If you've followed Christian Literature at BellaOnline for the past few years, the name, Isabel Anders, should be familiar. Having read and reviewed a few of her books, I searched to see titles of other books that she has written. One, in particular, caught my eye. Part of the Augsburg Books' 40 Day Journey Series, Isabel penned 40 Day Journey With Madeline L'Engle.

Madeline L'Engle is what stood out to me. I found it a bit quirky that a Christian, inspirational book would have been focused around a science fiction writer. I remembered being assigned L'Engle's book, A Wrinkle In Time as an elementary school student. As I soon discovered, Madeline L'Engle; however, was more than a secular author. She penned many inspirational books.

In a somewhat backwards approach, the review of 40 Day Journey with Madeline L'Engle is going to be an ongoing work....ongoing for 40 days that is.....that will be written up in the Christian Literature Forum. I realize it is a different approach and admit that it is one I debated.

In his many writings, Paul refers to man as being either of the body....fleshly...carnal or of the spirit. We are to recognize our level of spirituality as manifested in our outward appearance which is described in Galatians 5:22-23, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance:" Spirituality is a personal journey, yet, it is also corporate. We develop our spirituality through prayer, Bible reading and the correction of our parents and pastoral staff. We watch the lives of those around us as an example and seek to emulate their spirituality; however, it is something we must ultimately develop on our own as we seek and spend time with God.

40 Day Journey With Madeline L'Engle promises to give "you the opportunity to be mentored by a great contemporary spiritual writer and Christian leader." (p11) The book is structured to begin with a passage from L'Engle followed by a brief biblical passage. Both are meant to be read and meditated upon. Immediately following are Isabel's questions meant to deepen your understanding and then a passage from Psalms to guide you in journaling. Each day's writing ends with two brief headings meant to guide you in prayer.

The book is available from www.amazon.com. Join me in the forum as I journey over the next 40 days with Madeline L'Engle and Isabel Anders. I will post a summary of the thought and then open the day's question to discussion. Let's journey together as we seek to deepen our spirituality.



Disclaimer: This book was purchased by the Christian Literature reviewer