Several years ago, I participated in a class that led me through the life of Jesus using the Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius. At first, I was uncertain about committing to the structure and time commitment of this class. The journey would be equivalent to going on a nine-month pilgrimage. It felt demanding and inflexible. I was concerned that I would fail to keep up.
Did I really have the desire to get to know Jesus – really know him?
And was this desire strong enough for me to make the needed adjustments in my life to create the time needed for the journey?
Discerning the answers to these questions was my first consideration: like the man in the Bible counting the cost before he set out to accomplish the task.
In the end, I noticed a desire to walk with Jesus and felt the Lord nudging me to join that journey. So I said yes.
Oh, holy cow! (As my best friend says.) I was never the same again! I entered into Jesus’ life and walked with him. He came alive to me in ways I’d never experienced. I found freedom to be the unique person God made me to be. And because of this, the journey became the most transformational year in my spiritual life.
Now, once again, I notice a desire to go through the Spiritual Exercises with a few committed people. Living with the pandemic created isolation and dryness in my own spiritual relationship with Jesus. I would like to find community again with others who notice a deep desire to experience the abundant life Jesus offers.
In response to this desire, I will lead a small zoom group of 4 people through the book, Journey with Jesus by Larry Warner.
Dallas Willard wrote, “For most, trying to take the Exercises straight is like trying to board the airplane when it is already a hundred feet off the ground. Larry Warner’s Journey with Jesus effectively brings the Exercises within reach of any disciple of Jesus ready to work with grace to turn life in the kingdom of the heavens with Jesus into their actual experience.”
Larry Warner offers several statements in his book for you to consider before joining the group. I offer these as a starting place for your own discernment.
IS THIS BOOK FOR YOU? I invite you to prayerfully and honestly work through the statements below, asking God to reveal to you if this book is the right spiritual formation vehicle for you at this time.
1. You have a strong desire to know Jesus more intimately, love Jesus more fully, and follow Jesus more wholeheartedly.
2. You have a longing for a deeper, richer, and more expansive relationship with God.
3. You desire to live with an internalized awareness that in God you live, move, and have your being, and to find God in all things.
If you agree with these statements and would like more information, please email me at connect@jamieleat.com. You and I will talk about the journey's structure and commitment, and discern if this Lord is inviting you to join this group.
This group will meet on Zoom. Each person will need to purchase their own book, Journey with Jesus by Larry Warner.