GOING DEEPER

Prayer is at the heart of what we do, so this quarter we are offering two audio recordings of talks about prayer in addition to the new edition of A Spiritual Formation Workbook. As a special bonus the first one hundred orders we get will receive a free copy of the March/April 1993 Discipleship Journal, a publication of the Navigators. With a retail value of $3.50, this issue features several articles about the Spiritual Disciplines.

Two Tapes on Prayer. Delivered at the Shame & Grace Conference at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California, February 6, 1993, "Prayer As an Act of Grace" by Richard Foster focuses on the liberating graces of a prayer-filled life. Prayer is not a matter of gritting our teeth but of falling in love. In this audio tape, Richard explores God's great acceptance, God's great accessibility, and God's great intimacy.

Dallas Willard gave this talk, "The Role of Faith in Prayer," at Azusa Pacific University on October 26, 1992 as part of a series, "Living Prayer." It explores how faith forms the foundation and energizes our prayers, turning "dead" prayer into "living" prayer—prayer that is "communicating with God about what we're doing together." Dallas was in rare form the night he gave this address and it is reflected on the tape.

A Spiritual Formation Workbook. The workbooks are here! First released eighteen months ago, this new edition is published by HarperSanFrancisco. In the popular icon size (smaller than an 8 1/2 x 11 inch sheet of paper but bigger than a regular book), the Workbook has been redesigned and refined.

Printed in paperback, the cost should now make it possible for every member of a new spiritual formation group to purchase a copy of this valuable resource. Jim Smith and the good people at Harpers worked very hard to make the Workbook as user friendly as possible. We hope it helps many people in their spiritual pilgrimage.

GROWING PAINS

We had a great response from our request for names of persons attending Spiritual Formation Groups. However, since it is the nature of SFGs to multiply, there may be more who would like to respond. We would love to hear from all the groups, so please send Jim Smith a post card listing names, longevity, and contact person with address to P. O. Box 879, Wichita, KS 67201-0879.

The Devotional Readings, now retitled the Devotional Classics, were originally scheduled for release by HarperSanFranciso on April 15. That date has now been readjusted to approximately May 15. We have enough of the original workbook edition to fill orders, so please do not hesitate to place one. Who knows? The first edition could become a collector's item!

Two Local Conferences were held during March and were well received and attended. The first in Ventura, California, sponsored by the Presbytery of Santa Barbara counted over two hundred fifty people. LaGrave Avenue Christian Reformed Church, Calvin College, and Paraklesis Ministries sponsored the Conference held in Grand Rapids, Michigan, at which over six hundred people registered.