Lighting A Fire

What if God delights in play? What if sledding down a snow-covered hill or having a water balloon fight could be acts of worship? What if Jesus laughed with his disciples, and still laughs today? Bryant talks with Christine Aroney-Sine about these questions and more as they discuss her beautiful new book, The Gift of Wonder, Creative Practices for Delighting in God.

A description of The Gift of Wonder from godspacelight.com:

Can you imagine a God who dances with shouts of joy, laughs when you laugh, loves to play, enjoys life, and invites us to join the fun? I couldn’t until recently. I grew up with a very serious, workaholic God. Even when my theology changed, I struggled to live into my new way of thinking. Then Jesus words Unless you become like a child you cannot enter the kingdom, began to resonate in my head.

What childlike characteristics shape us into the people God intends us to be? I posted my question on Facebook and was amazed at the response. Curiosity, imagination, playfulness, creativity, awe and wonder, compassion, love of nature, trust and many more emerged. I chose 12 and explore them in The Gift of Wonder encouraging us to develop fresh spiritual practices that engage all our senses and help us to live a new kind of spiritual life that embraces the wonder and joy that God intends for us. The chapter ends with a creative spiritual exercise based on the characteristic discussed in it. These exercises are designed as both individual and group activities and encourage us to think outside the box and enjoy the presence of the fun loving, joy filled God we follow.