I'm pleased to offer my 2021 book to readers who are exhausted by the pandemic and grieving so many forms of loss, yet also wanting to notice the blessings and gifts of life. Two Hands: Grief and Gratitude in the Christian life draws on the idea that God invites us to hold grief in one hand and gratitude in the other, allowing both to stretch us large. I draw on the Psalms, Jesus' teaching and his journey to the cross, and the apostle Paul's letters. I also describe societal forces and inner messages that must be addressed in order to affirm both grief and gratitude. Plus, as always with my books, I tell you stories from my own life about how this looks in practice.
In a time of increasing polarization, fast pace of life, and constant connectedness, Christian caring has gotten more complicated. My 2018 book, Nurturing Hope: Christian Pastoral Care in the Twenty-first Century, addresses seven current trends in pastoral care, along with four skills for pastoral care. One of my arguments is that every Christian sometimes provides care and other times receives care. The book will benefit chaplains and people who serve on pastoral care teams, but also people who want to care for those around them in families, neighborhoods, congregations, small groups, committees, music teams, and other groups.
Do you ever long to be a better listener? Check out my book, The Power of Listening: Building Skills for Mission and Ministry. It focuses on the role of listening in congregational life, specifically listening to each other within the congregation, listening to the wider community, and listening to God. When I did the interviews for this book, I learned so much about obstacles to listening, so the book has two chapters on how to overcome common obstacles as well. The Power of Listening is my tenth non-fiction book.
The past few years have been exciting for me as a writer. My 2017 book, A Garden of Living Water, is a collection of short stories I wrote when I was wondering what in the world I might do as a career. The stories center on individuals who are trying to figure out who they are and what God might desire for them in the areas of Christian service, career and family life. I enjoyed revising them for publication, imagining the ways that the journeys of the people in the stories might be encouraging to readers. They join three connected novels -- Dead Sea, Deadly Murmurs and Death in Dunedin -- to make up my body of fiction writing.
I’ve also written three Bible study guides: Prayers of the New Testament, Prayers of the Old Testament, and Sabbath: The Gift of Rest. My wonderful husband, Dave Baab, did the background research on the Bible passages for those guides. He provided the illustrations for a Lenten Devotional, Draw Near, which you can download from on my website for free.
I'm rejoicing about another recent release, the kindle version of my book on midlife spirituality, A Renewed Spirituality: Finding Fresh Paths at Midlife.
I invite you to visit my website, www.lynnebaab.com. I blog there every week, and I've posted many articles I've written on topics related to my books. You can find me on Facebook as Lynne Baab and on Twitter as @lynnebaab.
I am still deeply engaged with the topics I've written about it my books. I try daily to notice God's gifts and practice gratitude, while also grieving losses when they happen -- as they do! I keep a sabbath every week and I still see fasting as a significant way to disengage with the consumer culture. I love and practice a variety of spiritual disciplines that I described in Joy Together. They have shaped my spiritual life. I still enjoy thinking about and talking about personality type and issues of midlife, and I continue to speak and teach about preventing burnout among Christian leaders. And I try to be a good listener and give and receive care to those around me. My books come out of my life and commitments, and I invite you to join with me in growing in these ways.
I am so grateful for the privilege of being a writer. If you have read my books, thank you. If you choose to purchase one of my books for the first time, I hope and pray that it will stimulate your thinking and encourage you to draw near to God in love, joy and obedience.
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