Stephanie is delighted to welcome Richard Foster, the author of one of the most influential books in her life, Celebration of Discipline. Today, Richard, with Brenda Quinn, talk about the power of learning humility. He tells Stephanie, “The practice of humility has made me playful and free.” In our culture of raging narcissism, Richard calls humility the "vanishing virtue." He says that practicing humility has been "playful, freeing, fun, and freedom from [his] need to feel important." How wonderful!

When Stephanie asks about how to learn humility, Richard answers, “We learn humility by taking up other tasks, like serving others.”

Richard explains that humility is a secret gift that keeps on giving. He says, “one of the things we need to learn is to embrace and enjoy anonymity.”

Richard encourages us to develop a passion for culture, encouraging each one if us to keep on living at the intersection of culture and Scripture here at Gospel Spice. He says, “look for the finger of God at work through every culture.” He adds, “in every culture there are things that are consonant with Scripture, and some that are dissonant. Our task is to discern among them.”

In a society where raging narcissism dominates the moral landscape, the virtue of humility is often dismissed as irrelevant. Not only is humility vanishing from contemporary culture, but we are also witnessing how destructive a lack of humility has become among our churches and ministry leaders. And yet, Richard Foster, the founder of Renovare, insists that humility is central to the journey toward character formation and spiritual transformation. For this reason he decided to spend a year studying the virtue of humility.

Using the Lakota calendar as a framework, Foster provides us with a look into the insights he gathered from sources ranging from Native American culture to Julian of Norwich to Scripture to personal friends. By engaging with both the spiritual classics and Foster's own experiences, Learning Humility provides profound insight into what humility can look like in our current cultural climate.

Join Richard Foster on Gospel Spice today, and embrace the journey toward a life of humility, which he says leads us into "freedom, joy, and holy hilarity."

MEET RICHARD FOSTER

Richard Foster is founder, past pres­i­dent and cur­rent team mem­ber of Ren­o­varé. Hav­ing stud­ied at George Fox and Fuller The­o­log­i­cal Sem­i­nary, Fos­ter has served as a pas­tor and taught world­wide on spir­i­tu­al for­ma­tion. Author of dozens of arti­cles and six books, includ­ing Cel­e­bra­tion of Dis­ci­pline, Richard con­tin­ues to write on the spir­i­tu­al life. He and his wife, Car­olynn, have two grown chil­dren, Joel and Nathan, nine grand­chil­dren, and live near Den­ver, Colorado.

Discover more at https://renovare.org/

MEET BRENDA QUINN

Brenda Quinn is a pastor of spiritual formation in the Foursquare church and a writer of many years. She is also the author of the character profiles in the Life with God Bible. Brenda Quinn, former staff editor for Serendipity House and editorial coordinator for MOPS International, Inc., is cowriter of study guides for both "The Jesus I Never Knew" and "What’s So Amazing About Grace?" She coauthored the devotional "Meet the Bible" with Philip Yancey. Brenda lives with her husband and son in Colorado.

We invite you to check out the first episode of each of our series, and decide which one you will want to start with.

Go to gospelspice.com for more, and go especially to gospelspice.com/podcast to enjoy our guests! Interested in our blog? Click here: gospelspice.com/blog

Identity in the battle | Ephesians

https://www.podcastics.com/episode/74762/link/

Centering on Christ | The Tabernacle experience

https://www.podcastics.com/episode/94182/link/

Shades of Red | Against human oppression

https://www.podcastics.com/episode/115017/link/

God's glory, our delight 

https://www.podcastics.com/episode/126051/link/

 

You are invited to join us on the Gospel Spice Prayer Bible Study, titled "The heart behind prayer" starting September 20, 2025! Details and registration here: https://www.gospelspice.com/prayer 

There are a few things in our Christian life that we know we should do more, or at least better – and prayer just might top the list. Prayer is a mystery. Why would a conversation with a human have any influence on God’s eternal, sovereign plan? It defies logic, and beckons love. How can God, the Almighty Lord of Hosts, be this close, this personal? It defies understanding, and beckons involvement.

But, lack of time, inspiration, and discipline, combined with the ruthless tyranny of our busy lives, push prayer to the periphery, to the “one day I’ll get to it” pile. And yet, we can excel at what we endeavor to undertake. So, why isn’t prayer more of a spiritual priority? Could we develop a mindset around prayer that made it attractive, inspiring, even maybe delightful? What if we attuned our spiritual ears to listen to God, and our spiritual eyes to see His provision?

As an unassuming student, I’m going to humbly offer to share the little I have learned from others about the joy of prayer. I will give us theology, practical tips, and useful resources, sharing what works for me as we, together, learn to pray.

If you find prayer intimidating, or if your lack of prayer makes you feel guilty or “less than,” then this is the place for you! If you have been a student of prayer for many years, this is the place for you too! If you have breath in your lungs, then prayer can become one of the deepest joys of your day. Don’t miss out!

A PERSPECTIVE ABOUT PRAYER

To pray is to believe that God not only hears, but that He responds. It is to stand in the gap for a broken world, wielding the authority of Christ, empowered by the Spirit, and trusting in the goodness of the Father. The question is not whether prayer works, but whether we are willing to pray the kinds of prayers that invite God’s Kingdom into the darkest places of the earth—and of our own hearts.

We may never fully understand the mechanics of prayer, or how it intersects with God's sovereignty, but we are not called to understand everything. We are called to be faithful. And faithfulness means showing up—in prayer, in persistence, in expectation.

So today, let us pray not only for the comfort of our hearts, but for the transformation of the world. Let us take our place as image-bearers, co-laborers, and co-heirs. Let us believe that God is still listening—and still acting. Because He is.

There’s only one way to find out what might happen when we truly pray like this.

Let’s begin.

THE MINDSET BEHIND THIS COURSE

Before we begin, let me tell you the obvious: I don’t really know how to pray. I’m a humble student and absolute beginner at the holy endeavor that is prayer. So, this course isn’t really about what I’ve learned, or any wisdom I might have gathered. But, I’ve sat at the feet of many prayer warriors over the decades, through books and teachings.

So, I’ll share what I learned from them. Humility is going to be our primary heart posture! With each lesson, I will offer a few thoughts, practices, and ideas – with much humility, and not taking myself too seriously. I will also share her favorite books and resources about prayer. FInally, I will introduce you to some of the most influential prayer warriors of our history as the Body of Christ.

Most importantly, I will invite YOU to pray! Learning to pray comes from praying. Our humble ambition is to inspire you to pray, and to give you a few tips on how to do that. Then, it’s up to you! Prayer is a lifelong endeavor. Let’s make it delightful together!

So, let’s get started.

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