One Year Has Gone By

January 05, 2006

Category: My Life

I was looking at a reflection of myself this morning while getting ready for work. “It’s 2006 and I’m doing the same thing I was a year ago.” Standing in the bathroom—shaving. As I looked around the memories inside my head, I compared them to the things that are happening to me today. Nothing seems all that much different. Have I changed at all? Have I grown?”

I suppose there’s some deep psychological pressure that I’m posing on myself to even have to ask those questions—like pressure to be more “Godly” or “Christian” or something. I think I convinced myself long ago somewhere into believing that there’s something not quite right about the life I’m living and I have to be doing something more “spiritual.”

So when I ask the question “have I grown?,” I think I’m asking myself if I’ve been intentional about my spiritual walk which would in turn produce a more Godly life.

What do you think is going on?

Posted by pablohart on January 05, 2006 08:25 AM

Comments

there's a lot to unpack here. and a lot that i deal with as well. i think about this all. the. time.

"being spiritual" is a recognition, not an action. i'll try to explain what i mean. consider Paul's letter to the Ephesians:

And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works, so that no one can boast. (Read the whole pericope)

So what does this mean for you, viewing yourself in the mirror in the New Year? it means that that man you see has already been made spiritual, made alive, made whole. it is not about what that man can do in 365 days to try and be more something, or grow more, it is about what happened already, on the cross.

therefore, being "intentional about [your] spiritual walk" is daily recognizing the great love of Christ. looking at it, being amazed by it, knowing God by it.

then, and this is key, that man responds to the unfathomable love by doing two things: loving God and loving his neighbor. this love of God and neighbor involves "works" but also involves just "being." the works are responses--in gratitude--to the amazing thing that happened on the cross.

notice that there are no "shoulds" in this (you mentioned psychological pressure). there is God's love (initiating it all), then a recognition of that (irresistable) love, then a thankful response. there is freedom in that, and it is our spiritual walk.

grace and peace.

Posted by Nathan Hart at January 5, 2006 3:00 PM

i think that part of being a christian is a desire to be more like the God we love, and since we are still imperfect, we always feel inadequit when we take a good look at our selves.

Posted by joshua powers at January 5, 2006 8:31 PM

josh, your post reminds me of Augustine's famous line, "You have made us for yourself and our hearts are restless until they rest in you."

Posted by Nathan at January 8, 2006 1:37 PM

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