Holy Adventure: 41 Days of Audacious Living [Paperback]

Bruce G. Epperly (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2008

It's up to you. Whether or not you're aware of it, God calls you to an adventure in your time and place. You stand before the classic fork in the road. If you decide to take the path on the left ... go to page 4. Just like the childhood favorite series, Choose Your Own Adventure, your life is a story in the making with moment-to-moment decisions that can fulfill your purpose. Some people believe God has a single plan for an individual's life, and it's up to us to discover and follow it. That's an easy and absolute way of thinking. Bruce Epperly thinks there's more to it. He asserts that God invites us to join the divine in writing our future, our life's direction - after all: ""God does not want slaves and puppets but companions and cocreators."" He encourages us to move out of familiar patterns of living to respond to the divine interactive challenge. ""When you pause to listen and take the first steps on God's adventurous path,"" Epperly writes, ""everything changes! To see your life as a holy adventure that includes not only yourself but also your loved ones, the entire planet and God, broadens the horizons of your life and influence on the world."" Kick-start your holy adventure by using these fresh exercises in daily spiritual practice: * theological reflections that help you experience how your choices make a difference * spiritual affirmations to transform and awaken your mind to unimagined possibilities for yourself and the world * imaginative prayers that encourage your faith in God's presence in your life and vocation * adventurous actions that you can implement to transform everyday relationships and happenings Holy Adventure is a challenging and insightful guide for individuals and small groups. There's even a discussion guide included. Reading this book will change the way you look at life. Choose your own adventure and transform your world.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Bruce Epperly is the Director of Continuing Education and Associate Professor of Practical Theology at Lancaster Theological Seminary. He is also copastor of the Disciples United Community Church in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. He is an ordained pastor in the United Church of Christ and Disciples of Christ. He has written over 16 books for a variety of publishers including Chalice, Westminster/John Knox, Pilgrim, Alban Institute and Northstone.

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Upper Room (October 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0835899705
• ISBN-13: 978-0835899703
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #262,815 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A religious progressive responds to Rick Warren, October 24, 2008

By 

Maxwell Grant (Pelham, NY) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Holy Adventure: 41 Days of Audacious Living (Paperback)

This book is a great resource for people trying to take their faith deeper. It's like Rick Warren's "Purpose Driven Life," but different in important ways.

Over 41 days, the reader is engaged in a lot of prayer, reflection, bible study, values and talents clarification designed to help the reader discern the direction God may be calling.

Sound familiar? Yes, it is. Rick Warren's "Purpose Driven Life" is the granddaddy of this genre. Epperly's book is very open about being a "response" to Warren.

It's a good response. It comes out of a different theology. Epperly honors a vision of human beings as active partners with God in caring for the world, and says, for example, "God doesn't determine the details of our lives, but supports our creative responses to the challenges of personal and community life."

Warren is more of the "let go and let God" school. If you just get out of God's way, God will use you to do great things.

For a theologian like Epperly, there's a danger in that. It can be misunderstood as saying that regular people don't have to make the world a better place -- or take responsibility for their own lives -- because, hey, God will take care of it. God made things the way they are, so, gee, God must want things just the way they are.

That's not the God of the Bible. And Epperly wants to find a way to help people grow in relationship with God, but also grow in responsibility for themselves and the world because of that relationship.

It's not the right book for an evangelical. But it's a great book if you feel called to a relationship with God that emphasizes personal responsibility as a crucial expression of loyalty to God.

It will make you a better Christian. And if more Christians followed this model, more nonbelievers would respect what Christians are (supposed to be) all about.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Refreshingly Progressive!, March 26, 2009

By 

Patricia A. Farmer "Patricia Adams Farmer, au... (Bahia de Caraquez, Ecuador) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Holy Adventure: 41 Days of Audacious Living (Paperback)

"Adventurous spirituality overcomes the dualism of mind and body, heaven and earth, and life and death. Our bodies and spirits are holy and loved by God, now and forevermore." This thought, from the Week 6 of the "41 days" is a sample of the uplifting thoughts from Dr. Bruce Epperly's book, Holy Adventure. It also reveals one of the most striking qualities of the book: an absence of exclusive doctrinal certainties in favor of an expansive view of human spirituality. How refreshing in a world where the word "Christian" has been seemingly usurped by those with rigid and fearful world views. Holy Adventure is a progressive spiritual approach to the Christian life, with each page opening up a new adventure within the reader. But one doesn't have to be a Christian to gain spiritual beauty from these pages. Readers of all faiths--including those who are spiritual, but not religious--can enjoy the richness of these pages, an adventure that integrates the best spiritual practices from around the world.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Love this writer, June 13, 2010

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Heide Olseen (florida) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Holy Adventure: 41 Days of Audacious Living (Paperback)

Great book that has helped me realize just how much God really does love us and wants us to live The Abundant Life here on earth that Jesus speaks of in the Bible. The chapters have helped me to dig deeper into the Bible and understand a better love for God and others. This is worth getting and reading and answering the questions in the back, very thought provoking.