It can be all too easy to revert to "cruise control" when it comes to our spiritual life. We may have been born into religious faith or found it as an adult--either way, we may discover that our initial love affair with the Lord is waning and in need of a re-launch.

That is why 8 Steps to Energize Your Faith is such a welcome resource. Author Joe Paprocki has written a book with a wealth of ideas for kick-starting our faith journeys. The steps he offers are simple yet profound: create something, delight in nature, simplify your life, build and celebrate relationships, show compassion, make repairs, share generously, and be still.

By following these steps, we can achieve a greater intimacy with God which will, in turn, lead to enhanced joy. I particularly appreciated the following insight, which appears near the beginning of the book:

"When it comes to 'getting up,' renewing our spiritual life, and tapping into divine energy, we cannot simply wait for the negative circumstances around us to change so that they bother us less. That rarely happens. rather, we must change our hearts and minds so that we more closely emulate god, who wants us to begin enjoying our inheritance now."

It is a grand inheritance indeed--one that is worth fighting for. 8 Steps to Energize Your Faith offers the tools necessary to climb great heights in the spiritual life--and to enjoy the view as a result.