A Soul Building Discipline

We live in some very turbulent and volatile times. It seems as though to find a sense of peace or a sense of inner tranquility, we have to go into hiding from all the blast of media that constantly brings troubling news or something they call news, to our hearing.  We can't even pump gas into our vehicles without a little screen spewing out some commercial or the latest racket that media types decide we need to know.  The hostility all around us can become so heavy and burdensome that it actually affects our mood, mentality,  perhaps our conduct and the ability to look optimistically into the future.  At any rate if you're like me, you get tired of all the clamor. Where does one go to find shelter and a relief so that we can stop and consider what is of true value?

One path I have found through all the din of the day is to begin each day in the quiet. That is, spend about half an hour, or an hour if you can, alone with just yourself, your Bible, and the Spirit of God. If you start with yourself and your Bible, the Spirit of God will be there. This practice does wonders to bring focus to our soul, and to receive from God the inner strength and presence of mind needed to meet each day and all the activities that are surely there for us.  We not only receive from God but somehow He summons for us strengths and character traits we perhaps did not know we had. We reinforce those good qualities He endowed us with as He formed us in the womb, and the good habits we've learned along the way.  {Not to mention dropping some bad ones we've picked up along the way also!}The Spirit of God will highlight some verse or passage of the Bible that will be particularly meaningful to us and we find it to be very encouraging.

Now, this is not an easy fix or some superficial religious practice. When we start out to build this discipline into our life, that's precisely what is needed-discipline. We have to have enough mastery over our natural inclinations to say no to whatever might distract us from this time of quiet, and purposefully carry out this soul building activity. There will be ample distractions, reasons to "skip it for today," and put this time on the back burner.  We must be determined to have this as part of our lifestyle.  One helpful hint is this: Do not make time for this in your schedule, start with this time, and build the rest of your schedule around it. 

Soon, it will be so natural for you, so much a part of you, that you will regret it, miss it, if you don't have it one day.  This practice will not silence the loudmouthed media types, and the racket of the "entertainment" industry, but it will provide you with the calmness of soul and sense of priority that will help you navigate your way through the blast we experience daily.

One other small thing will help as well, just hit that off button on the remote, turn on some good music instead while you read that book. 

Give Yourself A Chance

There are times in a Christians experience when the reality of our sinfulness bears down on us with a heavy sense of condemnation. We feel like the younger brother in Jesus' parable of the prodigal son. This young man in the story took all his inheritance from his father early, before his father had actually passed away. This in itself was a serious insult to his father and all the family, but that's not all of it. He then went into a distant country and spent it all in carousing and a debauched lifestyle, until finally there was none left. He was broke and had to work for a landowner feeding swine. 

When he realized his foolishness and wrong ways, he was overcome with guilt and shame for the way he had been. He decided to go back to his fathers house and ask if he could work and have a place to stay. In his mind he wasn't worthy to be his son anymore. He was overcome with shame and guilt and would be happy to be like one of his fathers employees. 

In one way he was right. He knew he had lived in a shameful way and wasn't worthy of any of the benefits that came by being a son in that family. But his solution was wrong. He thought the answer was to work his way into some kind of acceptance with his father, and maybe things would improve over time. After all, anything was better than the way he was living, among swine and the foulness that came with that.  His idea was based on his performance, a work based, merit based mindset. He thought, "If I do good enough, maybe it will make up for the bad that I've done."

Christians can slip into that mentality as well. We say we're saved by sheer grace not by our goodness or good deeds, yet act as though God's favor and love depends on how well we live.  When a sense of guilt or awareness of our sinfulness comes upon us, many times we purpose to,"do better" and to "overcome" or to be "more vigilant" in the future. 

We become like the young man in this parable. It's good that we confess our wrongs, but trying harder is our mistake. We need only to accept God's real forgiveness and welcoming grace to get the peace of mind we long for as we realize that just as Gods grace was sufficient to brings us to salvation, it is sufficient to keep us in salvation also.

Now, of course we need to repent and turn from our wrong ways no matter what they might be. But Christ offers love, forgiveness, mercy, cleansing, renewing, and reviving to those who call upon Him in simple faith and trust. 

Don't live under a self imposed burden of doing better next time. Rather, let Jesus relieve your soul of the burden of sin, guilt and the shame that nags at us from time to time. By faith, believe and receive His promise. He will not fail you, or burden you with even more weight. Instead, He will lift your load Himself, and let you be free to rejoice in His goodness and perfect love.