Robert E Rasmussen.com

THE PITCH

Here is the brief description of the core of this book:

Jesus said to follow Him, but where is He leading us?  TRAIL GUIDE FOR THE JESUS WAY will equip you to recognize markers on the trail, to navigate any terrain, and to pack the necessary provisions.

Or again,

Q: “What is your book called?”
A: TRAIL GUIDE FOR THE JESUS WAY

Q: “What’s it about?”
A: “It’s about what to expect when you follow Jesus, and what to do at each stage of the journey.”

SUBTITLE (options)

Trail Guide For the Jesus Way
…Survival skills for the intrepid disciple

OR

Trail Guide For the Jesus Way
…If I follow Jesus, where will He take me?

(Please vote or add your thoughts)

STRUCTURE

The TRAIL GUIDE will have three parts:

1. THE MARKERS ON THE JESUS WAY
This will be an overview of the pattern I have discovered in the Bible that helps us as disciples to know where we have been, where we are, and where we are headed.

2. THE TERRAIN OF THE JESUS WAY
There are ten life experiences which every believer will encounter on the trail in one way or another. “Terrain” seems to describe the kind of conditions in which we will need the guidance of the trail guide. These will be very substantive chapters, rather like quality trail mix — a lot of scripture to chew on.

3. PROVISIONS FOR THE JESUS WAY
This section will include a hefty section with different ways to implement the markers on the Jesus way in its variegated terrain. So “Provisions” will include: Prayers (written), Disciplines, Meditations, Retreat ideas, Studies to do, Conversations (to have with others), and Online tools.

AUDIENCE

TRAIL GUIDE deals with the essence of following Jesus. As such, it relates to a large swath of people in North America and around the world who are doing their best to align their lives with Jesus’ teachings.

This involves huge segments of today’s population. The number of evangelicals in America in 2014 was 62 million (according to Pew Research Center, cited in Christianity today, 5/11/2015). The World Christian Database estimates the number of Evangelicals globally is 300 million (wikipedia “Evangelicalism” accessed 1/24/16).

One cannot determine how many believers, whether Protestant or Catholic,  currently feel the need to better understand how Jesus is leading in their everyday lives, but we can surmise that it would include tens of millions.

Experience suggests that one of the recurring questions in the life of believers has to do with knowing God’s will. Many desire to understand the purpose of the difficulties they are going through. Most believers long to draw closer to Christ and grow in maturity as His disciples.

TRAIL GUIDE is written with these millions in mind. More importantly, the book draws out and connects scripture passages which are given by God to bring clarity to the lives of those who love Christ and long to follow Him more ardently.