Product Description

"God wants me to try harder." "God blesses me when I'm good and punishes me when I'm bad." "God is angry with me."

We all have ideas that we tell ourselves about God and how he works in our lives. Some are true--but many are false. James Bryan Smith believes those thoughts determine not only who we are, but how we live. In fact, Smith declares, the most important thing about a person is what they think about God. The path to spiritual transformation begins here.

Turning to the Gospels, Smith invites you to put your ideas to the test to see if they match up with what Jesus himself reveals about God. Once you've discovered the truth in Scripture, Smith leads you through a process of spiritual formation that includes specific activities aimed at making these new narratives real in your body and soul as well as your mind.

At the end of each chapter you'll find an opportunity for soul training, engaging in spiritual practices that reinforce the biblical messages on your mind and heart. Because the best way to make a complete and lasting change is to go through the material in community, small group discussion questions also accompany each chapter. Those who are leading apprentice groups will also find additional help and opportunities to interact with other leaders at the Apprentice website.

This deep, loving and transformative book will help you discover the narratives that Jesus lived by--to know the Lord he knew and the kingdom he proclaimed--and to practice spiritual exercises that will help you grow in the knowledge of our good and beautiful God.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #10392 in Books
• Published on: 2009-07-30
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 229 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780830835317
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Review
"I know from our long relationship that Jim Smith is a fine and trustworthy man, who authentically knows 'the good and beautiful God.' I can think of no higher compliment than this: I would happily trust the care of my soul to Jim and the good and beautiful God he commends to us." --Todd Hunter, author of Christianity Beyond Belief and pastor of Holy Trinity Anglican Church, Costa Mesa

"I know from our long relationship that Jim Smith is a fine and trustworthy man, who authentically knows 'the good and beautiful God.' I can think of no higher compliment than this: I would happily trust the care of my soul to Jim and the good and beautiful God he commends to us." --Todd Hunter, author of Christianity Beyond Belief and pastor of Holy Trinity Anglican Church, Costa Mesa

"The Apprentice Series is the best practice I have seen in Christian spiritual formation." -- --Dallas Willard, author of The Divine Conspiracy

"The Apprentice Series is the best practice I have seen in Christian spiritual formation." ----Dallas Willard, author of The Divine Conspiracy

"This first book in The Apprentice Series, The Good and Beautiful God, is a treasure. Dr. Smith has thought long and hard about the process of human transformation into the likeness of Jesus. I urge you to buy this book immediately! Read it and apply it. Then live it out in the context of a loving community. You will not regret doing so." --Richard J. Foster, author of Celebration of Discipline and coauthor of Longing for God

"The Apprentice Series is the best practice I have seen in Christian spiritual formation." ----Dallas Willard, author of The Divine Conspiracy

"This first book in The Apprentice Series, The Good and Beautiful God, is a treasure. Dr. Smith has thought long and hard about the process of human transformation into the likeness of Jesus. I urge you to buy this book immediately! Read it and apply it. Then live it out in the context of a loving community. You will not regret doing so." --Richard J. Foster, author of Celebration of Discipline and coauthor of Longing for God

Review
"I know from our long relationship that Jim Smith is a fine and trustworthy man, who authentically knows 'the good and beautiful God.' I can think of no higher compliment than this: I would happily trust the care of my soul to Jim and the good and beautiful God he commends to us."

Review
"This first book in The Apprentice Series, The Good and Beautiful God, is a treasure. Dr. Smith has thought long and hard about the process of human transformation into the likeness of Jesus. I urge you to buy this book immediately! Read it and apply it. Then live it out in the context of a loving community. You will not regret doing so."

Customer Reviews

Not Your Average Devotional
This book is outstanding. Impeccable. Magnificent. All those things.
And yet what I love about the book is that it points me beyond the pages to an encounter with the Good and Beautiful God James Bryan Smith writes so delicately about.
For that, I am eternally grateful.

The content here works tirelessly at re-wiring my narratives about God, albeit the false narratives about God we've picked up from sloppy sermons and hap-hazard well-meaning but incredibly absurd comments from others.
Clearly many of us grow up with false narratives, God is an Angry Judge...God gave me zits for talking back to my mom...God cursed a beautiful young girl because of the sin of a parent. Sadly, these narratives permeate. Luckily for us, the author takes issue with that.
And here is where James Smith gets some incredible work done.
This books helps me to get my understanding of God's character in line with what Jesus would say about God. To be honest, this is incredibly freeing. But, it's also difficult. Even though that narrative about God may need to go, sometimes its easier to just live with mediocrity.
Most Christian books tell me how I'm not living up to some standard, how my views about God are wrong, the church is terribly wrong, the world is wrong. And at the end of the book, there is always the one chapter that poses the answer.
There is destruction of ideas without construction.
The Good and Beautiful God absolves me of those false narratives and destructive ideas while replacing those with Jesus/Kingdom Narratives. All in the same chapter. I don't have to read an author's rant for 200 pages before I get something positive that I can really take and chew with.

The Soul-Training exercises within each chapter are conveniently explained. And they are not these monstrous, "Sell the Camaro, go to India," "Write 40 pages in a journal," "Get up at 4:00 AM to pray." They are tangible expressions of discipline that helps growth as a disciple of Jesus. Count my blessings, sleep in, pray the 23rd Psalm. All incredible exercises that someone without a PhD in Christianese can practice!

The group guides in the back encourage spiritual formation within a small group setting.
I am currently doing this book on my own. But I look forward to a time when I can do this within a group...I believe that is when the real transformation will occur!

Of course, many of us are waiting for the following two books that are to come in this Apprentice Series.
The second one comes out in January, I believe. The Third is toward the end of 2010.
As I wait for those, I know that I'll continue spending time with the Good and Beautiful God, as in the book, and the Good and Beautiful God as in the one from whom all blessings flow.

A Refreshing and Life Changing Read!
I was very interested in reading this book after hearing James Bryan Smith speak at the Divine Conspiracy Conference. Upon reading the first few pages, I learned that his mentors were none other than Richard Foster and Dallas Willard! I was even more interested and fortunately I was not disappointed.

If you are familiar with Dallas Willard and Richard Foster, this book has similar imprints of these writing, but Smith has his own distinct style.

His style of writing draws you in, entices you to let down defenses, and shares his life experiences with you.

The book is laden with stories about his life and others. How real people are being conformed to the image of God. He talks about trust, by comparing the trust his son has in him. He affirms the Goodness of God even while talking about how he suffered through the loss of his daughter. The book is good, not only because it content, but because it is utterly realistic.

The book has 229 pgs, which consists of 9 Chapters. Each chapter has an addition with a spiritual discipline that should be practiced that week. Furthermore the book has questions associated with each chapter at the back.Which is very useful seeing that one of the purposes of the book is to be used in a group!

How is the content of the book? Here is an excerpt below:

"God loves us so much that he longs for us to be pure and works tirelessly to make us pure. MacDonald points out how God is against sin and thus for humans: 'He is always against sin; in so far as, and while, they and sin are one, he is against them-- against their desires, their aims, their fears, and their hopes; and thus he is altogether for them.'

God is against my sin because he is for me. And if I am for sin, God stands against those desires, MacDonald is saying, because they cause my destruction. I would not have it any other way. To be sure, I am prone to excusing my sin or rationalizing my weaknesses, but God is not in that business. Though we are now reconciled through Christ, God is not indifferent to my sin. It hurts me, and therefore it hurts God--because God loves me."

There are many other ah ha moments, which gives you a new perspective on certain things such as the will, or your identity in Christ, or even the nature of God. To Smith's credit, the book was never dull or boring. At the end the book just left me longing for the next book in the series: The Good and Beautiful Life.

I recommend this book and I think it would work well with other excellent books on spiritual formation such as renovation of the heart, longing for God, the spirit of the disciplines or even celebration of discipline. Buy the book and like me, you will be awaiting the next book of the series!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Table of Contents
Introduction
How to Get the Most Out of This Book
1. What Are You Seeking?
Soul Training: Sleep
2. God is Good
Soul Training:Silence and Awareness of Creation
3. God is Trustworthy
Soul Training: Counting Your Blessings
4. God is Generous
Soul Training: Praying Psalm 23
5. God is Love
Soul Training: Lectio Divina
6. God is Holy
Soul Training: Margin
7. God is Self-Sacrificing
Soul Training; Reading the Gospel of John
8. God Transforms
Soul Training: Solitude
9. How to Make a Pickle
Soul Training: Slowing Down
Appendix: Small Group Discussion Guide
Notes
Acknowledgments

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reviews & Endorsements

"The Apprentice Series is the best practice I have seen in Christian spiritual formation."
--Dallas Willard, author of The Divine Conspiracy

"I know from our long relationship that Jim Smith is a fine and trustworthy man, who authentically knows 'the good and beautiful God.' I can think of no higher compliment than this: I would happily trust the care of my soul to Jim and the good and beautiful God he commends to us."
--Todd Hunter, author of Christianity Beyond Belief and pastor of Holy Trinity Anglican Church, Costa Mesa

"This first book in The Apprentice Series, The Good and Beautiful God, is a treasure. Dr. Smith has thought long and hard about the process of human transformation into the likeness of Jesus. I urge you to buy this book immediately! Read it and apply it. Then live it out in the context of a loving community. You will not regret doing so."
--Richard J. Foster, author of Celebration of Discipline and coauthor of Longing for God
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

A Good & Beautiful Book
This is a good & beautiful book about our good and beautiful God. It is wise, easy to read, filled with depth, "thick" and so very enriching. It is one of the best books I've ever read that combines good theology and spiritual formation. This should come as no surprise since the author has had mentors like Richard Foster, Dallas Willard, and Henri Nouwen. Highly recommended.