Ep 152 A Legacy of Habits of Faith with Jen Pollock Michel

Jen Pollock Michele's legacy is about faith and the object of her faith; to stay close enough to Jesus— connected as a matter of habit—so that she knows His voice and obeys what she hears. Michele writes on faith in all her books and articles and the one we talk about today, A Habit of Faith--40 Days in the Bible to Find and Follow Jesus—is written for skeptics, seekers as well as old-timers like myself. She's offering a copy as a giveaway all week-long, so be sure to leave a comment to be entered by Sunday night. It's a Bible-reading experience for the convinced and the curious, in other words, everybody will benefit.

I LOVED THIS BOOK!

And, see where you can begin this habit journey on her website: A 5-Day Jumpstart to Your Habit Called Faith.

About Jen in her own words:

I’ve loved stories since childhood: the intrigue of my dad’s boyhood adventures with his dog, Chief; the friendship of books when I was—yet again—the new kid in town. I followed stories into university, then graduate school where I studied literature. After I became a mom, I passed years with my children, crowded around picture books and reading good stories.

As a Christian, it’s always been the stories of Scripture that have interested me most. In the Bible, we come to discover that the events of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection are the climax of God’s story. Though many turn to the Bible exclusively for instructions about what to believe and how to behave, I’ve come to think that it offers us something even more expansive and beautiful and imaginative.

Jen the author of four books: A Habit Called Faith, Surprised by Paradox (winner of Christianity Today’s 2020 Award of Merit for Beautiful Orthodoxy), Keeping Place, and Teach Us to Want (winner of Christianity Today’s 2015 Book of the Year). She's currently living in Ohio with her husband and their five children.

Some gems to contemplate while you figure out if today you'll begin your 40 days of reading, listening, talking to the God who is in pursuit of you:

• If sin has to do with habits of autonomy, faith has to do with habits of dependence.
• When meeting with God, have a plan so you don't need to "start again" each time you meet.
• At God's initiative, he has made his home in us, and invites us to make our home in and with him. 

Jen's new book releases Decemeber in time for Christmas! But you can pre-order now:

In Good Time: 8 Habits for Reimagining Productivity, Resisting Hurry, and Practicing Peace

Whether we're trying to find time, save it, manage it, or make the most of it, one word defines our relationship with the clock: anxiety. Yet is productivity really the only grid for the good life? Have you ever imagined a life without hurry, relentless work, multitasking, or scarcity? A life that is characterized instead by presence, attention, rest, rootedness, fruitfulness, and generosity?

This is the kind of life we are meant for, says Jen Pollock Michel. But if we want to experience freedom from time anxiety, we have to reimagine our relationship with time itself.

In the pages of In Good Time, she invites you to disentangle your priorities from our modern assumptions and instead ground them in God's time. Then she shows you how to establish 8 life-giving habits that will release you from the false religion of productivity so you can develop a grounded, healthy, life-giving relationship with the clock.

 

 

_____

 

When asked, "What's the greatest commandment?" Jesus replied simply: "Love God, love your neighbor." I imagine He was thinking,"It's not rocket science" or "What's not to like?" or  "It's not complicated."

He was right, it's not complicated.

I make it complicated. I need to pray daily to uncomplicate what He says is best for me and best for others. So I wrote 31 Days of Uncomplicated Prayers, and once I pray them through, I start over again. 

You can too.

Sign up HERE to receive 31 Days of Uncomplicated Prayers to take the "complicated" out of the simple commands of Jesus. Love God. Love your neighbor. It's not complicated.