(This article is an edited excerpt from the first chapter of the book flourish.)

The godly shall flourish like palm trees, and grow tall as the cedars of Lebanon. For they are transplanted into the Lord’s own garden, and are under his personal care. Even in old age they will still produce fruit and be vital and green. This honors the Lord, and exhibits his faithful care.
Psalm 92:12—15 TLB

As we begin our journey together, I am enjoying a few seaside summer days. For hours at a time I have been sitting by the ocean, feeling the refreshing sea mist on my face, watching the waves in a natural rhythm of ebb and flow, internalizing this as a centering image for my life. The sunset gently closes out each day, transforming the sky with the promise of a restful night and the hopes of another new day. As I ride my bike through the natural California terrain along the cliffs of the ocean, the wind blows through my hair and I am reminded of the pure pleasures I experienced as a child in South Africa, laughing and playing with carefree innocence.
Can you remember times like this?
The powerful yet gentle beauty of nature has been reminding me profoundly of something I believe we know deep in our hearts, yet often forget in the press of daily cares: that we are created for Eden; for a life of beauty and harmony with God, ourselves, others, and creation. It is wonderful and life-giving to savor moments when we delight in feeling fully alive: being out in the beauty of nature or sharing a deep and meaningful conversation and thinking, At this moment l am being my best self, l am catching a glimpse of what life is all about, I feel what matters most, and I perceive God’s deeper intentions for me.
At times like this, my whole being resonates with wanting to show warmth, love, and kindness to those around me. I smile at passersby. I am filled with gratitude that overflows with generosity. I desire to be content with each new day, delighting in simple pleasures. I feel a sense of joy that I desire to spread with others. I yearn for more. The more I experience peace of mind when I start worrying about problems or the future, the more I hold on to hope and gain strength for the journey to face the mundane times and the challenges of life. I am motivated to become more of my best, most authentic self. We were created for moments like this. We were created for more. We were created to flourish!
If you resonate with these longings, then this book is for you. It’s about discovering how to flourish through the Spirit in both character and emotion. It is about discovering how to experience more love, joy, gratitude, peace, and hope—the virtues that bring lasting fulfillment and fruitful impact.
Be Fresh and Flourishing

We were not created just to exist and “get by,” or languish.
God’s desire is for all of us to live abundantly. This means becoming who God created us to be, for His delight and glory. This is who I am aiming to be. This is who you can be also. Right from the beginning of creation it was God’s vision to create order, harmony, tranquility, balance, and communion. All the fundamental forces of nature are directed toward our growth and harmony.
You and I are designed for well-being in all areas of our life systems—our body, brain, mind, emotions, spirit, and relationships—in our marriages, as parents, at school, in our work and community, in our churches, with our money, and in all our daily experiences. Sadly, however, we live in a fallen, broken world, where life as it was intended to be is violated. I know I won’t have uninterrupted bliss every day. But I have discovered that if I set aside time and make space for these moments that nourish my soul, that make me feel most fully alive in God, savoring them and seizing them, I will turn my heart and life toward what I was created for: my best, most authentic, flourishing self. Like the restoration of a dilapidated garden, I can cultivate a life that is continually being transformed, redeemed, and restored to thrive with beauty and renewed potential.
We each have to pay attention and continually rediscover what this transformation means for us. It will be a different challenge each day. I want something genuine and realistic, something sensible that I can realize and reach. I get tired of keeping up the pace and battling within and without. Don’t you? But I have discovered that there is a way to flourish in all areas of life. It begins now, with the life you have to live, made up of the moments of every day. We don’t have to wait to find love, joy, gratitude, peace, and hope when things finally settle down, when it all changes and gets better. We often think that’s when we will finally be able to grow, flourish, and be happy.
God created you to be fully alive in Him. You can discover how to find this daily joy in the midst of your current life challenges and a difficult world. It might not be what you think it looks like, but you can access the possibility of flourishing more than you realize.

The Science of Human Flourishing

The topic of human flourishing is becoming a major theme in religious faith and science. Neurologists, psychologists, theologians, and scientists are spending millions of research dollars on topics related to human flourishing, character development, healthy relationships, and emotion virtues. A new generation of scientists is building up this research on positive emotions and character traits. The most popular topic, happiness-boosting practices, has resulted in over five thousand books in just the last few years. Neuroscience is also providing new evidence as to what makes us thrive and what that looks like in the brain. Universities and seminaries are now feverishly examining more closely how we can understand and cultivate character virtues such as forgiveness, gratitude, joy, love, kindness, serenity, generosity, and hope.
The Christian heritage of spiritual formation is also being revived in a new and dynamic way, reminding us that many ancient contemplative practices, liturgical rhythms, and the Spirit-filled power of our faith are relevant to the harsh realities of daily life. There is a growing longing for authentic spiritual formation and a yearning for transformation that a vibrant life with God offers.

Discovering God’s Invitation to Flourish

In Flourish I will draw from the best that science, theology, and spiritual formation literature have to offer so that you can discover how to flourish in well-being and harmony, cultivating a life reflecting Christian emotion virtues such as contrition, love,
compassion, joy, gratitude, peace, tranquility, and hope. A Christian psychology of spirituality and human emotion considers that a healthy, growing Christian is emotionally mature, showing evidence of spiritual emotions, spiritual emotion virtues, or emotion virtues. I will use these terms interchangeably when referring to then primary New Testament emotions and mental states of the Spirit. Journey with me as I show you how to implement this spiritual, emotional, and relational intelligence in your life.
In psychological terms, flourishing is influenced by Aristotle’s notion of eudaimonia, which means “a life well lived.” We flourish when we have a sense of well-being and can function positively in our spiritual, personal, and social lives—when we experience high levels of emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It includes a life of vigor, vitality, goodness, generativity, and continuous growth. Flourishing means we are able to have close relationships and a meaningful and purposeful life. It is a life that has fulfillment, where we contribute in meaningful and productive ways. The journey includes rising to challenges and being resilient through adversity and during struggles, sadness, sickness, and loneliness. We can develop both a spiritual and a psychological immune system, so to speak, to help us effectively deal with life challenges, stress, anxiety, and depression. When we integrate every aspect of our being in a healthy way, we flourish. This good life of personal fulfillment and joy comes when you discover and become exactly who God created you to be—a flourisher. When you use your life to help others, to do good, and to know and trust God, you will feel good about yourself. This is “the good life.”

Faith-Based Flourishing in Shalom

The Christian faith is all about flourishing. I call it “faith-based flourishing,” and it can be characterized by the Hebrew word shalom. It is the way of living as life ought to be, the way we were designed to be. The Hebrew root word for shalom has several variations. Shalom is translated as “peace” and is used as a greeting in both comings and goings. It is a blessing that also implies a more profound meaning than just peace or happiness. Shalom also means completeness or welfare of every kind. Shalom infers flourishing.
God gave us the gift of shalom. Everything and every being was created to exist in an integrated and harmonious relationship. “Flourishing in shalom” is a wonderful way to think of embracing well-being in all of your life: emotional security, joy and contentment, sound health, prosperity, meaningful attachments, friendship, and peace of mind and heart. Similar to the psychological and mental health criteria for well-being, shalom implies that we flourish within all our life systems: body, mind, emotions, spirit, relationships, and work. Shalom also embraces well-being outside ourselves, with right relationships with God, human beings, and nature. To live and flourish in shalom is to find delight in living well along with contributing to the well-being of others and our world.
We then become “shalom bringers,” spreading a sense of warmth, comfort, hope, and well-being.’° When we think of shalom bringers in our lives, we feel as if God is reaching out to us through them, restoring His image of us, His vision for us to flourish. The glory of God shines through their faces and touches us through their hands. This is when we truly are the children of God, reflecting the Spirit emotions and virtues of love, joy, gratitude, peace, and hope flowing through us.

Vibrant, Fruitful, Full of Life

In Flourish, I invite you to discover how to thrive and blossom in all the systems of your life. You will discover how to flourish in your brain, mind, body, emotions, spirit, and relationships. We will explore biblical pathways and practices along with scientifically proven exercises for you to intentionally partner with God in your growth. You can experience renewal and restoration of vibrant life, regardless of where you are struggling.
I’d like to give you a glimpse of the pathway in the book Flourish. I will address specific principles that are important to consider as a whole person and how to activate genuine transformation in your life. Then we will explore the core emotion virtues of the Spirit—love, joy, gratitude, peace, and hope. There are many more virtues and expressions of the Spirit of God, but these are vital to our spiritual and emotional well-being. When we live and express these emotion virtues, they are a reflection of being transformed into mature Christian character. On this journey, you will discover how to cultivate and shape more of these heartfelt attitudes and emotion virtues in your life.
Each of these emotion virtues forms the core of a system that is integral to our whole being. This is similar to how each aspect of our physical life and our relationships is considered a “system.” Emotion virtues of the Spirit aren’t isolated feelings or interactions, but a whole systemic interrelated way of living and being transformed.

Discover How to Flourish

• Love and Relationship Attachment System
You flourish in the presence of God’s love and attachment with others.

• Joy and Pleasure System
You flourish when facing challenging emotions and circumstances with a heart open to joy and gratitude.

• Peace and Tranquility System
You flourish when your mind, soul, and body are at peace and are serene and tranquil.

• Hope and Resilience System
You flourish when trusting and surrendering to God with hope, meaning, and purpose for the future.

Throughout Flourish, questionnaires will be offered to help you become more attuned to your flourishing journey. Practical exercises and spiritual practices will also help you develop intentional habits and lifestyle rhythms. Stories about amazing people
will inspire you. Keep a journal or notebook so you can interact with what you read. Complete the exercises and respond to the reflective questions.
Then, as you flourish, you will become a flourisher—a shalom bringer; a loving, safe place; a joy spreader; a peacemaker; and a hope giver—passing on to others the healing balm of love, the soothing tranquility of peace, the delight of enjoying simple experiences of life, and the seeds of hope. God is getting ready to do something new and wonderful in your life, making you more authentically beautiful. Join me in discovering how to flourish.
Prayer

Lord, fill me with the knowledge of your will, with spiritual wisdom and understanding. Fill me with your Spirit and fullness of life, in love and hope. Show me how to flourish
with evidence of good fruit in all areas of my life. Amen.
Adapted from Ephesians 1:17—18; 3:16—19