Soul Reset: Breakdown, Breakthrough, and the Journey to Wholeness

Dotson, former senior pastor at Saint Mark United Methodist Church in Wichita, Kans., lays out a plan for Christians to slow down, receive God’s word, and live fuller lives in his instructive, convincing debut. After Dotson collapsed while delivering a sermon, he was hospitalized and told he suffered from extreme fatigue. As a result, he took a break from his hectic schedule and focused on the “holistic, healing love and salvation in Jesus Christ.” In this seven-week plan based on his revamped lifestyle and designed for church groups, Dotson offers six spiritual practices—Examen (daily reflection), prayer, fasting, caring for the body, worship, confession—that make up the routine of each week. In the book’s second half, Dotson opens up about his own grief and depression, and calls on churches to more effectively and openly address mental health issues. He also provides reflection questions at the end of each chapter, aimed at creating a more open church community. While any reader will empathize with Dotson’s struggles with overwork and grief, Christian church groups will be particularly interested in his straightforward plan for developing slower, more conscientious faith practices. (Sept.)