"Appropriate Spirituality: Is there such a thing?" (Part 1)

"Remember, we are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience." - Steven Covey

Phil was a financial controller for a real estate firm. It was a great job, lots of money, lots of perks and lots of brownie points in his CV.

It was also at times a difficult position to be in as some of the company policies and practices stretched the truth from time to time and certainly favoured company more than client. Phil knew about these practices and sometimes was expected to ignore the fact that they were happening as papers went across his desk.

It was Monday morning, early. Phil was a keen Christian, a man of strong character and firm discipline. He had been taught from earliest Christian life to start the day with God and so this morning, when the alarm went, he rolled out of bed, grabbed a cup of coffee to wake him up and settled into his favourite chair in the lounge to read and pray.

However as he picked up the latest copy of the devotional guide he always used something strange happened.

He looked at the cover, a tranquil New Zealand scene of mountain and bush. He read the passage, one of the more violent of the psalms and then the comments which soothed the violence down into a gentle murmur.

Then he thought of his day. Included was an interview with a sales rep who had pushed through a dubious deal, a check on the advertising budget which was under strain and a meeting with the CEO to express concerns about a new marketing strategy that was strong on sex appeal and weak on fact.

The devotional for the day nothing for him! Its themes were rural, tranquil and its comments simply explained the background of a world thousands of years and thousands of miles from where Phil sat.
It left him feeling confused, angry, guilty and let down. Surely there was more to his spiritual life than this!

So what is appropriate spirituality?

Appropriate spirituality, I believe, is that form of spiritual life that shapes a believer in a way that enables them to translate their relationship with God into effective daily living in all settings in which they find themselves.


It is not appropriate:

- If it sets us up for Sunday but not Monday
- If it works amongst Christians and not amongst non- Christians
- If it works at home but not at work
- If it works at work but not at home
- If it can be switched on and switched off
- If people who know us find they don’t really know us
- If it can be set to one side in the hard decisions and the ethical dilemmas we face
- If it makes it harder for other people to see Jesus
- If I am just at the same level of spirituality I was five years ago
- If I am not getting closer to my Lord

That’s a tough test right there! I suggest that you take some time out and see how many of the above statements that reflect your spiritual life…

The purpose of this exercise is not to make us feel bad but to make us reconsider the way we build up our spiritual lives. A lot of what we thought was simply the ‘norm’, standard practice, what "everybody else" does is simply not up to the job in a complex modern world.

To give ‘some’ shape to this study that we’ll be embarking on, let’s consider (for future reference);

- Why a narrow view of devotional life may not meet all our spiritual needs
- The rediscovery of the spiritual disciplines
- Spirituality and our support systems
- Spirituality and personality

This is a rough idea as to where this study might end up going. But there is always flexibility in terms of what needs to be discussed and worked through.

This is all for now, I’ll give some time to digest and rethink maybe some of the things you’ve thought had to be certain way?

So, that’s just another confession from me… A Jesus Freak!

-AndyC

Call Waiting... (pt.3)

"If it falls to your lot to be a street sweeper, sweep streets like Michelangelo carved marble. Sweep streets like Shakespeare wrote pictures. Sweep streets so well that all the hosts of Heaven will have to say, "Here lives the street sweeper who did his job well."
- Martin Luther King

Last time we covered the intentions and purpose of work, basically what work is meant to be like. How God has gifted us, and the attitude we have towards work. This article will be a direct continuation of the last one.

"How does this inform and light up our attempt to draft a sound theology of work?" This is the question we should be asking ourselves when we approach the theology of work.

So for example, one of the divisions of theology is eschatology, the doctrine of the end times. If we ask how eschatology affects our theology of work, it raises some highly charged issues:

- How do we understand the second coming of Christ? For example if we see Christ returning prior to a thousand year reign, prior to the Judgement (pre-millennialism) then our work makes very little difference to the state of the world and therefore affects the effort we put into it. And it’s vice versa for the opposing argument.

- How do we view the end state of things?A final judgement after which believers live with Christ in Heaven and the rest… Or do we take strongly the statements that there shall be a new Heaven and a new earth and therefore ‘work’ is going to be a continued part of the new creation?

And so on…

The point is that we can take each major doctrinal area and fashion an approach to work in the light of its teachings.

The way biblical figures have reacted to work-like situations.

The Bible is a book about real people and their stories can fashion our own approaches. The story of Joseph for example is rich in material of this nature. It is not just about work in terms of paid employment but it is a powerful for those in settings of both leadership and oppression.
There are examples in many places of the impact of God’s people on their workplace:
-Joseph, Daniel, Amos, Boaz, Nehemiah…

… and the way in which ordinary people are part of the mission of God wherever they are (Note in Acts 8:1 the fact that after the death of Stephen ordinary Christians were scattered and went their way spreading the good news, something that would have happened in the workplace as well as at home and in worship).

The whole balance of Scripture indicates that the majority of those who form the biblical story are ordinary people in everyday settings and not just religious professionals.

So how do we draw this together in a theology of work?
It is your task to form your own theology. By this I mean that you need to work out which biblical themes shape the way you perceive your work. There is ample instruction in Scripture about the way you work, your attitude to others, your relationships with those round about you, your ethical standards. But the big picture of work, how it fits into your faith, how it relates to the view you have of the Kingdom of God – these are your tasks.

Richard Higginson in approaching ethical issues related to business in particular, says he uses four key themes as the framework within which he constructs his approach:

Creation

- Why did God make the world?
- Why did he make us?
- How does this affect what we do and how we do it?
- How do we reflect His image and carry out His intentions?

Fall

- How do I understand myself as a sinner?
- How does sin specifically affect my workplace?
- How does sin affect the structures of work on both a micro-scale (where I work) and the macro-scale (work as a whole)?

Redemption

- In what way has the work of Jesus saved me in my workplace setting?
- Has my personal salvation affected my work?
- Where does work fit into the work of Jesus?
- Does the fact that Jesus came in the flesh (incarnation) have a bearing on the way I see myself in the workplace?

Future Hope

- How does work fit into God’s Kingdom intentions?
- Am I just ‘filling in the time till He comes’ or ‘preparing the way for his coming?’
- In what way is my attitude and my work a sign of hope?
- What do I expect to work at the return of Christ?

This is brief outline of how to approach a personal theology work based on the major doctrines of the Christian faith. This approach could also be adapted to other areas of life.
That’s all for this week, I try not to make the articles too long, but I’m sure you understand that when we’re exploring and discussing an issue it’s always as straight forward as we think! And that’s another confession from me… a Jesus Freak!

-AndyC

Call Waiting... (pt.2)

‘…Your Caller is on hold...’

"Vocation is responsibility and responsibility is a total response of the whole person to the whole of reality…The calling of Jesus Christ to belong wholly to him; it is the laying claim to me by Christ at the place at which this call has found me; it embraces work with things and relations with persons…"
-Dietrich Boenhoffer as quoted by Richard Broholm.

Last time we covered three really eye opening points, which I hope didn’t take you by surprise! It takes a while to open up to new ideas, especially if you’ve grown up with different ones. I believe that the main purpose of ‘theology’ is to set people free from difficult questions, to encourage us in our faith (no matter where we’re at!) and to ultimately draw us closer to God! And that’s my hope for this blog and all of the articles I write that you will be set free, encouraged and drawn closer to God.

I take it that most of you reading this blog, are working already, or intend pursue a career of some sort. Even I intend to do something I love someday. There are a lot of ‘feelings’ out there about work and they’re mainly sad ones! There are even negative ideas within the church! Lots of people quote; Genesis 3:17, "Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat…" And from this verse many people conclude that this is when work originated, because of sin! I disagree. Didn’t God work during creation week? He worked for six days and then rested on the seventh. And didn’t God place Adam in the Garden of Eden to "work it and take care of it"? Yes he did, Genesis 2:15 tells us that, "The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it."

You see in the bible ‘work’ isn’t such a bad word, in fact when the bible refers to work we see that it is part of life. So how would we as disciples of Jesus Christ approach work in the 21st Century? Let’s see:

God’s creation purpose and intention.

This includes the creation mandate. What was God’s intention for human beings when he created the earth? How do we carry this out today?
Some people might see the task of sustaining the world as part of the creation mandate. Put plainly, taking care of the world! While this ‘green theology’ might normally be seen as a hit with liberal theologians, there is no need to exclude it from an evangelical theology. Look at it this way, if we believe that what God created was and that he gave it to us for our continuing use, then (I believe) it’s fair to say that abuse and neglect are hardly appropriate response, wouldn’t you say?

God’s provision and gifting.

There are a number of passages which speak of the way God the Father has given to us a very diverse range of gifts to carry out our work and that He loves creativity in the way we do our work. The provision of gifted craftsmen in the desert to make the Tabernacle (Exodus 31) is one example. And God’s creativity points in the same direction!

Reflections on the nature, conduct and value of work.

There are many comments on how people perceive work (Ecclesiastes has some very pessimistic reflections!). In the New Testament Jesus uses a number of work parables (e.g. talents, rich merchant, labourers in the vineyard, wicked vinedressers). He meets people in their workplace and some He calls from it (Matthew, the four fishermen) and he also transforms the workplace behaviour of Zaccheus.

Paul uses his work skills to help support his ministry alongside Priscilla and Acquilla in tentmaking (Acts 18:1-4), he also comments on our attitudes towards work for example in Colossians 3:23, 2 Thess. 3:7-12 and some other places. He also restores a runaway worker to his master (boss) in Philemon.

Despite all this we need to develop a theology not just from a list of references to work but from our perception of the entire drift of scripture. One helpful way to do this is to take each of the major divisions of traditional theology and ask, "How does this inform and light up our attempt to draft a sound theology of work?"

Well, I guess we’ll have to find out next time! As I said in the last article this is a pretty big subject, so it might take a while! Thanks for reading and please let me know what you think about the article. I always wonder whether people read what I write, and if they do, do they agree or disagree? I don’t know maybe you could tell me? And that’s just another confession of a Jesus Freak…

Till next time,

-AndyC

...Call Waiting... (pt.1)

“…You have 0 messages…”

So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord, or ashamed of me his prisoner. But join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God, who has saved us and called us to a holy life - not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time… -2timothy1:8-9

If you’re anything like me, you’ve probably been wrestling with the fact that you have ‘no idea’ where God is calling you! If not, well keep reading anyway!

“…So how do you know you’ve been called anyway? Does God always speak directly to us? How do I know if I’m doing what God wants me to do anyway? If I’m not doing what God wants me to do, does that mean I’m stuffed? Why is it so complicated?...”

I guess there is many more questions that could fit in their, but I won’t get into that right now. What does it mean to have a ‘calling’ anyway? Is it only for a selected few? (So there are more questions!J) Are only pastors and missionaries called? Are they the only callings? Well, because of some of the stuff I’ve been studying and some personal experience I can tell you that these questions are, to say the least, rubbish! As Christians we’re already called!

-The call to salvation
-The call to holiness, and
-The call to serve

This equates to belonging, being and doing! Basically, we’re called to follow Jesus. So what does that mean? Let’s see!

God’s call to the Christian is general before it’s specific.

As Christians, God calls us to himself first. Unless we’ve been called to follow Jesus, there is no way we’re gonna know what specific ministry we’ve been called to! Makes sense doesn’t it.
God calls all of us to discipleship, which is a relationship with Jesus/God that involves understanding, growth, and obedience. The disciples walked with Jesus and learnt from Him and grew into the effective apostleship that founded the Church.

God calls us to a whole-of-life response, not just a response in terms of our “job”

These days we tend to equate “call” with “vocation.” In others words, we think that if, God calls us to something, it is likely to be a “ministry” or career or major task. Yet he wants us first of all to “be” rather than “do”.

This means in practice:

-We cannot switch off who he has called us to be. Calling is not a role but a lifestyle.

-We cannot wait for a “call” to do those things which are simply a matter of obedience. In other words we don’t have to be “called” to love others. That is simply part of the whole package of being a Christian.

-We cannot rely on our role to prove we are followers of Jesus (disciples). It should be something that shows through whether we are carrying out tasks of a particular role or not!


Calling remains through our life a dynamic, fluid and relational experience.

Lastly, there is real danger in the belief that once we have received a divine call and mandate, then nothing at all can change that. Call is related to function rather than status. It is not hard to realise the dangers that arise when a person considers that God has given them a task and status to accompany that task and need, behaviour, the perceptions of others are all equally irrelevant for the rest of life. You see, I’m not saying that God doesn’t call people to specific positions but it is the attitude that accompanies that call. The person, with an attitude such as the one above, sees God’s calling on their lives more important than the next person’s, and this is clearly wrong!

I didn’t realise how much there is to write on the topic, so I’ll have to write a couple more articles on the subject in the coming weeks! I hope you enjoyed this insight into calling,if there is anything you disagree please let me know. I have to say that a lot of it has been passed on to me through my lecturers, and some of it is what I personally found through life…as a Jesus Freak!!!

Till next time
-AndyC

...my confessions...

Do you guys like the title? Anyway, i've got a couple of things i'm going to write about over the next few months, but i also thought it would be great if you guys could give me some topics too! That way we can explore issues together and learn from each other! I'm busy with an article at the moment it's called, ...Call Waiting..., I don't know if the title gives it away but I'm sure you'll enjoy it, it's due out by tomorrow night, so come back then to check it out!
-AndyC