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Books and resources for ministers, worship leaders and all spiritual people

Philip Garside Books

Finding Your Sacred Self - Print.

Finding Your Sacred Self - Print.

$20.00 NZD
$20.00 NZD
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Finding Your Sacred Self: Prayers, poems and pastoral helps

By Ian M Kilgour

Unlock inner peace and spiritual growth through practical exercises, prayers, and meditations designed to nurture your relationship with the divine in a fast-paced world.

Read this book to:

  • Discover practical tools to cope with stress and anxiety.
  • Enhance your spiritual connection with diverse meditation techniques.
  • Foster personal well-being through disciplines of solitude, stillness, silence, and simplicity.
  • Gain insights from a lifetime of pastoral care and experience.
  • Cultivate a deeper understanding of the divine in various forms.
  • Access a curated collection of prayers and pastoral helps for various situations.
  • Embark on a transformative journey toward inner peace and replenishment.

Features

  • 72 pages of practical guidance and insights.
  • Step-by-step exercises for meditation and contemplation.
  • A diverse range of prayers suited for both religious and non-religious readers.
  • Contributions from the author’s extensive pastoral experience.
  • A toolkit for personal and communal spiritual growth.

Published: December 2023 
Language: English
Words: 14,869
B/W text, 72pp, 6″ x 9″ 
ISBN 9781991027641

[In stock]

Click for eBooks   

About the Book

In Finding Your Sacred Self, Ian M Kilgour offers a transformative guide to navigating the spiritual complexities of life.

Drawing on years of pastoral care, Kilgour provides practical tools designed to help readers cope with stress and anxiety while fostering a deep connection to the divine. 

Inspired by a simple exercise with a 91-year-old, the book goes beyond traditional pastoral practices, introducing step-by-step exercises that emphasise the importance of solitude, stillness, silence, and simplicity. 

Readers will explore various meditation techniques tailored to individual preferences, from reflective to creative practices, encouraging them to encounter their true selves and the Spirit of God. 

Kilgour’s inclusive approach acknowledges diverse perspectives on ‘God,’ appealing to both religious and non-religious minds. Whether you see God as a Higher Power, Creative Spirit, or Universal Presence, this book invites you to broaden your understanding and deepen your spiritual journey. 

With a curated selection of prayers and pastoral helps, Finding your Sacred Self serves as a vital resource for anyone seeking solace in life’s challenges or wishing to enhance their contemplative prayer life. 

Perfect for ministers, lay preachers, and anyone on a spiritual quest, this book is an essential companion for your journey toward inner peace and divine connection.

Praise for Finding Your Sacred Self

“Ian Kilgour draws from a deep well of mystical wisdom. He writes with the practical expertise of someone who has honed their pastoral craft over many years. The prayers and advice have been road tested, making them imminently useful and usable.

The book has been written as a companion guide for the spiritual journey of becoming human. In a gentle manner, Kilgour invites his readers into the contemplative ways of Solitude, Stillness, Silence, and Simplicity. His reflections integrate theology, biblical reflection, contemplative practice and pastoral counsel. The book also includes a tool-kit of prayers and other pastoral helps for a wide range of situations.

This book is for anyone who is interested in deepening their contemplative prayer life. It is also for those in ministry and other pastoral professions, who are looking for practical tools to enhance their pastoral practice. Every church foyer should have one of these on display!”  
Rev Dr Jordan Redding
Presbyterian Minister in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland

About the author

Ian Kilgour is a Salvation Army Officer and Christian minister with wide experience in pastoral care and the very human issues we all struggle with. Now retired he remains actively involved in church, chaplaincy, community, and social justice issues.

Ian believes that everyone has the capacity to find meaning in life and to deepen their spirituality by knowing their inner sacred self and enjoying intimate relationship with the Transcendent Source of all life. He has an inclusive understanding of life in which everyone and everything is interconnected, belongs and is of immense value.

Ian dedicates this book to those to whom he has had the privilege of offering pastoral care and who taught him so much.

 • • •

Table of Contents

  • Introduction
  • Ways to use the name ‘God’
  • Types of meditation and contemplation

 Part One

  • Making space for meditation and contemplation
  • A ‘Prayer of Preparation’
  • The Way of Solitude
  • The Way of Stillness
  • The Way of Simplicity
  • Reflecting on the benefits of solitude, stillness, silence and simplicity
  • A simplified summary
  • Concluding Prayers

 Part Two

  • Pastoral Helps
  • Pastoral Help 1‘Peace be still’
  • Pastoral Help 2 ‘I have faith & trust’
  • Pastoral Help 3 ‘An invitation to come’
  • Pastoral Help 4 ‘A walk in nature’
  • Pastoral Help 5 ‘The Water of Life’
  • Pastoral Help 6 ‘The Bread of Life’
  • Pastoral Help 7 ‘Resting in God’
  • Pastoral Help 8 ‘Be still in God’
  • Pastoral Help 9 ‘Divine abidings’
    - The four divine abidings & meditations
  • Pastoral Help 10 ‘Belonging in Oneness’
  • Pastoral Help 11 ‘Interactive Scripture reading’
    - The method of meditation using ‘reflective reading’
    - Example 1: ‘Choosing the better part’
    - Example 2: ‘Coping with the fevers of life’
    - Example 3: ‘On board with Jesus’
  • Pastoral Help 12 ‘A meditation using music’

Benediction


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