Category: Spiritual Formation

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Reflections from 2011

I have spent the last week or so reflecting back over the last year. I am in the process of writing it up now to share with my wife, friend, and spiritual director. I won’t bore you with all the details but I would like to share with you the highlights and then direct you back to a few blog posting from the past year that I think are worth a second look.

The process I follow for my reflections is call a grand examen. This is an old spiritual practice where you look back, look through, look forward, and look around.

Looking back there were a number of key events – a doctoral class’ discussion on 2 John 12, thoughts about an encore career, scripture about being a new creation, love, practical faith, and my rather lengthy relationship with my old friend depression.

Now looking through these things the themes that came up were personal transformation, soul care, and the idea of coming along side others. The verse 2 John 12 really impacted me and caused a significant change in me – I can’t really explain it any better than that. My dance with depression really brought into focus the need for soul care, relying on others (my counselor has been a real blessing), having spiritual practices you can do even when you don’t feel like (lectio divina) and turning to my scriptural comfort food (James, 1 John, Haggai). A lot of things came together that made me realize that my ministry is focused on coming along side others and helping them move…. Where they move is base on the context of ministry – at work it helping with teaching and technology, at church its about helping people discover their gifts and listen to their stories, at Lino its coming along side guys helping them look at their beliefs and values and making sure they are ground in the Bible.

Looking forward is the tough part of this. One think I did was get involved with the HopeLink ministry at my church. I also jumped in with both feet as a GPS consultant (gifts and passion for serving). I have continued to work with the offenders at Lino’s IFI program. I have also put out a number of feelers for adjunct teaching opportunities.

Looking around I have a spiritual director how helps me discern God’s voice, I have a wife who tolerates my eclectic life, I have a great friend who listens as I ramble and I take the time to listen to God’s still small voice to discern what is next.

I invite you to take a little time to do a grand examen and see where it is that God is leading you. If you need a hand let me know – my spiritual director shingle has been hung.

Now for some blog posts that you might want to reread:

Lost but also read Found, Knowing God Is In It, A Journey of Transformation, Position Desired: Soul Care Pastor, Becoming Who God Wants Me To Be (4 parts), and the transcript of a sermon The Praxis of Love (4 parts).

See you in 2012.

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Reflections from Life

These past few weeks have been some of the toughest I have faced in a long while. Things that have happened, choices that have been made, and the challenges that I have be faced with have all weighted heavy on my soul. It is not just for me, news of ones mother facing cancer, fractured relationships, and a sense of lost hope. In the middle of this I am burdened but I am not overwhelmed. My relief comes from the community that I have around me, my wife, friends, co-workers, and others who are invited into the conversation. These people are my earthly anchors and it is God who is my eternal anchor, going back to His Word for comfort and strength.

Over the last year or so God has been showing me how valuable community is. The ability to rely on others in times of need. This has never been my strong suite and I have dealt with a lot of things on my own, where my burden could have been lightened if I has leaned on another. We see in scripture that no one person has all the answers, but rather we are a body of believers, each with a gift or talent that we can use to minister to others. What we need to do is reach out and ask (not always and easy thing to do) for help or when help is offered be willing to accept it (again not always an easy thing to do).

The most valuable relationship we have is our relationship with God. He is there to comfort and guide us in our times of trial. God uses our trials to transform us into the person God created us to be. I found my comfort in key pieces of scripture – Proverbs 3:5-6, James & 1 John – trust, wisdom in trials and being a child of God.

When trials and troubles come your way seek out those in your community of friends who will stand with you through the struggles, seek out God who will be there always, find comfort in His Word. Don’t try and do it alone, the burden is just to heavy – let God and others help you carry it.

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Back Thinking About James

Well I am back in James again. This time I am getting ready to lead a small group of Bethel communter students in a study of James. As you may or may not know James is a book I often refer to as my spiritual comfort food. It is a place I go when I don’t know where else to turn. It is interesting that every time I do return there seems to be something new that catches my eye. My current study is proving to be no different. Maybe it is the translation I am reading (The Message) but the last part of chapter 1 struck me differently. I have focused on the last verse or two of the chapter before, but this time I was also drawn to the the verses right before. The context is that we shouldn’t just hear God’s Word we should do something with it. Let me share a couple of passages that jumped out:

So throw all spoiled virtue and cancerous evil in the garbage. In simple humility, let our gardener, God, landscape you with the Word, making a salvation-garden of your life. Don’t fool yourself into thinking that you are a listener when you are anything but, letting the Word go in one ear and out the other. Act on what you hear! (James 1:21, 22 MSG)
Anyone who sets himself up as “religious” by talking a good game is self-deceived. This kind of religion is hot air and only hot air. Real religion, the kind that passes muster before God the Father, is this: Reach out to the homeless and loveless in their plight, and guard against corruption from the godless world. (James 1:26, 27 MSG)

To often we listen just enough to find a jumping in point to speak or we listen enough to get angry and speak. More times than not we are simply to listen. Listen to others who need our help or listen to God who is offering solutions. When listen to others take off the “fix it’ hat and put on the “help them process it” hat. When listening to God take of the “I know whats best” hat and put on the “humble yourself” hat. I am only begining to process this now. I ponder what this will look like in my own life? How do you respond to these verses? I would love to hear.