Church in Bethesda Blog
Growing In The Spiritual Life
Hey, CiB folks! We have a beautiful guest blog from our own Shannon Shea! Enjoy!
Growing in the Spiritual Life
As the harvest season comes to an end and I prepare my garden for next spring, agricultural metaphors come easily to mind, especially for the spiritual life. As it turns out, cultivating a garden that bears food isn't all that different from cultivating one's heart to produce fruits of the Spirit.
Of course, I'm not the first to think this – the Bible is full of agricultural comparisons. One of the most well-known is Matthew 13:5, the Parable of the Sower. In this story, Jesus says that while some seed falls on the path, some on rocky places, and some among thorns, the seed that falls on good soil produces a crop of “hundred, sixty, or thirty times what was sown.” Unlike many of his other parables, Jesus even provides an explanation. He says that the seed is the good news, and while others have their faith never start or be quickly destroyed by discouragement or greed, the person with “good soil” understands the word and acts on it.
But I believe that understanding nature's patterns can reveal even more about this story. In particular, ecology can shed some further light on the “seed falling among the thorns,” or the Word being choked out by sin.
Although some people say that weeds are just “flowers where you don't want them,” that's not entirely true. Most (albeit not all) weeds belong to a specific category of plant: those that thrive on disturbance. They thrive in locations that have undergone significant physical disruption, whether it is fire, flood, or windstorm. When the disturbance occurs naturally, these plants are essential for restarting the ecological cycle, breaking up the soil or fire-burnt ground so that less hearty plants can establish themselves.
But this affinity for disturbance works against humans when we ourselves cause it. When we turn over soil or pave the ground, we create an ideal environment for weeds to invade. Being given the opportunity, they grow where they aren't supposed to and can block out the seeds we dutifully sow. Even if they do not germinate right away, their seeds can survive for years, waiting until the circumstances are right to emerge.
Although not a perfect metaphor, sin has many similarities to ecological weeds. Often, sin is an innocuous or even useful emotion or action that is misplaced, taking on far too much significance in a person's life. It takes root in a way that it shouldn't, overwhelming the good elements and choking them out. This could be as simple as elevating righteousness into destructive pride or as devastating as the place of alcohol in an addict's life. Similarly, often sin finds us at our most vulnerable, rooting itself in times of trauma and painful change. Anger, jealousy, and self-protective lashing out sprout most readily when we are under stress. Negative behavioral patterns or coping mechanisms can lay dormant for years, emerging unexpectedly when circumstances are the worst.
As change is inevitable and even positive, we should not avoid it. And yet we do not want to give sin that foothold. But here too, we can take a cue from nature. When I garden, I focus not on growing plants, but on building the soil. Rather than turning it, I pile organic matter up, to mimic the rhythms of the forest. I then plant my seeds straight into this mixture, with the top layer of leaves protecting the soil from the weed seeds.
We too can build the soil in our own lives by focusing on building up our community rather than ourselves. By serving those around us in need, from our friends and family to those we hardly know, we build personal resiliency. When we see the hungry and feed them or the thirsty and provide a drink, we reinforce the foundations of our faith family and society. So when change comes and we have done this, we have spiritual and emotional networks to draw on, just as healthy plants have a wealth of nutrients. Disturbances may shake us, but our roots will hold strong in our relationships with God and our neighbors. We will be able to resist sin, to turn away from anger, greed, or pride, towards love. And even in the most difficult of times, the fruits of the spirit will blossom naturally.
Shannon blogs at willbikeforchange.wordpress.
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Examen for Advent and the Year
Practicing the Daily Examen for the Year!
On this past Sunday (Nov. 27), our Weekly Grace was to move forward with the Daily Examen as an exercise for the year. Instead of just reflecting on the day past and the day coming, we might reflect on the past year and the coming year. This blog is just a reminder and an outline of how that practice might work.
It helps to make a definite plan for a place and time to do this, away from distractions. And begin with a short time of prayer, thanking God for the present exercise and inviting the Spirit to do this little practice with you.
The Daily Examen
Here's a quick reminder of the Examen, it's focus and five pieces:
1. Become aware of God’s presence.
2. Review the day with gratitude.
3. Pay attention to your emotions.
4. Choose one feature of the day and pray from it.
5. Look toward tomorrow.
Now, how does this look in practice for a year instead of a day? Hopefully, these short guides for the five pieces will help!
1. Becoming Aware of God's Presence. How has God been present in the last 12 months? What were the times and even places where you most felt God's peace and joy? These may have been times of "victory" or when everything was working out as you had prayed for them. These may also have been times of "failure" or struggle when you were forced back into a realization of dependency on God.
2. Review The Year With Gratitude. It's easier to do this for a day just gone past you, but it will take some more time to review a whole year and really think of the gifts that have come your way over 12 months. Have you kept a journal to review? It will probably help to make a list. Were there some things in the last year that you didn't immediately recognize as gifts from God?
3. Pay Attention to Your Emotions. What is the single greatest defining emotion of the last 12 months? Look back: Was the year joyous? Happy? Sad? Over-whelming? Fearful? Depressed? D) All of the above? Bring this God. And don't be ashamed of your emotions or emotional responses throughout the year. Offer them to God to redeem and share.
4. Choose One Feature From the Year and Pray From It. Was there a defining moment in the last year? Was there an event that really stands out? Or maybe a moment of internal shift for your life? Can you say that "2011 was the year of ________?" Bring that to God as well. It may have been a negatice thing, or a positive thing, but God can use both to our blessing. As a spring-board for your prayer, how does it lead you into conversation with God?
5. Look Toward Next Year. Now take a few minutes to dream and vision forward. What are your hopes for 2012? What are your expectations? Bring these to God. Do you hear the Spirit pushing you in any particular direction? Convicting you of needed change? Have you begun to dream something for God in the coming year? All these can be brought to God's throne and shared, the simple things and the grand things. You might do this in several areas of life: personal, church community, work, health, financial, spiritual, etc.
I hope this helps with your prayers this week and with looking ahead into 2012! I'm praying for God to move in exciting ways with our church family, and each of us individually.
Peace, Todd
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