Jack Levison holds the W. J. A. Power Chair of Old Testament
Interpretation and Biblical Hebrew at Perkins School of Theology,
Southern Methodist University. Raised in a tract house in
Levittown, New York, Jack left to attend Wheaton College, followed
by an MA at Cambridge University. When he returned from England to
pursue doctoral studies at Duke University, Jack fell in love with
a divinity student, Priscilla Pope, whose office is now just down
the hall from him at SMU. With essays in the Huffington Post,
parade.com, relevant.com, and beliefnet.com, Jack’s writing and
speaking appeal to a wide swath of readers. In the course of his
career, he has received the Fitzpatrick Prize for theology at
Cambridge University, as well as grants from the National
Humanities Center, the Lilly Fellows Program, the Louisville
Institute, the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, the Rotary
Foundation, the International Catacomb Society, and the National
Endowment for the Humanities. Jack lives in Lower Greenville, a
thriving urban hub of Dallas, with Priscilla—and not too far from
his adult children, Chloe and Jeremy.
“Jack Levison’s book is not an overly intellectual look at the Holy
Spirit, but really examines what it means to live a Spirit-filled
life. A needed resource for those looking to be guided by the Holy
Spirit found in Scripture. Jack opens our minds to the fullness of
the Holy Spirit and removes the human limitations that we often
place on this person of the Trinity, teaching us to hear and obey
as God speaks.” — Dr. John M. Perkins, Co-founder of the
Christian Community Development Association (CCDA), Founder and
President Emeritus of the John and Vera Mae Perkins Foundation
“Jack Levison studies, meditates, prays and writes of the place of
the Holy Spirit in our lives with more skill and understanding than
anyone I know.” —Eugene Peterson, from the foreword
“Jack Levison's new devotional will guide you into the theme of the
Holy Spirit in Scripture, aiming for spiritual formation, not just
spiritual information. My favorite part: the simple prayers at the
end of each reading. A beautiful, accessible, and soul-nourishing
resource!” —Brian D. McLaren, Author of We Make the Road
by Walking
“Jack Levison brings together scholarship, Scripture meditation,
concrete practices, and compelling inspiration. He helps us
retrieve the tragically lost centrality of the Holy Spirit in the
mainline Christian world. Here comes the return of the fire and the
wind!” —Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM
“This is a book designed to guide readers into greater
understanding of the Holy Spirit. As the author puts it, ‘It’s
intended to prompt you to reflect at your own pace and to absorb,
slowly and deliberately, the presence of the Holy Spirit in your
life, your community of faith and the world.’ Within the biblical
universe the Spirit is the One who gives power to sustain faith,
courage to face fears and conviction to speak boldly. This same
Spirit is alive now. This book of 40 daily devotions is designed to
be a practice that will both increase your learning about the
Spirit but more importantly expand your experience of the Spirit.
Read—meditate—reflect—breathe—pray. This is the pattern of the
book; it’s a pattern that leads inward, outward and back again.
What might happen in our lives and our congregations if we gave
more attention to the Holy Spirit? Find out.” —Roy W. Howard,
The Presbyterian Outlook
“Is it possible to live a Spirit-filled life amid our daily
distractions and demands? Jack Levison assures us it is and offers
a path to wisdom through stillness and abandonment…This book leads
us to the ultimate Source, the Spirit. It is a guide not just for
40 days, but a lifetime.” —Judith Valente,
Correspondent, Religion & Ethics Newsweekly and author
of The Art of Pausing
“Levison, who teaches Old Testament at Perkins School of Theology,
has made a career of studying Spirit in scripture. He puts his
significant learning in accessible form in this book intended for
use as inspirational reading over a 40-day period, which could be
used for Lent or any time of year. Whenever they think of Spirit,
Christians are inclined to think of Pentecost, baptismal liturgy,
gifts of the Spirit—or noisy charismatics. Levison shows that
there is so much more about the Spirit that can enrich our thinking
about the God who is Spirit. The Spirit is involved in the biblical
story from the outset: in the first creation story in Genesis it
was the Spirit who brooded over the primordial chaos. It is God’s
spirit that gives each person breath. The simple prayers Levison
offers at the end of each day’s reading are themselves worthy of
meditation.” —The Christian Century
“Jack Levison combines a scholar's intimate knowledge of scripture
with a born writer's mastery of nuance, style, empathy and humor.
Every page of this book brims with reverence for God and
common-sense wisdom won the hard way.” —David Laskin, author
of The Family
“40 Days with the Holy Spirit opens a door for all seekers,
religious and irreligious, to experience ‘God’s Spirit-breath
within.’ This is more than a must read—it's food for busy and
hungry hearts.”—Dr. Michael Rakes, Pastor at Winston Salem
First
“Levison is an excellent guide to a life in the Spirit that is
often quiet in its expression, but which will lead to a deeper
encounter with God. As he notes, the journey moves from deep
within to the world outside. It is a call to grow in faith and
practice. It is an experience worth embracing, and I found it a
deeply enriching and rewarding experience, which meant that I
completed the journey.” —Robert Cornwall, Ponderings on a
Faith Journey
“As with many Paraclete books, the book is shaped for the church
calendar and this one for Lent, but this book far transcends Lent.
It is for personal spiritual formation. What matters perhaps most
about the Holy Spirit is that we don’t ‘get’ the Spirit
conceptually and internally all at once (even if you are
charismatic!) but we need to learn about the Spirit more and more.
We learn not by cramming it all into one session—grabbing a
concordance, a dictionary and a big theological book—but by daily
long term routine exposure. Jack’s book is designed to do that: 40
days. Stories, good Bible study, and a prayer at the end of each
short chapter. Gathered around seven verbs and these verbs organize
the themes of the book: breathing, praying, practicing, learning,
leading, building, and blossoming. This is a devotional…by a world
class Bible scholar…and he’s not pandering to anyone’s theology …
and he opens the Bible and lets the Spirit turn chaos into
order.” —Scot McKnight
“40 Days with the Holy Spirit will inspire you to encounter God in
fresh and surprising ways. You'll develop stronger spiritual
muscles as you breathe, read, reflect, and pray—all with an eye to
cultivating a relationship with the least familiar member of the
Trinity. 40 Days with the Holy Spirit is interactive, offering the
opportunity to write and pray each day; intelligent, rooted in a
rigorous study of scripture, from Genesis to Revelation; and
inviting, with 40 insightful, well-planned 20-30 minute daily
exercises; and prayerful, with 40 original prayers that capture
each day's insight into the deep, spiritual work of the Holy
Spirit. 40 Days with the Holy Spirit is very highly recommended to
the attention of all Christians regardless of their denominational
affiliation.” —Midwest Book Review
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