3 Bible Studies on Spiritual Formation

Our relationship with God has both a personal aspect and a corporate aspect. It has been said that you cannot grow spiritually without being connected relationally. In addition, we cannot only expect to hear teachers and pastors on Sunday mornings and grow spiritually – we need to be personally invested in our relationship with God. But where do you start? How do you foster personal spiritual growth? The short answer is get into the Bible. Here are three resources that help fuel your spiritual formation as you soak in the Scriptures.

Sacred Rhythms by Ruth Haley Barton

This study is designed to help you arrange your life around a regular pattern of spiritual practices that God can use to nourish your soul and transform your life.The disciplines you will experience in this study are ones that spiritual seekers down through the centuries have practiced as a way of opening to the transforming presence of God. Each session includes teaching and discussion about a particular spiritual discipline or practice and then a guided experience with that practice.

The Divine Conspiracy by Dallas Willard

The eternal life that begins with confidence in Jesus is a life in his present kingdom, now on earth, and available to all. So the message of and about him is specifically a gospel for our life now, not just for dying. It is about living now as his apprentice in kingdom living, not just as a consumer. This study masterfully captures the core of Jesus’ teachings in a fresh, relevant light, revealing a revolutionary way to experience God – by knowing him as an essential part of your here and now, rather than only as a part of the hereafter.

The Me I Want to Be by John Ortberg

Your flourishing is never just about you. It is a “so that” kind of condition. God designed you to flourish “so that” you could be part of his redemptive project in ways that you otherwise could not. He wants you to flourish “so that” people can be encouraged, gardens can be planted, music can be written, sick people can be helped, or companies can thrive in ways they otherwise could not. When you fail to become the person God designed, all the rest of us miss out on the gifts you were made to give.