Overview

We have never been more connected--yet we have never felt more alone. Isolation is the great soul wound of our time. As Christians, we know that the church has a unique gift to offer a hurting world: communal life in Jesus. This gift has the power to heal our loneliness and isolation. It is good news for the lonely, the isolated, the struggling. So why does it often sound like bad news to those who need it most? Perhaps because we have misunderstood what the good news actually is--and how we ought to be sharing it. We have collapsed evangelism into offering a golden ticket to some postmortem destiny. But the goodness of the gospel we are called to share is about so much more: shalom, wholeness, and the peaceable kingdom of Christ breaking into the world. This is the gift of communal life in Jesus. A gift that re-ligaments us back together with God and one another. Never Alone unpacks how we can be spiritual guides who help people heal, love, and unleash imagination to create better lives and communities. We all can be instruments to bring healing and wholeness to people's lives in today's epidemic of loneliness and isolation.

Full Product Details

9781513815183

Table of Contents

Reviews

""In Never Alone, Michael Adam Beck does a fantastic job of helping us reimagine the 'historic' and 'inherited' church as more than a physical place or space. This resource inspires and teaches us how to build and live in community, sharing the good news by daring to be fully ourselves and in authentic relationships with others. A must-read resource of information and inspiration for those seeking to be the church of Jesus Christ in the world today."" --Olu Brown, author of several books, including Faith: Four Essential Practices ""In Never Alone, Rev. Dr. Michael Adam Beck offers something truly compelling and beautiful. Beck draws from his extensive interdisciplinary knowledge to frame biblical truth and provide insightful guidance for confronting the pandemic of loneliness. This book is a must-read for pastors and communities called to Christian ministry in today's world."" --Rev. Laceye C. Warner, PhD, Royce and Jane Reynolds Professor of the Practice of Evangelism and Methodist Studies, associate dean for Wesleyan Engagement, and chair of the Ministerial Division at Duke Divinity School ""In a time when churches may be searching for quick fixes and programmatic solutions to address congregational stagnancy and decline, we need a reminder of the essence of being the church: a community of people, joined together in the love of God and others. Never Alone more than offers such a reminder; it provides both practical and deeply theological resources to create the kind of life-giving community that so many are longing for.""--Magrey R. deVega, senior pastor at Hyde Park United Methodist Church in Tampa, Florida, and author of Questions Jesus Asked: A Six-Week Study of the Gospels ""The Christian life is life together. Michael Adam Beck knows, lives, and ministers this truth. His book enriches our ability to do the same."" --Steve Harper, retired professor of spiritual formation and Wesley studies ""This is an invaluable handbook on how to create, sustain, and multiply little pockets of Christ-centered communal life in every neighborhood and village. In fact, Michael Adam Beck believes this is the only way to end the epidemic of loneliness and isolation gripping society today. He makes me believe it is possible. Read this book and you will believe too."" --Michael Frost, founding director of the Tinsley Institute at Morling College in Sydney, New South Wales

Author Information

Michael Adam Beck is the director of the Fresh Expressions House of Studies at United Theological Seminary, director of Fresh Expressions Florida, and director of Fresh Expressions for the United Methodist Church. He serves as the co-pastor of Wildwood UMC, St. Marks UMC, and Compassion UMC with his wife Jill, where they direct addiction recovery programs, a jail ministry, a food pantry, and an interracial unity movement and house a faith-based inpatient treatment center. Wildwood and St. Marks are traditional congregations and a network of 13 ""fresh expressions"" that gather in tattoo parlors, dog parks, salons, running tracks, community centers, burrito joints, and digital spaces. Beck earned a master of divinity from Asbury Theological Seminary and a doctorate in semiotics and future studies at Portland Seminary. He is the author of 14 books, including Deep Roots, Wild Branches: Revitalizing the Church in the Blended Ecology, and a coauthor of multiple books, including Contextual Intelligence: Unlocking the Ancient Secret to Mission on the Front Lines with Leonard Sweet.

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