Spiritual growth

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Frightened by Faith

 

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“Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort?” – Galatians 3:3

When I was growing up, we measured spirituality by the things a “good Christian” did not do. At some point along the way, I discovered grace: God’s acceptance of me no matter how I was doing with “the list”. God’s forgiveness of anything I have ever done or will do that dishonors Him. I like grace a lot better than rules, don’t you?

So, then why do I sometimes revert to measuring my relationship with God by how “good” I am being? If I am kind and loving during the day, I feel somehow worthy to go into his presence. If I have been irritable or have made a bad decision, I just want to avoid God all together until I can get my act together.

Then I heard something that gave me great insight: People return to the rules when they are frightened by faith. Frightened by faith? Yup. I realized, then, that there is perceived safety in those old rules. I know when I measure up and when I don’t. I can set self-improvement goals so I can feel good about myself.

Walking by faith is not that easy. It is about relationship, about learning to know what pleases God, about getting into His Word to know His will, to listen for His voice before running to the next thing. It’s about living with mystery when we long for clarity. That can be scary, but the better we know Him, the less afraid we are. There’s no better way to live.

“The reason why we so readily accept his (Satan’s) accusations is that we are still hoping to have some righteousness of our own.” – Watchman Nee

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“Go to” Prayers

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“How blessed all those in whom You live, whose lives become roads You travel . . . God-traveled, these roads curve up the mountain, and at the last turn—Zion! God in full view!”–  from Psalm 84:5-7 (MSG)

We fall far short of God’s command to love Him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. We want to love Him more, but don’t know how. The truth is only God can grow that kind of love in our hearts. We just have to invite Him in.

Christians through the ages have given God that invitation by adopting a “go to” prayer to open their hearts to Him. For example, when I find my mind wrapped up in something distracting or disturbing, I mentally or quietly pray what is known as the Jesus Prayer: “Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”  Others use the first sentence of The Lord’s Prayer, a short verse or phrase, or sometimes just Jesus’ name.

Over time, we will find ourselves saying our chosen words many times each day. These “go to” prayers become sincere invitations to God to walk with us along life’s path even if our minds are not fully engaged at the time.

It is a simple practice, but profound in its power to change us. How?

  • God is thrilled to hear from His children, so whenever we turn to Him, He responds.
  • We begin to realize that His response is always loving.
  • His love feels so good, we can’t help loving Him in return.

Being loved and loving. It’s ours when we turn toward Him – always.

“Give me only a love for You, and the gift of Your grace; then I am rich enough, and ask for nothing more.” – St. Ignatius of Loyola

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Feelings Matter

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“As water reflects a face, so a man’s heart reflects the man.” – Proverbs 27:19

How are you feeling right now? Mad? Sad? Glad? Bad? Sometimes we have to stop and identify our gut reaction to an event or circumstance in our lives. Why? Because it matters to our spiritual health.

God wants us to love Him with our total beings: mind, soul, mind, strength. That “soul” part is emotional. In my soul-focused journey, here’s what I am figuring out so far:

Feelings . . .
. . . help us become aware of God’s  specially-designed ways of calling each of us to Himself.

. . . encourage us to do more of what leads us toward God and joy.

. . . lead us to do less of what leads to sorrow and anxiety.

. . . help us see the difference between good and evil influences.

. . . bring vitality to intimate times with Christ.

One thing that helps me to learn from my emotions is to find time in the evening to review the events of the day in God’s presence asking questions like these:

  • When today did I feel most alive?
  • Was there a time when God felt especially close?
  • What activity or event brought about the deepest emotional response?

Then, I ask myself these questions:

  • What did I observe today that must be faced, embraced, or acted upon?
  • What do I feel God is calling me to do more of? Less of?

Emotions are one part of the way in which God directs our lives. Our feelings matter to us and they matter to Him.

So, what are you feeling today?

“The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart” – – Helen Keller

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Growing Pains

 

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“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness,and self-control.” Galatians 5:22

Do you have a difficult person in your life? An ongoing health situation or a demanding job? There may be a reason for these things beyond what you can see.

I am convinced there are characteristics God wants to develop in each of us that come only by facing difficult circumstances. No shortcuts.

• How will we learn the joys of gentleness without being involved with a defiant child or a crying baby?

• Or the fruit of faithfulness if we are not in a difficult relationship from which we’d like to run?

• Or the trait of kindness without someone who needs our care and concern?

When I am tempted to complain about my “to do” list for the day, I try to  remember to pause to thank God for putting people and situations in my path which will give the Spirit opportunity to develop the characteristics in me that He wants. Sometimes the hard stuff is there to help it happen. And when it does, the resulting blessing, contentment, and happiness will overflow from us to others.

Dear God, may I be full of Your love, joy, and peace as I face each situation this day. May Your fruit ripen in my life as I am called in each relationship to be faithful, good, patient, and kind. I am eager to see how you will challenge and change me today and I yield myself to You for Your amazing work. Amen

“Next to the might of God, the serene beauty of a holy life is the most powerful influence for good in the world.” – D. L. Moody

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Night School

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“On my bed I remember you; I think of you through the watches of the night. Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings. My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me.” – Psalm 63:5-8

When I was in college, I had a Christian professor who told us that when she went to bed at night, she prayed God would use the nighttime hours to speak to her. I thought that was a little “far out” at the time, but was intrigued because it seemed efficient –seriously! Over time, though, I realized that nighttime may be the only time when I have relinquished control of my brain. Maybe, it is the best time for God to be able to talk to me without my interference. Then I began to find Bible verses showing that God wants to relate to us even while we are in bed, sleeping or awake.

So, I have learned to fall asleep with a Bible verse, a prayer, or a hymn in my mind. That way, I feel I am leaving my subconscious self open to the Spirit of God as I rest. Then I say something like this to God: “I pray that my heart will be so fully yielded to You and my mind so saturated in Your Word that the nighttime processing will be instructive. I never want to be outside of Your teaching, correction, guidance, wisdom – even while my body sleeps”.

And, He answers that prayer. How?
• Sometimes I wake up with a solution to a problem that seemed unsolvable the night before.
• Or I will remember a dream that seems to give me direction or comfort.
• Or I will have a Bible verse come to mind that was just what I needed to hear.
• Or I simply feel His loving presence with me as I sleep.

You may want to ask Him to speak to you in the nighttime hours, too. He might just be waiting for your invitation.

“I will praise the Lord who counsels me; even at night my heart instructs me.” (Psalm 16:7)

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Tougher Tests

“Consider it a sheer gift, friend, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way”. James 1:2-3 (The Message)

My dear friend and mentor had pancreatic cancer. She was living a very full life and one that had been unusually healthy. She had always taken such good care of her mind, body, and soul! Now this. It didn’t seem possible.

Never alone

You are never alone.

But when I talked to her, she was calm, joyful, and looking forward to whatever was to come next. She said things like, “I am never alone” and she led me into worship as never before. When I talked to her a few months ago about one of my own struggles, we compared notes. That’s when she said, “As we grow spiritually, the tests get tougher.”

Really? The tough test I was facing related to the fact that God was challenging me to spiritual growth? I was actually pleased to think that He loved me enough to invite me to go deeper with Him. Then I looked back at Marge and saw the real peace and sustained joy that she had in her trial and realized that she was up for the challenge. I would be, too. God will not give me a test that I cannot handle, but He will give me a test that will make me stronger and will increase my intimacy with Him.

If that’s what it takes to draw me closer to You, bring it on, Lord. I am grateful that You care enough to give me new opportunities to grow.

“Do not let me waste the trial You send me. It is a gold mine I must exploit.” – St. Therese 

 

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Obsession

. . . I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. (Philippians 3:8a)

I remember recognizing that there were obsessions in my life that should not be there. It became clear that I should not obsess about anyone or anything except Jesus – not family, not weight, not work, not world events, not health, not “to do” lists, not money, not clothes – just Jesus. I committed to making Him my magnificent obsession from that day forward. When I asked Him how to actually put that lofty ideal into practice, here are the things that came to mind:

The glory of God is a living man; and the life of man consists in beholding God. - Irenaeus

The glory of God is a living man; and the life of man consists in beholding God. – Irenaeus

• Pray without ceasing: Acknowledging God’s presence with me always. Not necessarily engaging in verbal communication all the time, but having heart talk that never ends.

• Always be thankful: Discovering the amazing power of gratefulness – the way it can turn me around from sad to glad in about 30 seconds, the way it takes my focus off the problems and onto Him.

• Confess sin: Learning that confession is a privilege. It is a way of making sure there is nothing between me and God and that surety allows me to live constantly in a state of forgiving and being forgiven. I love it when He reminds me that I have something to confess; it is His way of showing me how much He values the relationship that we have developed together.

• Don’t run ahead of God: Taking my time, slowing down. This is a command designed especially for me and people like me who want to take charge. God reminds me that my “taking charge” sometimes interferes with His bigger plan. So I have to stop to listen and to make sure I move forward when, and only when, He says to do so.

These healthy habits are helping me remain connected to my true Obsession, the only safe one I can have. Maybe they will help you, too.

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Crumbs

Looking beyond the here and now

Looking beyond the here and now

What is the biggest thing you have asked God to do for you? Sometimes our focus is on the here and now, so we ask for things that we think will satisfy us. Maybe they do, for awhile at least.

The gospel writers tell the story of the Canaanite woman who came to Jesus (Matthew 15) asking Him to cast a demon out of her daughter. Remember that? He told her that He came for the Jews, not the Gentiles and it was not right to take the bread meant for the children and give it to dogs. Her answer is bold, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” Her request was immediate and desperate but, in light of the power and magnitude of Jesus, it was just a crumb. He gave it to her because of her faith.

When it comes to situations with family, demons, finances, health, and so on, I will take crumbs, too. Those are important and often heart-wrenching requests. But internally, Jesus reminds me, “Don’t be satisfied with crumbs. Pursue Me until you have full revelation of who I am. Don’t be satisfied with anything less.” I need Jesus more than I need quick answers to my desperate prayers. I need Him, not just the gifts He gives. I don’t want to be satisfied with crumbs when Jesus gives me Himself in full as the living bread!

“It would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.” – C. S. Lewis in The Weight of Glory