turning chairs
amidst a retirement home in florida... there was no conversation, no evidence that any of these people had been created by a relational God to enjoy intimate relating.
these people's souls were asleep, numbed, i suppose, by years of life-less relationships and pointless conversations. no doubt those conversations had all seemed important at the time - business deals, romantic encounters, child scoldings, religious meetings - but maybe such encounters with other people had never touched anything deep enough to stir life...
i wonder if the Spirit feels as we did when He walks by a group of christians. there are, of course, some differences. most often we're chatting, sometimes singing, occassionally (in certain circles) dancing. we're engaging in serious couversations, bible study, storytelling, and weekend retreat planing, as well as in lively but mundane interactions about sports and juicy "did you see so-and-so" tidbits.
every sunday morning we stand, then sit, then sing on command. some of us raise our hands, most of us sit still while someone talks to us. at some point we reach into our wallets and drop a mixture of green and silver into a big soup bowl with a velvet lining to keep the silver from clanging.
we're doing alot. but i wonder if the Spirit, who lives in a circle with two Others who are always relating, sees us as we saw the retired folks... ~ the safest place on earth
the above exerpt is from one of my favourite teachers and authors, dr. larry crabb, who i can safely say is instrumental in forming who i am as a christian counselor. i've been thinking a lot lately about the authentic self, and when i picked up this book again, one of the first things i read was a something i had underlined earlier: BEING IS SO MUCH TOUGHER THAN PERFORMING.
it certainly is. and reading this book again has reminded me of why i really went into this 'business'. the thing i fear the most for our church (or any church for that matter) is the spiritual equivalent of that retirement home. i suppose we are always in danger of falling into that 'comfort zone', because it IS easier to perform and just walk through life as we encounter it without really trying to live it as it CAN be lived with the living Spirit. we let our circumstances shape us rather than shaping our circumstances. it's so damn hard to BE who we really are, as God had intended for us to be, in front of people who we don't really - i mean really - know, or who don't really know us. it's exhausting to fight for our true identity in a world that only cares about what's on the outside.
but i think it's worth it. our eyes have to stretch farther, WAY farther, than what we can see at the moment. life is not about this me you them, or what happens in 10, 20, 30 years' time. it's not even about whether people will remember who we are or what we did when we're dead. life is very simply, about Him, and what His heart is for his beloved creation. as we have heard so much of lately, what we do on earth has an eternal significance in the spiritual. shouldn't we try to live that way?
intimacy with people is difficult because we're never really sure what people think of us, and it's a struggle to bare all of us before others. but in a spiritual community, we should be able to do that shouldn't we? of all the places in the world, within our spiritual community there should be safety and unconditional acceptance shouldn't there? but why isn't it that way then? why do we still have people who put up fronts amongst us, who are afraid to be vulnerable, weak? because somehow, we have made this sacred place an unsafe place. how do we expect people to find refuge then? one of the few things i have really retained from my university days is that people change not when they are in a comfortable place, but when they are in a safe place. safety is what allows people to bare their all, and eventually the Spirit will change them. comfort just keeps us where we are. but not many people recognize this. they like people who make them comfortable, who tells them everything will be ok, even when it might not be. but we like to hear those words. it's... comforting. but i would much rather have someone tell me something's wrong, and stick with me through it all. telling me something's wrong doesn't necessarily mean they are judging me, just that they care enough to see me change. change into the likeness of Jesus.
i want to see people turn their chairs and let their souls face each other.
amidst a retirement home in florida... there was no conversation, no evidence that any of these people had been created by a relational God to enjoy intimate relating.
these people's souls were asleep, numbed, i suppose, by years of life-less relationships and pointless conversations. no doubt those conversations had all seemed important at the time - business deals, romantic encounters, child scoldings, religious meetings - but maybe such encounters with other people had never touched anything deep enough to stir life...
i wonder if the Spirit feels as we did when He walks by a group of christians. there are, of course, some differences. most often we're chatting, sometimes singing, occassionally (in certain circles) dancing. we're engaging in serious couversations, bible study, storytelling, and weekend retreat planing, as well as in lively but mundane interactions about sports and juicy "did you see so-and-so" tidbits.
every sunday morning we stand, then sit, then sing on command. some of us raise our hands, most of us sit still while someone talks to us. at some point we reach into our wallets and drop a mixture of green and silver into a big soup bowl with a velvet lining to keep the silver from clanging.
we're doing alot. but i wonder if the Spirit, who lives in a circle with two Others who are always relating, sees us as we saw the retired folks... ~ the safest place on earth
the above exerpt is from one of my favourite teachers and authors, dr. larry crabb, who i can safely say is instrumental in forming who i am as a christian counselor. i've been thinking a lot lately about the authentic self, and when i picked up this book again, one of the first things i read was a something i had underlined earlier: BEING IS SO MUCH TOUGHER THAN PERFORMING.
it certainly is. and reading this book again has reminded me of why i really went into this 'business'. the thing i fear the most for our church (or any church for that matter) is the spiritual equivalent of that retirement home. i suppose we are always in danger of falling into that 'comfort zone', because it IS easier to perform and just walk through life as we encounter it without really trying to live it as it CAN be lived with the living Spirit. we let our circumstances shape us rather than shaping our circumstances. it's so damn hard to BE who we really are, as God had intended for us to be, in front of people who we don't really - i mean really - know, or who don't really know us. it's exhausting to fight for our true identity in a world that only cares about what's on the outside.
but i think it's worth it. our eyes have to stretch farther, WAY farther, than what we can see at the moment. life is not about this me you them, or what happens in 10, 20, 30 years' time. it's not even about whether people will remember who we are or what we did when we're dead. life is very simply, about Him, and what His heart is for his beloved creation. as we have heard so much of lately, what we do on earth has an eternal significance in the spiritual. shouldn't we try to live that way?
intimacy with people is difficult because we're never really sure what people think of us, and it's a struggle to bare all of us before others. but in a spiritual community, we should be able to do that shouldn't we? of all the places in the world, within our spiritual community there should be safety and unconditional acceptance shouldn't there? but why isn't it that way then? why do we still have people who put up fronts amongst us, who are afraid to be vulnerable, weak? because somehow, we have made this sacred place an unsafe place. how do we expect people to find refuge then? one of the few things i have really retained from my university days is that people change not when they are in a comfortable place, but when they are in a safe place. safety is what allows people to bare their all, and eventually the Spirit will change them. comfort just keeps us where we are. but not many people recognize this. they like people who make them comfortable, who tells them everything will be ok, even when it might not be. but we like to hear those words. it's... comforting. but i would much rather have someone tell me something's wrong, and stick with me through it all. telling me something's wrong doesn't necessarily mean they are judging me, just that they care enough to see me change. change into the likeness of Jesus.
i want to see people turn their chairs and let their souls face each other.
posted by jana* at 1:00 PM
