On Holy Ground: You and Your Faith Story

You have a faith story. Has anyone ever asked you about it? Has anyone ever helped you share it? Have you wondered about how your faith relates to the things you see in the media? This small book is packed with tips and exercises to help you identify the key elements of your spiritual journey and to gain confidence in sharing it with others with grace and courage. It will also help you to listen in ways that will be a gift to others setting them free to celebrate the Divine in their lives. Designed to be used by individuals partners or small groups it invites the reader into a gently unfolding conversation of awareness and confidence and provides resources that you can use right now regardless of whether you are part of a faith community or an individual searcher. Finally a user-friendly workbook to help people become comfortable in telling their faith story. Focusing on personal experience of the Divine without all the theological jargon it will be useful to all regardless of where you find yourself on your spiritual journey. --Phillip Kennedy Minister Woodlawn United Church Dartmouth Nova Scotia With his trademark clarity of purpose and style Bartlett offers this wonderful resource to all who have tasted the Bread of Life and are ready to explore how best to share it with others. The questions and exercises will broaden your insight and help you dig more deeply into the story of your faith which youll be more prepared to pass along after reading this book. --Robert C. Fennell Atlantic School of Theology Halifax Nova Scotia Many Christians find sharing their faith challenging. Writing with a lay audience in mind Bartlett offers reasons why such faith-sharing is important and provides exercises to help people develop skill and confidence in doing so. His clues for good storytelling will also prove useful to preachers for whom the hearing and telling of stories is a crucial tool of the trade. --John H. Young Executive Minister Theological Leadership The United Church of Canada This is the book I have been waiting for! Its accessible and thought-provoking. The exercises are engaging and inviting; appropriate for those who are comfortable talking about their faith and for whom it doesnt come as easily. I look forward to engaging my congregations in exploring their faith through this book. --Catherine MacDonald Interim Minister Elmsdale Pastoral Charge United Church of Canada Using humor and story Bartlett offers the reader a practical process of encountering their personal spiritual practice. This is a book that the reader can revisit again and again! --Ruth Noble Mission and Service Engagement Coordinator United Church of Canada I. Ross Bartlett is the minister at Knox United Church and Adjunct Professor at the Atlantic School of Theology in Halifax Nova Scotia. He is the author of Whom Shall I Fear: Lenten Reflections on the Psalms of Lament (2005).