I’ve said it before—Richard Foster’s Celebration of Discipline is one of the most influential books I’ve ever read. I read it in Bible College (not as an assigned text, but out of genuine interest), and have returned to it and taught it many times. So when his son, Nathan, wrote a book on his journey with the spiritual disciplines I had to read it.

The Making of an Ordinary Saint is a beautiful read. Nathan Foster set about to practice and record the twelve disciplines his father wrote about a few decades earlier. Nathan Foster’s experience makes these disciplines tangible, inspiring readers to follow on their own journey.

Nathan Foster is at his best when he reflects and writes about his own heart. This is especially true in his chapter on fasting. He records his experience day-by-day, with the ups and downs—from ease to distraction, from angst to power. The last line of his fasting journal reads, “I cried myself to sleep, determined to end the fast in the morning” (44). This sort of honesty shines throughout the book. It’s an honesty that makes you realize that you’re not alone.

His reflections on the discipline of simplicity are another fine example of this honesty:

I’m romantically drawn to a simpler life. . . . The truth is that I want an ocean castle complete with adjoining forest, lap pool, tennis court, skate park, theater room, and fancy garden with lots of fountains and birds. . . . Yet, paradoxically, I’m infatuated with the monastic life of a ten-by-ten mountain cabin. (110)

Sound familiar?

If you’re looking for a way to reinvigorate your spiritual life, Nathan Foster’s book is a powerfully genuine way to kick-start your own examen.

Foster, Nathan. The Making of an Ordinary Saint: My Journey from Frustration to Joy with the Spiritual Disciplines. BakerBooks, 2014.