Sacred Pathways: Discover Your Soul's Path to God

I purchased all of the books by Gary Thomas after listening to him give a presentation on marriage. I am not exactly sure what I think about his first book that I just finished reading. This book lists the many different "pathways" that people have with regards to worshiping the one true god. It is NOT a book about many different pathways to god...

He does have some good information in this book but for me this was presented with entirely too many non-biblical ideas and ideas taken from psychology which is not what I was looking to read about. Yes we are all different and we all have different ideas and capacities for worship. Not sure I would have purchased this book for my collection if I had really known what it was really about.

Bottom line...I personally do not think this book is worth the money or the time to read. My opinion.

Kindle version is missing the 2nd chapter. When I met up with my book group I discovered an entire chapter was omitted from the Kindle version than from the paperback. Very disappointing as I have come to love reading books on my tablet.

Gary Thomas walks you through the nine “sacred pathways” he uses biblical figures, historic church movements, and various personality temperaments to identify. The purpose is to help you discern how you best draw near to Jesus, considering God did not create everyone identical.

This resource is rooted in a biblical worldview, uses Scripture accurately, and is biblical in its thesis and application. He often uses Scripture to back up his points and counter heresies that each spiritual pathway is tempted to follow. Some have claimed that the book is unbiblical in its approach and too influenced by a humanistic worldview. These fears are unfounded and miss the main point of Thomas' work.

While Thomas does see elements of worship found in other traditions as evidence of different spiritual temperaments, he is not advocating universalism. He makes a distinction between those practices which are "theologically neutral" and those which are not. "For instance, one woman may discover that the burning of incense in a church helps her to pray, while another woman thinks using incense is distracting or just plain weird. Two can agree to disagree without making a theological issue out of a doctrinally neutral worship preference." (22)
The incense is irrelevant. What matters is the heart of the worshiper as she tries to revere God's holiness.

This view of worship does not throw away the baby with the bathwater. For example, when discussing those with a "naturalist" bent, Thomas says, "I am not going to allow the lie of pantheism to rob me of worshiping God through an appreciation of what he has made."(56) He does not advocate worshiping nature itself but recognizes that for some, it is easier to worship God when marveling at his creation.

Thomas, affirms that people come with different personality bents and gives them the freedom to seek God authentically, without pretending to be something they are not

The book practically helps you discern your pathways through providing quizzes at the end of each chapter. By the end of the book you will understand yourself better and find freedom to worship God the way he designed you to do so.

Sacred Pathways is easy to read, plain, balanced, and straightforward. The book surveys 9 different spirituality types. For each type it identifies Scripture, historical characters, styles of worship, and dangers. The book contains an evaluation tool to help the reader identify his or her personal spiritual personality.

As with any survey tool this book does not go deeply enough into any particular spiritual practice. It doesn't need to. What it offers is an excellent service to the Christian community.

For those who are trapped in a church that worships in a style predominately different from the their own, this book offers the knowledge that the reader is not alone. There are others out there that worship in the same way.

For those who believe that all true worship looks like their style of worship this book offers a broader view of the Christian landscape.

I gave this book 5 stars because it could have a potentially life changing impact on those who have lived in a closed environment.

Having already read Thomas' "Sacred Marriage," I had extremely high expectations for this book, and I would say that they were largely met. Gary Thomas manages to write in a style that is both intellectual and personal, challenging the reader to ponder at a deeper level than many Christian books while never allowing his style to seem distant or arrogant. It's a tricky balance, but Thomas manages to strike that balance.

"Sacred Pathways" sets out to establish the reality that Christians do not naturally connect to God in identical ways and that this is not only acceptable but part of God's plan. It's the type of message that many of us need to hear, as we play the dangerous game of comparing our spirituality to other esteemed believers and realizing that we don't measure up to them. Thomas instructs us to consider that we are not meant to try to mirror anyone else's walk with God. Rather, we need to identify how we have been created and head down that "sacred pathway" with all diligence to "cultivate and grow" our relationship with God.

Thomas managed to tell very personal stories from his own life about every one of the nine sacred pathways, while managing to explain which ones came more or less naturally for him. This articulates the crucial point that though we may be bent toward one pathway more so than another, none of us have the right to ignore any of these sacred pathways as somehow irrelevant in our lives.

One particularly commendable component of Thomas' writing is his respect for the history of the church, and he constantly refers to our spiritual predecessors to gather their thoughts from the past centuries on so many different topics. What a refreshing approach to contemporary Christian writing! How much richer would the spiritual vitality of the church be if we were able to better learn from the past two thousand years of collective wisdom and experience?

I look forward to reading more of Gary Thomas' books. I would recommend "Sacred Pathways" to any Christian interested in learning more about the diverse ways that God has created us to seek after Him.

A close friend of mine has repeatedly noted that, "The world is as rich in different personalities and thinking styles as there are grains of sand on a desert island beach". To be sure, I would add that within our global community we can identify distinct personality types that allow us to then discover how we are wired and where our talents lie. Similarly, within the Christian faith there are a number of ways that we can worship God depending on God's ultimate purpose. Manyo of us are perhaps familiar with Paul's letter to the Romans in which he draws an analogy between the body of Christ and our own living bodies. Paul writes "Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ's body. We are all parts of his one body, and each of us has different work to do" (Romans 12 vs 4-5). Since all in the body of Christ have been created differently, we have a duty to delve into our own spiritual makeup and identify our unique design. In his book `Sacred Pathways' Gary Thomas' identifies nine spiritual temperaments that describe how different people worship.

The `naturalist' is described by Thomas as the Christian who finds reasons for praising God in the great outdoors that is the natural world seeing creation as "a school that never closes" as well as a place for replenishing strength and energy. In contrast the `sensate' feels much more at home glorifying God, with all the senses, in the formal worship setting of a church. The sounds of a cathedral choir, the sights of architectural grandeur in a church spire or even the aromas of burning incense all provide an important component for prayer and for drawing the sensate closer to God. Indeed Thomas reminds us of the role that the burning of incense played in biblical times as part of the offerings made to God by the Jewish high priests.

Many Christians need a worship structure that includes singing hymns and praying the prayers of the historical church. `Traditionalists', as Thomas refers to this particular subset of Christ followers, see set rituals as being critical for the nourishment of their faith. Many a story in the Old Testament tell of the importance that God put on the ritual nature of worship. The book of Exodus, with its specific instructions to the Israelites on how the tabernacle and its components were to be set out for the various offerings that were to be presented to God, demonstrates this all too clearly. Symbolic representations of the key aspects of Christianity, such as Holy Communion or Jesus on the cross, allow the traditionalist to "preserve the "moral memory" that is so essential to right living" and thereby remain `in touch' with God's ultimate calling.

Thomas's fourth spiritual temperament- the `ascetic'- describes those who search out quiet forms of worship. Unlike the sensate, the ascetic often feels distracted by noise and needs the quiet time away from the constant demands of everyday life in order to be able to worship God. The ascetic sees nature as a distraction and so seeks the "barren wastelands"- a place where nature's beauty is unlikely to become an intrusion on prayer. Such a life comes with, what Thomas refers to as, "a strictness' of self-denial". In addition the ascetic holds key values such as obedience and humility close to heart and participates periodically in activities such as fasting and retreats as a way of interceding with God.

Up to this point Thomas' classification of spiritual `wiring' can be loosely termed as non-confrontational in so far as there is no active challenge towards the spiritual beliefs of others. That changes with Thomas' `activist'- the Christian who gets out of their comfort zone to confront people with the word of God. Moses in his famous exchanges with Pharaoh found himself in an activist role (Exodus 7-11). Activists face temptations brought about by personal gain and often part with the guidance given to them by the Holy Spirit. However, with maturity the activist becomes more skilled at delivering his message from a more Christ-like perspective. When the disciples instructed Jesus to rest he replied, "my nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work" (John 4 vs 34). Jesus saw the crowds of people about him as a field that was ripe for harvest- ready to receive the Good News. Earlier on in the Gospel of John, Jesus had shown his activist tendency by throwing money changers and merchants out of the temple, proclaiming that they had defiled his Father's house (John 2 vs 13-19). Just as in that moment, mature activists today are directly involved in social reform looking to the Bible as their source of moral law.

The `caregiver' is likewise focused on the community but in a very different way, serving the poor and destitute souls that live in our towns and cities. The care giver has much to draw on from biblical scripture. As Thomas summarizes,"[Jesus] had a more important mission to accomplish than anyone who has ever lived; yet he still found time to care for the basic needs of a hungry, unruly crowd.". Despite the busyness of our own lives we can be inspired by such accounts. Indeed Thomas' telling of how one couple cared for a severely handicapped, brain-seizure prone three-year old foster child is enough to draw a tear to the eye and encourage us to help the needy. Through a compassion that has the praising and loving of God as the ultimate focus, the care giver can "speak prophetically to a selfish culture".

The seventh of Thomas' spiritual temperaments is, he asserts, perhaps the most controversial for it describes those whose experiences include God's communication through dreams and visions. Thomas has called this temperament the `enthusiast' because of its emphasis on the longing (enthusiasm)for the mysterious aspects of God's personality. Through careful interpretation of the mysterious acts of God- His appearance through dreams, visions and prayer- the enthusiast is able to discern God's answers to specific, real life questions. Where danger lies is in the possible mis-interpretation of these acts. Not only can interpretations be wrong and non-scriptural but there is also a potential for sorcery and witchcraft to creep in if a focus on God is lost. In the `Call To Holy Living' in Deuteronomy, we read about such practices as being an "object of horror and disgust to the Lord" (Deuteronomy 18). Yet, in addition to the prayers, visions and dreams, the enthusiast's intercession with God involves times of joyous celebration and praise in which a childhood view of life- with its hope and happiness for the future- is regained. The enthusiast's creativity that comes from an ability to focus not on negative and unproductive pursuits such as drinking and watching television but on positive endeavors such as starting a new business or getting involved in painting and artistic design, is one aspect of the enthusiast's temperament that we should all try to emulate.

In Thomas' eighth spiritual temperament, the `contemplative', we find an intense love and passion for God that resembles that of a bride and a bridegroom. We are perhaps reminded of the loving exchange between the `Lover' and `Beloved' of King Solomon's Song of Songs where the Beloved tells of her Lover as, "radiant and ruddy; outstanding among ten thousand" (Song of Songs 5 vs 10). So intense is the love of the contemplative to God that during prayer, the contemplative spirit becomes focused on an, "emotional attachment to, or adoration of, God". The contemplative uses what Thomas refers to as a `centering' type of worship to focus not only the mind but also the heart on God's presence. As Thomas writes, such worship frees itself from the attempts of linguistic eloquence that often characterize regular prayer and that frequently interferes with our ability to intercede sincerely with God. Contemplatives try to center their thoughts on God in a speechless worship. Because of the overarching importance that contemplatives place on their loving relationship with God, they may often seek anonymity or secrecy when helping others. Thomas emphasizes how such "secret acts of devotion" ensure that what the contemplative does is done only for the love of God.

The last of Thomas' spiritual temperaments is the `intellectual', for whom the desire to understand God through a theological consideration is the most appealing form of worship. Historical figures such as Augustine, Calvin Erasmus, Thomas Aquinas and Pascal represent the great thinkers of Christianity- the intellectuals. The Old Testament teachings tell us of how Solomon received from God, "great wisdom and understanding, and knowledge too vast to be measured" (1 Kings 4 vs 29). Likewise, the psalmist proclaims the need to hear those whose "words are wise" and whose "thoughts are filled with insight" (Psalm 49 vs 3). The opening paragraph of the book of Proverbs reminds us that only the foolish despise wisdom and discipline. To this end the purpose of the book of Proverbs is "to teach people wisdom and discipline, and to help them understand wise sayings"(Proverbs 1 vs 1-7). For the serious intellectual, seminary courses at theological colleges provide the appropriate materials for cultivating a Godly wisdom. Church history, the study of Christian doctrine and contemporary ethical issues are some of the disciplines taught in these courses although most importantly of all for any intellectual is a firm understanding of biblical scripture. A regular reading of biblical scripture is not only essential for the intellectual's own teaching of others but is also key to preventing the temptation to `go it alone' in the absence of Christ that the intellectual might experience.

Overall, Thomas does an outstanding job not only in supplying what appears to be a comprehensive overview of the Christian spiritual temperaments but also in giving the reader the opportunity to identify where his or her own spiritual balance lies. Thomas' inclusion of a survey at the end of each chapter is an interesting `add on' to the book although I think more could have been done to formulate questions that more efficiently probe the reader's own spiritual balance. As Thomas' readily points out in the last chapter, the key to much of his discussion is not to `pigeon hole' the reader into a particular spiritual category or label but to give the reader a better idea of his or her own spiritual needs. Thomas' use of the phrase, "the interplay of our spiritual temperaments" readily demonstrates his view that several temperaments may play a part in defining our God-centered wirings. I would recommend Sacred Pathways to anyone who, like me, is beginning to formulate a plan for how best to worship God in their day-to-day lives.

Many members, one body. A delightfully refreshing look at the differences we have as individuals in the church through our communication with and worship of God. Thomas confirms our own uniqueness through nine "Sacred Pathways" to God - the naturalist, sensate, traditionalist, ascetic, activist, caregiver, enthusiast, contemplative and intellectual. He provides practical ways to test yourself at the end of each chapter to determine your own path. Just as God communicated differently for Moses, Elijah, and Paul, we too hear Him and worship Him in different ways. What a confirmation that you don't have to be a clone, but rather, can follow the direction God has put into your own heart. This book spoke to my spirit and I've recommended it to many. It is a must for pastors who wish to understand their congregation better. Thomas expands our horizons without compromising the message.

Just as people have different personality temperaments, they also have different spiritual temperaments or preferred ways of approaching God for worship and discipleship. This is the primary thesis of Gary Thomas' book, "Sacred Pathways." People do not have to go to God in the same way. The best way to approach God is in accordance with the specific temperaments with which one has been created.
Thomas contends that every person has at least one spiritual temperament, and most have several. Understanding basic spiritual temperaments is helpful not only for identifying one's God-given preferences, but also for understanding how others may worship God in equally valid ways.
"Sacred Pathways" includes a chapter each on nine spiritual temperaments: naturalists, sensates, traditionalists, ascetics, activists, caregivers, enthusiasts, contemplatives and intellectuals. Each chapter describes the temperament's distinguishing characteristics, including its strengths and weaknesses. Thomas' discussions are well illustrated with many personal experiences from his own life and others. Each chapter concludes with a short assessment to help readers determine whether they have that specific temperament.
The final chapter, "Understanding Your Sacred Pathway," gives practical suggestions on how to nurture one's spiritual personality which consists of one or more temperaments and the interplay between them. Thomas does not discuss the differences between private and corporate worship, but he does recognize that some temperaments are better suited for private worship-not all are equally suited for corporate worship. The final chapter also includes practical suggestions for cultivating a more meaningful devotional life in accordance with one's temperaments in both corporate and private worship. This is helpful not only for individual worshippers, but also for those responsible for leading corporate worship.
I first discovered this book through reading Rick Warren's "The Purpose-Driven Life." I'm glad I did; "Sacred Pathways" has given me a better understanding of-and a greater appreciation for-the different ways we worship God.

The "Pathways" helped me understand other people. Of course, in a church there are different people with different personalities but I have had a judgemental heart toward some that I considered "weird" and "inappropriate". (Bear with me...I'm being honest).

Through this book God showed me how diverse and beautiful His children really are! I realized that the guy that sings and claps really loud is an "Activist" for the Lord and is genuine in his passion. I understand now that the lady who talks about Jesus being her lover is a "Contemplative" and really does have a true deep heart love for Jesus in an intimate way.

This book will open your heart to love, respect and even enjoy the diversity of the Body of Christ. Plus: I tried all of the "Pathways" (even the ones I thought were really really not for me) and it gave worship and my relationship with God a new depth.

When I look back over some of the significant and tangible connecting points in my life between myself and an Almighty God who spun the universe into motion in just a word, I find that I have often came to the realization of those connection points in similar ways or methods. Gary Thomas calls these types of connections Sacred Pathways, or nine distinct spiritual temperaments designed by the Creator who knew what He was doing when He molded, formed, and shaped me into exactly the personality I am today.

A few years back our family went through a particularly trying time, when we lost our 8 month old son, to a rare and serious heart defect called Hypo-plastic Left Heart Syndrome, or HLHS. Within the confused cloud of emotions, and the various stages of grief I experienced in the next number of months I found myself drawn into God’s creation in the most tangible way, on the wheels of a bicycle. When I felt lonely, I rode, when I felt deep pain, I spun, and when I was angry at God, I pedaled all the harder. Thomas defines this behavior as one of the nine temperaments, he calls the naturalist. “Naturalists often learn their best lessons in the outdoors. Three particularly come to mind: they visualize scriptural truth, see God more clearly, and learn to rest.”

Three years later after moving my family to a different part of the country, and seeing God move in incredible ways in our ministry, the bottom fell out again when poor decisions on my part and a series of broken relationships ended up in me losing my job suddenly and unexpectedly. Once again I found myself drawn to God’s creation where seemingly was the only place I could find rest and clarity in Him. This time it was with my boots locked in to a pair of skis gliding across the snow. I took a few day retreat at an icy cabin, and spent hours exploring the woods on cross country skis until I grew tired, then returned to read Father’s Word. I went to the ski resort and bombed down the mountain and felt the heavy weight of anxiety of the unknown fall away. It was in that cold brisk air, with ice in my beard, that I became more convinced than ever that God had a plan for me, and wasn’t done with me yet.

Thomas points out that pure naturalists have to be wary of individualism. He warns “Jesus spent time alone outdoors but he did so in preparation for going back into the world… ...we must make sure we are not using creation to escape the duties of Christian living.” This is a good check for me to consider in regards to how easy it is for me to use nature as a getaway rather than pressing in on a difficult conversations, or challenging leadership decisions.

Reading through Sacred Pathways was an encouraging journey for me. The end of each chapter contains a score sheet to help the reader discover their own spiritual temperament. My highest scores were in the areas of the Naturalist, and the Enthusiast. However, it was in the reading of the other temperaments that I began to see with greater clarity the people around me and a glimpse of their route to and from God. This realization is tremendously helpful.

Fascinating topic which from a top level explains the reason why there is frustration among church goers. We all want the other person to be just like me in all ways, but in reality we are very different from each other. This book helps us understand our differences. Very easy read and gives you the ability to figure out your type. If we have a personality type such as with the Meyers Briggs, then why a spirituality type?

An interesting read with a lot of truth. For those of us who wonder why we don't spend hours studying Hebrew like Pastor Bob or get as excited by singing the same praise choruses 27 times in a row like Worship Leader Susie, the book is an eye opener. Yes there are rock solid Biblical truths that apply to all of us as Christians, but the best manner for us iindividually for relating to, conversing with or spend time together with God is not one of them. Our personalities and life experiences give us all an unique manner to approach Him.

Oddly I find those I would term Professional Christians are most likely to discredit the book. Read the book, make up your own mind.

Before reading this book, I've labored at worship time, having a preconceived notion on what private worship looks like. Then, I discovered this book and read it. This would be one of the five most influential books on my life.

In the first chapter, Thomas introduced the concept of spiritual temperments -- some might consider it psychological, but I don't. He closed that chapter with a description of the nine temperments he noticed. The following nine chapters each look at one of the temperments, giving Biblical examples and ways to develop it, weaknesses of that temperment, and a six question quiz on how strong you are on that temperment. The final chapter encourages you to compare the scores on the tests, and gives some admonitions, such as not judging those with a different temperment.

Thomas does an excellent job of dealing with each temperment. He admits he's stronger at some than others, and tries to give a fair and accurate view of each one.

Allow me to tell a story how this book has positively impacted my life. I started reading this book as my wife and I were planning on a vacation. She always wants to get away from the city for our trip, while I'm not as excited about it. As I read this book, though, I had a hunch she was strong on the naturalist temperment (wanting to get into nature) and had some leanings to the aescetic temperment (wanting structure and solitude). So I realized her desire to get away was connected to her worship temperment, and as a result I was more prepared to encourage that kind of getting away.

I recommend this book to every Christian to understand yourself. I also believe this will help you understand your wife and possible your children (not having any kids doesn't make it easy for you to understand them). I also believe a pastor or church leader may benefit from this book to help the services be varied enough to help any temperment worship.

Well written and worthy of discussing in your small groups, with your worship and sunday service leaders. This book provides a large selection of modes of authentic worship styles. With a little understanding of styles beyond your own preferences and or traditions , this book magnifies the wonderful diversity in the Body of Christ and the wonderful multifaceted aspects of our God. Tremendously encouraging for those of us who long to be more in the presence of God, expressing our hearts to him.

Thomas provides a keen analysis of the various pathways we use to relate to God. He also provides insights that all believers need if they are to be tolerant of other peoples pathways. This is a much needed resource for those experiencing a disconnect due to changing worship styles. Traditionalists can better understand those desiring a contemporary experience and "Contemporaries" would be well-served to seek understanding of the validity of the traditionalist's preferences.

Gary Thomas' book begins with a worthy goal: Not all humans are alike, so the spiritual prescription given to one Christian may not work as well for another Christian. Not every Christian will engage in 1 hour of morning prayer, 1 hour of quiet time, 30 mins of reading the Bible, 1 hour of nighttime prayer. And we should not require the exact same daily practices in the same amounts for every Christian. Most of us will agree with this analysis.

However, Thomas uses this thoughtful analysis to justify throwing the Bible's teachings on Biblical worship and Theological Truth out the window. Thomas argues that since Carl Jung and Meyer Briggs explain there are 16 personality types, he believes there are 9 "sacred pathways" to love and worship God. He concludes that essentially ANY way of "loving God" or "worshipping God" is valid and God-honoring. He uses illogical but emotionally packed sentences to emotionally persuade and cleverly manipulate readers into accepting his conclusions. This book should be read very cautiously and with great discernment. Thomas writes from an emotional perspective and there is no emphasis on Biblical truth, no emphasis on true Biblical theology, and no care as to what the Bible says about how we are to worship God. If all humanistic forms of worship were acceptable to God, then why was Cain's sacrifice rejected?

Bottom line: Thomas is advocating "whatever YOU like, whatever feels good, God wants you to worship God however YOU like."

Thomas advocates discarding denominations (Pg 20) and accepting ALL the following practices (some Biblical, some not Biblical) as valid God-honoring worship:
Roman Catholic's sacramental rites, altar focus and mysticism (Pg 20-21) - not Biblical
Martin Luther's focus on preaching (Pg 21)
Calvinist's focus on living in the world and transforming society (Pg 21)
Monastics separation from society (Pg 21) - not Biblical: we are to be IN the world
Anabaptists model society (Pg 21) - not Biblical
Discarding creeds and discipline (Pg 19)- discarding the truth of creeds is to discard the truth of the Bible
Moravian Church practices (Pg 19) - not Biblical, even John Wesley (Thomas' example) rejected the Moravians later
Pentecostal worship and practices (Pg 20) - not Biblical
Social Gospel Movement (Pg 20) - not Biblical
Religious people who like to built altars (Pg 18) - "any altar" from any religion doesn't make it God-honoring worship
Activists who like to confront evil (Pg 18)
Enthusiastic worshipers (Pg 18) - enthusiasm doesn't make it Biblical. God is to be worshiped in Truth.

9 "Sacred Pathways" Thomas advocates:
1) Naturalists: Loving God through the Outdoors
Problem: Thomas' example is Anne Dillard (an author who has rejected the faith, declared herself "spiritually promiscuous" and her website proclaims "religion: none". Background: Wesleyan Methodist college, Presbyterian church 3 yrs, Buddhism, Judaism, Sufism and Inuit Spirituality).
2) Sensates: Loving God through the senses
Example: W.Phillip Keller
3) Traditionalists: Loving God through Ritual and Symbol
4) Ascetics: Loving God in Solitude and Simplicity
5) Activists: Loving God through Confrontation
6) Caregivers: Loving God by loving others
7) Enthusiastes: Loving God with Mystery and Celebration
Example: Ann Kiemel Anderson
8) Contemplatives: Love God Through Adoration
9) Intellectuals: Loving God With the Mind
Examples: JI Packer, RC Sproul, Calvinists

I read Gary's "Sacred Marriage" and it totally transformed my marriage and the way I thought about my marriage. So I bought "Sacred Pathways" and I have learned so much about who I am and how I worship. I always thought that my way of being with God was strange and not like other Christians and now I can see why I have never "fit" in with others and that is ok now. I have learned to embrace it and my walk has grown so much stronger.

The 9 paths he investigates are called naturalist, sensate, traditionalist, ascetic, activist, caregiver, enthusiast, contemplative and intellectual. These match up well with the 9-10 mysteries discussed in "Living with Mystery" by Stacey Padrick. What a coincidence or is it rather better -- a serendipitous occasion!

You know, sometimes we just get a little too focused. This book really lets you see how much variety there is in worship, and other ways that you can worship and speak with God. I really enjoyed his simple approach and testimony.