Bread for the Journey - by Henri J M Nouwen (Paperback)

About the Book

From the Back Cover

When beloved author Henri Nouwen set out to record this daybook of totally new reflections, he suddenly found himself on "a true spiritual adventure." For in these 366 original, interlocking morsels of daily wisdom, Nouwen provides both sustenance and a trail for us to follow, as he unveils, to his own surprise, his personal map of faith. From the delicate interplay of human experience to the surrender to Christ and the embrace of Christian community, that journey of Christian spirituality is explored and celebrated here in each eloquent, thought-provoking passage,

"The table is one of the most intimate places in our lives. It is there that we give ourselves to one another. When we say, 'Take some more, let me serve you another plate, let me pour you another glass, don't be shy, enjoy it, ' we say a lot more than our words express. We invite our friends to become part of our lives. We want them to be nurtured by the same food and drink that nurture us. We desire communion.... Every breakfast, lunch, or dinner can become a time of growing communion with one another."

Intimately personal and inspiring, Bread for the Journey is a daily feast of fresh insight into the challenges and deep joys of a life lived in close communion with God. Nouwen is a wise, loving companion who invites us along as he finds joy in the community of loss, true freedom in forgiveness of others, and hope in surprising places. Each daily meditation is a stepping-stone along a path of private discovery, offering Nouwen's seasoned yet fresh ideas on kindness, love, suffering, and prayer, the Church as God's people, and the importance of Jesus in one's life-reflecting, as a whole, Nouwen's own 'personal creed.' Bread for the Journey brims with daily nourishment and guidance for devoted followers and new friends alike -- food for thought on a yearlong journey of discovery and faith.

Review Quotes

"Bread for the Journey is a banquet for the heart and soul. Henri Nouwen is the Thomas Merton of the 90s." - Dan Wakefield, author of Expect a Miracle

"Henri Nouwen shares personal moments, teaching moments, sacramental moments-moments of delight and surprise for anyone who cares to commune with him-and the One to whom he points each day of this journey. What a gift for us all! Bread for the Journey nourishes the soul." - Fred Rogers, host and creator of Mr. Roger's Neighborhood

"Henri Nouwen writes that this book of days turns out to be his creed....I am grateful to him for a creed that emphasizes God's love and mercy in an unmerciful world." - Madeleine L'Engle, author of A Live Coal in the Sea

"'Give us this day our daily bread, ' says the prayer. How graced we are to have Henri Nouwen's bread to break at the beginning of each day. He has combined the flour, water, and yeast of his heart to provide us with loaves of wisdom to nourish us. I celebrate the creation of this book." - Christopher deVinck, author of Simple Wonders

"What Henri Nouwen does so consistently, and with such freshness, is invite us to the feast of God's presence. In this volume we are fed with more than rich crumbs, for once again Nouwen's whole-grain reflections enlarge and multiply to nourish a multitude." - Luci Shaw, author of God in the Dark and Writing the River