Many of you know that my connection group on Wednesday nights is studying spiritual disciplines using Coach Drury's book. Each week we study a different discipline, but we always come back to asking what the purpose of spiritual disciplines are? Susanne Johnson says, "Spiritual Discipline is not a program of self-improvement, not an ideal to be striven for, not a set of tasks to be accomplished. It is, rather, a way of posturing ourselves to receive God's work 'for us' through Israel and in Jesus Christ."
Many times as Christians we see spiritual disciplines as something we do in order to grow spiritually, but since it is 'spiritual' it follows out of who God is. Spiritual Disciplines become ways that we partner with God in His work in our lives. Spiritual disciplines are less about what we do and more about who we are and becoming.
Showing posts with label spiritual discipline. Show all posts
Showing posts with label spiritual discipline. Show all posts
Monday, April 21, 2008
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Secrecy . . .
This past week our group studied the spiritual discipline of secrecy. Author Coach D says, “the discipline of secrecy is abstaining from taking credit for the good deeds we do. When we practice secrecy, we arrange to do good things in such a way that others can’t even find out who did them.” He goes on to say that like other disciplines secrecy really calls us to explore and focus on our relationship with God through the light of total dependency.
I found myself even today as I write these comments asking some hard questions about “Whom I seek affirmation or recognition from?” There are times over the years I have stayed late after church or event to talk with people and I think I wanted the pastor or leader to take notices. One of the hardest parts of practicing the discipline of secrecy is to examine our motivations. Coach reminds his readers, “It is our motivation that makes the deed either praiseworthy or hypocritical.” Paul takes about this in Philippians 2:3-4, “Do nothing our of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interest, but also to the interests of others.”
After reading the chapter and Philippians I am left thinking about my own personal motivates and propose this question to us all, have you checked your motivations this week? And what will you do to being practicing secrecy this week?
I found myself even today as I write these comments asking some hard questions about “Whom I seek affirmation or recognition from?” There are times over the years I have stayed late after church or event to talk with people and I think I wanted the pastor or leader to take notices. One of the hardest parts of practicing the discipline of secrecy is to examine our motivations. Coach reminds his readers, “It is our motivation that makes the deed either praiseworthy or hypocritical.” Paul takes about this in Philippians 2:3-4, “Do nothing our of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interest, but also to the interests of others.”
After reading the chapter and Philippians I am left thinking about my own personal motivates and propose this question to us all, have you checked your motivations this week? And what will you do to being practicing secrecy this week?
Monday, February 11, 2008
Thoughts on Resting
After reading this week’s chapter I was left pondering the “Protestant Work Ethic.” Especially growing up in America where the mindset of laziness and being a couch potato is bad. We are told that we must be doing something, anything. Busyness is lifted up as the best life; today parents’ status is linked with that amount of activities their kids are in. We have become a culture of workaholics.
The church has not escape this vain of workaholic-ism, the “Protestant Work Ethic” calls some churches to provide activities every night of the week, all day Saturday and Sunday. The Church can add to the busyness of life, but it can also offer rest. Coach D says in the discipline of rest “God restores the body, mind, and soul – all three of which are interrelated.”
Rest is holistic and as we enter into times of rest we are able to affect our whole being. Getting a good night’s sleep not only helps us physically, but emotionally. We wake up in a better mode with restored energy, and spiritual life is also impacted.
Do you need a rest?
The church has not escape this vain of workaholic-ism, the “Protestant Work Ethic” calls some churches to provide activities every night of the week, all day Saturday and Sunday. The Church can add to the busyness of life, but it can also offer rest. Coach D says in the discipline of rest “God restores the body, mind, and soul – all three of which are interrelated.”
Rest is holistic and as we enter into times of rest we are able to affect our whole being. Getting a good night’s sleep not only helps us physically, but emotionally. We wake up in a better mode with restored energy, and spiritual life is also impacted.
Do you need a rest?
Monday, February 4, 2008
Solitude . . .
Being an introvert you would think solitude would be the easiest spiritual discipline for myself. But your wrong, being an introvert or extrovert really has nothing to do with solitude. True an introvert may find it easier to sit alone quietly process through the days events at dinner or read a book and ponder the deeper meaning of the text. Solitude has those elements, but it has much more and requires much more. According to Coach D “solitude is abstaining from people contact in order to be alone with God and get closer to Him. It is fasting from social contact in order to remove others form the God/me equation.”
Solitude is not just about getting alone; it is about moving closer to God and refocusing all our relationship with God being number one. Drury says, “Solitude reminds us of the order we should maintain in our relationships – God first, others second. A Christian who does not practice solitude is likely to be over reliant on friends and under reliant on God. Solitude corrects this imbalance.” Solitude may call us to leave all other relationships and focus on God, but it is for the encouragement of the community. When solitude is build in regularly in to one’s life, they return to community with new passion and focus that allows them to invest into the community.
Have to being getting alone to process your own thoughts or have you really entered solitude?
What has your experience of solitude thought you about yourself, God and the community?
When is your next time of solitude?
Solitude is not just about getting alone; it is about moving closer to God and refocusing all our relationship with God being number one. Drury says, “Solitude reminds us of the order we should maintain in our relationships – God first, others second. A Christian who does not practice solitude is likely to be over reliant on friends and under reliant on God. Solitude corrects this imbalance.” Solitude may call us to leave all other relationships and focus on God, but it is for the encouragement of the community. When solitude is build in regularly in to one’s life, they return to community with new passion and focus that allows them to invest into the community.
Have to being getting alone to process your own thoughts or have you really entered solitude?
What has your experience of solitude thought you about yourself, God and the community?
When is your next time of solitude?
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Silence . . .
Each week the connection group I am apart of studies a different spiritual discipline, this past week we focused our hearts and minds around understanding silence. Here is a post I wrote for our connection group's blog page.
According to Coach D, “Silence is abstaining from sound in order to open our spiritual ears and listen more closely to the voice of God. God seldom speaks loudly. He usually speaks in a ‘still small voice,’ often little more than an impression in our minds (see 1 Kings 19:12 KJV).”
The start of this week was exciting and different than most, I attended our annual spring Community Life Retreat. It was a time of focused growth in the areas of character and leadership. One of the best part of the retreat was not having a television, radio, and computer. As I reflected outside in nature on the retreat grounds, I thought about all the times I walk in to my apartment and turn on the television just for the noise or the amount of time I spend on my computer checking emails and blogs. I am not saying all this modern things evil or bad, but if they become the driving focus of our lives can we truly hear the voice of God?
Coach calls us to, "learn to displace those noisy thoughts by concentrating on one thing, perhaps a Scripture passage or a scene from the Bible." I read these words and my heart is moved to listen and sit in silence in order to open our lives up to God's heart to replace all the noise of one's life. The next time you sit down on the couch and start to turn on the television ask yourself the following questions:
How many hours each day is the television on?
When you are out to dinner or coffee, how time do you spend listening to your companions?
How has the past week led to a deeper dependence on God through your experience of Silence?
According to Coach D, “Silence is abstaining from sound in order to open our spiritual ears and listen more closely to the voice of God. God seldom speaks loudly. He usually speaks in a ‘still small voice,’ often little more than an impression in our minds (see 1 Kings 19:12 KJV).”
The start of this week was exciting and different than most, I attended our annual spring Community Life Retreat. It was a time of focused growth in the areas of character and leadership. One of the best part of the retreat was not having a television, radio, and computer. As I reflected outside in nature on the retreat grounds, I thought about all the times I walk in to my apartment and turn on the television just for the noise or the amount of time I spend on my computer checking emails and blogs. I am not saying all this modern things evil or bad, but if they become the driving focus of our lives can we truly hear the voice of God?
Coach calls us to, "learn to displace those noisy thoughts by concentrating on one thing, perhaps a Scripture passage or a scene from the Bible." I read these words and my heart is moved to listen and sit in silence in order to open our lives up to God's heart to replace all the noise of one's life. The next time you sit down on the couch and start to turn on the television ask yourself the following questions:
How many hours each day is the television on?
When you are out to dinner or coffee, how time do you spend listening to your companions?
How has the past week led to a deeper dependence on God through your experience of Silence?
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