunities to grow personally and in a faith community with others who engage with the practice. Each book consists of an introduction and four chapters and includes questions for personal reflection and group discussion.Other disciplines studied: Celebration, Confession, Discernment, Neighboring, Study, and Worship.

"While physical training has some value, training in holy living is useful for everything. It has promise for this life now and the life to come." ~ 1 Timothy 4:8Christians crave a deeper, more intimate relationship with God. Spiritual disciplines are activities and practices that guide you in your daily walk through life bringing you closer to Christ. They also help you to make a difference in our world. Practicing these spiritual disciplines opens you to God''s transforming love and help you experience Holy Living.Confession may be good for the soul, as the saying goes, but most people give little thought to its practice, at least on a daily basis. Like prayer, a person’s needs tend to trigger a confessional response. As a result, we often have a limited understanding of the true nature of the practice. Confession is so much more than a call to apologize, though that is an integral part. Confession is fundamentally relational, providing the opportunity to experience a much fuller relationship with God. This book provides opportunities both to examine and to practice the many forms that confession takes. It begins by looking at our confession of faith (not sins) and what we affirm about the nature and purposes of God. From there it moves to exploration and practices of individual confession, mutual confession, and worship, which provides one of the most significant contexts for the people of God to confess their sin before God and one another. This is one of series of eight books. Each book in this series introduces a spiritual practice, suggests way of living the practice daily, and provides opportunities to grow personally and in a faith community with others who engage with the practice. Each book consists of an introduction and four chapters and includes questions for personal reflection and group discussion.Other disciplines studied: Celebration, Discernment, Neighboring, Simplicity, Study, and Worship.

Elaine Heath writes in an accessible voice, calling attention to both the "good news" of Twilight''s theology and the "bad news" of its gender stereotypes and depictions of violence against women.

The book includes questions for youth and adult groups or for classroom discussions.