In this book Henri J. M. Nouwen reflects upon the question which Jesus asked his friends James and John. He believes that this query "has the power to crack open a hardened heart and bear the tendons of the spiritual life."

This brief volume is organized around the images of holding, lifting, and drinking the cup of our lives. Nouwen uses illustrations from his work with men and women with mental disabilities to get at an appreciation of what it means to drink both the cup of sorrow and the cup of joy. He also writes about gratitude and celebration--those times we lift up the lives of individuals near and dear to us. Through the disciplines of silence, the word, and action we draw nearer to tasting salvation in the here and now. Nouwen offers spiritual refreshment for those who are seeking intimacy with God