reflections on a turning point.
Shortly after the year 2006 started, I found myself facing what has been my single biggest spiritual battle to date. I had had some big stuff happen in my spiritual life and shortly thereafter I had this period where I could not connect to God for the life of me. I’ve never felt so dry, and it lasted for probably two weeks. To this day I couldn’t tell you exactly what it was…I have a theory or two, but at the least I can say that God was testing me to see how I’d respond. I had a lot that I had to learn and He definitely used the time to teach me some lessons. This is what I learned, taken from my old blog (2/20/06, slightly edited):
- Don’t get caught up in routine. Do “be transformed by the renewing of your mind”.
- Don’t use God to get what you want. Do “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you”.
- Don’t let stuff from your past get in the way of seeking God now. Not sure what verse could go with this. But I guess renewing your mind is relevant.
- Don’t get caught up in interpretations of Scripture. This has been a huge thing because two Christians can take the same set of verses and draw two completely different conclusions on a ton of topics. This has been killing me, but I think it’s something that I have to pray about, research, and try not to get overwhelmed quickly and research things carefully.
- Don’t EVER become solitary when you’re facing a spiritual problem. Group prayer is sweet, and there is someone out there who can help you. If you have a problem and it involves someone, talk to them.
- Get into the world and talk about Jesus! I’ve been soaking in and soaking in, and it’s about time I go tell people about all the great stuff that’s happened in my life!
I look back on these points and I am amazed, because two and a half years later I find that these are some of my biggest snares. Going through the motions is something that has consistently crept in to a consistent routine. So often I have to check my motives to make sure that I’m seeking God and not the blessing. The meaning of the third one has altered a bit but I definitely have to remind myself when I mess up that God hasn’t counted me out. The fourth one has been huge; anyone who knows how I interpret Revelation these days knows that I’ve found a lot of peace in the areas where we can’t know the answers. Five is one that I always have to be on guard against, and the last one is still a battle I face.
I don’t know if there is a real point to this one. I just thought that these lessons could be helpful to other people, and I’d be happy to speak more about them to people if they desire.
Cheers,
Brendan
