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The Way of the Spirit: Recognizing and Responding to God’s Subtle Movements, By Jeremy Daniel Sims

The Way of the Spirit

Recognizing and Responding to God’s Subtle Movements

by Jeremy Sims
Foreword by A. J. Swoboda

The Way of the Spirit
Paperback
$19.99
  • Length: 192 pages
  • Dimensions: 5.5 × 8.5 in
  • Published: August 11, 2026
  • Imprint: IVP Formatio
  • ISBN: 9781514015889
Other Formats:

Cultivate an Awareness of the Often-Missed Nuances of the Holy Spirit's Work in Your Life

Do you find yourself longing for a richer, more meaningful spiritual life? Or maybe you're quietly wondering, "Am I even doing this right?" You've heard metaphors like light or dark, feast or famine, close or far, to express connection with God. But what if the Spirit’s work in your life is not just a binary of presence or distance, but a vast landscape of movements, invitations, and transformations?

In The Way of the Spirit, Dr. Jeremy Sims explains how to cultivate attentiveness to the Holy Spirit so you can recognize the subtle, often-overlooked ways God works in your life. Rather than reducing God’s activity to a formula, this book expands your spiritual vocabulary to name the Spirit’s many distinct movements across the seasons of life.

Sims introduces seven Waypoints along the spiritual journey, each offering a glimpse into a season of life through which the Spirit works. As you walk through each Waypoint, you'll be accompanied by a guide—a saint or spiritual figure whose life embodies the work of the Spirit in that season. You will sit with Mary, the Mother of Jesus; the DesertFathers and Mothers; Ignatius of Loyola; Teresa of Avila; John of the Cross; Julian of Norwich; and Brother Lawrence. Through their lives and stories, you will trace the patterns of the Spirit’s work, learn to recognize His presence in your own life,and engage in spiritual practices along the way.

With The Way of the Spirit, you will:

  • Learn how to cultivate attentiveness to the Spirit's work and why it matters.
  • Explore how you perceive the Spirit's work in your life.
  • Broaden your spiritual vocabulary to help recognize and partner with the Spirit's work.
  • Move beyond binaries to learn ways the Spirit moves beyond just the familiar.

The Spirit is always present and working in your life, leading you through different seasons in your spiritual journey. Become more attuned to God’s movements, opening the door to the returning, refining, and deepening rhythm of spiritual growth in your daily life. With The Way of the Spirit, begin to navigate your own spiritual journey in a way that feels both ancient and refreshingly new.

REVIEWS

"This book is a gift to the church—a glowing lantern for the inward journey. Jeremy Sims has a way of seeing that changes the way you see. In The Way of the Spirit, he invites us to trade our hurried faith for a long, loving look at the divine. His words are like 'wild stanzas' of grace, pulling us from the distractions of the world into the healing rhythms of the Spirit. It is a stunning, glowing achievement that will leave you more attentive, more attuned, more grounded, and more deeply in love with Jesus."
“The Way of the Spirit is an amazing contribution to the spiritual formation movement’s quest to help followers of Jesus live lives of loving intimacy with their Lord! Jeremy Sims brilliantly and beautifully weaves together the insights of spiritual key mothers and fathers of the church with his own journey of discovery to invite us to discern the heart of God in our daily lives. If you long to not only read about God’s love for you but to experience his loving communion in everyday life, you’ll find yourself captivated by every page. I was!”
“Jeremy Sims offers wise and authentic guidance for those who are just learning the way of the Spirit, as well as for those who are well-traveled on this ever-new journey. Drawing from the experiences of the desert fathers and mothers, as well as many others who have gone before us, the author invites us to be drawn into the heart of God. This is a gem of a book.”
“In The Way of the Spirit, Jeremy Sims offers the church a rare and much-needed gift: a language for recognizing the subtle, steady movements of God in a distracted age. Drawing deeply from his Pentecostal roots while engaging the wisdom of the historic church, Jeremy bridges encounter and tradition with pastoral tenderness and theological depth. With clarity and grace, he invites us into a faith that resists spiritual spectacle and instead cultivates holy presence. It is a thoughtful, beautifully written contribution to spiritual formation that will serve the church for years to come.”
“We are called to be holy as God is holy. But we cannot grow into that holiness without learning to recognize it, and we cannot learn to recognize it without turning our attention to the saints—those whose lives have been shaped by sustained responsiveness to the movements of the Spirit. This book is a welcome invitation into that company. By attending carefully to their lives, it shows us what faithfulness looks like in season and out and reminds us that the Father wants nothing less for us than to be made true to Christ, so that we live as his friends and share in his healing of the world.”
“In a distracted age, Jeremy Sims calls us back to holy attention. The Way of the Spirit is a thoughtful and beautifully written invitation to recognize the quiet, steady movements of the Holy Spirit in seasons of waiting, grief, liminality, and ordinary faithfulness. Sims weaves together Scripture, personal story, and the wisdom of Christian tradition to help readers see what may have been present all along. Pastors, leaders, and everyday believers alike will find in these pages a faithful companion for the long journey of formation.”
“Jeremy Sims offers a needed word for our distracted and hurried age: The Spirit is not absent—we are inattentive. With theological depth and pastoral sensitivity, Sims invites us into a way of life marked not by control but by openness to grace. If you are longing to discern God’s presence with greater clarity and tenderness, The Way of the Spirit will help you slow down long enough to see what has been there all along.”
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CONTENTS

Foreword by A. J. Swoboda
Introduction

Part I: The Cultivation of Attention
Mark of Attention 1: Attentive Presence
Mark of Attention 2: Spiritual Naming

Part II: The Pilgrimage of the Spirit
Waypoint 1: Holy Threshold
Saint Mary
Waypoint 2: Desert Formation
The Desert Fathers and Mothers
Waypoint 3: Repentant Reordering
Ignatius of Loyola
Waypoint 4: Inner Journey
Teresa of Avila
Waypoint 5: Dark Night
John of the Cross
Waypoint 6: Divine Encounter
Julian of Norwich
Waypoint 7: Sacred Ordinary
Brother Lawrence

Part III: A Granular Life
Mark of Granularity 1: Shared Recognition
Mark of Granularity 2: Sustained Attention

Acknowledgments
Questions for Reflection and Discussion
Notes

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BONUS MATERIAL

Download the Press Kit

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ABOUT Jeremy Sims

Jeremy Sims

Jeremy Sims (DMin, Portland Seminary) is professor of spiritual formation at Southeastern University, where he leads the Doctor of Ministry and Master of Arts in Ministerial Leadership programs. He previously served in pastoral ministry for twenty-five years and is the author of Easy As Hard Gets and coauthor with his wife Hannah of What Is Spiritual Direction?. Jeremy lives in Lakeland, Florida, with Hannah and their five children.

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