NURTURING HOPE

Trends and skills for those who offer pastoral care

Christian pastoral care has changed a great deal in the past few decades in response to many factors in our rapidly changing world. In part 1 of Nurturing Hope, Lynne Baab discusses seven trends in pastoral care--shifts in who delivers pastoral care, the attitudes and commitments that undergird pastoral care, and societal trends that are shaping pastoral care today. She illustrates them with stories from diverse congregations where Christian caregivers are meeting those challenges in creative and exciting ways.

In the second half of the book, Baab presents four practical, doable, energizing skills needed by pastoral carers in our time. Focusing on skills that help carers nurture connections between everyday life and Christian faith, she explores the need for carers to understand common stressors, listen, pray with others, and nurture their personal resilience.

Grounded in an understanding of God as the true caregiver and healer, the author offers tips for readers who are training other pastoral carers or developing their own understanding and skills. Each chapter ends with discussion and reflection questions, making the book helpful for groups.

Lynne Baab brings readers hope for their caring role and for their own spiritual journey.

"Nurturing Hope is the most helpful book on pastoral care I have read for a long time. Few authors have Lynne M. Baab's understanding of the changing patterns and solutions needed to provide effective care. The interweaving of story and practical advice makes this an easy-to-read, yet essential, addition to the library of all who work to provide care in church congregations."-- Christine Sine, contemplative activist, blogger and author of numerous books, most recently Rest in the Moment

"Discerning where God is at work and communicating the loving care of God are foundational both for mission and pastoral care. Lynne M. Baab points to the why and how of cooperating with God in being present with people. She demonstrates that a deep commitment to the mission of God and to authentic pastoral care belong together. Nurturing Hope is an outstanding textbook for practitioners and students of pastoral care and chaplaincy, as well as anyone desiring to be a caring presence in their networks and relationships." -- Darren Cronshaw, Professor of Missional Leadership, Australian College of Ministries, and Pastor, AuburnLife Baptist Church, Melbourne

"Reading this book nurtures my hope! Lynne M. Baab is a masterful, seasoned carer and teacher of caregivers, and this book benefits from her deep reservoirs of experience as a pastor, researcher, professor, and open-hearted person of faith. Nurturing Hope builds on BaabÂs earlier work, offering spiritual insights and practical counsel for all people who engage in pastoral care. Anchored in Scripture and attentive to contemporary scientific and cultural analysis, this book encourages and guides us as we seek to love God with all our hearts, souls, and minds, while endeavoring to love our neighbor as ourself." -- Susan S. Phillips (Ph.D.), executive director and professor of Christian spirituality at New College Berkeley (Graduate Theological Union), sociologist and spiritual director, and author of The Cultivated Life: From Ceaseless Striving to Receiving Joy