This post is dedicated to a reflection on the past year in my Spiritual Formation class.
As it turns out, Spiritual Formation became my favorite class here at Kuyper. It was one of the applicable and interesting class I have had to take. It was also the most convicting. It was a learning and living experience. We learned, and we learned how to practice. Those are things I value greatly in education. A tremendous part of this experience was the disciplines and writing about them on the blog. At first I thought I would hate it. I thought it would take up too much of my time. I thought writing about the experience on the internet would be too personal. Overall, I just had a disinterested attitude about the whole thing. However, the true experience was far different than that.
1. Foster says spiritual disciplines are not designed to be ends in themselves, but are intended to facilitate a person's journey into greater freedom in living a Christ-like life. How did your practice of the disciplines this semester (either some in particular or all together) help you grow in your faith and obedience to God?
My experiences of the disciplines this semester greatly impacted my spiritual life. I learned about different methods of meeting God, some of which I had never known about. I learned about disciplines I was curious about. I got to practice things that were outside of my comfort zone. And I learned about all the freedom that can be found in being spiritually connected to God. Some were more successful than others. The ones I enjoyed the most were simplicity, fasting, solitude, and meditation. Fasting and meditation in particular opened me up to listen to God. I did more scripture reading and listening during those two practices than I can remember ever doing. Both of those had a way of focusing me onto the One thing that matters in my life. I was really able to communicate with God through those practices, and developed a better understanding of Who He is. They also helped me realign my priorities and and give them to God. Solitude was a really good refocus. Since solitude is something I already do, I had to work to be stretched during this one. What I learned is that even though I need to take time of solitude, I never actually practiced solitude. I learned the difference through this experience. This will be a discipline I take forward in the future. But I am going to do it right. I know now that I need to rest in God's presence rather than just rest alone. And simplicity. I just love simplicity. Simplicity is the main way that I stay connected to God. I eliminate all of the hindrances in my life and free my heart of anxiety creating clutter. By doing this regularly, I get to put God at the center of my life. It was good to learn a little bit more about it. I think in that respect, it helped me realize that simplicity is a way to obey God.
2. What were some of the distractions or hindrances that kept you from practicing, or practicing to the fullest, the assigned disciplines of the semester? What does this show you about struggle? How do you plan to address this area of struggle?
This question poses a little trouble for me. As I read back over my blogs, I could not find one specific theme of distractions. For the ones that I struggled with, I had very different reasons for each one. For study, I was not mentally or spiritually invested in the topic. I did not come to it with expectancy, so nothing happened. With confession, submission and prayer, I got so distracted with all of the burdens in my life that I could not do justice to practicing these disciplines. They became just another burned. In a lot of ways, this shows my true nature, and really the nature of a lot of people. With deadlines and demands breathing down our necks, it is hard not to feel like that is our true priority. I think a way that I can correct this thinking to be able to place God first again is to prioritize assignments and obligations after I give time to God. I can regularly practice the Sabbath to be able to have at least a day that I can dedicate only to God. It is a tricky thing to struggle with. I am sure it is something I will be wresting with my whole life. I am thankful for the opportunity to face it head on during this assignment.
3. Identify three disciplines you think mesh well together and explain how you see them interrelating. How would you plan to practice them together?
The three that I see meshing well together are worship, prayer and meditation. The purpose of each of these has to do with being in the presence of the Father and experiencing true interaction with Him. It just seems to make sense to me that these three happen simultaneously. Because they do. If I decided to practice them together, I would do it on a Sunday. I would set aside my entire Sunday and treat it like the Sabbath. I would go to corporate worship in the morning, and then spend the rest of my day basking in God and they ways worship that morning transformed me. I would set aside specific time that day to go meditate. I would go to a quiet place (hopefully outdoors if conditions allow) and read scripture. I would then pray to God and meditate on what He had to say. It just makes sense to me that Sabbath worship should be a day full of interaction with God through prayer and meditation.
4. Identify one discipline you would urge a new believer to practice. How would you instruct them in this discipline? Why do you think this discipline is especially well suited to the formation of a new believer?
The discipline that I would encourage a new believer to try is simplicity. Simplicity is that inward and outward lifestyle of reorienting loves into their rightful place. The most transforming part of my spiritual journey has been practicing simplicity. It is one of the disciplines that takes everything in your life and puts it into perspective I think especially for a new believer, the call to transform can be overwhelming. But starting at simplicity is an easy one to take in baby steps. Don't get me wrong, the discipline of simplicity is definitely not an easy one. It might even be one of the hardest. But it is a good place to start. Once a new believer understands simplicity and begins to it's work in their lives, then all the other disciplines come easy. Once a new believer is on the track of transformation and is rightly ordering their lives, then prayer and meditation and fasting all come as an easy and necessary result. Simplicity is one of the most rewarding because of it's long term effects and inward transformation. It causes everything else to fall into place. I would instruct a new believer to start changing their mindset to always putting first the kingdom of God. In every decision from that point on, I would tell them to ask themselves how fits into their spiritual life. Put God at the center of every decision. And eventually take baby steps into bigger things. I would also advise that they read scripture. Scripture is the main tool to understanding God's role in every facet of our lives.
5. Spiritual disciplines fortify believers against some of the universal struggles and weaknesses all Christians have battled against. Identify and describe an area of weakness you observe in the Kuyper College population. What spiritual disciplines, if corporately practiced, would target this area of weakness?
I would instruct Kuyper College to corporately practice submission. Submission is the laying down of our terrible burden to always need to be right. (Side note: I am going to try really hard not to get preachy on this one, but it might come across that way. For that I apologize.) Here at Kuyper, we are studying something very near and dear to our hearts. We are all unified with one purpose that we are just on fire for. We as a college are very, very passionate. However, because we are all equally on fire for the same thing, I think we run into a lot of tension. We all run into people who challenge the beliefs we are fire for with the beliefs that they are on fire for. And the fiery differences cause us to be defensive and send us right up against our need to be right. I would like to say that Kuyper is a gracious school where people honor one another's differences. But I just cannot say that is my experience. I have noticed students treat one another this way, but what is even more disturbing is when they treat professors that way. I hear so much disrespect towards professors and staff that is just unfair and unchristian. I think the way to teach students grace and respect is to practice submission corporately. If we were asked to lay down our need to be right and our pride, I wonder at how good our conversations would be. If we were asked to submit to authority and our peers, I wonder at our attitudes would change. I think it would be a great experience for this school to recognize this weakness and take action steps to fix it.
6. What advice would you give the next class of Spiritual Formation students who will be practicing these disciplines?
The only thing I would tell them is to take it seriously. Put all of your effort into practicing these disciplines. It is not another lame assignment, this is your spiritual life on the line. Don't worry about a grade in this class, just do everything because you want to be closer to God. There are so many good learning experiences from this class. And it is a class we all have to take, so why not enjoy it? Seriously, this a good class that will be one of the most relevant that you ever take. So take it seriously.
Happy reading, and who hoo my semester is over!!
Blessings,
Alyssa
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Thursday, December 6, 2012
The Spiritual Discipline of Sumission
"What freedom corresponds to submission? It is the ability to lay down the terrible burden of always needing to get our own way."
- Foster, 111
Submission, simply put, is the act of setting aside our need to control and allowing some other person, idea, or plan take over. Our entire culture is counter to the idea of submission. Exploitation of others and the pursuit of our good is pervasive in the idea of what it means to be successful. We do have a terrible burden of being told that we need to be the center of our worlds. Why is this a burden? Well, because when we are constantly focused on ourselves, we become unbearable to be around. We loose all of the ability to value other people and their lives. So they leave. It becomes a burden because when we focus on ourselves, we are left alone to face the world.
The discipline of submission while it targets this burden is also about a corresponding freedom. Submission allows us to freely love others unconditionally. It allows us to respect, consider, and show grace to those around us. It allows us to invite others into our community. This type of submission needs to be evident in our relationship to God, in our relationships with our families, in our relationships with our friends, and most definitely with strangers.
One of the hardest parts about submission is the inner attitude that it creates. To start submission, the easiest relationship to submit to is God. I mean obviously we can get on board with submitting to the guy Who laid down His Son in sacrifice for us. The next easiest is those we are closest to like family and significant others. We already know how much they love us, and how they have vowed to love us unconditionally. They aren't going to take advantage of our submission. We can submit to those loved ones. Then a little harder is our friends. We love our friends, and they love us, but they are not always the nicest to us. Its hard to submit to people who aren't very nice. The absolute hardest is strangers and enemies. We can't even fathom that. How in the world can we put ourselves in an inferior position to rude people we can't stand? That is where the inner attitude comes in. Once we start practicing submission in baby steps, we end up cultivating submission into our character. We begin to see Christ in others and in ourselves when we lay down our pride for the sake of others. Submission is one the best emulations of Christ and what He did for us. Just look at Philippians 2:5-11! Now is that a picture of submission, or what?
I was convicted through this discipline. I see so evidently that submission was a characteristic of Christ that I need to model. If you know me, you know that I am a control freak. I hate to be wrong, I hate to admit when others are right, I hate when plans change, I hate when people take advantage of me, and I hate being treated like dirt. All of this culminates into a very defensive and dominate personality. I need more submission in my life. So for my practice of discipline this week, I was very deliberate in my response to people. I was very critical of my interaction and my attitude throughout the day. When someone asked to borrow my car, I said yes. When people asked for help or to talk to me, I said yes. I was intentional about not complaining about my hard classes and frustrating professors. I did not participate in "one upping" others in conversation, and let them be right. I did a lot of random, different things every day to reach into submission.
As a result, I think I am closer to having an attitude of submission. Obviously, this is something at which I can't ever "arrive," but I do think I learned a lot from practicing this discipline. I began to recognize my triggers and my gut reactions. I think I am on my way towards getting better at not reacting to those negatively. I think I am beginning to train myself to raise others above myself, and realizing the burden I was creating. I really think I am becoming passionate about submission in my life. And actually, this is one of them that I would highly recommend others to try. Good luck :)
Happy reading!
Have a blessed day!
In Christ,
Alyssa
- Foster, 111
Submission, simply put, is the act of setting aside our need to control and allowing some other person, idea, or plan take over. Our entire culture is counter to the idea of submission. Exploitation of others and the pursuit of our good is pervasive in the idea of what it means to be successful. We do have a terrible burden of being told that we need to be the center of our worlds. Why is this a burden? Well, because when we are constantly focused on ourselves, we become unbearable to be around. We loose all of the ability to value other people and their lives. So they leave. It becomes a burden because when we focus on ourselves, we are left alone to face the world.
The discipline of submission while it targets this burden is also about a corresponding freedom. Submission allows us to freely love others unconditionally. It allows us to respect, consider, and show grace to those around us. It allows us to invite others into our community. This type of submission needs to be evident in our relationship to God, in our relationships with our families, in our relationships with our friends, and most definitely with strangers.
One of the hardest parts about submission is the inner attitude that it creates. To start submission, the easiest relationship to submit to is God. I mean obviously we can get on board with submitting to the guy Who laid down His Son in sacrifice for us. The next easiest is those we are closest to like family and significant others. We already know how much they love us, and how they have vowed to love us unconditionally. They aren't going to take advantage of our submission. We can submit to those loved ones. Then a little harder is our friends. We love our friends, and they love us, but they are not always the nicest to us. Its hard to submit to people who aren't very nice. The absolute hardest is strangers and enemies. We can't even fathom that. How in the world can we put ourselves in an inferior position to rude people we can't stand? That is where the inner attitude comes in. Once we start practicing submission in baby steps, we end up cultivating submission into our character. We begin to see Christ in others and in ourselves when we lay down our pride for the sake of others. Submission is one the best emulations of Christ and what He did for us. Just look at Philippians 2:5-11! Now is that a picture of submission, or what?
I was convicted through this discipline. I see so evidently that submission was a characteristic of Christ that I need to model. If you know me, you know that I am a control freak. I hate to be wrong, I hate to admit when others are right, I hate when plans change, I hate when people take advantage of me, and I hate being treated like dirt. All of this culminates into a very defensive and dominate personality. I need more submission in my life. So for my practice of discipline this week, I was very deliberate in my response to people. I was very critical of my interaction and my attitude throughout the day. When someone asked to borrow my car, I said yes. When people asked for help or to talk to me, I said yes. I was intentional about not complaining about my hard classes and frustrating professors. I did not participate in "one upping" others in conversation, and let them be right. I did a lot of random, different things every day to reach into submission.
As a result, I think I am closer to having an attitude of submission. Obviously, this is something at which I can't ever "arrive," but I do think I learned a lot from practicing this discipline. I began to recognize my triggers and my gut reactions. I think I am on my way towards getting better at not reacting to those negatively. I think I am beginning to train myself to raise others above myself, and realizing the burden I was creating. I really think I am becoming passionate about submission in my life. And actually, this is one of them that I would highly recommend others to try. Good luck :)
Happy reading!
Have a blessed day!
In Christ,
Alyssa
Sunday, November 25, 2012
The Spiritual Discipline of Solitude
Each Spiritual Discipline I have practiced so far is supposed to target some inward struggle. The purpose of each discipline is to lead to a renewed sense of freedom because of the release of that struggle. The discipline of solitude is supposed to target the inward focus of self. Being alone will take the focus off ourselves so that we are accustomed to hearing God's Word and feeling God's presence better.
Pulling away into a place of solitude is ultimately going to prepare us for the times of spiritual dryness and other times of trial. Solitude is a demonstration of "mortification" which is a fancy term for dying to self to be raised again in Christ. If we encounter a dry time where we feel that God is not present, we often feel lonely or abandoned. This is a form of self-centeredness, because we blame God and not our ignorance. But if we often practice the discipline of being alone, then we know what it feels like to still feel God in the silence. Practicing silence takes the focus off of ourselves and the world moving around us, and places it solely on God's presence. This stealing away for a time and being with God helps prepare us to engage other people. It creates a ready spirit in us so that we are able to fully do ministry. It is refreshing. And it prepares us for dry seasons. And it prepares us for suffering. Solitude is a method of mortification that leads us closer to living a life like Christ.
As an introvert, I am not unfamiliar with having to take alone time to be refreshed. The only way I can feel energized is to steal away for a time. So it was definitely possible and easy for me to practice solitude this week. However, in class we introverts were challenged to take this one step further beyond just alone time. Perhaps thinking less about taking alone time to relax, and more taking alone time to be with God. Or maybe even doing something else all together. I chose something else all together.
I am a very outgoing introvert. I love people and interacting with them. I am also very, very chatty. I love laughing and having a good time with people. I realize that much of my day is spent talking so that I get attention. I definitely retreat to be alone, but for the rest of the day, I am completely self-centered. So I decided to go an entire day without talking. I wanted God to be exalted by my speech and my interaction with people. And I really need to dial down my senseless conversation in order for that to happen.
I made a few ramifications before the day started. I decided that I would talk when spoken to so that I would not appear rude or have to tell everyone about my practice. I decided I would contribute to my group project at our meeting. I decided I would speak in class if called on. I told my professors and the few people I interact with most so that they would not make it more difficult on me. Even when I did have to talk, I decided I would speak limited and thoughtfully so as to still exalt God.
What I found is that with those three in mind, I still talked more than I did not. The professor who knew I was not talking still called on me. People said hi to me every direction I turned. One of my roommates still chatted at me non-stop because she doesn't like silence. I work in food service and still had to be polite and conversational to the customers. There was no way to go about my daily life and not interact with people. I did sit around the lunch table and not contribute to the conversation. But that experience did not really have any spiritual awakenings. I did like sitting back and observing instead of feeling like words were my responsibility. I think what I learned from that experience is that perhaps my daily interaction is a little more significant than I had initially realized. I did get an education in how to chew my words carefully before saying them, but I think I learned that it is okay that I talk a lot. This practice of this discipline led me to maybe consider that I do not have to change anything.
So even though I did not achieve any spiritual awakenings through my mortification, I would not call it useless. I think learning about this discipline and studying it has led me to consider taking alone time to exalt God and be refreshed by His presence. I know that I need that alone time anyway to be energized, and who better to energize me than the Creator? It was good to learn and practice solitude. I think it would be interesting to continue to practice this one and let it become a natural part of my introvertedness.
Thank you for reading :)
Blessings,
Alyssa
Pulling away into a place of solitude is ultimately going to prepare us for the times of spiritual dryness and other times of trial. Solitude is a demonstration of "mortification" which is a fancy term for dying to self to be raised again in Christ. If we encounter a dry time where we feel that God is not present, we often feel lonely or abandoned. This is a form of self-centeredness, because we blame God and not our ignorance. But if we often practice the discipline of being alone, then we know what it feels like to still feel God in the silence. Practicing silence takes the focus off of ourselves and the world moving around us, and places it solely on God's presence. This stealing away for a time and being with God helps prepare us to engage other people. It creates a ready spirit in us so that we are able to fully do ministry. It is refreshing. And it prepares us for dry seasons. And it prepares us for suffering. Solitude is a method of mortification that leads us closer to living a life like Christ.
As an introvert, I am not unfamiliar with having to take alone time to be refreshed. The only way I can feel energized is to steal away for a time. So it was definitely possible and easy for me to practice solitude this week. However, in class we introverts were challenged to take this one step further beyond just alone time. Perhaps thinking less about taking alone time to relax, and more taking alone time to be with God. Or maybe even doing something else all together. I chose something else all together.
I am a very outgoing introvert. I love people and interacting with them. I am also very, very chatty. I love laughing and having a good time with people. I realize that much of my day is spent talking so that I get attention. I definitely retreat to be alone, but for the rest of the day, I am completely self-centered. So I decided to go an entire day without talking. I wanted God to be exalted by my speech and my interaction with people. And I really need to dial down my senseless conversation in order for that to happen.
I made a few ramifications before the day started. I decided that I would talk when spoken to so that I would not appear rude or have to tell everyone about my practice. I decided I would contribute to my group project at our meeting. I decided I would speak in class if called on. I told my professors and the few people I interact with most so that they would not make it more difficult on me. Even when I did have to talk, I decided I would speak limited and thoughtfully so as to still exalt God.
What I found is that with those three in mind, I still talked more than I did not. The professor who knew I was not talking still called on me. People said hi to me every direction I turned. One of my roommates still chatted at me non-stop because she doesn't like silence. I work in food service and still had to be polite and conversational to the customers. There was no way to go about my daily life and not interact with people. I did sit around the lunch table and not contribute to the conversation. But that experience did not really have any spiritual awakenings. I did like sitting back and observing instead of feeling like words were my responsibility. I think what I learned from that experience is that perhaps my daily interaction is a little more significant than I had initially realized. I did get an education in how to chew my words carefully before saying them, but I think I learned that it is okay that I talk a lot. This practice of this discipline led me to maybe consider that I do not have to change anything.
So even though I did not achieve any spiritual awakenings through my mortification, I would not call it useless. I think learning about this discipline and studying it has led me to consider taking alone time to exalt God and be refreshed by His presence. I know that I need that alone time anyway to be energized, and who better to energize me than the Creator? It was good to learn and practice solitude. I think it would be interesting to continue to practice this one and let it become a natural part of my introvertedness.
Thank you for reading :)
Blessings,
Alyssa
Thursday, November 15, 2012
The Spiritual Discipline of Simplicty
Now look at that! There is a discipline that I unknowingly named by blog after! Needless to say, since it is already a concept I feel strongly about, I loved learning about this discipline.
Simplicity as Foster describes, "escapes us because we have no unity or focus around which our lives are oriented." "Simplicity is the only thing that sufficiently reorients our lives so that possessions can be genuinely enjoyed without destroying us."
Simplicity starts with an inward change of lifestyle. If the inward desire for a less cluttered life is absent, then it will look and feel like a legalistic work. Any sort of outward expression of a simple lifestyle has to be motivated by an inner feeling of freedom. Freedom is the feeling of enjoying what we have been given. It is the opposite of shame, which is what we feel when our lives are not ordered correctly. Shame separates us from God. So, to combat that shame, one would practice simplicity Simplicity causes me to put God first always. Simplicity shows me that when the right first thing is first, everything else fits into place. The inward focus of simplicity causes me to orient all of my life around God. When I orient all my life and possessions around God first, I begin to start seeing those things as His. And when I truly attest that all of my possessions are God's, I become much more thankful for all that He has given to me. When I am grateful for all that I have been given, then I find that I trust God for His full sustainability I no longer have to worry about hoarding more and more stuff because I trust God will provide. When I start to trust in God's provision, I begin to share things with others. And giving away to others is an outward sign of simplicity.
Do you see how that outward discipline of simplicity stemmed from a long line of inward transformation? It has to be inward first. And that inward has to be a sense of freedom.
One of the things that stands out to me about simplicity is that it might be one of the most counter-cultural. A lot of these other disciplines are being taught by the Church and practiced by it's members. In America, simplicity is not taught nor practiced correctly. Americans are consumers and proud of it. Christians are not immune to that consumerism. There are dozens of passages in scripture that talk about riches and wealth and none of them talk about storing up material possessions for ourselves on earth. In fact, they all make claim that wealthy people are not healthy Christians. I have heard only a handful of sermons on wealth in my life, and I disagreed with almost all of them. I have heard some about how we must all give away everything we own and live on the streets. I have heard several with the underlying message that storing wealth is okay as long as you tithe a decent amount. But the most common message on wealth is the ever famous prosperity gospel. But I have not heard one good sermon on the spiritual damage that a disoriented life can have even the most well-meaning Christian. This makes the message of simplicity all the more urgent.
Consumerism is a barrier to my spiritual life that I have committed to overcoming. I cannot put a date and time on when I decided to live like that, but it has definitely been a couple of years. I think over time I just became aware of all of the negative influence I saw in people. I witnessed greed and selfishness from money and stuff well up in people, and I ended up not even wanting to be around them. So I have committed to eliminating all the clutter in my life that other get so hung up on. I have spent a lot of time developing an inner spirit of freedom that creates my outward lifestyle of simplicity. I agreed with everything Foster said and everything we discussed in class, and for this blog I even put on my own opinions in. I am so grateful that I get to put my own personal experience from previous years into this blog.
I have a very basic cell-phone and a very basic laptop. I have had the same car since I turned sixteen. I have a closet full of (cute) clothes that I buy on clearance. I live in a modest home. My life is very free of hoarding and cluttering of possessions. I do not hang onto any of my possessions in an unhealthy way. I do not obsess over the "new." I do not marvel at the latest and greatest piece of technology. I do not read gossipy fashion magazines that keep me up on the latest style. I ignore ads on tv that tempt me into a consumeristic lifestyle I work very, very hard to avoid the temptation of wealth and enjoy my freedom in Christ. I am not sharing this arrogantly, I am sharing that to explain that I had trouble coming up with a practice this week. for the sake of this assignment, I struggled to come up with a practice that would be new or tangible. I already do several things on a regular basis to ensure that I have rightly ordered loves. Instead of writing about all of the things I do on a regular basis or blabbing about how I created an inner spirit of simplicity, I just want to reiterate that there are several ways to do simplicity. The one I found this week may be different from my classmates, but I just spent time reflecting on what I have changed over the past few years, and what has worked and what has not. I also spent a lot of time reflecting on previous disciplines and how those most definitely have a place in my life as simplicity.
The result of that reflection is complicated. Only because life is complicated. There are a lot of layers to simplicity and the life that I am living. One thing that I reflected that I could do differently is give more. Sure I do not store up a lot for myself, but what am I doing for others? That is a discipline I would like to add to my life. I also decided there are several other disciplines I want to do regularly to keep God at the center. Meditation, fasting, and prayer are just a few that I am continuing to do now. These are things that I will be more able to measure in the future, but for this week, simplicity has taught me to often reflect on how things have gone thus far. It is okay to stop and reorient so that the reorientation will continue to go smoothly.
I am grateful for the conversation on simplicity this week. This is something I will continue to be passionate about.
Thank you for reading.
Blessings,
Alyssa
Simplicity as Foster describes, "escapes us because we have no unity or focus around which our lives are oriented." "Simplicity is the only thing that sufficiently reorients our lives so that possessions can be genuinely enjoyed without destroying us."
Simplicity starts with an inward change of lifestyle. If the inward desire for a less cluttered life is absent, then it will look and feel like a legalistic work. Any sort of outward expression of a simple lifestyle has to be motivated by an inner feeling of freedom. Freedom is the feeling of enjoying what we have been given. It is the opposite of shame, which is what we feel when our lives are not ordered correctly. Shame separates us from God. So, to combat that shame, one would practice simplicity Simplicity causes me to put God first always. Simplicity shows me that when the right first thing is first, everything else fits into place. The inward focus of simplicity causes me to orient all of my life around God. When I orient all my life and possessions around God first, I begin to start seeing those things as His. And when I truly attest that all of my possessions are God's, I become much more thankful for all that He has given to me. When I am grateful for all that I have been given, then I find that I trust God for His full sustainability I no longer have to worry about hoarding more and more stuff because I trust God will provide. When I start to trust in God's provision, I begin to share things with others. And giving away to others is an outward sign of simplicity.
Do you see how that outward discipline of simplicity stemmed from a long line of inward transformation? It has to be inward first. And that inward has to be a sense of freedom.
One of the things that stands out to me about simplicity is that it might be one of the most counter-cultural. A lot of these other disciplines are being taught by the Church and practiced by it's members. In America, simplicity is not taught nor practiced correctly. Americans are consumers and proud of it. Christians are not immune to that consumerism. There are dozens of passages in scripture that talk about riches and wealth and none of them talk about storing up material possessions for ourselves on earth. In fact, they all make claim that wealthy people are not healthy Christians. I have heard only a handful of sermons on wealth in my life, and I disagreed with almost all of them. I have heard some about how we must all give away everything we own and live on the streets. I have heard several with the underlying message that storing wealth is okay as long as you tithe a decent amount. But the most common message on wealth is the ever famous prosperity gospel. But I have not heard one good sermon on the spiritual damage that a disoriented life can have even the most well-meaning Christian. This makes the message of simplicity all the more urgent.
Consumerism is a barrier to my spiritual life that I have committed to overcoming. I cannot put a date and time on when I decided to live like that, but it has definitely been a couple of years. I think over time I just became aware of all of the negative influence I saw in people. I witnessed greed and selfishness from money and stuff well up in people, and I ended up not even wanting to be around them. So I have committed to eliminating all the clutter in my life that other get so hung up on. I have spent a lot of time developing an inner spirit of freedom that creates my outward lifestyle of simplicity. I agreed with everything Foster said and everything we discussed in class, and for this blog I even put on my own opinions in. I am so grateful that I get to put my own personal experience from previous years into this blog.
I have a very basic cell-phone and a very basic laptop. I have had the same car since I turned sixteen. I have a closet full of (cute) clothes that I buy on clearance. I live in a modest home. My life is very free of hoarding and cluttering of possessions. I do not hang onto any of my possessions in an unhealthy way. I do not obsess over the "new." I do not marvel at the latest and greatest piece of technology. I do not read gossipy fashion magazines that keep me up on the latest style. I ignore ads on tv that tempt me into a consumeristic lifestyle I work very, very hard to avoid the temptation of wealth and enjoy my freedom in Christ. I am not sharing this arrogantly, I am sharing that to explain that I had trouble coming up with a practice this week. for the sake of this assignment, I struggled to come up with a practice that would be new or tangible. I already do several things on a regular basis to ensure that I have rightly ordered loves. Instead of writing about all of the things I do on a regular basis or blabbing about how I created an inner spirit of simplicity, I just want to reiterate that there are several ways to do simplicity. The one I found this week may be different from my classmates, but I just spent time reflecting on what I have changed over the past few years, and what has worked and what has not. I also spent a lot of time reflecting on previous disciplines and how those most definitely have a place in my life as simplicity.
The result of that reflection is complicated. Only because life is complicated. There are a lot of layers to simplicity and the life that I am living. One thing that I reflected that I could do differently is give more. Sure I do not store up a lot for myself, but what am I doing for others? That is a discipline I would like to add to my life. I also decided there are several other disciplines I want to do regularly to keep God at the center. Meditation, fasting, and prayer are just a few that I am continuing to do now. These are things that I will be more able to measure in the future, but for this week, simplicity has taught me to often reflect on how things have gone thus far. It is okay to stop and reorient so that the reorientation will continue to go smoothly.
I am grateful for the conversation on simplicity this week. This is something I will continue to be passionate about.
Thank you for reading.
Blessings,
Alyssa
Saturday, November 10, 2012
The Spiritual Discipline of Study
"Study is a specific kind of experience in which through careful attention to reality the mind is enabled to move in a specific direction." - Foster, 63
Study is a relativity straightforward spiritual discipline. It sounds as simple as reading scripture or other theological or biblical books. As a bible student, I do this on a regular basis, so I was hoping that I would find out that the discipline of study would be different than just that. Because I know my schoolwork never feels like a spiritual discipline. I must confess, I also had a small hope that maybe that meant that I already practice this discipline daily. Maybe that meant I could cop out of this one!
Instead, I realized that study is a unique five step process. The first step is repetition. To use the example of my practice this week, I repeatedly read 1 Corinthians 13. I read it three times every morning for a week. The idea behind repetition is the hope that it would creates a habit. Habits are when our minds are trained to head in that direction with out provoking. The hope is that I would reflect on the words of 1 Corinthians 13 all day.
The second step is concentration. This is where I bring focus to my continuous reading of the same passage. It is easy to breeze over familiar words, especially with an already familiar passage like 1 Cor. 13, but this second step ensures that each time I read, I am focused on meaning.
The third step is comprehension Comprehension occurs when I understand what I am reading, as well as why it is important that I know what is being said. This is the sort of interpretation and application part of reading scripture. Each morning I read this passage, I spent time thinking about what stood out and how I could carry it with me for the rest of the day. I made sure to apply the passage every day, in a new way. This prevented study from going stale.
The fourth step is reflection. This is an activity that is the natural result of comprehension. This is really what makes it valuable for life. Taking time to reflect is what gives this discipline value. Reflection is how we invest, apply, and connect to our day to day life.
The fifth step is perhaps the most important. It is humility. The discipline of study requires a teachable spirit and mold-ability. To truly study might mean change. And we need to be amiable to change. We must always be willing to recognize that we need deeper knowledge. Deep knowledge and application is what will lead to understanding in our lives.
So this sounds really great. Like a super easy and beneficial five-step process to becoming more holy. Awesome.
Problem is... I totally bombed this one.
Earlier today, I started to get really discouraged because I was not finding any benefit in the discipline of study. It occurred to me that perhaps it was my motivation, or lack thereof, that was hindering me from this experience. I missed the class lecture where we discussed this discipline. Usually, our class conversation leads me to feel really convicted about the discipline being discussed. It can get lively. The class is a room full of students who are fired up about spiritual matters, and the conversation is usually sparked with passion. I missed the passion for the discipline of study. And I could not summon the conviction on my own. I did not know what to expect with this practice, so I did not expect anything. There was nothing about study that I felt personally invested in. So just like I learned with holy expectancy, I didn't expect God, so I didn't meet God. And it showed in my attitude towards my daily practice of reading 1 Cor. 13.
I have given all of the other disciplines an honest try, and even started to like ones I did not think I would. And here was study, one that I thought would totally work for me, and I could not make a go of it. The lesson learned here is a complete attitude check. I now understand that there cannot be anything forced about spiritual matters. I still had to give this discipline a try for the sake of the assignment, but I have to admit that if it were not for the matter of a grade, I should have abstained this week. My heart and mind were not open to what this discipline would or should have taught. This is a very good discipline, but I will share from experience that none of these are good without proper motives and a prepared heart. Expectancy is an important key for spiritual disciplines, and they should not be tried without it. And this is my honest post about what has not worked for me.
Until next time,
Alyssa :)
(Don't worry, this has not discouraged me from honestly trying for the next four weeks!)
Study is a relativity straightforward spiritual discipline. It sounds as simple as reading scripture or other theological or biblical books. As a bible student, I do this on a regular basis, so I was hoping that I would find out that the discipline of study would be different than just that. Because I know my schoolwork never feels like a spiritual discipline. I must confess, I also had a small hope that maybe that meant that I already practice this discipline daily. Maybe that meant I could cop out of this one!
Instead, I realized that study is a unique five step process. The first step is repetition. To use the example of my practice this week, I repeatedly read 1 Corinthians 13. I read it three times every morning for a week. The idea behind repetition is the hope that it would creates a habit. Habits are when our minds are trained to head in that direction with out provoking. The hope is that I would reflect on the words of 1 Corinthians 13 all day.
The second step is concentration. This is where I bring focus to my continuous reading of the same passage. It is easy to breeze over familiar words, especially with an already familiar passage like 1 Cor. 13, but this second step ensures that each time I read, I am focused on meaning.
The third step is comprehension Comprehension occurs when I understand what I am reading, as well as why it is important that I know what is being said. This is the sort of interpretation and application part of reading scripture. Each morning I read this passage, I spent time thinking about what stood out and how I could carry it with me for the rest of the day. I made sure to apply the passage every day, in a new way. This prevented study from going stale.
The fourth step is reflection. This is an activity that is the natural result of comprehension. This is really what makes it valuable for life. Taking time to reflect is what gives this discipline value. Reflection is how we invest, apply, and connect to our day to day life.
The fifth step is perhaps the most important. It is humility. The discipline of study requires a teachable spirit and mold-ability. To truly study might mean change. And we need to be amiable to change. We must always be willing to recognize that we need deeper knowledge. Deep knowledge and application is what will lead to understanding in our lives.
So this sounds really great. Like a super easy and beneficial five-step process to becoming more holy. Awesome.
Problem is... I totally bombed this one.
Earlier today, I started to get really discouraged because I was not finding any benefit in the discipline of study. It occurred to me that perhaps it was my motivation, or lack thereof, that was hindering me from this experience. I missed the class lecture where we discussed this discipline. Usually, our class conversation leads me to feel really convicted about the discipline being discussed. It can get lively. The class is a room full of students who are fired up about spiritual matters, and the conversation is usually sparked with passion. I missed the passion for the discipline of study. And I could not summon the conviction on my own. I did not know what to expect with this practice, so I did not expect anything. There was nothing about study that I felt personally invested in. So just like I learned with holy expectancy, I didn't expect God, so I didn't meet God. And it showed in my attitude towards my daily practice of reading 1 Cor. 13.
I have given all of the other disciplines an honest try, and even started to like ones I did not think I would. And here was study, one that I thought would totally work for me, and I could not make a go of it. The lesson learned here is a complete attitude check. I now understand that there cannot be anything forced about spiritual matters. I still had to give this discipline a try for the sake of the assignment, but I have to admit that if it were not for the matter of a grade, I should have abstained this week. My heart and mind were not open to what this discipline would or should have taught. This is a very good discipline, but I will share from experience that none of these are good without proper motives and a prepared heart. Expectancy is an important key for spiritual disciplines, and they should not be tried without it. And this is my honest post about what has not worked for me.
Until next time,
Alyssa :)
(Don't worry, this has not discouraged me from honestly trying for the next four weeks!)
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
The Spiritual Discipline of Fasting
I am well aware of the preconceived notions about fasting because I held them as my own prior to this class. I know that our thwarted American view of food and our dietary obsessed culture causes one to worry about someone who decides to give up food. We wonder if they are anorexic, or we are concerned that it might cause serious health complications, or we worry they might starve. And I'm not judging anyone here because those were beliefs that I held too. However, I have now experienced and changed my opinions towards fasting. Here I am to blog about it! (Which means I survived)
Americans especially are subject to our stomachs. Once he or she starts to growl, we are done, we need food immediately. We bow to every whim our stomach demands. We feed it when it wants, what it wants, and how much it wants. We are completely dependent on the demands of our stomach.
But what if we weren't? The reality of our stomach is that we condition it to feel hungry every time we feed it. Our stomach is so not in control of us, we just need to learn to regain the control of it. We were made to control those desires.
Fasting is a direct disobedience to the demands of of our material body, and it is direct obedience to fueling the spiritual being. Fasting can very easily be misused when other benefits become elevated over the spiritual. The sole purpose of fasting needs to be "abstaining from natural foods for a spiritual purposes." (Foster, 48) In fact, Foster defines fasting as "feasting on the Word of God." Fasting is a way to be reminded that we are sustained not by food, but by scripture. It causes us to crave God and His care for us. When we are neglected something that it is so necessary to our survival, it truly elevates God's goodness when He provides for us in our deficit. It is amazing to realize that I can give up something so crucial and still be upheld by the Word of God alone. For me, that is more than enough reason to try fasting. Of course I want to know and experience the goodness of God!
I also want to clarify that fasting can have physical health benefits as well. I know for myself, I eat and drink so much junk, that I am sure my body appreciates a break from that. Fasting for 2 or 7 days gives the body a chance to empty itself of all the impure toxins and start fresh for when you start to eat again. This is also symbolic, because as we are emptying ourselves of all the nasty, we are refilling with all the goodness of the presence of God. Wow! Now who wouldn't try fasting?
DISCLAIMER: This is again for strictly spiritual purposes. Anything else, and it is no longer fasting. It is still not healthy to starve yourself.
I was always curious about fasting, and was actually grateful for this kind of mandatory chance to try it. The way it was described in Foster's book and in class caused me all the more curiosity and desire to try it. But I knew I had to take baby steps. So I decided that I would start at 7 pm Monday night until 7 pm Tuesday night. I figured I could try this once a week and eventually extend it a couple of days until I could do a whole week. I did not give up my coffee on Tuesday morning even though that breaks the rule of a fast. That is my confession for the week.
But other than that, I followed through on my fast. It was such a challenge to avoid the candy in the candy dish, the brownies on the stove, and the snacks in my cupboard. But every time I thought of these temptations, I prayed and took a gulp of water. I used the time that I would normally be in lunch to read my Bible. I read different sections, so I had a well-balanced meal of scripture. What I found, is that I never really felt hungry. I was never overwhelmed with my need to eat something. Looking back, I know that God was providing for me.
Don't get me wrong, I was so grateful to be able to eat dinner on Tuesday night. Eating and snacking is still very important to me, but I did learn that it does not have to control me. Fasting is definitely something I will try again in the near future. I am hoping that it continues to have better and better results and it draws me closer and closer to God. I'm telling you, it sounds scary and radical. I am well aware of that. But the benefits and the results truly make it all okay.
Thank you for reading today!
Many blessings,
Alyssa
Americans especially are subject to our stomachs. Once he or she starts to growl, we are done, we need food immediately. We bow to every whim our stomach demands. We feed it when it wants, what it wants, and how much it wants. We are completely dependent on the demands of our stomach.
But what if we weren't? The reality of our stomach is that we condition it to feel hungry every time we feed it. Our stomach is so not in control of us, we just need to learn to regain the control of it. We were made to control those desires.
Fasting is a direct disobedience to the demands of of our material body, and it is direct obedience to fueling the spiritual being. Fasting can very easily be misused when other benefits become elevated over the spiritual. The sole purpose of fasting needs to be "abstaining from natural foods for a spiritual purposes." (Foster, 48) In fact, Foster defines fasting as "feasting on the Word of God." Fasting is a way to be reminded that we are sustained not by food, but by scripture. It causes us to crave God and His care for us. When we are neglected something that it is so necessary to our survival, it truly elevates God's goodness when He provides for us in our deficit. It is amazing to realize that I can give up something so crucial and still be upheld by the Word of God alone. For me, that is more than enough reason to try fasting. Of course I want to know and experience the goodness of God!
I also want to clarify that fasting can have physical health benefits as well. I know for myself, I eat and drink so much junk, that I am sure my body appreciates a break from that. Fasting for 2 or 7 days gives the body a chance to empty itself of all the impure toxins and start fresh for when you start to eat again. This is also symbolic, because as we are emptying ourselves of all the nasty, we are refilling with all the goodness of the presence of God. Wow! Now who wouldn't try fasting?
DISCLAIMER: This is again for strictly spiritual purposes. Anything else, and it is no longer fasting. It is still not healthy to starve yourself.
I was always curious about fasting, and was actually grateful for this kind of mandatory chance to try it. The way it was described in Foster's book and in class caused me all the more curiosity and desire to try it. But I knew I had to take baby steps. So I decided that I would start at 7 pm Monday night until 7 pm Tuesday night. I figured I could try this once a week and eventually extend it a couple of days until I could do a whole week. I did not give up my coffee on Tuesday morning even though that breaks the rule of a fast. That is my confession for the week.
But other than that, I followed through on my fast. It was such a challenge to avoid the candy in the candy dish, the brownies on the stove, and the snacks in my cupboard. But every time I thought of these temptations, I prayed and took a gulp of water. I used the time that I would normally be in lunch to read my Bible. I read different sections, so I had a well-balanced meal of scripture. What I found, is that I never really felt hungry. I was never overwhelmed with my need to eat something. Looking back, I know that God was providing for me.
Don't get me wrong, I was so grateful to be able to eat dinner on Tuesday night. Eating and snacking is still very important to me, but I did learn that it does not have to control me. Fasting is definitely something I will try again in the near future. I am hoping that it continues to have better and better results and it draws me closer and closer to God. I'm telling you, it sounds scary and radical. I am well aware of that. But the benefits and the results truly make it all okay.
Thank you for reading today!
Many blessings,
Alyssa
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Practicing the Presence of God
The Spiritual Discipline of Prayer
"Of all the spiritual disciplines, prayer is the most central because it ushers us into perpetual communion with the Father."
"To pray is to change. Prayer is the central avenue God uses to transform us. If we are unwilling to change, we will abandon prayer as a noticeable characteristic of our lives."
"Of all the spiritual disciplines, prayer is the most central because it ushers us into perpetual communion with the Father."
"To pray is to change. Prayer is the central avenue God uses to transform us. If we are unwilling to change, we will abandon prayer as a noticeable characteristic of our lives."
- Richard Foster, 33
Prayer is probably one of two or three different practices that Christians deem absolutely necessary to the Christian walk. I bet anyone who reads this blog will agree with that. The problem is, there are several different ways to pray. There is corporate prayer that we bow our heads to in church. There is prayer that we have in small groups where we each pray for a request. There is prayer that we pray around the dinner table to bless our food. And there is silent, personal prayer. And if you are anything like me, the first three are easy. It is the last one that is the challenge.
In my life, I often utter a spontaneous prayer when I sense something to pray for. In that sense, I do have a healthy personal prayer life. As I go throughout the day I am constantly lifting up burdens, praising God, and just talking to my Creator. I truly talk to God as if He walks beside me everywhere I go. And that is because I believe that He does. Prayer is another discipline that practices the presence of God. In the book we are reading for this class, Foster raises the question of our theology. Does our prayer life reflect that we believe God is always present? Do we pose requests to God as if we believe He can do anything? Do we talk to God like He can hear us? Do we wait because we believe He responds to us? Our prayer life should reflect our beliefs in a God who is omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent. All knowing, all powerful, and always there. If we are talking to God that way, He will respond. If we pray with the expectancy that our prayers will change things because of Who we are praying to, things will change. Prayer is God letting us participate in the course of history.
In that sense, my personal prayer life isn't that healthy. I often talk to God as I am focused on something else. I don't often carve out time to focus on praying to God and inviting His presence into that time. I believe He is always there, but I don't always give that my full attention. So for the practice of discipline this week, I decided to change that. I decided that I would dedicate time twice this week to intercessory prayer. I would pray and only pray with the expectancy that God would respond to my requests. However, it is important in regards to my theology to first pray that my will would align with God's. If I am going to ask God for things, they need to be things that He has already ordained. I can want my requests to be answered with my whole will, but it won't matter if my will is not God's. So I will first life my will and my desires up to God. Guidance before intercession.
There are several things on this campus that need to be prayed for. Two of my very closest friends are having major health crisis, we had a professor in the hospital, student's family members are passing away tragically, we are undergoing staff changes, and several people are feeling the effects of spiritual warfare. I decided to put all of that into my intercessory prayer. And I did. I prayed expectantly twice this week to ask God to heal all of that brokenness. I used the model from Hannah in 1 Samuel 2. She wholeheartedly poured out her requests to the Lord, and they were effective. At this point I am not capable of saying if any of it was "successful." But I do not think that was the point. I do know that I was refreshed, and I do believe prayer has the power to change things. With that combination, I know God was at work in this discipline. Prayer is a pillar of our relationship to God for a reason. It works, and it is our mandate.
So I encourage you to take this one to heart. This one you can and should try at home.
Thank you for reading :)
Many blessings,
Alyssa
Spiritual Autobiography- Final
The Spiritual Discipline of Sharing my Story
For those of you who are just now tuning in, I am in the process of telling my spiritual autobiography in four installments. This is the last one. If you would like to read about my life from the beginning, come back to this one and scroll down first. I hope you enjoy whatever you decide to read :)
I have told the story up until my college years so far. Overall, the past twoish years can be summed up pretty easily: ministry and learning. Up until this point I had a lot of significant relationships impact my spiritual journey and push me towards faith. I then had a lot of awesome trips guide me towards understanding my role as a Christian better. But now, God has used me a leader for His glory. I have taken that next step in my faith and have continued to fall more in love with my Creator.
I attend a Bible college, where I am getting a major in Bible and Theology. This means that I am learning a lot about the person of God and it's implications for my relationship to Him. I am learning doctrine, theology, biblical interpretation and a bunch of other cool knowledge that a lot of Christians deem pointless. However, I am an intellectual, and knowing those things are actually helping me grow deeper in faith. I now have the capability of explaining things I otherwise wouldn't be able to articulate. I feel like it has a brand new impact on the ministry I am called to pursue.
I have even had the privilege of serving in a couple of different leadership roles during my college career. I have worked at a Christian camp as a youth leader for kids and middle schoolers for two summers. That was a fantastic way for me to implement everything that I learned in school. I could feel God using me and I saw Him at work every single day. I grew because I helping other kids grow. I have also been able to serve my peers here at the college. I really thank God for allowing me to see Him in growth in my peers and in myself. I also thank Him for creating me to be a person who is gifted for these roles. I truly love who God has made me to be. In these years I have learned about God, experienced God, and have fallen more in love with Him.
In reality, my entire life has been building up for these college years. I was taking baby steps towards knowing God better. I was blessed in never really having a period of doubt or falling away. I was also blessed by those I was and am surrounded by and their impact on my story. I was blessed on several trips. And I am blessed by the college I attend. All in all, I am incredibly fortunate. At this stage in my life I never cease to turn to God and thank Him for those fortunes. My story is the way it is because of His hand, and I am thrilled to be able to tell it if it gives Him even an ounce of glory. Praise God.
So thank you for reading. It was long and daunting I know, but thank you for the attention. It is appreciated!
Many, many blessings,
Alyssa
For those of you who are just now tuning in, I am in the process of telling my spiritual autobiography in four installments. This is the last one. If you would like to read about my life from the beginning, come back to this one and scroll down first. I hope you enjoy whatever you decide to read :)
I have told the story up until my college years so far. Overall, the past twoish years can be summed up pretty easily: ministry and learning. Up until this point I had a lot of significant relationships impact my spiritual journey and push me towards faith. I then had a lot of awesome trips guide me towards understanding my role as a Christian better. But now, God has used me a leader for His glory. I have taken that next step in my faith and have continued to fall more in love with my Creator.
I attend a Bible college, where I am getting a major in Bible and Theology. This means that I am learning a lot about the person of God and it's implications for my relationship to Him. I am learning doctrine, theology, biblical interpretation and a bunch of other cool knowledge that a lot of Christians deem pointless. However, I am an intellectual, and knowing those things are actually helping me grow deeper in faith. I now have the capability of explaining things I otherwise wouldn't be able to articulate. I feel like it has a brand new impact on the ministry I am called to pursue.
I have even had the privilege of serving in a couple of different leadership roles during my college career. I have worked at a Christian camp as a youth leader for kids and middle schoolers for two summers. That was a fantastic way for me to implement everything that I learned in school. I could feel God using me and I saw Him at work every single day. I grew because I helping other kids grow. I have also been able to serve my peers here at the college. I really thank God for allowing me to see Him in growth in my peers and in myself. I also thank Him for creating me to be a person who is gifted for these roles. I truly love who God has made me to be. In these years I have learned about God, experienced God, and have fallen more in love with Him.
In reality, my entire life has been building up for these college years. I was taking baby steps towards knowing God better. I was blessed in never really having a period of doubt or falling away. I was also blessed by those I was and am surrounded by and their impact on my story. I was blessed on several trips. And I am blessed by the college I attend. All in all, I am incredibly fortunate. At this stage in my life I never cease to turn to God and thank Him for those fortunes. My story is the way it is because of His hand, and I am thrilled to be able to tell it if it gives Him even an ounce of glory. Praise God.
So thank you for reading. It was long and daunting I know, but thank you for the attention. It is appreciated!
Many, many blessings,
Alyssa
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Spiritual Autobiography Part III
The Spiritual Discipline of Sharing my Story
Following middle school, was obviously high school. The theme of this phase of my life still very much revolves around relationships, as well as an added element. I went on three mission trips in those four years that seemed to have lasting implications. This adds the theme of meaningful trips to my story.
My freshman year was still rocky because I was testing the waters with all of the older students I had never met before. I got involved in theatre, and found myself a part of the theatre clique. I still had my two best friends by my side, and together we watched some of other friends experiment with bad choices. We continued to be passionate about church, and stuck with those convictions. That did not mean we stranger to mistakes. We learned a lot about how not to be stupid that first year and it really set the rest of the four years in motion. We got through, and eventually it became time to go on our first mission trip.There was a particular group of incoming senior girls who took myself and one other friend under their wings. Which is amazing considering how much younger we were and the fact that it was high school. For the entire rest of my sophomore year, we hung out with that group exclusively. They were really good for me. They were good role models, they helped me mature faster, and they were safe. They introduced me to high school and taught me that it was okay to be against the grain. I also started to develop some crushes on older boys, which was actually good for me. I learned a lot about using relationships to offer glory to God. However, the only problem with this particular friend group is the fact that they were graduating. They were a blessing for this short portion of my life, but I still had a lot more independence to gain.
After that second year in high school, we went on a second trip to Ecuador. Of all the events in my life, this was the highlight. This was a brand new experience for several reasons. First of all, it was a cross-cultural experience which was very enlightening for a Dutch girl like myself. Second, people are totally on fire for the Holy Spirit in Ecuador and that became incredibly contagious. And third, God was completely the center of that trip. We went without a detailed itinerary, but had prepared a sort of short church service. Some people were in a drama, some people were prepared to lead worship, and some were prepared to give a testimony. We ended up doing that service almost five times a day to various audiences. God was leading us to those groups and we saw a huge number of people turning to Christ each day. Our group was quite large, and there are several things that could go wrong in a group of high schoolers that size in a foreign country. However, our group began the trip pushing all that stuff aside on the very first night. During that first night's worship, the Holy Spirit led some people unleash some pretty heavy confession. It ended up being a very raw time of each of us laying what we had on the table. Anything that would have held the group back was exposed during that time. Our group bonded and was united under one vision, following the prompting of the Holy Spirit. The reaction in my heart to these experiences was unbelievable. I was encountering God in ways I had never imagined, and it changed me. I was finally beginning to understand my call as a Christian. I realized it went much deeper than being saved from sins and loving God. It was about sharing the gospel so that other people could enjoy this love that I loved. This was truly the biggest point of growth in my Christian walk.
My friends and I came back to our junior year in high school without our older friends. But we had a new found passion of evangelism and became tighter than we were before. These were my girls and I loved growing close to God while growing close to them. I also got to know my future husband during that trip to Ecuador. He joined our youth group for that trip, and we developed a friendship. Through God's prompting, that friendship developed into a relationship. We fought it, since he was leaving for Michigan Tech that fall. Neither of us wanted that difficult of a relationship. But God told us otherwise. A week before he left for school, we made it official (and no I do not mean on facebook). My girlfriends were incredibly supportive of this decision, and were there for me every time it got hard. However, their support and the difficulty of that relationship only fueled my charisma for God that year. And it was the best year of my high school career. It also led up to a summer of an even more life changing trip.
We went on a trip to Toronto, Canada to learn about life in poverty the big city. This was also a brand new experience for me because where I come from is not a big city. It is also not near the point of being impoverished. So this chance to see life on the streets first hand was pretty eye opening. We practiced spending only a dollar a day on food, slept overnight in a park, and walked miles upon miles to see how gruesome a life minus comfort can be. This trip introduced me to my passion for social justice. I took one more step in my relationship with Jesus. I learned that there is more than believing and sharing the gospel, it is also about service. I saw the need for Christians rise up and help these people who could not help themselves. That is when I decided that I would go into social work. It was during this summer that my entire future up to this point was decided. And that helped me persevere through the last year of high school.
That last year was a challenge for me. As we got older, peer pressure became more and more attractive and I began loosing friends. They became interested in parties, boys and new friends. I choose not to. I became a bit of a workaholic because I no longer had things to do on the weekends. However, I was really able to draw close to God in those times of loneliness. We had good chats where He really helped me understand my future. I got a job at a Christian camp that summer, and was very ready to move on from high school into the life that God had planned ahead.
This time characterized my biggest period of growth. From here on out I was ready to serve God as fully converted Christian. And that leads us right into my adolescent years.
Thank you for reading.
Blessings,
Alyssa
Following middle school, was obviously high school. The theme of this phase of my life still very much revolves around relationships, as well as an added element. I went on three mission trips in those four years that seemed to have lasting implications. This adds the theme of meaningful trips to my story.
My freshman year was still rocky because I was testing the waters with all of the older students I had never met before. I got involved in theatre, and found myself a part of the theatre clique. I still had my two best friends by my side, and together we watched some of other friends experiment with bad choices. We continued to be passionate about church, and stuck with those convictions. That did not mean we stranger to mistakes. We learned a lot about how not to be stupid that first year and it really set the rest of the four years in motion. We got through, and eventually it became time to go on our first mission trip.There was a particular group of incoming senior girls who took myself and one other friend under their wings. Which is amazing considering how much younger we were and the fact that it was high school. For the entire rest of my sophomore year, we hung out with that group exclusively. They were really good for me. They were good role models, they helped me mature faster, and they were safe. They introduced me to high school and taught me that it was okay to be against the grain. I also started to develop some crushes on older boys, which was actually good for me. I learned a lot about using relationships to offer glory to God. However, the only problem with this particular friend group is the fact that they were graduating. They were a blessing for this short portion of my life, but I still had a lot more independence to gain.
After that second year in high school, we went on a second trip to Ecuador. Of all the events in my life, this was the highlight. This was a brand new experience for several reasons. First of all, it was a cross-cultural experience which was very enlightening for a Dutch girl like myself. Second, people are totally on fire for the Holy Spirit in Ecuador and that became incredibly contagious. And third, God was completely the center of that trip. We went without a detailed itinerary, but had prepared a sort of short church service. Some people were in a drama, some people were prepared to lead worship, and some were prepared to give a testimony. We ended up doing that service almost five times a day to various audiences. God was leading us to those groups and we saw a huge number of people turning to Christ each day. Our group was quite large, and there are several things that could go wrong in a group of high schoolers that size in a foreign country. However, our group began the trip pushing all that stuff aside on the very first night. During that first night's worship, the Holy Spirit led some people unleash some pretty heavy confession. It ended up being a very raw time of each of us laying what we had on the table. Anything that would have held the group back was exposed during that time. Our group bonded and was united under one vision, following the prompting of the Holy Spirit. The reaction in my heart to these experiences was unbelievable. I was encountering God in ways I had never imagined, and it changed me. I was finally beginning to understand my call as a Christian. I realized it went much deeper than being saved from sins and loving God. It was about sharing the gospel so that other people could enjoy this love that I loved. This was truly the biggest point of growth in my Christian walk.
My friends and I came back to our junior year in high school without our older friends. But we had a new found passion of evangelism and became tighter than we were before. These were my girls and I loved growing close to God while growing close to them. I also got to know my future husband during that trip to Ecuador. He joined our youth group for that trip, and we developed a friendship. Through God's prompting, that friendship developed into a relationship. We fought it, since he was leaving for Michigan Tech that fall. Neither of us wanted that difficult of a relationship. But God told us otherwise. A week before he left for school, we made it official (and no I do not mean on facebook). My girlfriends were incredibly supportive of this decision, and were there for me every time it got hard. However, their support and the difficulty of that relationship only fueled my charisma for God that year. And it was the best year of my high school career. It also led up to a summer of an even more life changing trip.
We went on a trip to Toronto, Canada to learn about life in poverty the big city. This was also a brand new experience for me because where I come from is not a big city. It is also not near the point of being impoverished. So this chance to see life on the streets first hand was pretty eye opening. We practiced spending only a dollar a day on food, slept overnight in a park, and walked miles upon miles to see how gruesome a life minus comfort can be. This trip introduced me to my passion for social justice. I took one more step in my relationship with Jesus. I learned that there is more than believing and sharing the gospel, it is also about service. I saw the need for Christians rise up and help these people who could not help themselves. That is when I decided that I would go into social work. It was during this summer that my entire future up to this point was decided. And that helped me persevere through the last year of high school.
That last year was a challenge for me. As we got older, peer pressure became more and more attractive and I began loosing friends. They became interested in parties, boys and new friends. I choose not to. I became a bit of a workaholic because I no longer had things to do on the weekends. However, I was really able to draw close to God in those times of loneliness. We had good chats where He really helped me understand my future. I got a job at a Christian camp that summer, and was very ready to move on from high school into the life that God had planned ahead.
This time characterized my biggest period of growth. From here on out I was ready to serve God as fully converted Christian. And that leads us right into my adolescent years.
Thank you for reading.
Blessings,
Alyssa
Monday, October 22, 2012
Spiritual Autobiography Part II
The Spiritual Discipline of Sharing my Story
The most eventful years of my life were those in middle school. Middle school is traumatic for all teens, but I had extra forces that effected me. Sixth grade was my first year attending youth group, which I am sure was not my choice, but an expectation. At school, I had two best friends and we were the popular kids. I did not let them know that I went to youth group. I met another friend at youth group and I loved her. I really had two distinct lives and had no trouble not incorporating God into who I was at school. Eventually and by the grace of God, those two friend groups clashed. I brought one popular friend to youth group, she met my youth group friend and we became a new friend group rooted in our love for church. We later discovered we even had similar interests in choir and theater. Pretty soon, we were inseparable and I found my whole life making sense. And this was important because of what happened in a third triangle in the pie of my life.
Between sixth and eighth grade, my family underwent a major change. We found out about unfaithfulness in the marriage and soon my parents were divorced. It started out with an extended business trip to Florida, then my Dad moving out, then discovery of the affair, and then the divorce. At this point, I was pissed at everyone and everything. I refused to see my Dad and I know I caused gray hairs for my Mom. The tension in my home was great, and looking back I am sure I was part of the problem. Never mind that though, as an eighth grader, I was the center of my world. So I was going to be pissed. I turned to my friends every time. I lived at their houses as much as I could, I called them every night, and they became my family. I see God at work in this period of my life, because their style of helping me cope was to direct me to God. If they were not church-goers like myself, I do not think I would be in this position today. I know God used our relationship to help me heal in a healthy way, and I am eternally grateful for that.
Usually, that is the bulk of my testimony. I tell that story and emphasize God's goodness and faithfulness. I share that I never really actively pursued God, but I know in hindsight that He held my hand throughout that whole experience. I usually share that I knew my salvation was secured, and my relationship with God grew from there. Which is entirely true. Unfortunately though, that was not the end of my salvation story. I would say that that it is my conversion, because God revealed Himself to me and I made the choice to cling to Him and find Him for comfort rather than my own sinful nature. This is also the time when I made Profession of Faith in church. But there is far more that happened after that that helped me learn about who God is and how I am supposed to live the Christian life. I still have to fall head over heels in love with God... And that is what makes this story different from a testimony. This is the far expanded version. So, keep persevering readers, there is a lot more spiritual maturing that we need to cover.
But that is all for today.
Blessings,
Alyssa
The most eventful years of my life were those in middle school. Middle school is traumatic for all teens, but I had extra forces that effected me. Sixth grade was my first year attending youth group, which I am sure was not my choice, but an expectation. At school, I had two best friends and we were the popular kids. I did not let them know that I went to youth group. I met another friend at youth group and I loved her. I really had two distinct lives and had no trouble not incorporating God into who I was at school. Eventually and by the grace of God, those two friend groups clashed. I brought one popular friend to youth group, she met my youth group friend and we became a new friend group rooted in our love for church. We later discovered we even had similar interests in choir and theater. Pretty soon, we were inseparable and I found my whole life making sense. And this was important because of what happened in a third triangle in the pie of my life.
Between sixth and eighth grade, my family underwent a major change. We found out about unfaithfulness in the marriage and soon my parents were divorced. It started out with an extended business trip to Florida, then my Dad moving out, then discovery of the affair, and then the divorce. At this point, I was pissed at everyone and everything. I refused to see my Dad and I know I caused gray hairs for my Mom. The tension in my home was great, and looking back I am sure I was part of the problem. Never mind that though, as an eighth grader, I was the center of my world. So I was going to be pissed. I turned to my friends every time. I lived at their houses as much as I could, I called them every night, and they became my family. I see God at work in this period of my life, because their style of helping me cope was to direct me to God. If they were not church-goers like myself, I do not think I would be in this position today. I know God used our relationship to help me heal in a healthy way, and I am eternally grateful for that.
Usually, that is the bulk of my testimony. I tell that story and emphasize God's goodness and faithfulness. I share that I never really actively pursued God, but I know in hindsight that He held my hand throughout that whole experience. I usually share that I knew my salvation was secured, and my relationship with God grew from there. Which is entirely true. Unfortunately though, that was not the end of my salvation story. I would say that that it is my conversion, because God revealed Himself to me and I made the choice to cling to Him and find Him for comfort rather than my own sinful nature. This is also the time when I made Profession of Faith in church. But there is far more that happened after that that helped me learn about who God is and how I am supposed to live the Christian life. I still have to fall head over heels in love with God... And that is what makes this story different from a testimony. This is the far expanded version. So, keep persevering readers, there is a lot more spiritual maturing that we need to cover.
But that is all for today.
Blessings,
Alyssa
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Spiritual Autobiography
The Spiritual Discipline of Sharing my Story
A part of the Christian walk is spurring one another on towards greater glory. One way of doing that that has been very powerful for me is sharing my story and hearing other's stories. As part of the assignment for the class, we have to craft our own spiritual autobiographies. This is a comprehensive look at our lives and where God has worked. This more in depth than just a testimony because it covers more than just the conversion story or one time when we encountered God. We are to share this story with our SpiF group members. We are also then to post a semi-abbreviated version on our blogs. I am afraid my won't be all that abbreviated because I tend to be wordy. So, I will be posting my story in 3-4 installments through out the week that the assignment is due. That way you only have to read a shortish section at a time. (I apologize that this might take up your entire day) The first installment is this introduction and the experiences of childhood. The second installment is my adolescent years. These years are a tremendous portion of my story and might turn into two installments; middle and high school. Then the third or fourth installment will be my young adult years, or the current potion of my journey. You can be looking for the rest of these throughout the week :)
Thank you everyone!
I grew up in a very Christian home. Both of my parents were raised in religious backgrounds and had an entire support system of faith helping them raise me. It seems to me that faith has been a part of our family for as far back as I can look. I was baptized as an infant and was promised to be raised in a Christian environment. And that I was. My parents parented my two brothers and I with a program called Growing Kids God's Way. My parents would teach those classes to parents and used us kids as behavioral examples. I am sure that the program had good biblical values, but to us kids it seemed like we were being stifled. I remember always feeling like I had the strictest parents in the whole school. However, in hindsight I know it paid off. We went to a public school, and I know that my parents had to make an extra effort to incorporate Christ into our lives. We were very much raised Christians, even though that was not the education we were getting in school. I being pushed to believing in the Bible from all angles. We were incredibly committed to church, and I was a dedicated Sunday School attender. Our extended families were also passionate about including spirituality into our family. My family is really close, and at family gatherings we would do devotions, crucifiction themed Easter egg hunts, and birth narrative plays. There was no way that I did not know about Jesus growing up. Because I went to a public elementary school, I realize now that not very many of my friends were Christians. I was too young to notice or be effected by it, but I know now that I have to give God credit for guiding me through those friendships with no hiccups.
Probably the most significant experience of my childhood led me to another very significant relationship. We got into a car accident when I was in second grade which left me with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and severe sleep disturbance. This was a troubling time in my life, but gratefully God put my second grade teacher there to pour into me. She went the extra mile to help me succeed that year. The combination of counseling and my teacher got me through that traumatic period and pushed me further towards my spiritual maturity. It was just another relationship God blessed me with.
For these semi-uneventful years, I have to thank God for being present even though I hardly knew it. I was a Bible-believing child, but kept God at a distance. I never had a close encounter with Him, but I do know that He was keeping me safe. He provided people to pour into me, and looking back I owe them everything for the foundation that stood firm for the rest of my life.
Until next time,
Alyssa
A part of the Christian walk is spurring one another on towards greater glory. One way of doing that that has been very powerful for me is sharing my story and hearing other's stories. As part of the assignment for the class, we have to craft our own spiritual autobiographies. This is a comprehensive look at our lives and where God has worked. This more in depth than just a testimony because it covers more than just the conversion story or one time when we encountered God. We are to share this story with our SpiF group members. We are also then to post a semi-abbreviated version on our blogs. I am afraid my won't be all that abbreviated because I tend to be wordy. So, I will be posting my story in 3-4 installments through out the week that the assignment is due. That way you only have to read a shortish section at a time. (I apologize that this might take up your entire day) The first installment is this introduction and the experiences of childhood. The second installment is my adolescent years. These years are a tremendous portion of my story and might turn into two installments; middle and high school. Then the third or fourth installment will be my young adult years, or the current potion of my journey. You can be looking for the rest of these throughout the week :)
Thank you everyone!
I grew up in a very Christian home. Both of my parents were raised in religious backgrounds and had an entire support system of faith helping them raise me. It seems to me that faith has been a part of our family for as far back as I can look. I was baptized as an infant and was promised to be raised in a Christian environment. And that I was. My parents parented my two brothers and I with a program called Growing Kids God's Way. My parents would teach those classes to parents and used us kids as behavioral examples. I am sure that the program had good biblical values, but to us kids it seemed like we were being stifled. I remember always feeling like I had the strictest parents in the whole school. However, in hindsight I know it paid off. We went to a public school, and I know that my parents had to make an extra effort to incorporate Christ into our lives. We were very much raised Christians, even though that was not the education we were getting in school. I being pushed to believing in the Bible from all angles. We were incredibly committed to church, and I was a dedicated Sunday School attender. Our extended families were also passionate about including spirituality into our family. My family is really close, and at family gatherings we would do devotions, crucifiction themed Easter egg hunts, and birth narrative plays. There was no way that I did not know about Jesus growing up. Because I went to a public elementary school, I realize now that not very many of my friends were Christians. I was too young to notice or be effected by it, but I know now that I have to give God credit for guiding me through those friendships with no hiccups.
Probably the most significant experience of my childhood led me to another very significant relationship. We got into a car accident when I was in second grade which left me with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and severe sleep disturbance. This was a troubling time in my life, but gratefully God put my second grade teacher there to pour into me. She went the extra mile to help me succeed that year. The combination of counseling and my teacher got me through that traumatic period and pushed me further towards my spiritual maturity. It was just another relationship God blessed me with.
For these semi-uneventful years, I have to thank God for being present even though I hardly knew it. I was a Bible-believing child, but kept God at a distance. I never had a close encounter with Him, but I do know that He was keeping me safe. He provided people to pour into me, and looking back I owe them everything for the foundation that stood firm for the rest of my life.
Until next time,
Alyssa
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Meditation
The Spiritual Discipline of Meditation
Meditation is a way to practice being in the presence of God. It is not at all the only way to be able to hear God, but it is a way to step back slightly and refocus on God and what He has placed before us. It's like our vision. When we focus in one object in our line of vision, our entire periphery gets blurry. That is like meditating. We focus in our God and all the sudden, everything else fades out. The practice of meditation is like taking a break from culture and it's normalcy, and realizing that all the sudden our entire perspective changes. Meditation can be as simple as leaving all the technology in your room, grabbing the Bible, and heading out to a bench outside. It looks different for all of us, but in general it is a quiet time that is dedicated fully to God while forsaking the things that typically distract us. This break from culture causes a sort of shift, and now we can see God more clearly.We are focused on Him. Meditation is a brief break in the process of life that allows us to continue on in a way that is wholly focused on God.
One thing that I love about meditation is how it brings to light my assumptions about God. I believe in an omnipresent God, who is there all the time. Meditation often gets this rap for being a summoning of a spirit or like a chanting that calls the gods to us, and sitting with them for a time. But that is not true of Christians. I don't have to beg God to meet me when I'm ready to meditate. I don't have to worry that God is not available when I finally have time to meditate. I don't have to hope that God will show up. Because He is present all the time, everywhere. I just have to go meet Him. I have to show up. God has to beg me. I have to carve out time. My belief in this transcendent God only encourages me to meditate all the more. It is how I drawer closer to Him. He wants desperately to speak to us and have our attention. Meditation is an obedient act showing Him that we are listening. It proves that we also want to be in presence. He, and only He, has our undivided attention.
I thought that this sounded beautiful, and I was geeked to try it. I was particularly attracted to the idea of using nature as a way to be in the presence of God. Another assumption I have as a Reformed Christian, is that creation glorifies God. I am wholly able to find God's beauty in the created Earth. So, I decided that because it is fall and this campus is gorgeous in fall, I was going to meditate in the woods. I went out one morning this week at some ungodly hour, and planned to read parts of Psalm 119. I read, walked, listened, and observed. It was a really reverent time, but nothing shattering. I was hoping maybe God would reveal tremendous answers about my future, but that is not how God spoke. I do believe God was whispering to me through the wind in the leaves. Was it a revelation? No. Was it Him promising He was near? Yes. And that is all I needed. That experience has encouraged me to continue practicing meditation. I think I will try it several different ways, several different times. I believe that eventually, it will become a norm for me. And as a God-loving woman, I clearly desire that a norm of my life is being in God's presence. This discipline has taught me the importance of being obedient to God's omnipresence. It also taught me not to discount one of the practices that doesn't rock my world right away. Things don't always need to go as I have planned...
Nonetheless, meditation is an important discipline in our walk with Christ. It is key to keeping Him at the center of our time on earth. A part of celebrating our salvation, is being with the One who made it possible for us. Of course being saved makes me want to celebrate! And of course I want to do it with the One who loves me enough to make it possible! In the long run, it is going to help me continue to glorify Him. I don't get to do anything without Him, so I had better start learning to sense His presence. Wow. Praise God for that.
Blessings,
Alyssa
Blessed are those who keep his statutes and seek him with all their heart—
3
they do no wrong, but follow his ways.
Psalm 119:2-3
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Confession
There were a couple of things that hindered me from appreciating confession at the beginning of this class assignment. As a modern day Protestant believer, my idea of what confession is is tainted by the Catholic practice of regular confession. I cannot hear about confession without picturing a Priest behind a wall listening to my anonymous babble. I also have this picture of certain people in my life who have spilled their guts in the wrong company at the wrong time. I have this gut feeling that confession leads to me knowing too much about a person. It is just too personal. I feel responsible for all of their "stuff," and would rather just carry on minding my own business. Needless to say, my ideas about confession were pretty negative at the start of this week.
However, what I realize now, is that I am just a product of a generation that prefers to keep things easy by keeping things to ourselves. There are a million things that culture has trained me to do in secret. There are another thousand things that are deemed "unfit to discuss" in and out side the Church. I have learned that it's okay to leave some things unsaid. It's okay to repent of our sins, but leave it just between us and God. It's okay to never admit we made a mistake. It is okay, because Jesus died for our sins and all is forgiven. There are so many things that I was taught in my own Bible-believing church about the forgiveness of sins and how to repent. The only problem is, most of them were a lie.
Confession is an important component of the Christian life. The truth is, the power of Jesus on the cross and the resurrection should lead us to disgust of our own sin. We should be entirely striving to live a cleansed life because we are only made alive by Jesus' saving work. A natural result of our salvation should be a turning away from a sinful life into a life that reflects that of Jesus. We need to be appreciative and grateful for the chance at being a part of God's kingdom, guilt-free. But how am I going to do that when I am so comfortable with hiding sin and pretending it isn't there? The reality here is that our American Church has lost the communal piece that fits into our sanctification. If I know I am a sinner, which I am, then I should be confessing that before God. And I do. But I also need to be letting people in on what is going on inside of my heart. A thriving Christian community is one that accepts, supports, and encourages. God created us to live in community with one another, in order that we utilize each other when human nature takes control. God calls us to confess our sins with one another so that we can heal and grow. There is transformitive power in admitting sin and faults to another person and hear them utter the words, "Jesus forgives you." Have you ever actually heard someone speak that Truth to you? I haven't, but imagine how empowering that would feel. God calls us to do that for each other. We can receive confession and forgive it in Jesus' name (Foster, 147). Confession is the road that is going to lead to healing. And healing, broken sinners is the sign of a healthy Christian community that understands the true power of Jesus dying for our sins.
Some things that I am going to take away from this discipline have a lot to do with this Living and Learning community I am a part of (See blog post one). First, I will be sure to offer forgiveness in Jesus' name to whoever tells me anything. I think that is something that carries a lot of meaning and can provide a lot of relief for someone who just wants to get something off their chest. I also want to cultivate an atmosphere of Confession among the nine of in this Community. We are in the perfect position to practice what it means to rely on brothers and sisters when we just cannot overcome a temptation. This will be practice for me to carry on throughout my whole life after I give it a try this week. Obviously, I am on a journey to what mature, viable confession looks like, but it is definitely something I am now more willing to explore. Personally, I am grateful that I have an entire support system who will help me carry my burdens. Thank God for that.
Blessings,
Alyssa
"God has given us our brothers and sisters to stand in Christ's stead and make God's presence and forgiveness real to us."
-Richard Foster, Celebrating the Disciplines, 147
There were a couple of things that hindered me from appreciating confession at the beginning of this class assignment. As a modern day Protestant believer, my idea of what confession is is tainted by the Catholic practice of regular confession. I cannot hear about confession without picturing a Priest behind a wall listening to my anonymous babble. I also have this picture of certain people in my life who have spilled their guts in the wrong company at the wrong time. I have this gut feeling that confession leads to me knowing too much about a person. It is just too personal. I feel responsible for all of their "stuff," and would rather just carry on minding my own business. Needless to say, my ideas about confession were pretty negative at the start of this week.
However, what I realize now, is that I am just a product of a generation that prefers to keep things easy by keeping things to ourselves. There are a million things that culture has trained me to do in secret. There are another thousand things that are deemed "unfit to discuss" in and out side the Church. I have learned that it's okay to leave some things unsaid. It's okay to repent of our sins, but leave it just between us and God. It's okay to never admit we made a mistake. It is okay, because Jesus died for our sins and all is forgiven. There are so many things that I was taught in my own Bible-believing church about the forgiveness of sins and how to repent. The only problem is, most of them were a lie.
Confession is an important component of the Christian life. The truth is, the power of Jesus on the cross and the resurrection should lead us to disgust of our own sin. We should be entirely striving to live a cleansed life because we are only made alive by Jesus' saving work. A natural result of our salvation should be a turning away from a sinful life into a life that reflects that of Jesus. We need to be appreciative and grateful for the chance at being a part of God's kingdom, guilt-free. But how am I going to do that when I am so comfortable with hiding sin and pretending it isn't there? The reality here is that our American Church has lost the communal piece that fits into our sanctification. If I know I am a sinner, which I am, then I should be confessing that before God. And I do. But I also need to be letting people in on what is going on inside of my heart. A thriving Christian community is one that accepts, supports, and encourages. God created us to live in community with one another, in order that we utilize each other when human nature takes control. God calls us to confess our sins with one another so that we can heal and grow. There is transformitive power in admitting sin and faults to another person and hear them utter the words, "Jesus forgives you." Have you ever actually heard someone speak that Truth to you? I haven't, but imagine how empowering that would feel. God calls us to do that for each other. We can receive confession and forgive it in Jesus' name (Foster, 147). Confession is the road that is going to lead to healing. And healing, broken sinners is the sign of a healthy Christian community that understands the true power of Jesus dying for our sins.
Some things that I am going to take away from this discipline have a lot to do with this Living and Learning community I am a part of (See blog post one). First, I will be sure to offer forgiveness in Jesus' name to whoever tells me anything. I think that is something that carries a lot of meaning and can provide a lot of relief for someone who just wants to get something off their chest. I also want to cultivate an atmosphere of Confession among the nine of in this Community. We are in the perfect position to practice what it means to rely on brothers and sisters when we just cannot overcome a temptation. This will be practice for me to carry on throughout my whole life after I give it a try this week. Obviously, I am on a journey to what mature, viable confession looks like, but it is definitely something I am now more willing to explore. Personally, I am grateful that I have an entire support system who will help me carry my burdens. Thank God for that.
Blessings,
Alyssa
"God has given us our brothers and sisters to stand in Christ's stead and make God's presence and forgiveness real to us."
-Richard Foster, Celebrating the Disciplines, 147
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
The Spiritual Discipline of Worship:
A little different than you would think
"They gathered with anticipation, knowing that God was present among them and would teach them and touch them with His living power."
Celebrating the Disciplines, Richard Foster, page 161
Upon being asked what true worship felt like, our class was surprised to hear several different scenarios that allowed for "true" worship. Some mentioned singing, some mentioned prayer, and even a wedding was mentioned. Everyone had different physical elements and different rituals that were being performed when they truly encountered the Holy Spirit of God. What did remain the same, was what it felt like. Being in the presence of God is a feeling of renewal. Whether it be physically, mentally, emotionally or spirituality, the Holy Spirit of God is one that refreshes us.
We all agreed that Sunday was a day set aside for worship. No matter what our worship looks or feels like, Sunday is a day that God has ordained to be His holy day. However, the question in my own head was, "do I really end every Sunday feeling refreshed as if I have just encountered the Holy Spirit?" Do I really come to Sunday with a heart prepared for worship? In reading Richard Foster's book, discussing in class, and meditating on my own, I realized that I rarely treat Sunday and it's worship service as a chance to let the Holy Spirit energize me for my service in the week ahead. Except for a few unique phases in my life, I usually come to Church socially in order to sing some songs and hope that the sermon speaks to me. But do I really hope that the Holy Spirit speaks to me?
So for my assignment this week, I decided to interpret "worship" differently. I decided to come to Sunday's worship service with a "holy expectancy." Because I believe that God is omnipresent, I do not need to doubt that He will reveal himself to me during church, or throughout the day. In fact, this Sunday I started my weekend expecting that I could have a "true" worship experience and feel the presence of the Holy Spirit. I expected that I would be refreshed for Monday to continue worship throughout the week. And as it turned out, I did. And I will now come to every Sunday with this holy expectancy and trust that God will meet me there.
Practically speaking, there are a lot of things I did in order to treat this Sunday differently. I went to bed early Saturday night. I spent the evening watching the ever so wholesome Hercules movie with some girls from the dorms, and went to bed immediately after. That activity got me prepared to spend Sunday restfully and reverently. That way, I could wake up early Sunday morning. Sunday service starts at 11:15, which is perfect for those that need the weekend to sleep in and be refreshed. However, what I have been convicted of lately is how lazy it is to sleep in when the morning provides a perfectly good amount of time to get stuff done. Waking up and doing devotions or praying is in fact a far better way to feel refreshed than sleeping in. God honors time that is dedicated to Him, and I can give testament to the fact that He will more than pay you back for that time. So that is what I decided to do. I woke up at 8:00 am and immediately gave the morning to God. I read through scripture, prayed, and glorified God by doing homework and the dishes. I feel so strongly that by waking up and spending those three hours productively, God blessed me with refreshment. I was walking with the Spirit right up until I arrived at church, even though they weren't your typical "spiritual" activities. And that is exactly what I meant by defining worship differently. I worshiped God in the kitchen and in my studies.
Church was fantastic. I don't like to Church shop or complain about what Churches do or don't do for me, but I will say I have not yet found a home church in this area. This has put strain on my relationship to Sunday morning worship, but this week I set that aside. Turns out, God appreciated that. I learned that it is not going to matter where I go because God is omnipresent, and He is speaking through several different pastors and worship leaders. I firmly believe that my holy expectancy for the day changed my entire outlook on Who was doing the speaking to the church. I heard the Holy Spirit speaking directly to me.
After that experience, the entire rest of my day felt like worship. I have expanded my understanding of the word "worship" even more. I now see how basic activities such as early rising, dishes, and prayer can change my entire outlook on a day. Holy expectancy works. As was said in the sermon, God will speak when we are ready to listen and obey. This Sunday I was ready to obey, and I ended the day so refreshed. The Holy Spirit truly met me, cleansed me, and energized me. If I, and we, treat every Sunday this way, we will be more than prepared to be lights in this broken land. We can then treat every day as worship. But we have got to remember that worship isn't tied to rituals, practices, or an hour every week. It is tied to encountering God's Gospel. And what a blessing that we get to do it in community every Sunday morning! I vow now not to squander that blessing. It is something I plan to enjoy and allow to be the driving force for my ministry for the rest of my life. This spiritual discipline works.
Thanks be to God!
A little different than you would think
"They gathered with anticipation, knowing that God was present among them and would teach them and touch them with His living power."
Celebrating the Disciplines, Richard Foster, page 161
Upon being asked what true worship felt like, our class was surprised to hear several different scenarios that allowed for "true" worship. Some mentioned singing, some mentioned prayer, and even a wedding was mentioned. Everyone had different physical elements and different rituals that were being performed when they truly encountered the Holy Spirit of God. What did remain the same, was what it felt like. Being in the presence of God is a feeling of renewal. Whether it be physically, mentally, emotionally or spirituality, the Holy Spirit of God is one that refreshes us.
We all agreed that Sunday was a day set aside for worship. No matter what our worship looks or feels like, Sunday is a day that God has ordained to be His holy day. However, the question in my own head was, "do I really end every Sunday feeling refreshed as if I have just encountered the Holy Spirit?" Do I really come to Sunday with a heart prepared for worship? In reading Richard Foster's book, discussing in class, and meditating on my own, I realized that I rarely treat Sunday and it's worship service as a chance to let the Holy Spirit energize me for my service in the week ahead. Except for a few unique phases in my life, I usually come to Church socially in order to sing some songs and hope that the sermon speaks to me. But do I really hope that the Holy Spirit speaks to me?
So for my assignment this week, I decided to interpret "worship" differently. I decided to come to Sunday's worship service with a "holy expectancy." Because I believe that God is omnipresent, I do not need to doubt that He will reveal himself to me during church, or throughout the day. In fact, this Sunday I started my weekend expecting that I could have a "true" worship experience and feel the presence of the Holy Spirit. I expected that I would be refreshed for Monday to continue worship throughout the week. And as it turned out, I did. And I will now come to every Sunday with this holy expectancy and trust that God will meet me there.
Practically speaking, there are a lot of things I did in order to treat this Sunday differently. I went to bed early Saturday night. I spent the evening watching the ever so wholesome Hercules movie with some girls from the dorms, and went to bed immediately after. That activity got me prepared to spend Sunday restfully and reverently. That way, I could wake up early Sunday morning. Sunday service starts at 11:15, which is perfect for those that need the weekend to sleep in and be refreshed. However, what I have been convicted of lately is how lazy it is to sleep in when the morning provides a perfectly good amount of time to get stuff done. Waking up and doing devotions or praying is in fact a far better way to feel refreshed than sleeping in. God honors time that is dedicated to Him, and I can give testament to the fact that He will more than pay you back for that time. So that is what I decided to do. I woke up at 8:00 am and immediately gave the morning to God. I read through scripture, prayed, and glorified God by doing homework and the dishes. I feel so strongly that by waking up and spending those three hours productively, God blessed me with refreshment. I was walking with the Spirit right up until I arrived at church, even though they weren't your typical "spiritual" activities. And that is exactly what I meant by defining worship differently. I worshiped God in the kitchen and in my studies.
Church was fantastic. I don't like to Church shop or complain about what Churches do or don't do for me, but I will say I have not yet found a home church in this area. This has put strain on my relationship to Sunday morning worship, but this week I set that aside. Turns out, God appreciated that. I learned that it is not going to matter where I go because God is omnipresent, and He is speaking through several different pastors and worship leaders. I firmly believe that my holy expectancy for the day changed my entire outlook on Who was doing the speaking to the church. I heard the Holy Spirit speaking directly to me.
After that experience, the entire rest of my day felt like worship. I have expanded my understanding of the word "worship" even more. I now see how basic activities such as early rising, dishes, and prayer can change my entire outlook on a day. Holy expectancy works. As was said in the sermon, God will speak when we are ready to listen and obey. This Sunday I was ready to obey, and I ended the day so refreshed. The Holy Spirit truly met me, cleansed me, and energized me. If I, and we, treat every Sunday this way, we will be more than prepared to be lights in this broken land. We can then treat every day as worship. But we have got to remember that worship isn't tied to rituals, practices, or an hour every week. It is tied to encountering God's Gospel. And what a blessing that we get to do it in community every Sunday morning! I vow now not to squander that blessing. It is something I plan to enjoy and allow to be the driving force for my ministry for the rest of my life. This spiritual discipline works.
Thanks be to God!
Saturday, September 8, 2012
Journey
The reason this blog is entitled "simplicity" is because this is a blog about walking through life with Jesus Christ. It is a simple story about myself and what Christ has done for me. It is in no way fancy, exaggerated, or unbelievable. I commit this blog to being real, raw, and honest. It will be simple, which is the only way I believe it is possible to live with Christ.
I have been a Christian for almost my whole life. Throughout the years, I was not immune to sin and heartache. During all of those times, God remained faithful to me and blessed me with His presence. I tell my testimony to encourage people to remain in Christ, because God provided for me in ways I could never ask or even imagine. Our God is bigger than any circumstance earth could provide and He is well worth the surrender. I love to be able to see God lead people into deeper relationships with Him because of the evidence of His faithfulness in my life. But my story is not unique. Almost all Jesus followers will have stories that glorify God. I am just choosing to share my journey publicly. Perhaps the readers of this blog will even learn something about our great God and be encouraged through my honest writing about the Christian walk. I would love for fellow believers to join me on this endeavor and experience the Holy Spirit in the same way.
The faithful Holy Spirit led me early on in high school to attend a small bible college. This is currently my third year here. This blog is actually the result of an assignment for the Spiritual Formation class I am taking. We were asked to start a blog and write a few posts about different spiritual practices we are going to talk about and experience. The wonderful thing about this assignment is the timing. This year, I have committed to living in a Living and Learning community. If you have not heard of these, they are all the rage on college campuses. Students will choose to live together because they have a similar passion, skill or interest. Through sharing these passions, skills and interests, students will also learn what it means to share life with other people. This is a perfect picture for a Christian campus. The Church is designed to be communal, as we see depicted in the Trinity. This college has decided to start a Living and Learning community that is circled around spiritual development and discipleship. This group that I am a part of is comprised of three girls and four guys that live next door. As a community we pray, worship, dine together, share recreation activities together, edify one another, and encourage one another. We are a community that is committed towards seeking truly biblical community and helping these brothers and sisters grow stronger in their faith. Meanwhile, we also lead the campus in discipleship activities, mentor students one-on-one, and lead weekly bible studies. Our goal as a group is to serve as a microcosm for what the entire campus should look like. We are on a journey to discover what God has designed for his people. This living experience is in and of itself a spiritual practice that will provide a lot to be discussed in this blog.
My entire life goal is to live simply. I believe that Jesus has called us engage the world but not indulge in it. A big portion of my experiences with these spiritual practices will hopefully help me simplify my life. I want to empty myself and be filled with what is Christ-like. So I am going to walk with the Spirit. As a part of an assignment, as a part of my job as a Living and Learning community member, and as a lover of Jesus Christ. I am going to learn what it means to walk the Spirit. I do not have all the answers; this will be a brand new part of my life. And I am going to share my journey with the readers of this blog.
"Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom."
2 Corinthians 3:17
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)