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Making All Things New: An Invitation to the Spiritual Life

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Henri Nouwen (1932-1996) writes in a comforting style. When I read this book, I feel drawn to a peaceful, spiritual centre. I, too, had found it difficult to "find" GOD in my meditations. Henri Nouwen explains, "The beginning of the spiritual life is often difficult not only because the powers which cause us to worry are so strong but also because the presence of God's Spirit seems barely noticeable. If, however, we are willing to live a life of prayer and practice the disciplines of solitude and community, a new hunger will make itself known. This new hunger is the first sign of God's presence. When we remain attentive to this divine presence, we will be led always deeper into the kingdom. There, to our joyful surprise, we will discover that the power of our worries is waking and all things are being made new." Since reading this book, I have become away of being drawn to develop my own spiritual relationship. Without knowing exactly the source of this power, I nonetheless can feel my spiritual life growing. I feel I now understand a bit more clearly what a spiritual life is, and I certainly have found a desire to live it. If you are interested in developing a spiritual relationship, this book will be interesting to you.

This is one of Nouwen's shorter books and can be read in a couple of hours. It is written in three primary sections as many of his books are structured: "All These Other Things", "His Kingdom First", and "Set Your Hearts". I found the first section to be the best. He successfully illustrates numerous things in our lives that leave us "filled, yet unfulfilled". He touches on worry, depression and resentment. He gives wonderful guidance in centering our busy lives with a focus on the Kingdom. Nouwen successfully illustrates that even the busy and worry filled life can be the spiritual life if it is lived in the "active presence of God's Spirit".

Since we have the need and have to fight for time to spend with God on a hourly, daily, weekly basis. Nouwen points out our pressures in this culture and points us to solitude before God and a call to deeper community with those around us, so we can start or continue to live in obedience to God. A very profound yet simple approach that all of us can participate in.

Henri Nouwen is a spiritual father. His book, Making All Things New, is simply another reminder of his signifigant contribution to the Christian community and the larger community. This short book brings together Nouwen's keen insight into the human condition and the depth and maturity of his faith, resulting in a spiritual masterpiece. With clarity and understanding, he diagnoses the problem and offers the cure. The message is straightforward, but far from trite. He takes historic-actually, eternal-truths and presents them,like all gifted writers, in new and fresh ways. For me this book is actually a crystallization of the wisdom found in such books as Willard's The Divine Conspiracy and Foster's The Celebration of Discipline. It cuts to the core of a life with God and the path to get there.

In this book, Nouwen writes that the key to living a spiritual life is by understanding the difference between being busy and being fulfilled. In our modern life, he writes, "There is always something else we should have remembered, done or said...Thus, although we are very busy, we also have a lingering feeling of never really fulfilling our obligations."

The solution is not a change of place, or partner, or promise. The solution lies in a change of heart. Nouwen suggests making your priorities the engine of your actions, rather than your actions the engine of your priorities. Making your spiritual center your true center will go a long way toward making your life fulfilling, rather than just full.

Nouwen writes this book "first of all, for men and women who experience a persistent urge to enter more deeply into the spiritual life but are confused about the direction in which to go" (page 14). The book helps people sort out their spiritual confusion and gives them direction for life. I found it very helpful in my own search.

Nouwen has a lot to say about being unfulfilled in life. He claims to have "looked critically at his own life and the lives of those around him, [from which] two words emerge as descriptive of our situation: filled and unfulfilled" (page 23). When we focus on spiritual things, we are filled. When we get distracted from spiritual things, we are unfulfilled. He also says that he has a "gnawing sense of being unfulfilled underlies our filled lives" (page 29).

Finally, he says on page 69, "Without solitude it is virtually impossible to live a spiritual life. Solitude begins with a time and place for God, and him alone." Such a true statement.

His book is not an easy one to read, as it causes the reader to stop and think at many points. But it is a worthwhile investment of the reader's time.

This book by my favorite religious author is a must have for anyone interested in creating a life based upon solid Christian teachings. It's written in Nouwen's wonderfully readable, understandable style yet contains his usual keen spiritual insight.

Great find :) great price, and it got here really fast. It really saved me a lot on books for thia semester

I love all of the books that I have read by Henri Nouwen, this book is no exception; it's a beautiful, thought provoking piece of literature.

This little book gives Nouwen's philosophy for ending worry. The book itself is broken into three distinct elements. The first is a discussion on worry - why we worry, what worry looks like, and how it makes us feel. The second is a discussion of the spiritual life. Nouwen uses all New Testament quotes to give a flavor of divine centering. Essentially, Nouwen reminds the reader of the admonition of Jesus that the Father will take care of his people - like the birds of the air or the flowers of the field. The spiritual life is one that is free of worry and centered on this konwledge. The final section is the "how" to get there. Nouwen admits that it is not an easy journey, but that the actions itself are simple - they revolve around the apparent opposites of solitude and community. He discusses in detail what both truly mean and how to go about implementing the spiritual life around solitude and community.

The book is a quick and easy read, but is not that profound in its teachings, depth or approach. Well written and approachable by the Christian reader (though Nouwen hoped to write for universal application), the book is merely the invitation - nothing more - to exploring the spiritual life.