Except that he's much older then I and was a gay priest (now dead), Henri Nouwen could have been my true love. He is just so gentle, honest, and dear. He writes simply, from the heart to the heart.

I began reading this Daybook in September of 2015. Occasionally one day's entry triggered all the thinking I could handle for my morning meditation. But often I'd read a week or two at a go.

Because of Henri the words "I am the Beloved" appear over and over again in my journal. Centering on this truth daily -- because I am forgetful, easily distracted, and conditioned to believe that love must be earned -- has kept my from flying to pieces over the last few months. For this and many more bits of wisdom and encouragement I recommend this book.

This book is in daily devotional format. The section of this review template should not have a percentage of completion, as it is set up to be a friend that travels with you throughout the year.

Henri Nouwen provides the reader with a daily thought to muse upon throughout each day. The thoughts and perspectives offered daily really do give one a wonderful perspective to consider and ponder. I find this a refreshing little book, giving one who desires a way to focus upon something of God's involvement in our lives and environment surrounding us... allowing these fresh thoughts to give attention and perspective to specific areas within one's daily walk.

This is a great book for a daily devotional. Henri Nouwen has a way of seeing things from a different perspective, the heart to resonate with it, and the words to express it. Highly recommend this book.

Good read

Very inspirational author. I Love his books. Highly recommended. Bible based teachings. Very helpful in Daily Life wisdom nad inspiration

This is the second time that I have read this book over the course of a year. The first time I would definitely have rated it 5 stars, this time I would have given it 3, so I have compromised in the middle.

I read this the first time after I first discovered Nouwen and his thinking which made a great impression. It spoke very clearly to me. Now 20 years later, approaching retirement, it isn’t saying as much new. I did enjoy his thoughts on the Church though. Other areas didn’t mean as much as they once used to.

This has been a great daily devotional. Each day's devotional is short and simple. Packed full of wisdom, containing nuggets of truth pertaining to all facets of life. Here are a couple of my favorite excerpts:

"Our emotional lives and our spiritual lives have different dynamics. The ups and downs of our emotional lives depend a great deal on our past or present surroundings. We are happy, sad, angry, bored, excited, depressed, loving, caring, hateful, or vengeful because of what happened long ago or what is happening now.

The ups and downs of our spiritual lives depend on our obedience, that is, our attentive listening t o the movements of the Spirit of God within us. Without this listening our spiritual life eventually becomes subject to the windswept waves of our emotions." (page 207)

"How can we embrace poverty as a way to God when everyone around us wants to become rich? Poverty has many forms. We have to ask ourselves, "What is my poverty?" Is it a lack of money, lack of emotional stability, lack of a loving spouse, lack of security, lack of safety, lack of self confidence? Each human being has a place of poverty. That's the place where God wants to dwell! "How blessed are the poor," Jesus says (Matthew 5:3). This means that our blessing is hidden in our poverty.

We are so inclined to cover up our poverty and ignore it that we often miss the opportunity to discover God, who dwells in it. Let's dare to see our poverty as the land in which our treasure is hidden." (pp. 230)

Like any 365 devo, there are days where this devotional is amazing and days where I slogged through, feeling like it was a little thin on theology. But this book is created from selections of his writings as a whole, so it stands to reason that not every single paragraph will be dripping with genius.

I like his stuff on the whole, but I differ in certain theological points, so there were days where I felt a little disappointed in his more ecumenical/less evangelical point of view.

This is a book of daily reflections -- the kind of book one picks up and turns to today's date. I've been reading this book in that manner since 2007. This year, 2015, I decided to develop the discipline of reading it each and every morning. It has become a year filled with travel and thus these daily reflections have followed me to Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Italy, Seattle, Ridgefield, WA, Oakhurst, CA, and of course at home in Ashland OR.. Over the years, especially this year, this little book has be come filled with underlinings, and personal comments -- things I want to remember.

Digestible, substantive reflections refresh my outlook.

Good little tidbits but I think I need to read something for full-length and substantial. I like his wisdom and I feel like I would enjoy more from him.

Such a beautiful book, I need to read it again!

So many mornings the daily meditation was amazingly pertinent.