Category: Spiritual Formation

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Knowing God – The Beginning

This is the beginning of a series of postings on the topic of knowing God. As Christ-followers we are called to be “imitators of Christ.” Matthew 5:48 says we should “be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.” Reading this in context, I don’t think it is as much about our perfection as it is about being imitators of God. If we are to reflect God’s characteristics then it stands to reason that we need to know what they are and how we can live them out.

Let me step back for a moment and talk about my motive for knowing God. My life is driven by a number of key passages of scripture. One of these passages if found in Matthew 22. Here we have an interaction between Jesus and the Pharisees around the question “What is the greatest commandment?” The answer was simple – Love God with all you are & love others as well. To love God with all I have I need to know who God is. As I get to know God better, I grow to love him more. As I love Him more, I want to get to know Him even more… It just goes on – know, loving, loving,know. Don’t forget as we are getting to know and love God, we are also to getting to know and love our neighbors.

As I begin this adventure of know God better, I reflected on the first couple of chapters of Genesis and picked out three characteristics to ponder on – God as creator, God as authority, and God as relational.

Genesis 1:1 “In the beginning God created…” What did God create? He created order out of chaos. Out of nothing He created all things and “it was good.” As I reflect on this characteristic the question that comes to my mind is “How can I create order out of chaos?” How is it that I can be a calming force in troubled times? In crisis or conflict am I a voice of reason or do I add fuel to the fire? As a Christ-follower I can bring the message of HOPE that can be found through a relationship with God through Jesus. In a time of crisis I can stand confidently on the promises of God. I can be that calm voice in anxious times. How can you create order out of chaos in your own life’s circumstances?

Early in Genesis 1 we also see God’s authority – He spoke and it was so. When God speaks His authority is evident. People don’t always listen and as a result stumble and tumble through life. When we speak about our relationship with God, about the truths of scripture, and our life as Christ-followers we too need to speak with authority and boldness. This is not our own authority, rather it is our positional authority as one of God’s adopted children. That said, when you speak about God and the Truths found in the Bible, speak them boldly and with authority.

The third characteristic is that God is relational – that is He lives in community. First, there is the Divine community with Father, Son, and Spirit. The Trinity. The book The Shack painted and interesting picture of what this Divine community looked like. God also values an intimate relationship with us. In Genesis 2 we have God walking in the garden, interacting with Adam & Eve. Adam & Eve knew His voice and the sound of His steps. Before they ate of the fruit it appears they drew close to God, but after their disobedience the hid from Him out of shame or fear. In the last chapter of Revelation, we see this intimate relationship finally restore as God once again walks among His people. The chapters and books between Genesis 3 and Revelation 21 spells out the story of the restoration of this intimate relationship. This restoration was made possible by the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ – our Savior, our Reconciler. Relationships matter to God. Community matters to God. Relationships – with God and others – is our greatest commandment from Jesus – Love God, Love Others (Matthew 22:34-40). Paul in his New Testament writings refers to the body of believers, the church in Acts was about community, the gifts and talents we have are not for ourselves, but for use in community. What I need to do is live a life where God and others truly do matter.

These are the first three of many characteristics of God that I will be exploring though out this coming year. At times I will drill down to see at how I can apply them to my life. At other times, I will simply marvel in the awe and wonder of who God is and deepen my love for Him by simple getting to KNOW Him.

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Year End Reflection 2010 – Looking Back

Year End Reflections 2010 – Looking Back

As 2010 draws to a close I have started to reflect on where I am and where I was a year ago. What things has God taught me over the last year and where do I believe I am headed this coming year? To do this I am following the format of The Grand Examen, a tool used to reflect and discern the events of the last year.

Looking Back –

The question here is what has God been teaching me this last year? Three things almost immediately jumped into my mind – community, personal soul care, and practical faith.

Community has been a thought that i have spent the last couple of years on. I should clarify this by saying the importance of community with regards to ones spiritual growth. It is vital that we not only write and edit our own story, but it is important to allow others to edit our story and if allowed edit other peoples stories. As Christ-followers we grow and mature as we learn to tend to our own soul care, but we need the eyes and wisdom of other to look at our blind spots or help us make sense our of what God is doing in our life. Community is also important in the exercising of our spiritual gifts.

In terms of personal soul care, I have three documents that help guide me in this area. One is my personal life platform that spells out the beliefs and values I hold and helps to see that I am living them out in my life. The second is my personal life mandate. This is a document that I can use as I evaluate different opportunities, to see if they fall within the trajectory that God seems to be laying out for my life. The third writing is my personal action plan. This document lays our some specific action items I need to work on in all areas of my life. I regularly return to these documents, read them, make some personal assessments, update where needed, make course corrections in my life to continue to deepen my relationship with God and others.

The last thing I have been learning is the value of a practical faith or practical theology. It is about living out what I say I believe. It’s about being God’s hands and feet on planet earth. This notion really began to stir in me in late 2010 so I haven’t fully grasped what this will look like for me or in me.

I have one writing theme that has emerged – actually it is more a consolidation of a number of ideas – and my be the topic of my doctoral thesis. It is exploring the idea of “Becoming who we already are.” If we are, like Paul states, a new creation in Christ how does this effect our theology, beliefs/values, Christian praxis, and our relationships with God and others?

The next section will take a look forward.

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Being & Doing – Reflection from James

Today, reflecting on James and the idea that we are to be & to do. Being is the internal reflection we do see how we are doing – of course the key here is to have the correct standards to assess our life, the Bible. Doing is the external praxis of living out our faith – it’s not enough to only know, we have to do.

Being is done in solitude, well doing is doe in community. We were created to seek both solitude and community. The key here is finding the the right balance. In solitude and silence we can reflect on the things we believe, God’s Word, and if we are living a life that that is congruent with them. In silence we can better hear that still small voice of God encouraging us, correcting us, guiding us. It is here were we are taken into the crucible to be tested and refined, purified to become more like Christ. When we are in the crucible we are put into situations that cause us to grow. We may feel along but God is with us. When we emerge from the crucible we are able to reflect God’s glory a little brighter since another layer of impurities has been burned away. At times when we exit this transformation process we feel alive and especially close to God. From this mountain top experience we must then head back down into the valley where we can again engage our community and do the things we have learned.

Silence and solitude is in part how we live out the first part of the greatest commandment – love God with all you have and all you are. It is in community where we live out the second part of this commandment – loving others. We can and do love God in community, but it is only in community where we can love others. The question is not “If I should love others?” rather it is “How can I love and serve others?” How is it I can allow this newly minted me to better reflect God’s glory and bring honor to Him? How can I come along side another in their journey to deepen their relationship with God?