Open-Hearted People, Soul-Connected Church - by Tom Bennardo

About the Book

If you've ever felt disconnected, lonely, or misunderstood within your church community, this encouraging resource shows you how to open your heart to genuine Christian community using a proven biblical process for healthy, vibrant, heart-to-heart relationships.

Book Synopsis

Ask most anyone and they would say they desire honest, authentic, "real" relationships. Yet few of us experience the soul-level connection we long for with other human beings, let alone God. Fear and pride drive us to mask our truest selves, leaving us perpetually disconnected, hidden, and lonely.

God made us for something profoundly better: an open-hearted, courageous honesty that liberates us from a life of guardedness and self-protection and has the power to radically transform our approach to Christian community. In fact, it's those things about ourselves we're most afraid to reveal that lead to the kind of love and acceptance we yearn for.

This book is your call to embrace and practice heart-level honesty and authenticity in this age of artificiality. As you learn to engage your world with your soul wide open, you'll discover deeper connections--with yourself, others, and God--and open avenues for other lonely and disconnected souls to join you there.

From the Back Cover

The secret to experiencing genuine Christian community

Ask most anyone and they would say they desire honest, authentic, "real" relationships. Yet few of us experience the soul-level connection we long for with other human beings, let alone with God. Fear and pride drive us to mask our truest selves, leaving us perpetually disconnected, hidden, and lonely.

God made us for something profoundly better: an open-hearted, courageous honesty that liberates us from a life of guardedness and self-protection and has the power to radically transform our approach to Christian community. In fact, it's those things about ourselves we're most afraid to reveal that lead to the kind of love and acceptance we yearn for.

This book is your call to embrace and practice heart-level honesty and authenticity in this age of artificiality. As you learn to engage the world with your soul wide open, you'll discover deeper connections--with yourself, others, and God--and open avenues for other lonely and disconnected souls to join you there.


"Indulge your thirst for intimacy and joy in communion with others, and take in this brilliant book."--Dr. Dan B. Allender, professor of counseling psychology and founding president, The Seattle School of Theology and Psychology

"If you're tired of 'playing church' and ready to experience God's steadfast love for the screwed-up and barely sane, this book is the primer on Christian community you can't do without."--Jen Pollock Michel, author of A Habit Called Faith and In Good Time

"In the end, all we have will be relationships, and this book ratchets us back to that which is most important--and most eternal. Don't miss it."--Dr. Wayne Cordeiro, pastor and author

About the Author

Tom Bennardo is a four-decade veteran of ministry and spiritual formation. His experience spans the spectrum--church planter, lead pastor, mentor and coach, conference speaker, author, and denominational leader. He holds an MDiv from Grace Theological Seminary and a doctorate from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and currently serves as executive director of church leadership and multiplication for the Fellowship of Evangelical Churches, where he trains, equips, and provides spiritual direction for current and emerging pastors. He and his wife have two adult daughters and reside in San Clemente, California.