Summary:
- In 2009, the culmination of five years of full-time research and writing resulted in the book Inner Excellence: Achieve Extraordinary Business Success through Mental Toughness came out.
- In 2020, Inner Excellence: Train Your Mind for Extraordinary Performance and the Best Possible Life came out (revised edition).
- On Nov. 7, 2024, The Best Possible Life: How to Live with Deep Contentment, Joy, and Confidence–No Matter What came out. There’s a special sale price for the next few days ($7.95) — thanks for getting your copy and writing a review!
- All the basic principles of Inner Excellence are in it, with a deeper dive into how to live the spirit-led, fully-alive life–especially when life is difficult.
Note: Please continue to pray for ceasefire in Gaza and donate to humanitarian organizations like Amnesty International to help those suffering and dying in Gaza as well as Ukraine and East Africa.
_____________________________________________
Introduction
The word vocation comes from the Latin vocare, to call, and means the work a man is called to by God. There are all different kinds of voices calling you to all different kinds of work, and the problem is to find out which is the voice of God rather than of society… The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.
— Frederick Buechner
In May 2023 I went on a boat trip with a couple friends. We sailed away from civilization for a few weeks and had time to examine our lives—without the noise and busyness and prime deliveries that so easily distract us from the beauty and grace of a simple life, lived on purpose.
We got to experience solitude—that place where fear meets hope and a decision needs to be made. In this tension-filled space, we must consider who we are, the path we’re on, and what’s pos- sible in our lives. Of course you can skip over the decision—to be courageous or not, to face your fears or not—and jump to the next task, the closest distraction… and avoid the call of your heart, the one that’s longing for depth and meaning and fullness of life. But you know at some point, of course, a solitary moment will find you again.
On the days we were anchored, there was always excitement for what adventure awaited. For me, the great adventure was to sit in that floating office and dream big dreams, to imagine possi- bilities, and see what, at the end of the day, the God of the starry universe might reveal to me.
It was on one of those days that I felt called to share my deep gladness with what’s now more than ever, the world’s deep hunger.
Since the Covid-19 pandemic of 2020, the world has become a different place. It’s a 24/7 world bursting with busyness and anxiety—and very little community. It’s a world filled with fear, dissention, and isolation. There’s a deep hunger for connection— real heart-to-heart, meaningful relationship, with the kind of love that’s fearless and forever.
You were created for that kind of relationship, the out-of-this- world kind where the love is unconditional and fully reliable. It’s your deepest need—to be loved so powerfully by someone so solid and stable that you can rest secure, with the deepest con- tentment, joy, and confidence—no matter what.
Buy your discounted copy here of Amazon’s #1 new release in psychology and christianity.
Love Jim
PS
I’m writing this from the YWAM San/Diego base in Ensenada, Mexico. We’re building a house for an amazing family of 10 and I’m leading an Inner Excellence retreat on the base as well. Come join us for the next one in April! (Hint: it’s life-changing).
Next week we’re off to Spain so please pray that God shows me where to get a place (or rent a place), and that the next Inner Excellence retreat in Malaga (Spain) is a blessing for my client, and that I can help those in need in Valencia (from the flooding). Thanks!