"Following Jesus" (Henri J. M. Nouwen)

TITLE: Following Jesus: Finding Our Way Home in an Age of Anxiety
AUTHOR: Henri J. M. Nouwen
PUBLISHER: New York, NY: Convergent Books, 2019, (144 pages).

We are restless people easily given to fear and driven by anxiety. In a tired world, we gravitate toward doing too much or doing nothing. How can we make sense of our calling in the midst of such a stressful and anxious culture? The simple words of Jesus beckon us: "Follow Me." This is the main idea in this small book about discipleship and spirituality. More important than simply finding a solution to be less anxious or stressful, we are gently encouraged to look to Jesus at every step of the way. Under the teaching of Henri Nouwen, one of the most famous spiritual guides of our age, we have a little gem of spiritual direction. Nouwen sketches six steps in the process of following Jesus. Each step builds on the other to give us a journey to look forward to. The book starts off with a plain questions: "Are you following Jesus?" For many Christians, it would be far too obvious a question to answer. Some might even think it is sarcasm. For Nouwen, it is an essential question that ties together six aspects of spirituality.


It begins with "The Invitation" in which we are invited to listen; to ask; and to dwell in the presence of Jesus. This drawing is different from the worldly types. The difference lies in the idolatry of self vs the worship of God. If we idolize self and self-interests, we will be drawn by things to beef up our ego or personal desires. When Jesus invites us to follow Him, we are assured of drawing from an eternal well of life. All Christians are called to follow Christ. We are called to let go of the ways of the world and to hold on to the ways of Jesus. Third, "The Challenge" is for us to love our enemies. It is a practical way to help us love everybody. If we can truly love our enemies, we will easily love all people as well. After all, it is easy to love people we like. We can love our enemies by prayer and service. In "The Cost," we face the reality of the cross. Just like Jesus who showed compassion to us, we are reminded that compassion comes from the Latin for "to suffer with." Taking up our cross essentially means following after Jesus' heart of compassion to suffer with those who are suffering. "The Reward" in following Jesus is pure and simple joy. The greatest reward is to be able to follow hard after God, and to be in full communion with God. Finally, following Jesus comes with a Promise, that God will be with us.

My Thoughts
Nouwen has a gift of putting difficult concepts into simple terms. There are no theologically heavy words to distract readers. Spirituality is understood best in simplicity and this is why Nouwen remains one of the most read authors in the field of Christian spirituality. In some ways, the ideas presented in the book is nothing new. There are exhortations to pray; calls for obedience; challenge of love; cost of discipleship; and assurance of promises; and so on. Nouwen has a keen sense of observing how the world behaves and how Christians ought to counter such worldliness. He makes an observation about the two types of wanderers: the running-around ones and the just-sitting-there ones. We might be familiar with the former when it comes to anxious living. What is surprising is the latter, which seems to make one wonder: How could the passive one be wanderers? In itself, it does not make much sense. However, using following Jesus as a reference, we immediately see the connection between following and not following. Running busy all the time is to search for meaning in all the wrong places. Just sitting there is searching for meaning without wanting to run around. This is not the way of a Christ-follower. Both forms of wandering do not follow after Jesus.

The book is written like a devotional. Each chapter starts with a Bible passage followed by an explanation, an application, and finally a prayer. Like books on spirituality, it is not meant to be rushed. Let Nouwen be your guide to calm our anxious heart. More importantly, let God's presence be felt as we reflect on the Word of God and the teachings.

Henri Nouwen was an internationally renowned priest and author who wrote 39 books on spirituality. He has ministered powerfully in the ministries of teaching and at L'Arche Daybreak. He was formerly a professor at Notre Dame.

Rating: 4.25 stars of 5.

conrade

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This book has been provided courtesy of Convergent Books and NetGalley without requiring a positive review. All opinions offered above are mine unless otherwise stated or implied.