Starting and Stopping

What if I told you that as followers of Christ, we should be engaging in spiritual disciplines?

Maybe the thought of disciplines makes you cringe a bit as your free spirit longs to go where the Holy Spirit leads.

Perhaps the word discipline is attached to painful childhood trauma, and you are experiencing anxiety responses.

And quite the opposite, maybe discipline gives you the means to thrive as you intricately plan out your schedule, being intentional with every minute of every day.

Regardless of your outlook, we can be assured that spiritual disciplines are practices God gives us to help us grow closer to Him.

What Are Spiritual Disciplines?

Spiritual disciplines go back well before the first-century early church. In fact, throughout the Bible, we see God's people engaging in the practices of prayer, fasting, meditating on scripture, solitude, and fellowship. And I believe that God is calling us back to His presence through these things.

As we consider the life of Jesus in the Gospels, we see that his life remained connected to the Father through these practices.

What Spiritual Disciplines Are Not

 In a world full of distractions and the constant noise of way too many opinions to count, spiritual disciplines are not another thing to add to your list.

 The goal is that as you focus on these habits, over time, they will become more of second nature in connecting with heaven and less of a burden or a chore.

Starting and Stopping

We are now into a new year and are just about at the end of January, a month of high expectations and, quite honestly, broken promises. It's like clockwork each year; we begin with intentions of drinking more water, losing ten pounds, or finally writing that book, and then burnout comes.

So what happened? 

I would suggest that we all mean well in setting New Year's resolutions. But there seems to be a missing link: change that only the Holy Spirit can bring.

When we attempt to bring life change from our own strength, it often results in starting a goal and then stopping—starting and stopping. And repeat.

The difference between earthly disciplines and spiritual ones is that when we add spiritual habits to our lives, it liberates us!

It allows us to live lives from the One who brings freedom to our bondage, peace where our hearts are burdened, and love to those who need it most.

However, we must remember that the discipline we engage in is not what changes us – it is not the act of praying, meditating, or fasting – but it is the manifestation of God being present in your life.

Let me explain.

Marriage Transformation

Say you are married. And you are struggling with your lack of emotions toward your husband.

So, you pray, "God, I have a problem. I am having a hard time loving my husband. In fact, I don't even think I like him anymore. I know I am supposed to honor him, but I don't feel jack, God. I am struggling."

Let me encourage you. When you pray honest prayers, God will whisper to the hurting places. And, the more you practice prayer in these raw moments, the easier it will become to hear His voice.

Prayer cultivates a place that invites the presence of God in.

The prayer isn't what changes you or your circumstances – it is the Holy Spirit as you surrender yourself to a posture of listening.

Listen, as you pray honestly, you begin to experience a connection with God in which He inspires and encourages your heart to pray for your husband. Then, as you serve your husband in prayer, connection builds, and – Hey! Maybe you even like him! And finally, before you know it, your heart, mind, and actions can love him again.

Did you change yourself? No!

Your discipline of prayer moved the Holy Spirit, and He changed you!

Discipline puts us before God, in a posture where He can mold and shape us so that our lives reflect Christ.

So you may be asking, "How do I know if God is transforming me?"

Friend, it is impossible to be in the presence of God and with nothing changing. God bends close to those who thirst and hunger after Him.

James 4:9 in The Passion Translation says,

"Move your heart closer and closer to God, and He will come even close to you." 

He will come near and transform you according to His will, which is always to love, speak, and live like Jesus.

Take heart, you might not be where you want to be, but after being with the Father, you surely aren't where you used to be.

Will you join me in implementing spiritual disciplines into your life?

Let's drop the resolve to starting and stopping in the flesh. Instead, let's begin and keep moving forward as we reflect the face of Christ.