This year, RBC is running a series of articles in the Beacon examining books that might be especially helpful to the life of the Church. We hope you will benefit from these book descriptions and suggestions.
A Long Obedience in the Same Direction: Discipleship in an Instant Society
by Eugene Peterson
“I want to be baptized…” This past Sunday, a young man arrived at church with this request.
He knew enough to recognize it was a marker he needed, so he showed up on a Sunday morning seeking the most tender, genuine experience of the Christian walk, as if it were something that could be done in a moment.
What I saw was a young man creating his own invitation to discipleship—an invite to a discussion, that leads to a lifestyle, and ultimately, to a heavenly dwelling after this life.
A Long Obedience in the Same Direction is a reminder, genuine and lovely, that belief in Jesus and following Him as His disciple is a lifelong journey and not a momentary decision. Instant gratification is not a part of the journey, but gratitude and growth certainly are.
…this book reminds us that to be formulaic without the presence of the Holy Spirit is to be running a fruitless race.
In this book, Eugene uses the Psalms of Ascents (120-134) as a way to remember “who we are, and where we’re going”—a roadmap for discipleship if you will. It reminds us that discipleship is a process and not a simple formula. As Rosedale Network looks at ways to help churches mature and multiply, this book reminds us that to be formulaic without the presence of the Holy Spirit is to be running a fruitless race. I humbly ask you to read that last sentence one more time.
The primary message we need to hear from this book is that while this journey of pilgrim-disciple is not easy or fast, it is a motivated and joy-filled journey. Many of the chapters cover different markers/experiences on the journey, and how one ought to face them.
As with many things that Peterson writes, to say I have absorbed it completely is to sound arrogant, but to say I was blessed by it is an understatement. Few can articulate the journey of pastoral life as well as Peterson does. Pick up the book as you pray about and envision what it means to mature and multiply at your place of worship and leadership.
Peterson is a poet and storyteller. I haven’t always gone for stories in books, but Peterson has been an exception to that rule for me. Sitting with his book is watching a craftsman work with well-worn tools—storytelling at its finest. And for holy reasons.
Admittedly, if you’re looking for a step-by-step guide to help disciple someone, he isn’t giving you that. But he is painting the broad strokes of what you’ll face on your journey of discipling someone else. And he’s interacting with the Psalms of Ascents with the regularity of those who may have made their own version or paraphrase of the biblical text. He isn’t afraid to let the scriptures be the roadmap and the gold mine.
Our network and local congregations are working to achieve the goals God has set before us. This book should be on your shortlist, especially if you’re the sort of person who needs art to dream. It won’t give you step-by-step instructions, but it will get your creative juices flowing.
This book can help you learn how to start a conversation with someone who thinks of baptism as the most important faith step, and to encourage them not to stop there. Baptism is only the first step of a lifelong Jesus journey.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a phone call to make to one such fella!
