Faith Venture

Are you under the illusion of being a disciple of Jesus?

I’ll give you a moment to contemplate that idea.
Many of us see ourselves as better, smarter, more attractive than others see us. Probably not all that bad within some limits. We need to be optimistic. The unfortunate people are those who are opposite. That attitude can get in the way of living a joyous, serving life.

Then there are those people–you’ve met some, I’m sure, I know some–whose view of themselves bears little resemblance to reality. Maybe they are not “diagnosable” under some term of the DSM. But still, they can be difficult to be around.

Worse yet, is when that gets in the way of their spiritual relationships and life. They keep telling themselves and others about what a disciple they are. Their actions and words tell an entirely different story.

We all need reality checks at times. Taking a time to pause and reflect on what we really do and really say. Few people take that time. Doing that will help you keep on the right path.

Robert Burns, the Scottish poet said it well a few years ago:

“O, wad some Power the giftie gie us
To see oursels as others see us!
It wad frae monie a blunder free us,
An’ foolish notion.”

Dr. Henry Cloud was speaking recently about spiritual growth. If you don’t know him, pick up one of his books. He is a psychologist and has keen insight into people. He pointed out in the talk that at an early stage of spiritual growth, people become fascinated with practices such as prayer and study. They think that if everyone prayed and studied, everyone in the world would be saved and live in peace.

Unfortunately, at some point we begin to realize life gets in the way. We also, if we are not careful, slip into a pattern with our prayer and study. We say the same things in prayer. We no longer read with joy of learning new things, rather with the expectation of seeing things that reinforce what we know.

In a word, we become rigid.

I’m preparing my mind, heart and Spirit to begin leading a group in learning the Spiritual Disciplines (or Spiritual Practices). Cloud’s words are a reminder to not let our practices become rigid. We need a prayer that reminds us to open up our hearts to the teaching and guidance we need to grow.

It’s not just prayer–it’s a new conversation with God every day. It’s not just study–it’s opening our minds to see new ways God is speaking to us. It’s not just attending a celebration–it’s singing with joy. It’s not just service–it’s caring for others.

Jesus said he came to set the prisoners free. Sometimes the prison is our own mind.

“Many people think God exists just to give them blessings.”

I was listening to Scott Scruggs at Menlo Park Presbyterian Church talk last week (on a podcast while I was running in the park, not in the Bay Area), and he made that statement.

The ancient Greeks had a word for that attitude. Hubris. It sort of means too much pride. Or maybe “you’re too full of yourself.” There is another old saying, “Pride goeth before a fall.” Humans have known that condition for a long time.

Thinking about submission, this seems to be an opposite. Instead of thinking and acting as if the universe revolves around me, I acknowledge that there is someone greater than me. Someone who created this universe. Maybe even lots of other universes. How would I know. But He also created me.

What better use of life than to align with the greatest creative power in the universe. How could I fulfill my real purpose in life without being submissive to God and “going with the flow” of God’s creative Spirit?

But things get in the way. Pride is one of them. It’s when I think that I’m the one who matters. Actually, God matters. And God thinks every one of us humans matter.

Sometimes we let ourselves get in the way of fulfilling our destiny. We need to refocus daily on God and what we can do for other people.

Submission and Freedom. Makes me think of a couple of books Rollo May wrote (that are still worth reading)–Love and Will; Power and Innocence. Sort of juxtapose two ideas that seem to be opposite but that are actually united in a little dance.

Jesus said that you can’t love two masters. You’ll wind up serving one and hating the other. Many of us, when thinking about freedom, think that we have no masters. I’m not sure how that works in cultures other than American, but many Americans think you’re free when you have no masters. Hence a little bit of the popularity of our “Tea Party” movement.

People who study human beings beginning from ancient times knew that it is impossible to have no masters. Many of those who think they are free from constraints are actually driven by emotions, urges, addictions.

One freedom humans do have (unless they have psychological problems caused by innate chemical imbalances) is the freedom to choose. In the end, you have to choose your master or a master will choose you.

One way to look at submission is to say, “By choosing God as my master, I am now free to act as a human in ways that promote both my growth and the growth of those I meet.”

Things that stop growing die. Growing in maturity as a human walking with God is life.

Reading through 1 Timothy–Paul’s instructions to Timothy on how to organize a local church and what an ideal church might look like–I got stuck on the word submission.

That’s a tough word for most people–maybe especially for Americans. Our 19th century writers were all about the glorification of the individual and his freedoms.

I’ve jotted lots of thoughts as I think through this discipline. But I decided to consult Richard Foster, “Celebration of Discipline.”

He quotes Martin Luther, “A Christian is a perfectly free lord of all, subject to none. A Christian is a perfectly dutiful servant of all, subject to all.”

Foster goes on to say, “Nothing can put people into bondage like religion, and nothing in religion has done more to manipulate and destroy people than a deficient teaching on submission.”

I think I’m going to spend some time on this thought, because it is a most important concept. Foster says that the purpose of practicing a Spiritual Discipline is for the greater good. And liberation is the end.

He says that the freedom that comes with submission is the freedom from the burden of needing to get our own way.

So, I think the first step in submission is to recognize that, one way or another, we’re going to follow some person or some emotion. It’s best that we choose. Further, it’s best that we choose God. We know that the only good life comes from living a life with God.

So, what’s holding us back?

Training. Interesting subject. I’ve talked to at least three parents this week who have kids going off to college. Kids are all worried about their majors. In many respects, it doesn’t matter. People start out with one major and end up in another often. Even more, they graduate and devote their lives to an entirely different field.

Paul advises Timothy, “Train yourself in godliness, for while physical training is of some value, godliness is valuable in every way, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.”

Timothy was already a church leader at a young age. No doubt, he did not have an M.Div. or other certificated entry paper. He trained under Paul. So as Paul is giving him advice on how to organize a church, he gives him also personal advice.

Note the parallel construction of training in godliness and physical training. Just as in earning that first college degree, you learn something, but then you devote your life to training. You work at it every day. You have a plan. In physical  training, you determine the muscles to develop and how to develop stamina, strength and flexibility.

Just so in your career, you learn something, but then you get a job. Then you train to develop those “muscles” in the right way to excel at your profession.

And then in spiritual matters, you also determine the spiritual muscles you need to develop and proceed to train to develop them in strength and stamina.

How to develop a spiritual training plan? Take a look at the classic Spiritual Disciplines (or Practices). Study, meditation, prayer, service, worship, celebration, and so on. Where do your muscles need work? Start to train them.

And tell your young acquaintances, you go to college to learn to learn. Then you spend your life learning.

I was recently listening to Nancy Ortberg speak. She is a teaching pastor at Menlo Park Presbyterian Church and wife of senior pastor John Ortberg. The sermon series has been “Soul-ology”–all about the health of the soul.

They have been discussing how the soul is the sum of your being. You have a body and a mind (which the ancients, and now us moderns, see as a combination of brain and emotion) and a will. But your soul is owned by God and is all of that plus.

Nancy talked about the problem many of us have in finding rest. So many are “Type A” personalities. We worry, we plan, we crave, we act. But we can’t rest.

Her talk started me thinking. Sometimes rest comes from non-action. One benefit of meditation is to quiet the mind. There are people who confuse this with a direct spiritual benefit, but that is something more. Meditation to rest the soul is simply following a technique of sitting comfortably, focusing on breathing, clearing the mind without effort.

Type A personalities have much difficulty with this. It’s hard for them to sit still. It’s even harder for them to quiet the mind. Aside from helping the soul find rest, studies have revealed that this practice helps reduce stress, bring down blood pressure, prevent onset of Type II diabetes.

Another type of rest actually involves action. Nancy grew up hunting and fishing. She related a vacation they took to Montana to go fly fishing. That is an active vacation. The technique of fly fishing, though physically active, requires utmost concentration. Concentration of this type actually quiets the mind and allows the soul to rest.

I achieve the same state of consciousness through refereeing soccer. The more intense and higher level the game, the higher my concentration. The more the rest of my soul relaxes.

Others have hobbies of various types. Or other recreation. What do you do for your soul?