The Christ-Centered Heart: Peaceful Living in Difficult Times - Softcover

Mathis, Rick

9780764803871: The Christ-Centered Heart: Peaceful Living in Difficult Times

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0764803875 ISBN 13: 9780764803871

Publisher: Liguori Pubns, 1999

This book begins and ends with the belief that Christ lives within the human heart, and that the main purpose of life is to center on His presence. Drawing heavily on the Bible, the Desert Fathers, and Br. Lawrence of the Resurrection, as well as on such modern writers as Henri Nouwen and Thomas Merton, Mathis combines traditional and contemporary wisdom to show how human love often fails in common experience, but God's love can never fail.

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About the Author:

Rick Mathis, Ph.D. received his doctorate in political science from The Johns Hopkins University, where he studied political philosophy and public policy. He currently manages medical policy for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Tennessee. Mathis has published several short stories, and his article "Merton and Meaning" appeared in The Merton Seasonal. This is his first book.

From Publishers Weekly:

Mathis, manager of medical policy for Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Tennessee, presents a compelling portrait of the impact that centering our hearts on Christ can have on our lives. Using anecdotes from his and his friends' lives, Mathis contends that centering one's life on Christ will lead to peaceful living even in difficult times. To illustrate his thesis, the author tells a story of someone finding notes in a tree. The notes contain simple directions: "Love God in spite of yourself. Love God in the tensions and contradictions. Pray life." Mathis says that if seekers contemplate the truths of these notes and incorporate them into their daily lives, they will experience changes in their hearts, souls and minds and be closer to centering their hearts on Christ. Each message proclaims that we are neither perfect nor in control; by seeking God in all matters, we can be at peace in this confused, pain-ravaged world. In addition to his own anecdotes, Mathis incorporates the words of such ancient Christian writers as the Desert Fathers as well as contemporary spiritual writers such as Thomas Merton, Henri Nouwen and Richard Carlson. Each chapter closes with a meditation exercise. Mathis's little spiritual guidebook is sometimes simplistic, but his exhortations to deeply live the Christian spiritual life can be heard loud and clear.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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