Running on Empty Contemplative Spirituality for Overachievers

by ANDERSON, FIL

• ISBN13: 9781400071036
• ISBN10: 1400071038
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-12-13
• Publisher: WaterBrook

Summary

Learn to livewithGod instead offorGod. Sometimes the only way to get a new life is by running your old one completely into the ground. Fil Anderson had accomplished more for God than most of his contemporaries, but his worn-out body housed an empty soul. His frenetic pace of ministry had earned him just one thing: greater pressure to do even more. He had fallen for the soul-killing lie that doing more for God would give his life meaning. Then the godly admonition of a spiritual director set this burned-out believer on a life-saving spiritual path. This powerful story of a reawakened soul can be the story of every person who has pursued spiritual productivity over intimacy with God and come up empty. It's the story of reclaiming your soul and finding a home in the center of God's relentless love. It's the journey from self-importance to God-importance. The solution is not greater achievements for the kingdom of God. It's time to stop livingforGod and start livingwithGod. In this candid and achingly authentic book, Fil Anderson shares the healing insights that restored his spiritual compass and guided him back to God ... the God who specializes in filling empty souls. "To the harried and the unharried, I pray that this book will minister to your heart in the profound way that it has blessed mine."Brennan Manning From the Hardcover edition.

Author Biography

Fil Anderson is executive director of Journey Resources, based in Greensboro, North Carolina. He’s a frequent speaker at conferences, offers individual spiritual direction, and directs retreats and workshops around the country (for more information, visit www.journeyresources.org). A graduate of the University of North Carolina at Wilmington and Fuller Theological Seminary, he also completed the Graduate Program in Spiritual Guidance at the Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation in Bethesda, Maryland. Fil worked with Young Life for twenty-five years, serving as area director and regional director before becoming national director of training.


From the Hardcover edition.

Table of Contents

Foreword by Brennan Manning	xi
Preface	v
Acknowledgments	xix
PART I: A PATH OF DESTRUCTION
1. Confessions of a Recovering Work Addict	3	(14)
Speeding Up While the Tank Runs Dry
2. A World Stuck on Fast Forward	17	(18)
Working Longer and Harder Doesn't Work
3. A Condescending View of God	35	(18)
The Straight Path to Soul Starvation
4. The Life That Makes Us Sick	53	(20)
It All Begins with a Lie
PART II: A PATH OF RECOVERY
5. Solitude	73	(26)
Making Space for God in Your Soul
6. Prayer	99	(20)
Living in the Mystery and Wonder of God's Presence
7. Sacred Scripture	119	(18)
Immersing Your Life in God's Revelation
8. Spiritual Direction	137	(18)
The Practice of Seeking and Finding God's Guidance
9. Sorrow	155	(20)
The Weakness That Welcomes God's Compassion
10. Joy	175	(22)
God's Echo in Our Lives
Notes	197