I think most people would agree that there is meaningful personal value in contentment. A quick internet search will turn up personal benefits such as reduced stress, self-acceptance, better mental health, improved sleep, tranquility, and resilience.
As great as these personal advantages are, I believe Paul learned deep, always-present contentment as part of his apprenticeship with Jesus. And as such, the transformation he experienced while training and learning contentment with Jesus had a farther reaching impact.
The ultimate goal of apprenticeship to Jesus is to learn from him how to be like him as if he were living our lives. So we’re learning from Jesus his lifestyle and practices that fully immerse our life into God’s kingdom — God’s activity here in the present world. By doing so, God is transforming us into the kind of person Jesus is.
What kind of person was Jesus? In a nutshell, he completely embodied God’s love. He had the character, power and faith that allowed him to competently be God’s love to others. This might be a forgiving word, giving sight to the blind, confronting misguided leaders with truth, wisely teaching people about life, feeding thousands, casting out demons, calming a storm, and the many other expressions of love in the Gospels. He knew exactly what to do and had the power to do it. Dallas Willard defines love as “intending the good of others.” That was Jesus, always intending and competently following through with the good for others.
Along with embodying love, Jesus also embodied joy. Dallas Willard defines joy as “a positive outlook of hopefulness based upon a pervasive, overall sense of well-being.” He goes on to say that joy “maintains a positive posture in life that assumes that good will be supported and eventually triumph over any apparent obstacle.” Joy is deeply connected with love. Whereas love intends the good of others, joy is positive and confident that this good will prevail and triumph over everything.
And along with love and joy, Jesus embodied peace. Dallas Willard defines peace as “a kind of rest that comes from bedrock confidence in the holistic, universal provision of what is necessary and good.” As one intends the good of others and is positive that this good will prevail, they experience the deep security that things will turn out well.
Love, joy and peace. The trifecta virtues of the Holy Spirit. This is what Jesus embodied and trains into his apprentices. From this wellspring of love, joy, and peace flows the virtue of contentment. And just as love, joy and peace are others-centered, so is contentment.
Not so with discontentment. Discontentment struggles against love, joy, and peace because it is self-centered. Where love intends the good of others, discontentment focuses on self-preservation and self-gratification. Where joy basks in well-being from God and knows good will prevail, discontentment fears being unfulfilled and its accompanying misery. Where peace securely rests in the assurance of God’s goodness, discontentment worries and stresses that things will work out badly and manipulates events and people so things work out in my favor.
Again, the ultimate goal of spiritual formation is to become a person permeated with love as Jesus was, to intend the good of others. The deep contentment that Paul learned from Jesus, allowed him to pursue the good for God and others, confident that God intended his good, that God’s good for him would prevail, and therefore, he could rest assuredly that all things would turn out well. There was no need to be concerned about himself because he was in God’s care.
Imagine that kind of life. No worry about provision, reputation, time, finances, health, energy, opposition, danger, loss, and even death. When one learns true contentment flowing from the love, joy, and peace being formed in us, then all those things are truly in God’s hands and we are free to love and give without restraint.
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12:1-2
Romans 12:1-2 also forms a good framework for specific spiritual training. Like we discussed in the last post on general spiritual training, we will also focus on spiritual disciplines and renewing our mind.
And like last time, these are ideas, not a prescription or shortcut to transformation. These specific suggestions should work in tandem with our general spiritual training with Jesus.
If I were training with Jesus for contentment, here are some spiritual disciplines I might discuss with him about practicing.
I would devote regular prayer specifically targeted at my discontentment. As part of my prayer, I would also do an inventory on the areas of discontentment. Remember, discontentment isn’t always about material things or about a single item. It could be discontentment about my education, my intelligence, my reputation, my marital status, my friendships, my job, my creativity, my physique, etc. I would pray about when this discontentment may have started and see if God reveals a conversation, relationship, or situation that may have triggered it. I would record everything and prayerfully revisit this inventory on a regular basis.
I might have an extended time of solitude so I can discuss with Jesus why my discontentment seems so out of control in certain situations and what triggers it. Maybe it’s time I need to finally confess my fear that God cannot or will not provide for me in times of great need. Perhaps I’m afraid that I will slip through God’s fingers, or he doesn’t notice me and my plight, or he just doesn’t care. Perhaps I’m not willing to trust him to provide what I need and believe I must take matters into my own hands to acquire what I want to feel alive or worthy. Perhaps this is an issue of how I want to look in front of people or what makes me feel secure or desirable. Or perhaps I just can’t stand the thought of someone else, in this case God, determining for me what is good and what I actually need. These issues take some time to emerge from all the spiraling thoughts and feelings in our minds.
I would continue to practice an unhurried life as discussed in the last post. Many of our issues, like discontentment, are forged through hurriedness and the accompanying stress and anxiety. We then do things to mask our discomfort, creating habits that reinforce our discontentment. So I would keep asking Jesus how to live an unhurried life. I might try practices like always driving in the slow lane, taking slow walks, or choosing the longest line at the store.
I would eliminate those things that feed my discontentment. For example, I would unsubscribe from email and magazine subscriptions that fuel my discontentment. Likewise, I would limit my exposure to social media, which is designed to foster discontentment through thoughts and images. I would stop watching YouTube videos or shows that make me think I need something else to be content. I would also replace what I eliminate with new content that fosters contentment, peace, joy, and generosity.
I would try fasting a meal or two a week. The goal of fasting is to feast on God and his kingdom. So, when I fast, each time I feel a hunger pang, I would thank God for his provisions and pray for someone in my life.
I would ask Jesus how I could serve and give to others. And when I was able to serve or give, I would thank God and rejoice for the opportunity. On a similar note, I would decide beforehand that if I am asked to serve or give to someone, I would agree to do it without thinking about it or calculating the cost. I would decide beforehand to immediately serve and give generously and joyfully. As Paul says in 2Corinthians 9:7, “God loves a cheerful giver.” In Acts 20:35, Paul quotes Jesus, saying, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” I would intend to trust Jesus that this is actually real and true and practice it as such.
Confession is also a good spiritual practice, if done in appropriate relational contexts. I am a part of men’s group that has intentionally fostered an environment that welcomes vulnerable sharing of our struggles. So I would confess situations of discontentment that I found particularly troublesome or sinful.
I might incorporate regular times of worship and thanksgiving. These don’t have to be lengthy times. Perhaps I would listen to a favorite worship song or hymn on YouTube or Spotify. Or maybe it’s training myself to thank God the moment I wake up every morning, before I even put my feet on the ground. Or perhaps training myself not to leave the house until I’m happy. Or I might go and spend time doing something that brings me joy, since contentment is rooted in joy.
I might spend time during the day reflectively praying Psalm 23 or the Lord’s Prayer in my own words. This could be done while driving, pausing during your breaks at work, or a few minutes before bed.
So those are some spiritual practices that I might talk with Jesus about incorporating into the routine of my life that would target discontentment. That’s how I would offer my body as a living sacrifice to God.
Next are some ways I might try to renew my mind under Jesus’ guidance.
I might make a list of all the benefits of following Jesus into the natural always-present contentment that Paul describes in Philippians 4:11-13. This list may include:
I’m completely safe in him
I lack nothing in him
Who I am becoming eternally in Jesus far outweighs anything I desire
I experience greater love, joy, and peace
I naturally give and can be a source of blessing to others
I am completely free of wanting anything
I experience a peaceful satisfaction regardless of the situation
Fear and anxiety are gone
I am free from manipulating people and outcomes to get what I want
Dallas Willard says it’s sometimes valuable to consider the “cost of non-discipleship.” I might create a list of the consequences of ongoing discontentment that might include:
I’m not sure I’m safe in him if I’m pursing my own wants and desires
I feel like I lack what I need or want
My eternal identity is being formed by what I desire
I’m hesitant to give and bless others
Situations trigger a burning desire to get what I want
I’m worried and obsessed about not having what I want
I’m can’t get free of the fear and anxiety
I’m preoccupied with how to control people and situations to get what I want
The point of these lists is to fill our minds with the vision of how our lives can eternally flourish under Jesus’ leadership. Here’s a quote from Dallas Willard about a vision of freedom we can obtain through Jesus in God’s kingdom:
“Can we envision being freed to the point where not a single thing on earth, above the earth, or below the earth could cause dread to creep into our hearts?”
The Divine Conspiracy Continued
I might also target the renewing of my mind with Scripture. I would read, reflect upon, and even memorize some Scriptures that remind me of God’s faithful and abundant provision, especially that focus on contentment. I would place these Scriptures in places where I could naturally read and reflect upon them such as taped to the bathroom mirror or an open tab on my web browser. Such Scriptures might include Psalm 23, Matthew 6:33, 1Timothy 6:6-11; Philippians 4:11-13; and Hebrews 13:5
I might also spend regular time meditating on my well-being in God. I would reflect on how the one who easily created this universe and has full knowledge and control over every aspect of this universe has promised that we are completely safe in him regardless of any trial, struggle, or loss. I would think about how this world is a perfectly safe place to be, how God’s love and goodness will always prevail, and how every tragedy, suffering and loss is redeemable by God.
I might also reflect on what living and reigning with Jesus in God’s universe will be like in 1,000 years or 10,000 years or 10,000,000 years. That’s what awaits Jesus’ apprentices! This puts my tiny wants and desires into perspective.
I know all of this sounds like a lot of effort. Again, all of these are ideas. It’s Jesus who needs to lead each of you into his lifestyle and practices for your specific life. He will show you how to gently offer your body through spiritual disciplines and how to renew your mind. It’s not about how many of these spiritual disciplines you do or how rigorously you practice them. It’s God who transforms you, not the spiritual disciplines. But the spiritual disciplines Jesus guides you to practice are essential. The point is to follow Jesus and let him guide you into the proper practices so you can interact with God’s kingdom. While God does the lion’s share of the work, your cooperative effort is necessary in following Jesus into spiritual formation. And the rewards of a transformed life are indescribably thrilling and fulfilling! Because you are becoming the kind of person God always intended you to be!
When I started the discussion about Paul’s secret in Philippians 4:12-13 a few posts ago, the context of that passage was how he had learned contentment. Since I believe many modern western people struggle with being content, I would like to circle back and discuss how we can apply Paul’s secret and train with Jesus in this area.
As we begin our discussion about spiritual training with Jesus, I need to make several points. First, what I’m about to outline is neither a prescription nor a one-size-fits-all detailed plan. Spiritual practices provide the space for us to interact and cooperate with God. Only God brings transformation. Spiritual disciplines help make space in our thoughts, feelings, body and will for him to work.
This leads to the second point. Spiritual disciplines do not directly cause transformation. Heroic efforts in spiritual practices will not result in quicker transformation. Nor is the goal to master the spiritual disciplines.
Third, anyone who has read or listened to Dallas Willard will realize that I lean heavily on his insights. I believe that he offers the most thoughtful insights and recommendations into spiritual formation in the modern church. So a lot of what follows is deeply influenced by him.
Fourth, when we talk about spiritual training, it is interactive training in cooperation with Jesus. He is alive and with us right now. He is the master of life and offers to teach us his life in the kingdom to experience the transformation from God we seek. Therefore, communication and guidance from Jesus in these areas are essential. Spiritual formation is not a DIY project. We are novices who can only learn from the master.
Fifth, this post will be broken into two separate posts. I will use this post to discuss general spiritual training and the next post to discuss specific spiritual training for contentment.
The apprentice of Jesus should be engaged in the lifeline process of spiritual training. This is what I mean by general spiritual training. We are following Jesus in the overall transformation of our lives into the likeness and quality of his life. This provides the general backdrop for specific spiritual training that we can use for particular areas of our lives, such as discontentment, anger, lust, or unforgiveness.
To discuss general spiritual training, I want to use another one of Paul’s popular passages:
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God — this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12:1-2
The first thing Paul mentions is offering our bodies as a living sacrifice to God. This is done through spiritual disciplines. Every spiritual discipline incorporates the body. They allow us to create space for God through bodily activity, thus following Jesus into his practices. Jesus practiced spiritual disciplines such as solitude, silence, prayer, fasting, giving, Scripture study, fellowship, celebration, and sabbath.
As I start training with Jesus, I would spend time discussing with him how to gently incorporate some spiritual disciplines into the routine of my life. Some spiritual disciplines could be daily routines, some weekly, monthly or quarterly. Again, it’s not about working harder or performing heroic effort. It’s about gently making space for God under Jesus’ guidance. And the more these become part of your routine throughout the day, the better. We want to have relational space with God throughout the day so we become accustomed to moment-by-moment interaction with him.
If Jesus is directing me to fast, perhaps I try fasting a meal a week. If he’s leading me to pray, maybe it’s three five-minute moments worked into the natural transitions of my day. If he’s directing me to solitude, I might try a 30-minute slow and unhurried walk at a local park once a week. And whatever he’s leading me to do, I continue to dialogue with him and adjust as needed.
Through the spiritual disciplines, Jesus is going to teach us his lifestyle. And his lifestyle was unhurried, relaxed, and confident in God. I truly believe that an unhurried life is crucial for deep spiritual formation. Many of our sins, addictions, and dysfunctions are the result of habits forged by our constant hurry, stress, and anxiety. Until that changes, much of the transformation that God wants to impart to us will not experience significant traction until we learn to adopt Jesus’ unhurried lifestyle.
The goal is not to add spiritual disciplines on top of an already busy life. Instead, through gentle adoption of spiritual practices, Jesus is going to teach us how to become less hurried. And this may result in dropping some things if our schedule is past capacity.
In Romans 12:1-2, Paul then says, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” The default formation of our minds is to conform to the ideas and values of our culture at large. Imagine our culture is like a river. By default we are carried along, drifting wherever the current of ideas and values takes us.
The root of renewal and transformation is our mind. Both thoughts and feelings reside in the mind. Every thought has feelings associated with them. And every feeling is directed by a thought. We deal with feelings through our thoughts. Our thoughts are the primary area we have access to change.
As I train with Jesus, I would talk with him about my mind — what I think and feel — especially concerning the following four general areas. Again, these will form the mental backdrop to then dealing with specific thoughts and feelings around contentment.
God and his nature — how God is endlessly abundant in all love, joy, peace, power, knowledge and how his goodness for all his creation will prevail.
The world he has created — how God’s character and purposes are reflected within his good world so that it is a perfectly safe place for us to be.
The availability God’s kingdom — how God’s kingdom is a present, immediate, and powerful reality available to us through Jesus.
How my life would flourish — how my life would look by abandoning my agenda and following Jesus into his lifestyle, practices and purposes.
The goal is to interact with God in these four areas in order to retrain how we think, and thus how we feel. We’re training our minds to keep turning back to these four areas by default — when we’re at a stoplight, taking a walk, standing in line at the store, waiting in a doctor’s office, etc. Our minds learn to naturally rest on these four areas. Or to use a biblical term, we abide in them and in the immense goodness and love induced by contemplating on them.
The outcome is then stated in Romans 12:1-2, “Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Being trained in Jesus’ lifestyle, practices and thoughts, we become like him in character, power, and faith and are able to live like him.
Let this quote from Dallas Willard inspire you:
“To live and lead like Jesus, we need to think like Jesus. He knew who he was speaking of. He knew to whom he was introducing others. He knew Elohim’s capabilities, purposes and priorities. Jesus knew and acted on the fact that Yahweh is limitless, boundless, and unrestrained in power, grace, mercy, peace, joy, hope and love. All things are possible. All things. Jesus knew his Father’s name, and he knew when to invoke it to do his will, creatively, adventurously, and joyfully, for himself, for the well-being of others, and ultimately for the entire world.”
Imagine that quote speaking about you. Because that is what Jesus has offered to teach us, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me.”
The renewal of our minds should work hand-in-hand with the spiritual disciplines we are gently incorporating into our life routines. The interactive space we’re creating through these bodily practices allows us to adopt Jesus’ unhurried and relaxed lifestyle and to interact with God to become saturated with his boundless goodness and love.
This is the trajectory of our general spiritual training as we follow Jesus. Next time, let’s discuss specific spiritual training into contentment.
When I read Paul’s words in Philippians 4:12-13 and other passages where he describes the flourishing life and character of Jesus’ apprentices, I wonder how long it took him to grow into such a life.
Then I think about the short span of time from Jesus calling his disciples to releasing them into the greater world with his world-transforming assignment. In approximately three years, Jesus was able to teach, demonstrate, and impart the interactive life in God’s kingdom to the extent that his original disciples were able to embody it, grow in it, and replicate it in others. In just three years, they had assimilated Jesus’ lifestyle and practices enough to allow them to embody and implement his mission.
Granted, they weren’t perfect. Not even close. Mistakes were made. A lot of mistakes, both while Jesus was physically present with them and after he commissioned them and ascended to his Father.
Yet, the new life Jesus imparted to them, by reshaping their thinking, feelings, bodily habits, daily practices, and relational posture so they could regularly engage with God’s activity, provided enough forward momentum to carry them into a wild and unknown future. And this wild and unknown future had been radically redefined and reshaped through the crucifixion and resurrection. Evil’s back had been irrevocably broken and God’s New Creation had launched in the midst of the old creation. So in three years, Jesus gave his first apprentices what they needed to successfully experience ongoing transformation and to replicate it in others in this new world.
Along with the life he imparted and the world-altering events of the crucifixion and resurrection, Jesus also promised his apprentices two other significant components that would carry them onward into lifelong transformation. The first was the empowering of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit brings an energy that allows us to “keep in step with the Spirit.” This collaborative life with God’s Spirit is outwardly demonstrated in two ways — through the gifts of the Spirit and the fruit of the Spirit. The gifts of the Spirit enable us to perform specific functions with effects beyond our own abilities. And the fruit of the Spirit is the very character of the Trinity, formed into the apprentice’s life through ongoing character formation.
The other component that Jesus promised was trials. “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” Daily life in the real world, especially trials and suffering, form the natural environment for transformation for both Jesus’ individual apprentices and the community of apprentices as a whole. The Book of Acts is full of these trials — persecution, deception, divisiveness, accusations, confusion, frustrations, difficult decisions, and controversies. These were a constant experience for the early community of Jesus’ friends. And counter-intuitively, each trial seemed to provide more momentum rather than stalling the ongoing formation of Jesus’ apprentices and their impact upon the world around them.
The ongoing interactive life in God’s kingdom is lived in the midst of our real lives in the real world. We retrain our thoughts, feelings, body, will, soul and relationships through embracing Jesus’ unhurried lifestyle and practices. We do this under the guidance and power of the Holy Spirit. And it’s experienced in the heat and stress of normal daily trials. And all of it is done imperfectly, but faithfully, as Jesus’ apprentices and collaborators. And while it takes a lifetime and beyond, the transformation can start immediately and the benefits experienced in a fairly short time.
“In every possible situation I’ve learned the hidden secret of being full and hungry, of having plenty and going without, and it’s this: I have strength for everything in the one who gives me power.” Philippians 4:12-13
In my last post, I mentioned how Paul’s secret to learning contentment was relying on Jesus to strengthen him.
For many years, I clung to the promise of Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Actually, I clung to my version of the promise.
There’s a scene in the original Avengers movie where Iron Man is battling Thor. During the battle, Thor strikes Iron Man with a bolt of lightning. The suit’s AI then informs Tony Stark that the suit was now charged to 400% capacity, allowing him to attack with far greater power than the suit’s design.
That’s how I viewed Philippians 4:13’s promise. “Lord, zap me so I can do something beyond my means, something I’m not designed or prepared to actually do.”
Lord, give me strength to forgive that person who has hurt me.
Lord, empower me to stop over-eating.
Lord, help me to be content with what I have.
Lord, restrain me from saying the wrong thing.
Lord, stop me from being impatient when I drive.
I think you get my drift. My prayer was that God would overload me with his power and grace so I could supernaturally operate at 400% capacity and instantaneously do things in the moment I naturally was not prepared to do.
Don’t get me wrong. Sometimes God wonderfully answers those prayers and infuses us with such grace that we’re stunned at what we’re able to accomplish in the moment. Those situations are amazing!
But that is not the moment-by-moment life in God’s kingdom that Jesus invites us to enter or that Paul is describing in Philippians 4:13. Just a sampling from Paul’s letters makes this clear:
“Train yourself to be godly.” 1Timothy 4:7
“I discipline my body and bring it under complete control.” 1Corinthians 9:27
“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is.” Romans 12:2
“Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.” Philippians 4:8
“Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.” 1Thessalonians 5:16-18
“Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me — put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.” Philippians 4:9
Paul’s experience of kingdom life as Jesus’ apprentice was one of moment-by-moment interaction and cooperation with Jesus, learning from him how to actually be like him, from the inside-out. By doing so, we are strengthened by Christ to become like him and thus have the ability to “do all things in Christ”.
Then the things that used to be beyond our means and for which we prayed God to zap us in the moment so we could supernaturally do, have over time become within our means to naturally do. Through daily interaction and practice with Jesus, we have trained with him and have been strengthened by him to now be like him and to think and act like him in all circumstances.
Or to put it another way, Paul learned to embrace Jesus’ lifestyle to learn how to grow into Jesus’ life — to grow into Jesus’ knowledge, faith, character, power and action — within Paul’s own life. In this way, Paul could say:
“I am, however, alive — but it isn’t me any longer, it’s the Messiah who lives in me. And the life I do still live in the flesh, I live within the faithfulness of the son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” Galatians 2:20
“Look at the remarkable love the father has given us—that we should be called God’s children! That indeed is what we are. That’s why the world doesn’t know us, because it didn’t know him. Beloved ones, we are now, already, God’s children; it hasn’t yet been revealed what we are going to be. We know that when he is revealed we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. All who have this hope in him make themselves pure, just as he is pure.” 1John 3:1-3
This was the passage I was reading this morning. God’s love is so tremendous that he has embraced and adopted us as his children! This is amazing, startling, almost scandalous, and worthy of all the adoration and worship our eternal lives can generate.
Earlier this week, I was watching a video about the Euclid telescope. This is a space telescope with a 600-megapixel camera that was developed by the European Space Agency. As part of a six-year mission, it has taken images of three small regions of our sky. The image at the top of this post is of one of the areas. And each of those points of light in that image is a galaxy! With only one scan of each region, the Euclid telescope has already spotted 26 million galaxies, of which the farthest is 10.5 billion light years away! The vastness of this universe is mind-boggling!
God easily and joyfully created this immense universe. He now fills and plays within it so that every component and event is within his direct knowledge and control. This God loves us with an even greater immensity, making us his children who will ceaselessly enjoy him and his creation! There aren’t words to express how astounding this is!
But now look at verse 2. We are currently God’s children. But it hasn’t yet been revealed what we are going to be. Wait! What? There’s more? As incredible as it is that God makes us his children, something far grander and more magnificent is awaiting us. All we know is that when Jesus is revealed, we shall be like him. Why? Because we shall see him as he is. We will gaze face to face upon his loving and glorious presence and know him in the deepest, unbridled, unhindered way. And it will transform us into his likeness. We shall be like him!
In light of this inconceivable hope and future, St John states, “All who have this hope in him make themselves pure, just as he is pure.” In other words, since our hope is that we shall be like him in the future, God’s children start learning in the present how to be like him. It all circles back to Jesus’ Gospel, his good news. Jesus invites us to become his apprentices, learning from him how to be like him as if he were living our lives in our place. In this context, we make ourselves pure by learning from him how he is pure.
Here’s the hint that unlocked my understanding of apprenticeship to Jesus. We can have Jesus’ life – his faith, knowledge, character, and power – only by embracing Jesus’ lifestyle. In a nutshell, that’s what it means to be his apprentice. We learn to 1) know God, his world, and his activity in his world, 2) adopt Jesus’ confident, unhurried and unworried posture toward life, and 3) implement the various practices that shaped his life in God, all under the power and guidance of the Holy Spirit and within a community of other apprentices learning and practicing together.
I know, that was a mouthful. But this is the Gospel! And it’s completely doable! Jesus’ true apprentices have been doing it successfully for two thousand years and it’s still possible in our world and lives. It’s our hope in the present and prepares us for our hope of the future.
Dallas Willard was fond of saying, “We are ceaseless spiritual beings with an eternal destiny in God’s great universe.” That’s just another way of saying what St John is saying. When I stop and think about our future as God’s eternal children fully formed into the Jesus’ likeness and ready to reign with him in God’s universe, I think about another Dallas Willard quote, “The aim of God in history is the creation of an all-inclusive community of loving persons, with Himself included in that community as its prime sustainer and most glorious inhabitant.”
As I imagine the future, I picture myself and my loved ones who have followed Jesus together as part of this vast community of love with Jesus at the center. We’re gazing upon the billions of galaxies in God’s universe spread out before us, filled with joyful thrill and anticipation. An expectant silence falls upon all of us. Then Jesus says, “Let’s go!” And the real adventure begins!
I am thoroughly enjoying Shawn’s blog. He is a professional Protestant pastor who is willing to walk away from his job and ministry in order to follow Jesus into the Orthodox Church. His posts are very authentic, well-written, and inspiring.
One of his latest posts, called “Prelest,” discusses an issue I’ve faced personally as well. Spiritual disciplines, such as prayer, fasting and almsgiving, are core practices in Orthodoxy. Because of this, it is easy for us who are naturally self-disciplined to take on the mantle of spiritual disciplines with a bit more ease. Add to that my distorted perfectionism, and I can fall prey to the idea that “more is better.” So if praying for 10 minutes every morning is good, then I’m going to shoot for 20 or 30 or 60 minutes. And if I succeed at this, I fall into a second and more devious trap of judgmentalism toward those who can’t or won’t practice spiritual disciplines with any kind of consistency.
Well, all of that is a spiritual deception called Prelest or spiritual pride. And it is demonic. As Shawn explains in his post, if my spiritual discipline is leading toward spiritual pride, demons will actually empower my spiritual discipline. The idea of demons actually empowering my spiritual disciplines so that they further blind and deceive me is absolutely terrifying to me. Simply engaging in spiritual disciplines is not enough for formation. They can actually hurt me if done incorrectly.
Bottom-line, I must remain humble before the Lord in both my knowledge and practice. Jesus alone is my salvation. And I’m reminded over and over that I need the wisdom and nurture of his Church to help me in my journey towards him.
Journeying Home 