Beyond Words®

Reflections on the Soul of Leadership

Written by Ruth Haley Barton, each reflection provides spiritual guidance and encouragement for those seeking to be in God for the world.

Becoming More

The Future of Christian Spirituality: Part 3 | A Spirituality that is Practice-Oriented and Practice-Based

By Ruth Haley Barton |

“We do not know God by thinking, but by encountering.” –John of the Cross As my director and I transitioned into a new kind of relationship I was still thinking…

Becoming More

The Future of Christian Spirituality: Part 2 | The Charism and Practice of Spiritual Direction

By Ruth Haley Barton |

“A spiritual director is one who helps another recognize and follow the inspirations of grace in his life, in order to arrive at the end to which God is leading…

Spiritual Direction (Part 2): A Key Practice for Transforming Leaders

By Ruth Haley Barton |

Part One of this eReflections series can be found here. “There is a temptation to think that spiritual direction is…

Spiritual Direction (Part 1): A Key Practice for Healthy Leaders

By Ruth Haley Barton |

Part Two of this eReflections series can be found here. “The whole purpose of spiritual direction is to penetrate beneath…

A Story from Transforming Community #4 by Gilbert and Lesley Smith

Sustained by the Rhythm of Retreat

By Gilbert and Lesley Smith |

Continuing the story of Transforming Community: Transforming Community 4  (TC4) continued to impact the greater sense of community as more spouses…

A Story from Transforming Community #4 by Vincent Rife

The Desert Blooms

By Reverend Vincent Rife |

Continuing the story of Transforming Community: Transforming Community 4 (TC4)  continued to impact the greater sense of community as more spouses of…

Charlottesville

The Darkness of Indifference

By Ruth Haley Barton |

“The opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference. The opposite of art is not ugliness, it’s indifference.  The opposite…

Becoming a Transforming Church retreat

On the Road to Becoming a Transforming Church

By Ruth Haley Barton |

“Nondiscipleship is the elephant in the church.”  – Dallas Willard Oak Hills Church was founded in 1984 with seventeen people in…

close up of 6 square and rectangular shaped stained glass windows

What Kind of Church Are You?

By Ruth Haley Barton |

“Eventually, someone looking for a church home will ask some variation of this question:  So what kind of church are…

tree

The Loneliness of Leadership

By Ruth Haley Barton |

Moses said to the Lord, “See, you have said to me, ‘Bring up this people’ but you have not let…

FREE RESOURCE

Pay attention to the soul of your leadership with a FREE series written by Ruth Haley Barton

  • Reflections written for spiritual leaders delivered over 4 weeks each Saturday morning
  • Includes guidance to listen to what your soul wants to say to God and what God wants to say to your soul
  • Every reflection includes a recording by Ruth that goes deeper into topic.
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