Key Terms

This page offers simple explanations of words and phrases commonly used throughout The Wholeness Pathway. These definitions are meant to help readers understand and practice the Christian life more clearly.

Wholeness

Wholeness is life increasingly ordered around God, healed by his grace, shaped by Christ, and strengthened by the Holy Spirit. It touches our relationship with God, our inner life, our character, our relationships, our work, our witness, and the way we live each day.

Christian Practice

A Christian practice is an intentional action, habit, or response that helps us attend to God, receive his Word, grow in Christ, and live faithfully with others.

Spiritual Practice

A spiritual practice is a Christian practice that helps us make room for God’s work in our lives and become more attentive and responsive to him. Prayer, Scripture reflection, gratitude, encouragement, silence, worship, confession, service, and fellowship are examples of spiritual practices.

Spiritual Formation

Spiritual formation is God’s ongoing work of shaping us to become more like Christ in our character, desires, thoughts, actions, and relationships.

Discipleship

Discipleship is the life of following Jesus, learning from him, obeying his Word, and becoming more like him over time.

Growing in Christ

Growing in Christ means becoming more mature in faith, love, holiness, wisdom, obedience, humility, and dependence on God.

Grace

Grace is God’s generous favor, help, presence, and power at work in us through Jesus Christ.

Scripture

Scripture is God’s written Word, through which he reveals himself, teaches us, corrects us, strengthens us, and forms us for faithful living.

Prayer

Prayer is communion with God. It includes praise, thanksgiving, confession, lament, intercession, listening, surrender, and honest conversation with the Lord.

Worship and Response

Worship and response describe the ways we honor God through praise, gratitude, surrender, obedience, and whole-life devotion.

Community

Community is the shared life of believers in Christ, expressed through fellowship, encouragement, care, accountability, forgiveness, and mutual love.

Witness

Witness is living and speaking in ways that point others to Jesus Christ.

Life in the Spirit

Life in the Spirit is daily dependence on the Holy Spirit as he guides, strengthens, sanctifies, empowers, and bears fruit in the life of the believer.

These definitions are not exhaustive, but they offer a simple starting point for understanding the language and purpose of The Wholeness Pathway.