Author and Spiritual Director Sharon Garlough Brown speaks about using the medium of fiction to connect readers to the God who grieves and suffers with us and enlarges our capacity to receive joy.
Show Notes
[2:23] Could you tell us just a little about your love of Van Gogh?
[5:12] Could you talk about how you work with fiction?
[7:13] You go into spiritual direction not really knowing where this time is going to go, but being open. Do you take some of that same posture into your writing?
[10:46] You’ve gone there in terms of writing about pain and suffering and some difficult topics. What has that been like for you?
[13:20] What do you hope for the reader?
[14:23] Do you see yourself as a fiction writer?
[15:48] How does your work as a pastor and spiritual director inform your stories?
[18:18] Could you talk a little about spiritual friendship?
[22:46] What will that look like for you in Scotland … with these losses?
[28:33] Could you tell us a little about Abiding Way?
Resources
Feathers of Hope, by Sharon Garlough Brown
Abiding Way Ministries
Sharon’s website
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Sharon Garlough Brown is a spiritual director, speaker, and cofounder of Abiding Way Ministries, providing spiritual formation retreats and resources. She is the author of Shades of Light, the Shades of Light Study Guide, Remember Me, and the bestselling Sensible Shoes Series, which includes the spiritual formation novels Sensible Shoes, Two Steps Forward, Barefoot, An Extra Mile, and Feathers of Hope. A graduate of Princeton Theological Seminary, Sharon has served on the pastoral staff of congregations in Scotland, Oklahoma, England, and most recently in West Michigan, where she co-pastored with her husband, Jack, for many years. In March 2013 her book Sensible Shoes was named one of television personality Kathie Lee Gifford's "favorite things," and in December 2018 An Extra Mile was awarded Christianity Today's "Fiction Book of the Year."
Nathan Foster is an author and host of Life With God, a Renovaré Podcast. Formerly, he was an Associate Professor of social work and served as the Andrews Chair in Spiritual Formation at Spring Arbor University. He was also a licensed clinical social worker and certified addictions counselor. Nathan has published two books, including The Making of an Ordinary Saint: My Journey from Frustration to Joy with the Spiritual Disciplines.
