Bryan Books

As an adult diagnosed with adhd a year ago, I've been doing a lot of reading and searching to learn more about it. Out of a huge stack of books I've read, only a handful give genuine insight into the mind of an adder. Most of what I've found is either too clinical to keep my attention, or too trite to be taken seriously.

Well ... thank God! Bryan is neither a psychiatrist, nor a professional copywriter. He's just some dude with adhd.

His is an amazing, yet disturbing story. What makes it amazing is how similar his story is to mine. At times I felt I was reading a story about myself, just with different scenery. What makes it so disturbing ... well ... is how similar his story is to mine.

The most helpful thing the diagnosis has done for me, is provide a new window from which I can review my past. Some of the mistakes I've agonized over for so long, were nothing but the symptoms of adhd. Communication issues, scheduling issues, work issues ... the list goes on and on ...

Reading about Bryan going through the same things in life I have, has helped me realize I'm not alone. There ARE actually people out there who DO know what I'm talking about!

I can't possibly recommend this book more. Put it at the very top of your list! Buy it now! It's that important.

Just one more thing ... after I was done reading the book, and took a few days to absorb it all, something hit me ... it's why I'm here recommending the book to you right now, and it's gonna hit you the same way too ...

I can't help but feel that I know Bryan, like he's a personal friend of mine.

That's the style of book he wrote, it's that personal. And that should tell you just how genuine "One Boy's Struggle" truly is.

Thanks Bryan!

Are you still reading this? Stop. Go buy the book! :-)

This book should be mandatory reading for anyone entering the field of teaching or who is already teaching, counselors, resource teachers, juvenile workers. ADD is often undiagnosed (unlike ADHD where hyper is apparent) and the child struggles and never knows why. I wonder how many sit in prison today wondering why they never fit in with society or runaways who could never conform to their families rules. I am recommending this book to everyone I know so hopefully they could recognize ADD in a child (or adult) and make a positive difference in their life.
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I knew relativly nothing about ADD and how it can affect your life and all those involved. This is a wonderfuly written story of a young struggling boy who knew that he was not bad, but had to wait for years to find out the truth of whý his childhood had been the way it was.
'One Boy's Struggle' is a must read for anyone, not just for someone wanting to find out more information regarding ADHD. This is a poignant story that moved and deeply touched me and made me care for this young man. Thank you, Bryan for the wonderful story that is yours, and that you share you struggle with us.

I am truly grateful for Bryan writing this book and for me to have found it. For many years I lived with undiagnosed ADD, never understanding why, but always knowing that I was different, and did things differently than other people all my life.

When I was finally diagnosed with ADD it was a tremendous relief to know there really was a reason. I had learned the basics through talking to professionals as well as reading the various books available on the subject. This book is very different from all the basic texts that are available. You can only learn so much at school from reading textbooks. It is not until you finish school and go out into the real world when you realized how it all applies.

Bryan's book is the real world. The ADDer World so to speak. The other books show you the cause but Bryan's shows you the effect.

I highly recommend this book to be read by all people living with ADD/ADHD. It will help you understand the impact that this disorder has actually had on you through your life. I really had no clue myself before reading this book. It is also really nice to know that we are not alone with our struggles. If you did not have it before, you will finish this book realizing that there is definitely hope for an incredibly productive enjoyable future for you.

Even more so however, I recommend this to parents and teachers dealing with children with ADD/ADHD. No one can ever truly understand what it is like to go through life having ADD/ADHD unless they have it themselves. This book shows you the truth dead on, and most likely will be the closest you will ever get to really understand what your kids are dealing with on a daily basis, in both their minds, as well in the world around them.

I also highly recommend checking out Bryan's website: ADDerWorld.com. It is a safe harbor to connect with, and understand others dealing with ADD/ADHD. From my personal experience I can pretty much guarantee that he will personally answer any question you may have if you contact him.

Not a fabulously well written book, but it provides invaluable insight into the heart and mind of a child/young man suffering from ADD. If I were president for a day I'd make it mandatory reading for all elementary teachers and parents of boys with or without ADD. The author clearly has extensive knowledge of ADD as well as first person experience -- a powerful combination that really helps the reader understand some of the many nuances of ADD. This book opened up very enlightening dialogue between my spouse and I and then my immediate family. We were able to confirm what we have long suspected; that in my family most of us have varying degrees of ADD but as adults have learned to compensate in interesting ways. We are productive and happy adults, but felt validated at the similarities we found with the author. Thank you so much for being so generous with your life experiences!

The previous reviews explicate the virtues of the book more than sufficiently.

In response to the 3 star review, Magee's prose is VERY English, in the vein of Hume's, for example.

I'd only suggest that anyone with similar troubles visits Youtube and see the television program he hosted

on The Great Philosophers, of which there is a book derived therefrom by the same title.

Magee is very articulate, bordering on the verbose, though, very thorough. It might help to have his voice in

mind, to be able to read at an appropriate pace.

In the opening lines of chapter 3 Bryan Magee, paraphrasing Schopenhauer, writes: "If there is to be any point in my looking for something, I need to have some idea of how I shall know if I find it". Whoever comes to philosophy would be well-advised to keep this in mind. Can we really read philosophy without any idea, or to use an expression from Saul Bellow, any `metaphysical hunch' about what we think (or hope) to find? It was while reading this wonderful book on Schopenhauer that I suddenly, and quite unexpectedly, found the answer to the question, "Why do I read philosophy?". And the answer was not, as the expected knee-jerk response would have it, to find `truth', but to break away, if only for a moment, from the deadening gravity of the obvious and the mundane into an awareness of a reality more awesome and profoundly mysterious. For me few philosophers manage this better than Schopenhauer, and Magee is absolutely brilliant at conveying this to his readers in his book The Philosophy of Schopenhauer. Hardly surprising from a man, who, on another occasion wrote,

"At the heart of the mystery, it seems to me, must lie the relationship between the self and the empirical world in which it is not an object. In fact I am tempted to believe that the ultimate mystery `is' the relationship between the self and the empirical world. With his usual acumen Schopenhauer thought this, `the solution of the riddle of the world is only possible through the proper connexion of outer with inner experience, effected a the right point.' The first time I read those words I got gooseflesh all over my body, my scalp pricked and tingled, and I knew that I was going to read every word written by Schopenhauer". (Confessions of a Philosopher - Bryan Magee).

I find it amusing that someone would give this excellent overview of Schopenhauer a two-star rating on the grounds that it is "difficult". Schopenhauer's philosophy is profound and requires much thought and reflection in order to grasp it. There may be "easier" introductions than this book but if you want to actually try and understand Schopenhauer then read this book. Remember, understanding Schopenhauer or any great philosopher will be difficult. If you can't do "difficult" then read Dr. Seuss.

Bryan Magee has done a superlative job in writing this work. It is both a review and explanation of Schopenhauer's philosophy as well as an exposition of his influence on artists such as Richard Wagner. There is also much biographical material on Schopenhauer. This is a 400 page book and will take a while to get thru. It is not an easy read, though well written. It's just that Schopenhauer's philosophy takes some time to get used to if you have not encountered him before. But you will be richly rewarded.

Perhaps the most unjustly neglected philosopher in the western world. I would hope this very readable introduction will encourage more people to take up the study of this great thinker. Bryan Magee, as usual does, what many professional philosphers are unable or unwilling to do: he makes philosophy accessible to almost everyone. While I haven't found Schopenahuer's writing all that difficult, reading this first has helped me grasp The World as Will and Representation better than I could have without it.

Philosophy needs more Schopenahuers and Magees and fewer obfuscators.

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This Anatomy and Physiology textbook is AMAZING! It is filled with vast amounts of information that are tremendously useful for a future in medicine. It is one text that you should NOT sell back! The information covered in this text will be used guaranteed everyday in the medical field. Especially wonderful are the clinical application sections. My professor was a cardiologist and he would often mention that his neurologist friends said our neuro-text was extremely detailed, more so than they had in medical school! Also, the chemistry is VERY detailed. I would suggest having a chem. course prior to this material, it will make your understanding in the chem. sections far greater as to how they pertain to the makeup of our being.

My daughter is taking Anatomy & Physiology I in Tennessee. The college bookstore wanted $225 for new and $185 for used. I was able to get this from Amazon before the price went up.... for $121.00 It was delivered by UPS to her house in less than a week.

Even though I live in Canada, the ease of using Amazon has never failed me when I order merchandise for myself, my children or grandchildren in the States. Amazon has never ever let me down. I have dealt with their customer service once....when UPS was delivering it to my daughter's apartment and was letting anybody sign for it and she never got the merchandise. Amazon was more than helpful in rectifying the problem when it was not even their responsibility or their fault.

I encourage all college students and/or parents, to check Amazon before purchasing books through the campus book store. On this particular book, I saved $100.

I have found this book very helpful, it has a ton of useful information on medical conditions, as well as the general A&P information.

After going about six years without reading a traditional anatomy and physiology text, I was surprised at the advanced level that this book has reached, as compared to the texts I read during the first few years of this decade. This book offers numerous resources, from special pathological sections to online excercises. In addition, every chapter offers highly detailed diagrams and little tidbit sections to help students better understand the material. Thus, no matter what type of learner you are, this book will offer a way to learn the text that totally fits your style. For those who learn better by seeing and listening, the online material will be helpful and the diagrams in the book are quite comprehensive. For those who learn better by simply reading the text, this book provides the material in regular paragraphs, charts, and advanced diagrams. Finally, for those who are already familiar with the material, and just need a quick review, the end of each chapter has a comprehensive, but terse summary of the material.

This is such a great book to go with such a great song! The illustration is wonderful as well. I definitely recommend it for little ones.

This book is wonderfully illustrated. The colors are so vibrant and shiny! My 6 year old grandchild just loves it and if you know the melody to the words, they'll love it even more. A wonderfully, positive outlook on life for children in such a uneasy world today! A must have for kids today!

OMG--this book is awesome... I first saw this book at my daughters preschool. the children loved singing it at storytime. I buy this book for my nephew/nieces, and friends children for birthdays. I also bought this for the Kindergarden teacher... Its very basic, and the illustrations are very colorful.. My daughter is 8 now and still gets it out..

My baby is 9 months old. A few weeks ago our teacher read this book to us in our mom and baby class and all the babies were mesmorized by it's beautiful pictures, accompanied by the music of Louis Armstrong that was playing in the background. I quickly found it on Amazon and ordred it for my baby. We've read it together several times and he always lights up and squeals excitedly when he sees it. I love how versatile it is because I can read it, talk about the pictures, "sing" it, or play the song and just follow along with him. I am planning to enjoy this book with my son for a long time to come. The only minor issue for us is that the book has regular paper pages (I couldn't find a board book version) so if I let my baby play with it he would instantly destroy it and he sometimes gets frusterated when I hold it in front of him but out of his reach.

As a K-5 music teacher, I use this book to provide a visual aid as I sing "What a Wonderful World" to the kids. They love it, I love it, and it is a wonderful way to learn song! The pictures are a little on the hokey side and illustrate a puppet show (Satchmo included!), but for K-3, it is age-appropriate and enjoyable.

this was a really good book, and i love the way the stories of the characters play out. this series is really good.

Enoch's Ghost is in my mind best referred to as the fifth book in the Dragons in Our Midst series. It picks up right where Tears of a Dragon left off, following Ashley, Walter, Karen, and Thigocia on their journey to find Makaidos. Readers should definitely be up to speed on the events in both Eye of the Oracle (Oracles of Fire) and the Dragons in Our Midst series.

Like me, some readers may be put off by the title, but there is no ghost in the book. I don't want to give anything away, so I won't say what it refers to, but it isn't anything ghostly at all.

How's the book line up with the rest of Bryan Davis' brilliant dragon books? Perfectly. I really can't say more than that. Great characters, a breathtaking story, and an ending that will leave you waiting for the next one.

What happened after Walter, Ashley, and Karen took off on the back of Thigocia? This book is an excellent sequel to the Dragons in our Midst series! If you wonder what happens next, READ THIS BOOK!!

This is a great book full of wonder and excitement. Journey with two teenagers whose search for a lost kid leads them on an incredible thrill ride. Evil is out to stop them in dragon form. Can they survive the dragons fire? Buy this book and find the answers.

I loved this book. Every moment of it was great. It was suspenseful, the plot was elaborate, and I did not want to put it down. I loved the new characters and settings. It's perfect for all ages. The spirituality in this book is wonderful, I enjoyed the combination of fantasy and Scripture. A very exciting read, recommended to everyone!

this book was really good, as are all the others in this series. i really enjoy reading them, and i can't wait for the next one to come out!

This is a fabulous book series. I "pre-read" it for my 12-year old, but I'm hooked! Can't wait until the next one comes out.

The next to the last installment in the ever popular Dragons In Our Midst/Oracles of Fire series, Last of the Nephilim holds more mystery than ever before. This book continues the theme of God's love, provision, and power. I can not wait for the final book, The Bones of Makaidos.

Last of the Nephilim picks up right where Enoch's Ghost (Oracles of Fire) left off. Literally.

There's no getting around it this time. Bryan Davis writes in his author's note that readers are recommended to read the Dragons in Our Midst series and the previous two Oracles of Fire books first. Do it. You'll need them.

I mentioned in the title of the review that the book does move a bit more slowly than I'm used to from Bryan Davis. That's okay, though. It gives this wonderfully tense feeling of the roller coaster ratcheting up the chain lift. Then you get to the end, and the roller coaster has stopped looking over the edge of an enormous hill. That's Last of the Nephilim, but don't think of it as a bridge between two books. It's a great story, very worth the read. More deep characters who learn relevant lessons. One complaint: The next and final book doesn't come out 'til next year!

Last of the Nephilim is truly amazing! It has to be the best book I've ever read... plus it's another excellent addition to the Oracles of Fire series!!!

This is a wonderful children's book. The author and the artist are both wonderful. Mr. Auxier has a way of getting to children, about topics they usually don't want to listen to. This book is about smoking, he just has a way of getting through in a fun way to children!!

This book has a meaningful story to tell and really cool characters. Even the characters' names are full of meaning. It is a great blend of fantasy and reality. I've given it as gifts to many of the people I love and want to have in my life for many years to come.

What I like about Where Have All The Dragons Gone? is it is a good adventure book for someone to read.

Where are all of the reviewers gone, Because this book is great!!!! The book "Where Have all the Dragons Gone" teaches people a good lesson, and that's a very valuble lesson. Everyone should own this book. The lesson it teaches people is not to smoke!! It's a great book!!

The book WHERE HAVE ALL THE DRAGONS GONE? is a really good book to read. It teaches you not to smoke and why Komodo Dragons lost their ability to breathe fire. It also says why Komodo Dragons are so dark. The illustrator, Regina Daniels, is good too!

I have recently come out of the broom closet with my family. This is the book I chose to use to explain my spiritual practice to them. They had been reading some very bad things and were very upset. The format of the book with questions and answers was just the thing to settle their fears. I highly recommend this book. Bryan Lankford explains very clearly some of the most pressing questions non-wiccans have concerning our beliefs. It is also very good for a beginning wiccan to learn more about the faith.

Mr. Lankford does a wonderful job explaining what Wicca is and what Wicca is not. He understand the ins and outs of this religion and is able to clearly explain it for anyone to understand. If you are Wiccan and have family who want to know more about what you do, this is the book to get them! This author comes across as a person who knows how scary it can be for someone to hear that a loved one is Wiccan or a Witch. He does a fantastic job of helping them through that fear by providing them with the information for a better understanding of something they've only heard scary stories about. Ignorance breeds fear and this book will definitely put an end to anyone's ignorance about Wicca/Witchcraft!

I found this book very helpful for explaining an often misunderstood religion. If you prefer to get the real story rather than succumbing to commercial imagery when forming your opinions, this is a great source. Similarly, if you seek a clear and articulate way to express your own similar views, this book will empower you with a roadmap for doing so. If you fear for someone who seems to have gone astray and want to get the facts from a credible source, this is a must read. Well written and free of drama sometimes included to sell more books! Very refreshing.

While it is nice to see someone attempting to write a book that is not a hand book or not a "Wicca 101" book, you have to ask... is this really an advanced study book on Wicca.

In this book you will not find spells and incantations. You will not find rituals, altar tools, calling of the quarters or anything else that most associate with handbooks and "Wicca 101" books. Yet the book calls itself a Guide.

What you will find is one man and his Traditions thoughts on what it is to truly be "Wiccan". The Tradition is the McFarland Dianic Tradition, founded in the early 70s. And I enter the caveat at this point - Your Mileage May Vary - depending on the Tradition of Wicca you practice.

The opening paragraph of chapter one "The Beginning" entitled "What is all this about anyway?" gives us this line: "The best place to start with any explanation is at the beginning, and the beginning of Wicca dates far back into antiquity."

There are those who will "hmmmm" at this point. Again, the caveat. There is more that will give you moments to pause and consider.

If you can get past all this, the book is an interesting read. But I was confused by its purpose. On the one hand, I saw an attempt to explain what Wicca is. But if I am already walking the Wiccan path then I already understand what Wicca is. I return to the subtitle: "Guide for Practitioners, Family and Friends" - and it becomes clear. While trying to work with those who are knowledgeable and appear as more than a 101 book, it still has to revert back to 101 basics to be a guide for those who do not practice.

As a guide in that respect it works. We have basic discussions on the Wheel of the Year, Rites of Passage, Can Children and Teens be Wiccan and more. There is lots of discussion on this Traditions ethics in spellwork, what the Rede means and then we move on to "pointy hats, black cats and brooms... "

It is nice that the book sidesteps the usual cookbook/crafters handbook/basic ritual 101 material. The discussion, in my opinion, has to and does fit into a 101 category. When trying to explain what Wicca is to anyone not familiar with Wicca, you still can't venture too far past the basics.

I came away with the idea that this book would be best suited to give to someone who knows a Wiccan and is interested in learning more. While we don't proselytize (see the chapter "If Wiccans think their beliefs are correct, why don't they try to convert others to their beliefs?") this book might be good to give to someone who is not sure what some of us might be all about.

I think if you find the material agreeable and in line with what you believe, then this book could be an aid to helping you explain Wicca to others. However, as this has been done before and this tradition may not be in line with your own personal beliefs, you may want to review the material before passing it along. boudica

This book eschews commercialized versions of Wicca to deliver frank and truthful information to the audiences needing it the most. It is useful for individuals who are investigating Wicca as a religion, but it is especially helpful for the potentially confused (and scared) friends and family.

An avalanche of stereotypes and misinformation in this society about what Wicca is and who Wiccans are subsequently leaves the friends and families of the practitioners in a bind. They might want to be supportive, but those family members and friends do not necessarily know where to turn for affirming information. Despite Wicca being recognized as a religion (by institutions such as the United States military!) accurate information about Wicca remains to find.

The tone of this book is open-minded, Lankford is able to empathize with his readers own path. He is an advanced witch but does not forget that potential readers and readers are entering with a dearth of information about this religion. Pulling rank on them would have been easy but he is instead empathetic to their own journey towards acceptance of friends, family, and themselves.

This type of book needs to be in every household throughout the world not just the country!

This is a great read for anyone having a family or coming to terms with family problems. Bryan came from a disfunctional family and spent a decade of his life blaming his family for the letdowns in his life. Once he saw his family was not the problem and he was, he came to terms with his family and decided to become a member of the family again. This book mainly focused on the interaction between children and their parents, but it can be used with other relationships. This is a great read for any of us who have problems with their family, because it councils us in how to behave in the proper manner. As Bryan himself also states, he even has to work on how to see his family in the proper light. This gives great insight into family dynamics, and is useful reading for anyone.
I plan on using some of Mark's principles with my family. Family matters, and as Mark show, some of us have some pretty heavy baggage. Losing the baggage is a first step in coming to terms with your family. Good read and great advice.

I received this book as a gift and it really helped me to see that I was interpretting things my family was saying and doing in a defensive and distorted way. This book has helped to re-examine these things and accept that my family loves me and just wants what is best. I have also tried to stop controlling family members, which has been something I was told and never believed until now. Hats off the the author for writing this insighful book!

Mark Bryan is my husband's cousin. I saw him on Oprah talking about his book and had to get it. However, it was out of stock. Mark sent me an autographed copy and I read it in a day. It was so helpful to me to learn to deal with some members of my own family, but more importantly with my husband's family. Now that I have the truth on where my husband "comes from", it is easier for me to understand how and why he thinks the way he does...that also goes for the rest of his immediate family. I am going to have my husband read this to help him work out his problems with his parents.

It was very touching and loving to hear about the extended family that I have not ever met. Jim and Mark's grandmother, Minnie, was an exceptional woman, and I can relate to her in many ways. I admire Mark for all he has done and for all he has accomplished.

He has been so supportive of us, but this book has really "tied the loose ends up" for me. The exercises at the end of each chapter are really thought provoking. I began to remember memories that I would have thought that I had forgotten forever. It is nice to know that they are there, and now I can incorporate them in with the "bad" so that the "bad" isn't that horrible. I feel that I have grown and matured, and am ready to Re-Frame and Remake my life. He is right...you can go home again.

Re-enter your family and find your own true loving nature with Codes of Love by Mark Bryan. Mark uses his own family life and the diverse lives of many clients and friends to help you change your personal family recipes from leftovers to exciting new meals that are deeply nurturing, satisfying and actually possible to enjoy.
Mark's carfully prepared program merges passion with persistence in order for you to digest your past and emerge in the present with new compassion for yourself and the other members of your family.
I personally used Codes of Love to graft into my being Mark's substantial experience in mending families. With Mark's vision by my side, I was able to find the courage, humor and new ways of viewing my past in order to enjoy and reconnect with my precious parents. I had been completely separate from my father (I thought) and almost totally separate from my mother for over twenty years. Mark showed me that they were actually never far from my heart or my mind.
During those twenty years Mark Bryan's wisdom paid various visits to my creative awareness through his books and through a one afternoon seminar in San Francisco. In book form, Mark Bryan and Julia Cameron came into my life first with the amazing Artist's Way and then with the profoundly transformative Artist's Way at Work. In the fall of 2002 my domestic partner came home with Codes of Love for me to use and hopefully help me find a better way to understand and forgive my family and myself.
Mark and his powerful books have brought me back into a full and loving contact with the only parents that I will ever have. Using Mark's words and work to reconnect with my parents has also set me free to engage in my own projects with more confidence, determination and respect for myself.
I sincerely hope that you can also use Codes of Love to further understand your past, free yourself in the present and rejoin your primal pack.
My parents are 80 and 81 and I also have a niece and nephew who are 10 and 13 -- we all needed to come together as an interactive and loving family before it was too late. Mark Bryan and Codes of Love were the ticket that eventually helped us to create the healing, to let go and to make merriment again with each other.
Working with the principles and exercises in Codes of Love gives us the capacity to strengthen our connections with ourselves, our partners,our families and with our worldwide families as well.

I purchased several of these books to lead a spiritual formation group in my parish. The book has helped my people share their faith and their struggles in that faith. It has also introduced them to the concept of accountability, which is always good.

The only problem that I encountered is the tremendous amount of oral reading required for each lesson. Some of my folks are self-conscious about their reading skills and as you take turns reading, it can be laborioius. Other than that, I would highly recommend this workbook to anyone wanting to go deeper in their spiritual life.

Adding in the how to the why. This book is a great handbook to go along with Streams of Living Water.

Streams is a book that takes about the different "streams" of Christianity and provides references and information on those different streams.

This handbook brings out the how of each stream. Each chapter deals with a different stream and how to practice that stream. There are real live applications for you to use to become better immersed in the particular stream.

This is a great book for someone who is working on the spiritual formation and needs help in the direction of figuring it out. This is also a useful guide for a small group or Sunday School class who wants to review the history of the church and the many streams that make it up.

I really enjoyed the Charismatic stream and what it had to offer in terms of understanding spiritual gifts and also fruits of the harvest.

I've worked as a small group minister for years now, and I feel that this workbook is excellent for starting a group of established Christians. Each discussion is clearly mapped out with leader's instructions in the margins. Through the course six different aspects or facets of Jesus are presented, and almost no one is intimately familiar with all six, so it stands to minister to long time church goers. But the new Christian will be strengthened too.
Other Christian authors are writing about Jesus as presented by various denominations (like Brian McLaren and Philip Yancey)but this little book is very easy to use for generating discussions.
What I found most important is that each section ends with several exercises or disciplines to practice in the time between sessions. Group members will surely experience spiritual growth if they practice the disciplines.
Lastly, it ends with an invitation to continue on as a group, using what has been learned through the study as a format for continued group life.

This is a great resource for bringing more balance into your life. The book describes six ways of meeting God - Holiness, Charismatic, Contemplative, Social Justice, Incarnational, and Evangelical - and sometimes these words don't mean what you think they mean. The authors encourage the reader to broaden their relationship with and vision of God, and for me, I was able to see God working more powerfully, and in many more ways, than before.

What separates this small group guide from others is that it provides a framework for all future groups that actually contains concrete paths to real character transformation. That framework has some key components: (1) An emphasis on trying spiritual exercises in your everyday life, with plenty of ideas for exercises provided; (2) An emphasis on growing toward a balanced spiritual life, centered around 6 areas of spirituality: personal prayer, holiness, interaction with the Holy Spirit, compassion for others, gospel knowledge/sharing, and interweaving the sacred into the secular life; (3) Seeking spiritual growth in partnership with other believers who will encourage and listen to one another; (4) A non-judgmental, non-legalistic attitude.

The content of the studies is solid, based on the life of Jesus as He modeled for us the 6 areas of spiritual life. There are also well-thought out discussion questions that allow for deep reflection. There is virtually no prep time because each session is read through and discussed together.

I am currently going through this study for the second time with a larger group (15-25), and it works well even in the larger context, especially when we break up into smaller groups for some segments. I have heard from several people how great this study is. I believe that if churches used a framework like this one for their small groups, the Church of Jesus Christ would see an astonishing amount of fruit that would surprise the world.