Exploring Midlife Spirituality Together

📖 Some book club details + sort of FAQs 📖

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

Is this midlife? Is there really an age it begins? I catch myself wondering a lot. My body is shifting. I’ve wondered if I’m developing a new caffeine sensitivity. At my last eye exam, I was informed that I would “definitely need bifocals in 2-3 years.”

I know, I know, getting older is a gift. But even though I’m not sure if I can say I’m in midlife yet, I do confess to carrying some cranky hobbit vibes now and then.

And yet, it’s kind of great too. No more pressure to keep up. Freedom to ditch habits that aren’t helpful. And faith in midlife? Doubts and dark nights still exist, but at the best times, it feels expansive and inviting.

So all that to say I’m so looking forward to reading Joyce Rupp’s Dear Heart Come Home: The Path of Midlife Spirituality with some of you this fall! Rupp’s book Open the Door was essential reading as I prepared to turn 40, and

Chris Yokel

and I are excited to walk through this one with you, wherever you are on the journey.

All the Book Club Details!

Here’s the plan thus far:

• We’ll start the first chapter on the week of September 15 and run for 8 weeks.

• Every Saturday, I’ll send out an email with the following week’s reading assignment, a discussion question, and a reminder of the zoom link.

• Each Wednesday at 7pm ET, we’ll host a Zoom discussion group, where we’ll talk about the week’s chapter and explore a discussion question together. (Even if you haven’t read the week’s chapter yet, we hope you’ll join us for the conversation!)

• Other than buying your book, the cost is ZERO dollars! FREE ninety-nine! Just some new friends having a little chat about a book.

If you’re interested, sign up on this Google form and grab a copy of the book at your favorite bookseller! It’s available on the author’s website and Amazon (Kindle available too), and I’ve seen a few used sellers with copies out there.

---

Some (sort of) FAQs

When I first pitched this idea on Instagram, I got a few good questions that seemed worth answering in a little more detail here.

Can I still join even if I’m technically not in midlife yet?

(and related)

I’m well past midlife. Can I still join?

The short answer is sure! Sometimes there’s value in limiting the audience, but I’m not interested in gatekeeping this conversation.

The longer answer is this book, as far as I’ve seen, is very much written to people who are already in midlife. (Rupp was in her 50s when this book was published in 1996.) My hunch is it will personally resonate most for folks mid-30s and up, when you’re either solidly considering yourself middle-aged or starting to feel yourself shift out of youth.

At the same time, I believe this process doesn’t look the same for everyone. Maybe you’re younger but have already lived a lot of life, or you just want to start exploring what to expect. Maybe you’re older but feel like midlife slipped by without a lot of room to explore.

As one of the folks who signed up said, “This is such a weird time of life!” We need all the insight we can get. Wherever you are, you have some wisdom to offer and we’d love to have you!

How tough is this book to read?

I love this question for its honesty. And I suppose the difficulty is going to vary, so here’s my best effort to tell you what to expect.

This book is pretty short, around 160 pages. We’ll cover one chapter a week, and a significant chunk of the chapter is some questions to explore on your own. (We’ll have one to discuss for each book club meeting.) Rupp has a very personable style, and she draws a lot from her own storytelling and journals.

On the flip side, her work is best read slow, I think. If you’re used to reading more traditionally evangelical writers, her contemplative Catholic background and bent toward mysticism may feel different, maybe even challenging. Sometimes, she poses deep questions and insights that invite you to put the book down and digest for a while. This is absolutely okay!

If reading is a struggle for you for any reason but you care about this topic, please don’t let that be a barrier. You’re welcome to read what you can and show up to the conversations anyway. The homework is optional, nobody’s getting graded on this, and you can always put it down and revisit the book later, when you’re ready.

Is there an audiobook?

Unfortunately, there doesn’t appear to be an audio book available, but there is a Kindle version. You could give text to speech a try on the Kindle app if you prefer listening. (I have never done it and cannot confirm if this feature is any good. But it might be worth a shot!)

If you have any other questions, leave it in the comments. Looking forward to reading and exploring together!