Invitation to a Journey: A Road Map for Spiritual Formation

by M. Robert Mulholland, Ruth Haley Barton (Introduction)

M. Robert Mulholland Jr. defines spiritual formation as "the process of being formed in the image of Christ for the sake of others." Compact and solid, this definition encompasses the dynamics of a vital Christian life and counters our culture's tendency to make spirituality a trivial matter or reduce it to a private affair between "me and Jesus."

In Invitation to a Journey, Mulholland helps Christians new and old understand that we become like Christ gradually, not instantly. Not every personality is suited to an early morning quiet time, so Mulholland frees different personality types to express their piety differently. He reviews the classical spiritual disciplines and demonstrates the importance of undertaking our spiritual journey with (and for the sake of) others.

This road map for spiritual formation is profoundly biblical and down to earth. In the finest tradition of spiritual literature, it is a vital help to Christians at any stage of their journey.

This edition is revised and expanded by Ruth Haley Barton with a new foreword, practices and study guide.

Genres: Christian, Nonfiction, Theology, Spirituality, Faith, Christianity, Christian Living

210 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1993

Reviews

[Tony · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are looking for good books on spiritual formation, I recommend this one highly. This book was a wonderful surprise to me when I purchased it because I didn’t have any expectations. It has turned out to be one of the more practical and insightful books on spiritual formation I have ever read.

Robert Mulholland presents spirituality as a journey by stating, “I don’t know what your perception of Christian discipleship might be, but much contemporary Christians spirituality tends to view the spiritual life as being a static possession rather than a dynamic and ever-developing growth toward wholeness in the image of Christ.” The author divided this book into four parts.

In part one, Mulholland defines spiritual formation as “a process of being conformed to the image of Christ for the sake of others.” He also points out that viewing formation as a journey goes against our current, instant-gratification society; however, he believes, when we begin to view spiritual formation as a process, all of life suddenly becomes spiritually forming.

Part two of the book explores the importance of personality types in the formation process. The author chooses to view Carl Jung’s model of human personality for holistic spirituality. In my opinion, the first two parts of this book was very informative because it starts to show you how intertwined your spirituality is with your daily lives. The author includes a few graphs that serve as a good reference.

In part three, the author begins to write more specifically to the understanding of spiritual disciplines. Mulholland examines four stages of the Christian journey. These stages are called awakening, purgation, illumination, and union

Part four, confirms the author main emphasis that our formation is for the sake of others. He highlights both our capacity to add to the lives of others and our vital need for their support.

Some Christians might have some difficulty with this book because they have a view of Christian spirituality based on the “one size fits all” approach to spiritual formation.

[Wendy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had read through sections of this book with my college leadership team, and it's been on my to-read pile for a while. I was finally able to tackle it recently while on a personal retreat, and I'm glad I was able to binge-read it over the course of a long weekend. I think it would have taken me a longer time to reorient myself to it had I read it slowly over several weeks. That being said, it's not a book to read quickly and then check off the reading list. Mulholland's premise is that spiritual formation is "the process of being conformed to the image of Christ for the sake of others," and he is deliberate and slow about unfolding that through the book. Having read through it in a short period of time, I almost immediately began going back through the book to pull out pieces I wanted to remember and ideas I wanted to mull over.
I particularly appreciated the emphasis on spiritual formation being intended for others. We tend to look at spiritual formation as something private and individual, that's just between me and God. It is indeed personal, but it also affects how we function in community. I'd like to read and think more about spiritual formation as a tool for my ministry, and I appreciated this foundational book.

[Allison Wise · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75! Had some good things in here; some things I didn't totally agree with, but glad to have read it

[Lucas Shryock · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best book I’ve read on spiritual formation. It was very convicting for me because I struggle with control. The book helped me realize different areas I need to grow in, along with how I can relate to others in my faith journey. I will be returning to this book in a couple of years probably (-:

[Robin Langford · Rating 4 out of 5]

I first read this book over 20 years ago. Wow, did it hold up!! I’m so glad I re-read it...it hit me personally, but it also struck a chord with the issues the church is facing in culture today. I highly recommend for anyone who is ready to begin thinking seriously about spiritual formation, to learn and grow in practical ways, or to needs help creating a framework for spiritual growth.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 great read on spiritual formation with really helpful practices added by Ruth Haley Barton. An enjoyable and thought provoking read

[Ian · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The process of being conformed to the image of Christ for the sake of others" is how Professor Mulholland defines spiritual formation. I've read a number of books on "how" to do this but this one perhaps provides the best outline with quality Biblical references.

What I particular appreciate about this book is the recognition that God has made us all uniquely different so our journeys of spiritual formation are similarly uniquely different. Mulholland explores these differences and provides guidance on how each broad personality type (think Myer Briggs or at it's most basic extrovert vs introvert) engages spiritually. I've never explored it like this and have tended to pigeon hole myself into a particular form of worship and service that is very individualised due to my introversion.

But what Mulholland stresses is to develop true holistic spirituality we all need to incorporate elements of the individual, corporate and social dimensions into our walks. I needed to read that as increasingly I've become frustrated with my "walk" but now realise that the personal dimension far outweighs the other two and hence, I have an imbalance which limits my growth.

I most appreciated the second last chapter on "Corporate Spirituality" where Mulholland provides wonderful Biblical teaching on Jacob and then Nicodemus to demonstrate how we can only truly "grow" when we relinquish control of our relationship with God to God. That was a lightning bolt moment for me - I'm the boss, not Him. Mulholland then demonstrates through silence, solitude, prayer and accountable communion with others we can gradually let go and give control over to God.

I expect I'll be diving back into this book many times in the future.

[Stephen Walsh · Rating 5 out of 5]

I genuinely believe this is one of the most all encompassing books on spiritual formation that I’ve come across.

It is genuinely deep, but shockingly understandable and relatable.

This book is a treasure for the church in our time and any time.

Please give it a go, it will change and develop your heart and mind as you go along your journey.

So grateful.

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mulholland does a great job of introducing us to the spiritual journey - I love his use of the language around purgation, illumination and union (which is used by followers of Jesus throughout history).

The insights and practices he suggests (I read the Ruth Halley Barton edition), are insightful and transformative - making this book best read slowly over months (not over a few weeks like I did).

My biggest gripe - is his use of Myers Briggs as a valid framework of viewing people’s development and differences. This book was written at a time where that was an emerging framework, but over the past decade, it has been found to be lacking in psychological evidence as well as personal application.

Overall - if this is your introduction to Spiritual Formation - this is a great place to start. But, if you’ve read Willard or Foster or their disciples - this book is a resource that is rather redundant but still worthwhile.

[Matthew McConnell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book because John Mark Comer said every enneagram one should read it. Lol. I think Mulholland is definitely an enneagram one.

Overall, pretty good stuff on spiritual formation. I appreciated the attention given to classical Christian practices for spiritual formation and how Mulholland drew from the Christian tradition.

[Chad D · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best one-volume primer on the maturing Christian life that I have ever read. Highly, highly recommended. It lays out the categories of discipleship, and their interconnectedness, with beautiful clarity. Supplement with more practical dives into each category.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very similar to other books I’ve read but it was still really good!

[Brother Brandon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mulholland is truly a scholar, but he writes this book in a readable way because his audience is everyone. This book has profound wisdom for the Christian pilgrimage and anyone who takes their walk with Christ seriously must read this book and sit on what it says. I plan to re-read it maybe annually to mine out more wisdom.

Mulholland makes great use of biblical truth, diagrams, practices, a chapter drawing from Jungian psychology (very interesting!) and much more. This is probably the single best book on spiritual formation and I will lean towards recommending this even over Richard Foster's monumental 'Celebration of Discipline'.

Finally, I think Mulholland defines spiritual formation in the best way: "a process of being formed into the image of Christ for the sake of others".

[Steve Watson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I like that he reviews some work that has been done over the centuries in Christendom. Much as I’m fed up with the current state of Christendom, I love to grab from its historical treasure trove. So the work people have done to recognize seasons of awakening, purgation, illumination, and union, for instance (pgs. 94 ff) is interesting to me, even if the liner way it’s presented strikes me as untrue to my experience and that of others.

I like this line too: “Without our performance of the disciplines, God is, for all practical purposes, left without any means of grace through which to effect transformation in our lives. But without God’s transforming grace, our disciplines are empty, hollow notions, the form of godliness without the power.” (157) Then again, I didn’t find Mulholland really exploring what God’s lived presence, the actual experience of God’s grace feels like. God is system more than person in his writing, as I read it.

This Kenneth Leech M. quotes – more where that came from please! “The essential difference between orthodox Christianity and the various heretical systems is that orthodoxy is rooted in paradox.” (172) Yes – the systematizers that suck God and life of any complexity and mystery and situationality – they are the heretics. Yes!

Now, the most important thing I have to say. The problem with us only reading white authors for this course is captured, in its many layers of its problem, in one line here. “He was a young African American who had been engaged in a very creative and effective social ministry….” To for the first time point out the race of a person on page 185 means several things. 1) It means you haven’t pointed out that other people you’ve discussed are White, which means you are white and you are assuming all your readers are White or at least have a White normative reference point. In other words, it’s a sub-conscious white supremacy – meaning a preference for whiteness. 2) It means that this man’s race is important to understanding him, whereas every other person mentioned thus far as no racial tag affixed to their name. 3) There’s an implication in this anecdote that Black churches or Black Americans in ministry are more likely to be socially active and spiritually empty. Which is some kind of White evangelical stereotype of the Black church – as if there is one singular expression of the “Black church.” 4) Race aside, this whole section wants to be centralizing what it calls “social spirituality” but in the end it treats it as a tag-on, as the last – non-optional, I keep saying it’s not optional – but the last cherry on top of the sundae of the deeper work of pietist spiritual formation. What about “survival as vocation,” as Latino author Patrick Reyes explores in his memoir? What about finding God where God lives, among those considered “the least of these?”

[Glen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this read refreshing and insightful on several viewpoints that I have been striving to articulate in recent years. There is a vitality to the text in that is combines inspiration, intellectualism and social responsibility in a comprehensible framework.

Among the strengths of the book are: 1) Chapters 7&8 provide a profound psychological foundation that explains why certain spiritual disciplines resonate more easily to respective personality types (a conclusion I came to some years back but lacked research to help with the assertion). 2) Mulholland's interaction between private spirituality and social spirituality provides a key evangelical voice in a time when the balance between these two spheres of biblical living is so often lacking. 3) Barton's applications that she added at the end of each chapter lead the reader into purposeful reflection on each chapter. 4) As a NT scholar, the treatment of the biblical text adds texture to his recommendations for living as a called out people who are being sent back into the world as countercultural representatives of the kingdom.

It is always delightful to find salient books that speak to your current moment in the journey. Therefore, when I closed the last chapter in the book it was with a sense of sublime gratitude for the wisdom I discovered in these pages.

[John Minch · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a very difficult book to rate because it feels confused about what type of book it is intended to be, what type of audience it is intended to address, and seems to be trying to accomplish too many things at once. The title includes the phrase "A Road Map for Spiritual Formation", which lends itself to the impression that this will be a practical work with clear instructions for how to progress through a process of spiritual formation, written for an audience of readers who have decided to pursue a process of spiritual formation; however, as I read I found myself left with the distinct impression that this is actually a theoretical and persuasive work dedicated to describing what spiritual formation is, what historic practices it includes, and why it is a process that we should be engaged in today.

Part one introduces the concept of spiritual formation as "being formed into the image of Christ for the sake of others" with chapters about what it means to "be formed", what is meant by "the image of Christ" and why this process is in fact "for the sake of others". Part two addresses "Personality and Piety" and describes that we are created to be unique parts of the body of Christ - it spends many pages describing the basic concepts of meyers-briggs personality types in order to describe the way each Christian is made to incarnate Christ's presence in the world through unique gifts, and describes that we are each subject to unique pitfalls which the author refers to as our "shadow side", and which much be developed and guarded against for "holistic" spiritual development. Part 3 includes 4 chapters dedicated to describing different sets of spiritual disciplines and explaining why they are engaged and why they are different than legalistic practices. Part 4 final focuses on describing why community is important to the spiritual formation process, recapitulating with new examples the previous arguments from part 1 about why spiritual formation is a process "for the sake of others".

As you can see, this is not a book devoid of useful content - if you are someone who has heard the term "spiritual formation" or spiritual journey" and want to know more about what those terms mean, this is a book I would wholeheartedly recommend. But, if you are the type of reader that the title and thesis seem to be targeting, I'm not sure how useful you would find the content this work contains - it does a good job of describing the practices, and process, and tells you why they are good but falls short in terms of providing instruction on HOW to begin implementing them in your own life. For more "practical" approaches to the topic of spiritual formation, I would recommend jumping straight to a number of the authors mentioned in the "transforming resources" appendix at the end of the book (such as the works by Richard Foster quoted in the section on the disciplines), or outside works like: "Holiness for Ordinary People" By David Drury, "The Way of Holiness" by Steve Deneff.

In short, if this work were titled "What is spiritual formation" or, "What is a Spiritual Journey", I would feel comfortable giving it another star or two - however this is not how the author has chosen to represent it, and as such I believe the title makes promises that the book doesn't answer; it certainly provides resources you can follow to an eventual answer, but the two are not the same.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

Robert Mulholland wants us to approach spiritual disciplines as a journey that is different for every one of us that aims at the same goal: "being conformed to the image of Christ for the sake of others." "Invitation to a Journey" invites us not to squeeze ourselves into a box of what we think the spiritual life ought to look like, but to have our journeys shaped by our personalities.

Mulholland believes that spiritual formation is both counter-cultural and also joy-giving. He says, “We become either agents of God's healing and liberating grace or carriers of the sickness of the world.” I love this insight: “Everyone is in a process of spiritual formation. We are being shaped into either the wholeness of the image of Christ or a horribly destructive caricature of that image--destructive not only to ourselves but also to others, for we inflict our brokenness upon them . . . The direction of our spiritual growth infuses all we do with intimations of either Life or Death.”

Mulholland spends time reflecting on how our personality type (he utilizes Myers-Briggs's 16 typologies) connects to our spiritual disciplines. While I appreciate what Mulholland was trying to do, I think this was the weakest part of the book. Part of that is because Mulholland overstates the scientific bona fides of Myers-Briggs, part of that is because he struggles to clarify where the process of spiritual formation should align with our personality and where spiritual formation will actually call us to do things that will be hard for our personality type.

My favorite part of Mulholland's book is the final section, where he really focuses in on spiritual formation being for the sake of others. This is where Mulholland's book really stands out.

While Mulholland's "Invitation to a Journey" isn't among my favorite books on spiritual disciplines, it is thoughtful guide. We are all being formed. “We fail to realize that the process of spiritual shaping is a primal reality of human existence. Everyone is in a process of spiritual formation!" Christ meets us in our unique personality and calls us to himself and others.


For more reviews see thebeehive.live.

[Nathan Franklin · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

This book, objectively, was great. I have a ton of highlights and it goes over a lot of great ideas and has tons of great thoughts. The thesis is especially great: “spiritual formation is a process of being formed into the image of Christ for the sake of others.” There’s a lot of great stuff and if you need a book on spiritual formation, this is a great one.

Why not 5 stars then? And why did it take me a year to read a 200 something page book? To be honest, I had a hard time paying attention. It’s written very academically which can be good but in this case sometimes it was… boring. There’s a real lack of stories, so it’s just a fire hose of ideas without a lot of real life experience to tie it to. Most of the chapters are 20-30 min so sometimes it felt more like a recorded lecture. Maybe that’s your thing, just not mine.

Verdict? If you are studying spiritual formation to teach a class on it or you are in a class about spiritual formation and need to write a paper, this is the perfect book for you. If you’re a regular joe and need something more concrete, check out Practicing the Way by John Mark Comer.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was simultaneously affirming and convicting, encouraging and challenging. And all written in a truly pastoral tone, akin to Willard, Peterson, and Foster.

This is the clearest explanation of spiritual formation that I’ve ever been presented with. Mulholland embraces the nuance and paradox of “working out our salvation” while God works in us and manages to provide a practical guide to what that looks like while also acknowledging that we are each truly unique representations of God’s image who will draw close to God via very individualized paths. There is so much depth in this exploration and yet Mulholland makes it accessible. I’m sure I will reread it.


Caveat: There are a handful of phrases and examples that have not aged well, and which I imagine Mulholland (in his compassion and thoughtfulness) would have edited had he been alive to develop this expanded edition alongside Ruth Haley Barton. I encourage grace in the reading of them so as not to miss the forest for the trees.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly recommended!!
One of the more robust books I’ve read on spiritual formation that helps clearly call us to why and what and how of spiritual formation.
He describes SF as a “process of being formed in the image of Christ for the sake of others”
And then unpacks each word and shift throughout the book, particularly as a deepening response to Christ’s Lordship and the work of the spirit.
His depth of biblical understanding applied here is refreshingly orthodox but not stagnant. His understanding of Revelation alone and how it applies to our discipleship, mission and place in the world is wonderful.
I will come back to it to reread, relearn, and teach from.

[Garrett Bagwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Holistic spirituality is a pilgrimage of deepening responsiveness to God’s control of our life and being.”

In this book, Robert Mulholland lays out a rich and deeply challenging vision of life with Christ. To say it is deeply challenging is to say that it opposes and counteracts nearly all of the Western, Americanized constructs that this reader personally grew up with. Mulholland’s discipleship argues for a spirituality that is intrinsically corporate, not private; focused on others, not self; subjected to God’s control, not an object to be controlled.

This book should be read slowly in community.

[Tori · Rating 5 out of 5]

I started this book in April and have taken my time to pray through it, journaling along the way. I've felt a tug to really dive into my spiritual formation and this book was very helpful. I accidentally purchased an older version, but by partnering it with a video series I found on YouTube by Pastor Craig Sefa, I was challenged to put spiritual disciplines into practice. It's had a profound effect on my personal life and my ministry service.
This is not a book to be read lightly and then put on a shelf but one to savor and really dive deep into what God has for you.

[Blair Stretch · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really good overview of spiritual formation that works from Mulholland's excellent definition - "being formed into the likeness of Christ for the sake of others." Some chapters were better than others. I really loved the prayers, teaching, and reflections offered in the edition with Ruth Haley Barton.

[Noah Mazurkiewicz · Rating 4 out of 5]

He goes on and on for way too long about enneagrams. Instead of just touching on enneagrams as a cool little something that can help people understand themselves a bit more, he sets aside as a whole section of the book to enneagrams and references them constantly throughout the rest. Other than the over reliance on an enneagrams in my opinion it was a pretty good book.

[Lindsay Rettler · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read and discussed with church friends. The author offers a lot of good balance between extremes, which I always like. Also liked his emphasis on the wide variety of ways/practices in which people can approach God and learn. He also addressed Meyers Briggs and Enneagram personality types, which is always fun. Sometimes what we prefer isn’t always what we need. But sometimes it is! :)

[Tristan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This gave me some helpful paradigms to view spiritual formation. Love his definition: the process of being confirmed into the image of Christ for others. I also loved how he integrated the Myers Briggs into spiritual disciplines. Super helpful in that regard.

[Linnea Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think I will look back and say this book changed my life. Certainly it has changed and clarified many of my perspectives on discipleship. I appreciate his thoughtfulness and thoroughness when explaining spiritual principles in simple ways

[ViAsia Bramblett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Challenges left and right but also, practical of understanding the growth we can learn from people who are opposites in the way we live our spiritual life but also, it’s not a personal spirituality but a journey alongside others.

[Andy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A stirring and challenging read about spiritual formation. Made lots of notes to now reflect on and apply.

[Stephen long · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gonna go ahead and add this book to my list of books to reread bc of how insightful and good it was