Fresh Wind Blowing: Living in God's New Pentecost

by Steve Harper

A fresh wind of God's Spirit is blowing on the earth today, and as in times past, God is inviting us to raise our sails and move forward with the power and direction that reflects our commitment to God's will. Some are calling it ""a new pentecost,"" but whatever name is given, we are living in a time when we have an opportunity to connect with God's renewing work. One specific manifestation of this movement is ""the new monasticism."" This book is an invitation to explore it and embrace the dynamics it contains. ""This book is as timely as it is inspiring. Harper captures the truth that fresh winds always blow through the community of faith, leaving in their wake thoughts that tug at our heart. He evokes in every reader the question, how ought I to respond? The answer he gives is a humble, obedient, and courageous yes."" --Susan Muto, Dean, Epiphany Academy of Formative Spirituality ""The hallmark of Steve Harper's books is simple profundity. This new collection of meditations on a fresh wind blowing bears all the marks of his winsome style and the accumulated wisdom of his lifelong attentiveness to the Spirit. . . . He envisions contemplation as a spiritual rule of life based upon the template of Christ. Read this book, accept his invitation, and journey into a life worth living in our time."" --Paul W. Chilcote, Academic Dean and Professor of Historical Theology and Wesleyan Studies, Ashland Theological Seminary ""A growing number of Christians from across the American church scene have selected the term 'new monasticism' to identify themselves. Recognizing the failure and poverty of entrepreneurial and consumer-based attempts at church renewal, they are practicing the quieter life of prayer, meditation, and care for outcasts that in earlier troubled times was centered in monasteries--but in this case 'monasteries without walls.' I call it slow church development. It is the most promising development in my lifetime of Holy Spirit renewal. Harper's book is an attractive and accurate orientation to this quiet witness of imaginative and devout ways of living obediently in these times."" --Eugene H. Peterson, Professor Emeritus of Spiritual Theology, Regent College Dr. Steve Harper is Professor Emeritus of Spiritual Formation and Wesley Studies at Asbury Theological Seminary. He is also the founder of A Site for Attentive Formation, a daily blog that encourages and assists people in their journey of Christian formation (www.oboedire.wordpress.com). He has been married to his wife, Jeannie, since 1970, and they are the parents of two children and two grandchildren. Steve is the author or coauthor of twenty-six books and a frequent speaker at conferences and retreats.

86 pages, Hardcover

Published October 28, 2013

About the author

Steve Harper has become one of the most sought after speakers and business strategists on the power of deepening and strengthening the power of connections through a process he calls “Rippling.” Steve’s unique and refreshing approach to how and why individuals, organizations and even our society can and must reach outside the box to connect, is literally changing lives and impacting corporate bottom line dollars.

A serial entrepreneur, professional speaker, author and leading business strategist, Steve has successfully uncovered the secret to creating powerful long-lasting connections and their impact on one’s personal and professional life. Steve has transitioned his years of business experience and unyielding customer focus into a successful consulting practice appropriately named The Ripple Effect after his successful first book by the same title.

Born in Albuquerque, New Mexico Steve credits his passion and fiery personality with the green chili that is an apparent part of his DNA makeup. Steve attended the University of New Mexico on a DECA Marketing Scholarship, where his studies focused on marketing and business management. Through his early involvement with a startup while going to school, Steve developed a strong interest in entrepreneurship and vowed to own his own company one day.

That dream became a reality when Steve was selected by Xerox Corporation to be their Austin, Texas sales and service agent in 1993 starting Innovative Office Solutions, Inc. Steve, the youngest Xerox agent in the country, successfully ran I.O.S. for the next five years amassing numerous corporate recognitions from Xerox and serving on several agent advisory boards. In 1996 Steve and his team were recognized by the Austin Business Journal as one of Austin’s 50 Fastest Growing Companies and award that still holds a special place in Steve’s office today.

In 1998, Steve decided to leave the Xerox agent program in pursuit of new, more challenging opportunities. He opened a new company called Complete Digital Solutions, Inc. and successfully used the new company and its unique platform be an early market leader in the emerging digital imaging and scanning field. It was through this new venture that Steve began to define his unique approach to building his client base and utilizing the power of the Ripple to his advantage. C.D.S. quickly grew almost entirely from referral, because of Steve’s respected resource mentality to helping all people that crossed his path in life or business. His efforts were capped off by his recognition by Office Dealer Magazine selecting C.D.S. as their Elite Dealer for 2003.

Steve has always maintained a unique focus on developing strong, long-lasting relationships with his clients, prospects and employees. By building a strong network of referrals and repeat customers, Steve has honed his ability to foster client relationships into a leveraged system for achieving solid business success. That system is represented in his book The Ripple Effect and through his speaking engagements, customized training, ongoing coaching and impressive line up of customizable training programs that he and his team offer today.

Steve enjoys helping companies and business leaders recognize the importance of building strong relationships with their clients, prospects and employees. He speaks professionally to a variety of groups, both corporate and civic, about creating a Ripple-centric strategy and the power it can bring to one’s personal and professional life.

Steve resides in Austin with his wife Kathy and their two boys Zachary and Joshua. He maintains that his children are his greatest teachers and his wife his biggest inspiration.