Soul Keeping by John Ortberg
Week 9: Chapter 8 — Soul Care in Community
Read Chapter 8 of Soul Keeping by John Ortberg. Key passage: Hebrews 10:24–25; Galatians 6:1–2.
Previewing Week 9 of Soul Keeping
Read 3 of 7 discussion questions below. Unlock the complete 12-week guide when you’re ready.
The soul was never meant to be kept alone — it was made for deep, honest, life-giving community. Read this chapter and let it probe the quality of your relationships at the soul level.
Discussion Questions
7 questions1.Ortberg argues that the soul needs community not as a supplement to spiritual growth but as a primary environment for it. How does that differ from how most people in your experience actually use church or small groups?
2.Ortberg's decades-long friendship with Dallas Willard is a case study throughout the book of what genuine soul-level friendship looks like — honest, unhurried, and focused on what matters most. What qualities do you think make a friendship genuinely good for the soul?
3.Ortberg distinguishes between relationships that are merely social or even emotionally intimate versus relationships that are spiritually formative. What is the difference? What would it take to move some of your existing relationships into the second category?