Details the conversations and encounters of Jesus following the Resurrection. Like the more familiar Seven Last Words, these words or conversations provide insight into the heart and mind of Jesus as he encouraged, prepared, and deployed the disciples for ministry to the world through seven powerful encounters.
The Seven Next Words are arranged in the order they appear in the Bible. The ""words"" are taken from the post-resurrection texts of the four Gospels and the Book of Acts. The style of the book is narrative, building on a subtle point and parable model rather than outline form. Therefore a person can read this alone. A Leader's Guide is included for group study.
The nine proposed chapters are:
I - Introduction
II - Discussion of the Seven Last Words and a precursor to the post-Resurrection encounters
III - The First Word: ""Who are you looking for ?"" - encounter with Mary
John 20: 11-18
IV - The Second Word: ""What are you so concerned about?"" - The road to Emmaus
Luke 24: 13-34
V - The Third Word: ""Greetings...Don't be afraid.""
Matthew 28: 8-10
VI - The Fourth Word: ""Peace be with you...""
Luke 24: 35-43, John 20: 19-29
VII - The Fifth Word: ""Go into the world"" - Make Disciples - Preach the good news
Matthew 28: 18-20, Mark 16: 15-18
VIII - The Sixth Word: ""Friends, haven't you caught any fish?"" - Great catch and feed my sheep encounters
John 21: 1-14
IX - The Seventh Word: ""Wait for the gift..."" - The Ascension
ACTS 1: 1-11

The author, Shane Stanford, is Director of Discipleship for the Mississippi Foundation and the Mississippi Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. He earned his master of Divinity from Duke University in 1994 and was founding pastor of Asbury UMC in Petal, Mississippi, where he served for eight years.