Watchfulness: Recovering a Lost Spiritual Discipline
Are you watchful in your Christian life? Although watchfulness is not as familiar as spiritual disciplines like meditation, prayer, and fasting, it is just as necessary for a healthy spiritual life. Scripture exhorts all Christians to be watchful, regardless of their station and season in life.
In Watchfulness, Brian G. Hedges provides a fresh look at the what, why, how, when, and who of watchfulness, drawing principles from Scripture and instruction from believers of the past who have understood this discipline and written about it. Designed for reflection, self-examination, and personal application, with “Examine and Apply” questions at the end of each chapter, this book will chart your course toward greater watchfulness, increased holiness, and deeper communion with the triune God.
Available in Paperback, Kindle, and Audible
Endorsements
“In the volume you are holding, [Brian Hedges] has brought together the biblical teaching on watching over our souls and seasoned it with insights from great works by godly men who were both passionate and practical about watchfulness. This book is needed. It fills a space on the subject of the Christian life that has been empty far too long.”
—Donald S. Whitney, Professor of Biblical Spirituality, Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary | Author, Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life
“We need constant reminders to be watchful lest we fall. And when these reminders come clothed in grace and pastoral sensitivity, they are all the more welcome. Brian Hedges has put together a small gem of a book that urges us to greater care and watchfulness. Gospel-driven exhortation and warning to busy Christians. Timely and necessary.”
—Derek W.H. Thomas, Senior Minister of First Presbyterian Church, Columbia SC | Chancellor’s Professor, Reformed Theological Seminary | Teaching Fellow, Ligonier Ministries | Author, How the Gospel Brings Us All the Way Home
“Channeling the likes of Owen, Bunyan, M’Cheyne, and Calvin, Brian Hedges cares for the Christian’s soul with the expertise of a seasoned pastor and a wise shepherd. He instructs the reader in the needful and often neglected spiritual discipline of watchfulness. If you would enjoy Christ more, safeguard your soul with greater effectiveness, and live the faith-filled life more intentionally, devour these pages. It will do your soul good and sow seeds for a life of devotion to Christ.”
—Jason Helopoulos, Senior Pastor, University Reformed Church, Lansing, MI | Author, A Neglected Grace: Family Worship in the Christian Home
“In a sea of antinomian easy believism, Watchfulness is a five-alarm fire bell calling us all to work out our salvation with fear, trembling, and effort. It’s about time. In twenty years of ministry, I have not read a single article, let alone book, that deals with the urgent issue of watchfulness. This book is long overdue and desperately needed.”
—Todd Friel, Wretched Radio | Author, Reset for Parents: How to Keep Your Kids from Backsliding
Contents
- What? The Nature of Watchfulness
- Why? The Necessity of Watchfulness
- How? The Cultivation of Watchfulness
- When? The Seasons for Watchfulness
- Who? Watchfulness and the Church
Appendix 1: M‘Cheyne’s Personal Reformation
Appendix 2: The Minister’s Self-Watch