Refresh: 19 Ways to Boost Your Spiritual Life

Review: Refresh, by Ron Hughes

Refresh: 19 Ways to Boost Your Spiritual LifeRefresh: 19 Ways to Boost Your Spiritual Life, by Ron Hughes (Gospel Folio Press, 2011)

Who doesn’t need a bit of spiritual refreshment from time to time? Ron Hughes’ slender book, Refresh, offers simple and practical ways to deepen and grow our spiritual lives.

The author is quick to admit that he hasn’t “arrived” yet, but these practices continue to help him and can help us too. Each section can be read in a single sitting. They open with “A Story to Start” (as told by a Biblical character), followed by Biblical background, exploration and application, potential pitfalls, and “A Word of Encouragement.”

Topics include solitude, confession, service, simplicity, rest, and more. I found them easy to read and process, yet with scope for a lifetime’s practice. Refresh is a book to re-read over the years, because its truths aren’t meant for a one-shot benefit/attempt. It’s not a formula for do-it-yourself spiritual growth, but operates on the principle that “God works in us when we actively share in the process.”

Canadian author Ron Hughes is president of the Ontario-based Christian media ministry, FBH International. Refresh can be ordered from the FBH website and there’s a free downloadable workbook for individual and group use. You can read an excerpt from Refresh (a fictional account from the prodigal son’s father).

Refresh can also be ordered through Amazon.ca and through your local Christian bookstore.

[Review copy from my personal library. This review originally appeared in the July/August 2012 issue of Faith Today.]

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