Field Notes for the Wilderness

Practices for an Evolving Faith

By: Sarah Bessey

Narrated by: Sarah Bessey

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A nurturing and hopeful collection of practices to help an emerging generation of Christians reconnect to their faith, find inner healing, and build spiritual community—from Glennon Doyle’s “favorite faith writer” and the author of Jesus Feminist and editor of A Rhythm of Prayer

“This is the perfect guide for all those of who need to be reintroduced to a faith full of grace, mercy, and love.”—Kate Bowler, author of Good Enough

It’s hard to leave a faith that has raised us. Maybe it’s even harder to stay. But what can feel impossible is living in the tension. Living with a faith that evolves.

Sarah Bessey is an expert at faithfully stumbling forward. As a New York Times bestselling author and co-founder of Evolving Faith, the foremost community for progressive Christians, she has been trusted by thousands of people to pursue a reconstruction of faith centered on compassion, truth, and inclusion. Bessey has found a deeply underserved and underestimated remnant in the wilderness of Christianity who are still devoted to Jesus, deeply rooted in the Gospel, fascinated with Scripture, and committed to reimagining their faith.

Field Notes for the Wilderness guides us through multiple principles to live by for an evolving faith, including

• practicing wonder and curiosity as spiritual disciplines
• mothering ourselves with compassion and empathy
• making space for lament and righteous rage
• finding good spiritual teachers
• discovering what we are for in this life, and moving in that direction

In this groundbreaking and nurturing book, Bessey becomes a shepherd for our curiosity, giving us a table for our questions, tools to cultivate what we crave, and a blessing for what was—even as we leave it behind.

Critic reviews

“I have had a lot of fathers in faith, but never a mother—at least until I met Sarah Bessey. Now she is the writer I recommend to anyone who needs to be seen, loved, and held before they ever say why. Reading her new book is like opening a boxed lunch in the wilderness packed by someone who knew just what would get you through—along with a note that says, ‘Your soul is just fine.’ The only difference is that this book keeps feeding you after you have finished the last page (the one you hoped would never come). Take heart! You can start all over again whenever you want, safe in the embrace of a very wise mum.”—Barbara Brown Taylor, author of An Altar in the World and Learning to Walk in the Dark

“Sarah Bessey shines. A book full of gentle wisdom and stunning empathy for all those of us who are bruised by the faithful but want to keep our faith. Faithful without being pious. Useful without being bossy. This is the perfect guide for all those of who need to be reintroduced to a faith full of grace, mercy, and love.”—Kate Bowler, New York Times bestselling author of Good Enough

“In a time when so many of us feel like we are spiritual wanderers, Sarah Bessey reaches out a hand and offers wise and careful company on the journey. Through the tenderness and intimacy of letters, this book shows us the many ways we might survive together in the liminal.”—Cole Arthur Riley, New York Times bestselling author of This Here Flesh and creator of Black Liturgies

“If you forced me to pick one book in the whole world to walk someone gently through their faith evolution—one writer, one thinker, one human being out of all the marvelous leaders who’ve done this hard and holy work—it would be Sarah Bessey’s Field Notes for the Wilderness. A gorgeous, expansive offering from beginning to end; a love song to God and every searching heart.”—Jen Hatmaker, New York Times bestselling author of For the Love and Of Mess and Moxie and host of the For the Love podcast

“In a space where nothing can make sense, Bessey offers guidance and direction that feels like a true hug and high-five from God. And by offering it, the wilderness does not feel so wild and lonely after all. For the moments when I wanted to give life the side-eye, I needed this book. I am so grateful we all have it now.”—Candice Marie Benbow, author of Red Lip Theology

“Bessey encourages readers to cultivate hope, grapple with grief, and repent for mistakes made in the name of faith. . . . Readers will draw strength from these openhearted musings.”—Publishers Weekly

Nourishment for the soul

Sarah is a gift, her work is a miracle, and this book is like a stream in the desert.

Relevant for me and so many!

As someone who grew up in and around so many fundamentalist churches/conservative church cultures, I have lived through and continue to witness so many hurtful things at the hands of Gods people that have made faith so complicated, exclusive, and which seem to directly contradict the nature of God. This is such a helpful tool in healing, navigating through it all and figuring out how to guide others back to what matters. Thank you Sarah! Can’t wait to share this.

Wow, I needed this book.

Such need words for the place many of us find ourselves. I feel more anchored in the love of God. I will sit with this book for a long time and reference it no doubt.

What’s saving your life right now?

THIS. This book is saving my life right now, my faith, instilling hope again. There’s someone out there who “gets it” and she’s kind. She’s kind in her presentation of deconstruction, and I need that. When the last chapter came, I cried. I didn’t want it to end! So I’ll start it again and I’ll buy the hard copy for underlining. I already bought two copies for friends on their journey through the wilderness. Thank you for this it means so much.

It was healing for my soul

It can sure feeling lonely in the wilderness, but Sarah made the journey less so and I cried so many healing tears while listening to this book.