Deep Wells

Attentive to the Present Moment: Surprised by Beauty

2012-02-07T07:26:00.002-08:00

“O Lord, our Lord,
How majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory above the heavens.”
-Psalm 8:1

When I slow down my racing mind in order to become present to the moment, I discover all kinds of gifts surrounding me that I was looking right past. I find that I am enfolded by God’s grace. I become attentive.

When I am fully present to the moment, I become aware on a whole new level. I begin to notice small things around me that just awhile ago I had overlooked in my hurry and self-preoccupation.

In particular, I am surprised by beauty. The sun sparkles on the water. The breeze plays in the autumn leaves. A lone flower graces the bare rocks in unpretentious glory. None of these draws attention to itself. Without bringing myself to the moment, it would go unnoticed. However, if I take the time to be attentive, I find each is an encouragement and a reminder of God’s streaming presence that surrounds my each and every movement.

Speaking of which—after writing the last sentence I looked up to relish the brief sight of a young bald eagle wing past the shoreline on Lake Superior where my wife and I have been retreating this October day. My life is graced with one gift after another, if I but open my eyes—and especially my heart—to embrace them.

Alive to Life
Creation is filled with brightly colored flowers, brilliant rays of light, gentle clouds and beautiful sunsets. When I am obsessed with thoughts of my past or concerned about my to-do list in the future, however, I walk right past these. I miss the very gifts God has place on my path. When I slow down my racing mind, however, I begin to notice one blessing after another (John 1: 16) all around me. I see beauty again. I enjoy being alive.

I become alert to God’s love and presence by first by attending to the moment—with all the gifts that enfold me. Simply by slowing down, I begin to see—truly see—the beauty of nature. I take time to smell the flowers and gasp at the sunrise.

These are all little gems that our gracious heavenly Father has given me today, placing them in my path to sustain me on my journey. If I am self-absorbed, I miss them. If, however, I am attentive to the moment, I am able to enjoy a multitude of such gifts.

© 2011 Glenn E. Myers

Present to God's Presence

2012-01-26T06:31:00.000-08:00

When we become present to the moment, we find ourselves becoming present to God’s presence.

So often we hope for God to “show up” in our devotional time or “be present” in our worship. Yet, the reality is that God is already present. He is available. More than that, he wants us to encounter him! God desires us to experience his presence, his protection, his power, his provision and his peace.

Like the father of the prodigal son, he is there simply waiting for us to show up. It is we who must become aware of him. We must become present to the presence of God.

I Am: God of the Now
At any time we can become present to God’s presence precisely because he is the eternal “I am.” In Exodus 3:14, the Lord reveals himself to Moses as “I am who I am.”

God lives in the Eternal Now. For him, time and eternity are one. God is being itself. He holds time in his hand: he is the past, present and future. God simply is. And he is there for us.

Distracted Existence
Most of us understand the theory of God’s omnipresence. We know the Lord is—and that he is there for us. Yet, how easy it is for us to be un-attentive to God’s presence!

The Lord welcomes us to his presence: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). We certainly fit the criteria—we are tired and weighed down! But, so often we overlook Jesus’ invitation. Not sure that his rest is really available for us today, we remain un-attentive to his offer.

Sometimes we are distracted from God’s presence by our preoccupation with things in the world. Jesus described the cares of the world as thorns that choke his word in us. Other times we become engrossed in our own thoughts—responsibilities, worries, irritations and preoccupations. Just as we can walk right past a lilac bush in bloom on a spring day, failing to notice its beauty or smell its scent because we are un-attentive, so we regularly miss the fragrance of God’s presence in our self-preoccupation.

Attending to God’s Presence
If we choose, however, we can attend to God’s presence and enter into his peace. He is nearer to us than our very breath, says Augustine of Hippo. But we must open our spiritual eyes. We must be attentive with all of our spiritual senses.

“Taste and see that the Lord is good” (Psalm 34:8).

We are invited to attend the Lord’s presence with our whole being. Interestingly, we are told little about “how” to do this. It is a spiritual reality—like being born again. These are difficult to describe to someone. In Scripture we are simply invited into them.

Likewise, the Lord makes constant invitations to us to experience his presence. That invitation is backed with a promise. In Jeremiah 29:13 God assures us, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”

Let us do just that. Let us engage our whole heart to seek him. Let us passionately taste and see his goodness. Let us actively attend to his presence. Let us live in the presence of the eternal “I Am.”

© 2012 Glenn E. Myers

Epiphany: God Reveals Himself in Light

2012-01-12T07:26:00.000-08:00

“Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.
See, darkness covers the earth and think darkness is over the peoples,
but the Lord rises upon you and his glory appears over you.
Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn.”
Isaiah 60:1-3

“Epiphany” means “a showing” or “a revealing.” For nearly 2000 years Christians have observed Epiphany as the celebration of God’s showing himself—revealing his salvation—to the nations. Jesus’ coming to earth is a fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy that God would reveal his glory, not only to Israel, but to all the nations. People from all the earth would stream to the brightness of his light.

In particular Epiphany is the commemoration of Jesus’ being revealed to the Magi from East. They were not part of Israel but rather were astrologers, probably from Persia. Yet, in his great love, God took initiative to show his salvation to them by revealing himself in the night sky. As they followed the star, they came to the place where Jesus was, having the honor of being some of the first to worship the Christ.

Recently I heard a sermon on Epiphany that asked two very good questions:

How Has God Revealed Himself to You this Past Year?
In what ways did the Lord reveal himself to you over the past year? Perhaps he miraculously provided for your needs. Maybe he showed you his mercy and forgiveness in a very tangible way. Perhaps he revealed his love through the helping hands of someone who reached out to you. Or, possibly he gave you a sober warning or needed direction for your life.

Take some time to look over this past year to recognize the fingerprints of God, as it were, in your life. The Lord often works in subtle ways that we do not fully recognize until we take the time to look back. You may want to briefly journal what you notice, to remind yourself of God’s love during difficult days ahead. Be sure to express thanks to the Lord for his initiative in your life.

How Can You Be Attentive to God Revealing Himself This Year?
The Lord will be revealing himself to us in big and small ways in the weeks and months ahead. He does so in many ways. He speaks to us as we meditate on Scripture. He shows his glory and power in nature. God often directs us as we listen to him in stillness.

But God reveals himself in other unexpected ways. Just as he revealed himself to the Magi through signs in the heavens—and to Moses in the burning bush—he shows himself to us when and how we least expect it. His epiphany might come via the encouragement of a friend. It could surprise us—albeit painfully—through a not-so-nice word of correction. It could be wrapped in the lyrics of a song. The Lord might display his glory in a winter sunrise.

However God chooses to reveal himself in our lives this year, how can we remain open? How can we remain attentive, so we don’t miss it? How can we stay receptive, in order not to overlook it when it comes in an unexpected way?

God’s light comes—it breaks in to our lives in many unanticipated ways! That is Epiphany! That is what we as believers celebrate at the end of the Christmas season. Let us be ready, open and attentive as we walk into all that the Lord has in store for us this New Year.

© 2012 Glenn E. Myers

Epiphany: Fully Present in the Now for the New Year

2012-01-06T08:12:00.000-08:00

“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’” (John 8:13)

Light
Epiphany is about light—God shining into the world in Christ Jesus. We celebrate it immediately after Christmas, and this is very appropriate for the beginning of the New Year.

Holding on to light is so important. Although the winter nights are dark, cold and long, each day adds a minute or so of sunlight to each morning and each evening. Although the change is slow, we begin to notice in January how much more light we have. It gives us hope. As the light shines longer, the sun’s rays become ever stronger, until the snow gives way and spring finally arrives.

In our spiritual lives, progress is also generally slow. While we occasionally get a growth spurt—especially as young believers—most of the Christian life is steady faithful progress. We need to hold on to light and hope during the slow process. We need to walk in the light and see it take over our lives a few minutes more each day.

Present in the Now
Walking in the light this New Year for me entails living fully present in the now. So often I am not present in the now. Physically here, my mind is a million miles away, which keeps me from enjoying the moment and all the goodness that God has for me today.

If I am not here mentally, then where am I? Most often I am off in the future—planning projects in my mind. Sometimes I am worrying about responsibilities, events or people. To enter the here and now, I must set aside my “strategic planning” side. There is, of course, a time and place for organizing my schedule and taking care of responsibilities. But I do not want the “planning table” to be the only place I live my life.

On other occasions, instead of being in the present, I’m focused on the past. I am arguing mentally with someone who I would like to set straight. Or, I am regretting something that I did or failed to do. Most often, if I am stuck in the past, I am missing a wonderful time I had somewhere or time I spent with someone close to me.

Ironically, those wonderful times that I miss are the times when I was fully present to the moment. Being in the now is largely what made them so memorable!

Right Here, Right Now
Instead of daydreaming about the past and wishing I could be back there, why not become fully present to the here and now? This moment—this place—has all the potential to be another wonderful time.

The present is available to be lived to the fullest. It has the potential to be one of those completely alive moments when I am fully connected with the Lord, with others, with myself and with all that surrounds me. Right where I am, I can tap into that same wonderfulness by becoming fully present to the moment. I can bring my full attention, my whole consciousness, to what God has for me in the moment.

Each day this year I want to walk in the light. Rather than reminiscing about the past or planning out the future, I want to live fully in the moment. In the present moment, I can bask in God’s light for me right now!

© 2012 Glenn E. Myers

Advent Stillness: Listening to God's Still, Small Voice

2011-12-01T07:45:00.000-08:00

When we slow down enough to become present to the moment, we make ourselves available to God. We become attentive to his voice. God is speaking to us—in our Scripture reading for the day, in a sermon we hear, in a friend’s word of correction. During times of solitude and silence, these words come back to our minds. God’s voice bubbles to the surface of our consciousness when we allow ourselves to become fully present.

Elijah’s Example
After Elijah’s intense ministry on Mount Carmel and dramatic victory over the prophets of Baal, he was physically and emotionally exhausted. It took him some time to rest, re-nourish and refocus before he could hear the voice of God. (See I Kings 17-19.)

Then Elijah traveled to the mountain of the Lord. There, sheltered in a cave, he went through a tempest on Mountain Horeb. The powerful wind shattered the rocks, the earth quaked, and the fire fell from heaven. But God was not in the storm—Elijah did not hear the Lord’s voice during all the dramatic events.

Finally, Elijah did hear God speak like a gentle wind, a gentle whisper. He went to the edge of the cave and heard the voice of the Lord in the still, small voice.

Noisy Storms
When our lives are filled with clanging and banging of activity and unresolved inner thoughts, we also cannot hear God’s voice. We are like Elijah in the midst of the earthquake, wind and fire—all we hear is the tempest.

“A gentle person hears God’s voice which a turbulent, angry person cannot hear,” states Johannes Tauler, “for when the wind rages and the windows and doors clatter, one cannot hear well. Do you desire to receive the Father’s hidden, heavenly word in you, which will be spoken in holy whispers to the innermost place in your soul? Then all turbulence in and around you must be eradicated, and you must become a gentle lamb—calm and serene. You must abandon all the storms in your life in order to listen for this beloved voice in gentle stillness.” [1]

Advent Stillness
Advent is a time of preparation as we move toward the celebration of Jesus’ birth. We make our hearts ready to accept more of what the Lord has for us. In reality, we make ourselves ready to receive more of the Lord himself.

In order to do so, we must make some space for quiet. We must cultivate stillness in our lives. When we do so—when we come into the “now” and become stilled inside—we make ourselves present to God. There, like Elijah, we can hear his voice in a brand new way.

[1] Johannes Tauler Predigten: Vollständige Ausgabe, edited by Georg Hofmann (Freiburg: Herder, 1961), p. 93.

© 2011 Glenn E. Myers

Be Still and Know

2011-11-17T05:25:00.000-08:00

"God is our refuge and strength,
an ever- present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea;
though its water roar and foam,
and the mountains quake with their surging. . . .
Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth." (Psalm 46:1-3, 10)

Stillness in the Midst of Crisis
Sometimes it looks like the whole world is falling apart. The mountains are crashing into the sea, and the floodwaters are roaring and raging all around us.

At those times the natural tendency is to go into a panic. Our survival instinct kicks in—we are ready for “fight or flight.” We experience anything but inner focus and peace.

Yet, it is precisely in those times that we need to enter God’s “peace that passes all understanding”—in other words, a peace that blows our mind!

Stillness versus Activism
One day when I was reflecting on Psalm 46, I found myself reacting to the words, “be still,” in verse 10: How can I be still? There is so much ministry to do—there are so many people to be reached; there is so much to do for the Kingdom!

Then I read the second half of the verse. God declares: “I will be exalted among the nations!” That means I don’t have to take that responsibility on my shoulder! The Lord proclaims: “I will we exalted on the earth.”

More than ever before, I realized that day that God’s exaltation does not depend on me! He is God, and he truly will be glorified in the whole earth. No opposition from people or Satan can stop the progress of his glory! Although I may be able to participate in some small way to see him exalted, God is the one who will accomplish it!

A. W. Tozer puts it beautifully in a prayer: “Teach us, O God, that nothing is necessary to Thee. Were anything necessary to Thee that thing would be the measure of Thine imperfection: and how could we worship one who is imperfect? If nothing is necessary to Thee, then no one is necessary, and if no one, then not we. Thou dost seek us though Thou does not need us. We seek Thee because we need Thee, for in Thee we live and move and have our being. Amen.” [1]

Therefore I can be at peace. That thought brings such peach to my heart.
I can be at rest. As the NASB puts it for Ps 46:10, I can cease striving, I can let go!

Even when the mountains are crashing, God is in control. He will be exalted in all the earth. I can be still. I can simply be!

[1] A. W. Tozer, Knowledge of the Holy (San Francisco: Harper, 1961), 32.

© 2011 Glenn E. Myers

Radio Interview with Richard Foster, Bruce Demarest and Glenn Myers

2011-11-09T11:24:00.000-08:00

This is just a quick blog to give you a link to my radio interview this morning regarding “Spiritual Intimacy of the Soul” on WBCL out of Taylor University.

They interviewed each of us for 20 minutes (by phone): Richard Foster on his book Sanctuary of the Soul, Bruce Demarest on Seasons of the Soul, and me on Seeking Spiritual Intimacy. All of these are published with InterVarsity Press.

Here is the URL to copy and paste:
http://www.wbcl.org/media-manager-month.aspx .

Or, you can click on the link on the left column of the blog.

Hope you enjoy! Glenn

Recollection: Ushering Us into Stillness

2011-10-27T06:50:00.000-07:00

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.” (Philippians 4:6 NASB)

Recollection is the gentle re-gathering of our thoughts and refocusing or our attention on the Lord’s reality in our lives. This inner reorientation does not happen by chance—it is intentional.

Such recollection is not the absence of craziness going on in our lives. It will never happen if we wait for all of our problems to first be resolved.

Rather, we learn to recollect ourselves in the midst of demands, frustrations, deep disappointments, and a plethora of life’s concerns. Recollection is the riveting of our focus on the Lord, his love and his provision—precisely in the midst of our anxieties. Recollection takes our anxieties and releases them to the Lord. “Be anxious for nothing,” we are commanded.

Stillness
As we consciously recollect ourselves on a regular basis, we will more and more often experience a phenomenal inner stillness.

That is what the next verse of Philippians 4 promises, “And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

The more we practice recollection the more we will encounter such stillness. We may not necessarily experience it all the time—and we cannot try to “work it up”—but we will experience God’s peace and stillness.

We cannot create that stillness; however, we can cultivate it. Just like the flowers in our back yard—I cannot create the blossoms, but I can cultivate the plants so that in due season they bloom. So also in my life, I can cultivate recollection and stillness. In time, that inner peace will blossom.

Inner stillness is an inner calmness. It is a place where we rest in God, “for in him is eternal stillness.” [1]

Inner stillness is like a garden in the midst of a hectic city. The summer I lived in Paris, I used to visit a number of little parks or gardens near the school where I was taking classes. Even though it was in the middle of a bustling city, there was calmness, focus, quietness—despite the din of traffic that surrounded that place.

So God offers us stillness in the midst of all our life’s challenges—if we will but enter that inner garden that he offers us.

[1] Johannes Tauler Predigten: Vollständige Ausgabe, edited by Georg Hofmann (Freiburg: Herder, 1961), p. 150.

© 2011 Glenn E. Myers

Recollection: Returning to the Inner Sanctuary

2011-10-12T09:37:00.000-07:00

How often we as believers try to live out the Christian life pretty well on our own strength. We have a few moments with the Lord in the morning—reading a bit of Scripture and praying for the events of the day. Then, in effect, we leave God behind and do the best we can to handle what life throws at us for the next twelve hours.

Recollection
If I hope to walk in the peace that Jesus promises us as his followers, however, I need to periodically return my focus to him throughout the day. I need to recollect myself, gathering my scattered attention in order to attend to God’s presence. I need to re-connect myself with the Lord and the inner peace he offers.

Even in the midst of many things demanding my attention, I can gently shift my awareness on the Lord’s love for me—only if for a moment—renewing my connection with him while fulfilling all of my responsibilities.

“A practicing Christian must above all be one who practices the perpetual return of the soul into the inner sanctuary,” asserts Thomas Kelly. “There is a way of ordering our mental life on more than one level at once. On one level we may be thinking, discussing, seeing, calculating, meeting all the demands of external affairs. But deep within, behind the scenes, at a profounder level, we may also be in prayer and adoration, song and worship and a gentle receptiveness to divine breathings.”[1]

Timeouts
To aid my focus on the Lord throughout the day, it is helpful for me to take periodic breaks. These are seldom convenient. In fact, it is in the most hectic times that I need these respites the most.

That is how a “timeout” functions in sports. When the team is hard-pressed and harried is precisely when the coach calls the timeout. Ironically, we have the sense to institute timeouts in the games we play, but most of us fail to incorporate similar timeouts into the real world of our lives!

Radical believers who have gone before us have recognized the need for such times to pull back from the demands of the day. During the Middle Ages, many who wanted to live a genuine Christian life became monks and nuns. In the convent they followed the rhythm of ora et labora (prayer and work) established by Benedict of Nursia. Amid their manual labors, they would pull apart seven times each day (and once in the middle of the night) to go into the chapel to hear God’s Word and pray. That rhythm kept them from becoming consumed by the work at hand.

You and I can do something very similar. We have our own copies of the Bible today, so we don’t need to meet in one place to hear Scripture read. Instead we can pull apart at coffee break or lunchtime to read a Scripture passage. During nice weather we can take a walk by ourselves outside to talk with the Lord. We can stay seated at our desks and close our eyes for a few moments to review a Bible verse we have memorized.

Just like a timeout in the middle of a sports game gives the team a brief rest and refocuses their attention, so several brief times of recollection throughout the day help us tremendously to renew our attentiveness to the Lord. They help to center our minds and to restore peace in our hearts.

Recollection in Practice
For myself, I have found a combination of a couple timeouts during the day, along with a continual “return of the soul into the inner sanctuary” help me to recollect my inner self. When I do so, I find myself walking in peace during the most hectic of days.

As Isaiah 26:3 (KJV) promises:
“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.”
______
[1] Thomas R. Kelley, A Testament of Devotion (San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1941, 1992), pp. 8-9.

© 2011 Glenn E. Myers

Passionately in Love with Jesus

2011-09-28T10:17:00.000-07:00

So many believers have gone before us who were passionately in love with Jesus. Not only the martyrs of the early church, but throughout the Middle Ages, Reformation and beyond, a great cloud of witnesses has gone before us.

Let me name a few of the highest peaks along a mammoth mountain range of faith. These are men and women who served God in their generation and passionately loved the Lord with all their hearts:
- Irenaeus
- Origen
- Augustine of Hippo
- Pseudo-Dionysius
- Gregory the Great
- Anselm of Canterbury
- Bernard of Clairvaux
- Hildegard of Bingen
- Francis of Assisi
- Thomas Aquinas
- Bonaventure
- Albert the Great
- Meister Eckhart
- Dante Alighieri
- Hadewijch
- Mechthild of Magdeburg
- Gertrude the Great
- Johannes Tauler
- Jan van Ruysbroeck
- Richard Rolle
- Catherine of Sienna
- Julian of Norwich
- Teresa of Avila
- Thomas à Kempis
- Francis de Sales
- Blaise Pascal
- Desiderius Erasmus
- Martin Luther
- Johann Arndt
-Francois Fenelon
-Madame Guyon
- Jonathan Edwards
- John Wesley
- Søren Kierkegaard
-A. B. Simpson
-A. W. Tozer

Many of these in the Middle Ages were referred to as “mystics.” They had an intimate, inner faith and experienced the Lord in a personal way. We would simply call them passionate believers!

This blog is dedicated to introduce these believers to today’s Christians. It will take some years, but I hope to run a series of articles on each of these men and women.

Several recent books helping to bring these bygone saints alive to contemporary readers that I would highly recommend are:
- Streams of Living Water: Celebrating the Great Traditions of Christian Faith. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1998. ISBN: 0-06-062822-7.
- Foster, Richard and Gayle Beebe. Longing for God: Seven Paths of Christian Devotion. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2005. ISBN: 978-0-8308-3514-0.
- Jones, Cheslyn, Geoffrey Wainwright and Edward Yarnold, eds. The Study of Spirituality. New York, NY: Oxford, 1986. ISBN: 019-504170-4.
- Leng, Felicity. Invincible Spirits: A Thousand Years of Women's Spiritual Writings. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2007.
- Myers, Glenn E. Seeking Spiritual Intimacy: Journeying Deeper with Medieval Women of Faith. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2010. ISBN: 978-0-8308-3551-5.
- Sittser, Gerald. The Adventure: Putting Energy into your Walk with God. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1985. ISBN: 0-87784-335-X.

© 2011 Glenn E. Myers

Walking with God

2011-09-21T09:35:00.001-07:00

Throughout Scripture, life with the Lord is frequently referred to as a “walk.” As such, our spiritual journey offers many twists and turns along the way.

Although we often assume we know what is ahead, our certainty is an illusion. Many unexpected bends in the road await us. Although we make plans—and need to do so in life—we must also negotiate the many modifications to our agendas that arise. Life is an adventure.

“The mind of a man plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.”
(Proverbs 16:9 NASB)

In the midst of the uncertainty—the wilderness venture we call life—we can still move forward with confidence, however. Is it possible for us to wander off the path? Of course!

Yet God remains faithful. His love and provision are ever-present. If and when we veer off to the right or to the left, he promises to be the Teacher who comes along behind us to get us back on track. We will hear his voice gently saying, No, “this is the way; walk in it” (Isaiah 30:21).

Therefore we can embrace the path that we are on—as it winds and turns in unexpected directions—knowing that our God is in control. He will hold us, and he will guide us. Above all, as we stay close to him, he will love us along the way.

© 2011 Glenn E. Myers

Recollection: Bringing Focus to the Whole Day

2011-09-09T14:06:00.000-07:00

“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.” (Isaiah 26:3 KJV)

How does my morning devotional time relate to my busy, hectic, ADHD day?

Whether we consciously articulate this question or not, it is one that so many of us have. Often we simply “recharge our batteries” during our quite time with the Lord, only to lose our focus an hour later as we become consumed by all the activity of the day. It seems like every day gets out of hand and we switch into “crisis mode,” losing any sense of focus and balance that we gained in solitude with God.

In John 16:33 Jesus tells us that as long as we are in this world, we will have tribulation. There will always be responsibilities and crises that stir anxiety inside of us. The issues is, how can we cultivate being “anxious for nothing” (Phil 4:6)? How can we bring our devotional time to bear on our daily lives of work, family, and responsibility? Here are a few thoughts.

Genuine Connection
The first thing I need to do is truly connect with the Lord at the start of the new day. Some days that happens quite spontaneously during my quiet time—I sense the Lord’s presence, and hear his voice speak to me in his Word.

Other mornings are not quite so easy, especially if I’m tired. Those days it is important to stir myself awake. Reading Psalms and singing several worship songs or hymns helps me to wake up and engage my heart with the Lord.

“Awake, harp and lyre!
I will awaken the dawn.
I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations;
I will sing of you among the peoples.” (Psalm 108:2-3)

The goal is coming into God’s holy presence. “The secret places of the heart cease to be our noisy workshop,” states Thomas Kelly in his little classic, A Testament of Devotion. “They become a holy sanctuary of adoration and of self-oblation, where we are kept in perfect peace, if our mind be stayed on Him who has found us in the inward springs of our life. And in brief intervals of overpowering visitation we are able to carry the sanctuary frame of mind out into the world, into its turmoil and its fitfulness.”[1]

Recollection
Entering God’s presence in the morning is not enough to live a truly God-controlled, God-saturated life. Rather, we need to return periodically to that inner sanctuary throughout the day. We need to re-collect our thoughts and our heart from all the distractions and worries of the day.

This practice of refocusing our heart and mind has classically been called “recollection.” We re-collect ourselves—gathering our scattered thoughts, focusing back on the Lord, re-connecting with his love for us, reminding ourselves that he is in absolute control.

In our multitasking world, recollection is not easy. Although the theory is simple enough to grasp, the practice of daily recollection is much more difficult for most of us. Virtually everything in our contemporary culture militates against maintaining focus. Images on TV come to us at a rate of about one per second. Advertisements clamor for our attention. Email, voicemail and snail mail demand that we respond before tomorrow.

Therefore, we must be intentional if we are going to maintain any type of connection with the Lord throughout the day. “How, then, shall we lay hold of that Life and Power, and live the life of prayer without ceasing?” asks Kelley. “By quiet, persistent practice in turning of all our being, day and night, in prayer and inward worship and surrender, toward Him who calls in the deeps of our souls. Mental habits of inward orientation must be established.” [2]

Persistent Practice of Turning
Periodically throughout the day, I am learning to turn away from all the bustle and demands around me in order to turn toward that inward sanctuary. I’m finding that morning and evening are not enough. If I am to maintain my inner peace with the Lord, I need to jump off the merry-go-round regularly throughout the day to reestablish my focus on the Lord, remind my consciousness of his control and reassure my heart of his absolute love for me.
_____
[1] Thomas R. Kelley, A Testament of Devotion (San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1941, 1992), p. 4.
[2] Ibid. p. 11.

© 2011 Glenn E. Myers

Gathering My Scattered Thoughts

2011-08-26T06:48:00.000-07:00

Gathering My Scattered Thoughts

Today, O Lord, please help me to gather my scattered thoughts.
Cause me to be centered in the midst of many responsibilities and relationships.

Empower me to step back from the tyranny of the urgent and the empty pursuit of busyness.
Enable me, O God, to re-collect my distracted heart.

Throughout the day let me focus my eyes and inner attentiveness on you.
May I abide in your life-giving nearness that surrounds me in creation and enfolds me in the people with whom you have graced my life.

Please bring wholeness to the fragmentation of my life.
Restore integration to the many activities and demands on my time.

May I be present to you, O Lord,
May I sense the firmness of your abiding love for me that never leaves me or forsakes me.
May I be aware of your sustaining strength that surrounds me in all that I do.

O Lord, help me to remain recollected as I go into the movement of this day.
As I engage with people and tasks, let a deeper level of my being remain ever attentive to you.

Amen.

© 2011 Glenn E. Myers

Augustine Explores the "Double Knowledge"

2011-08-04T08:04:00.000-07:00

“Lord, let me know myself; let me know you.”
-Augustine of Hippo, Confessions

In his Confessions Augustine not only tells about the events of his life but he also explores his hidden motives and secret thoughts. His honesty and insight are remarkable! Nothing of its kind had been written before in all of literature, exposing the negatives of one’s inner life and then the transformation process after coming into relationship with the Triune God. In fact, nothing written ever since has matched Augustine’s openness and profundity.

Double Knowledge
Augustine prays, “Lord, let me know myself; let me know you.” This is referred to as the “double knowledge”—knowing the Lord and knowing ourselves. All of Christian growth is based on this double knowledge. John Calvin picks up on this theme in his Institutes and emphasizes it throughout his teaching.

Augustine realizes that he needed to know honestly—not in the superficial way of knowing ourselves that we speak of today that focuses on our abilities and ambitions. Rather, this church father realizes that he needs to understand himself honestly—with all his disordered desires, addictions and driven-ness.

In this brief prayer, Augustine implies: Lord, let me know myself in order that I might know you. The more we really face ourselves—our dark side, our selfishness, our twisted cravings—the more we come to know how much we need a deliverer. We not only need to “get saved” but we need redemption in the here and now. We desperately need to be transformed from the inside out, changing all of those distorted desires into pure, clean ones.

Self-Knowledge
Likewise, the more we come to know the Lord on a personal basis, the more we come to know ourselves. The closer we get to him, the more light shines on us. In the light of God’s truth we see on the one hand that there is more darkness and hidden sin inside us than we had ever imagined possible. Thus knowledge of us leads to knowledge of him leads back to knowledge of us.

On the other hand, we come to know just how valuable and precious we are in God’s sight! Despite all our darkness, God loves us with an everlasting love! If you and I truly understand the depths of our depravity, the thought of his loving us will blow our minds!

Moreover, we are created in his image. As the Triune God exists in three Persons, so we reflect that “threeness.” In particular, Augustine highlights the three main functions of the human soul: memory, understanding and desire. By “memory” he means not only our ability to remember but our consciousness, our personal history and even our personality. “Understanding” refers to our ability to think and reason. “Desire/will/love” is the driving force of our lives. What we desire—what we love and will to have—determines the direction of each day. How fearfully and wonderfully we are made!

Us Today
If you have never read the Confessions, you are missing one of the greatest writings in all of Christian literature. It is really worth your while! Although someone can describe it to you, that is not the same as seeing it for yourself. Reading the Confessions is a great way to grow in the double knowledge—getting to honestly know yourself and God. The process of such self-knowledge is more “caught” than “taught.”

No matter where each of us is in our knowledge of self and God, there is more to learn. God is unsearchable—we will get to know more and more of him throughout eternity and never scratch the surface! Created in God’s image, we also possess and unfathomable depth. There is more to learn of our need for redemption and more to learn of our value and preciousness in his sight.

“Lord, let me know myself; let me know you.” This is our prayer as we press on to grow in the Lord!

Further Reading
There are a great many translations of the Confessions available. Some of the free versions online are in older English and rather difficult for most modern readers to follow. One newer version that I would suggest is Saint Augustine, Confessions. Translated by Henry Chadwick. World Classics. New York: Oxford University Press, 1991.

2011 © Glenn E. Myers

Dictionary of Christian Spirituality by Zondervan

2011-07-18T12:53:00.000-07:00

Zondervan's Dictionary of Christian Spirituality just came out, and it is a great resource to have! I'm also excited about it because I was asked to write an article on the Beguines for this volume plus 12 other articles.

Over the past couple of years various people have asked me on email or Facebook what "Christian Spirituality" or "Spiritual Formation" is all about. Now we have an excellent reference book by an evangelical publishing house with articles by evangelicals on the subject.

Part 1 of the dictionary has 34 essays such as "Overview of Christian Spirituality" by Glen Scorgie, "Spiritual Theology" by Simon Chan, and "The Future of Christian Spirituality" by James Houston. Part 2 consists of the Dictionary entries.

This volume gives a great overview of what Christian spirituality is as well as its biblical roots and its historic development over the past 20 centuries.

To order it on Amazon, click on the link on the left column of Deep Wells.

Augustine’s Confessions Invite Us on a Spiritual Journey

2011-07-05T06:42:00.000-07:00

Life is a journey. In particular, spiritual growth is an ever-moving, ever-challenging adventure. Just as men and women of Scripture are said to have “walked with God,” our pilgrimage is one of wandering with the Lord through the thick and thin of life, all the while getting to know him in a deeper and more real way.

Many great works of Christian literature have focused on the theme of journey. John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress is one of the best known. But the book that set the pattern for Bunyan and all others is Confessions by Augustine of Hippo (354-430).

Augustine’s Conversion
In his Confessions, Augustine described his own spiritual journey. Raised in north Africa, his mother, Monica, was a Christian, and his father, Patricius, was a Pagan. Augustine offered tremendous insight into his own thoughts, attitudes and motivations. He detailed the pleasure he felt in stealing some pears with friends as a youth. It wasn’t the pears that he enjoyed—it was the thrill of taking something that was not his own.

When Augustine went off to school, he began to pursue lustful desires. Ultimately he lived for thirteen years with a woman, whom he never named, and they had a son together.

As well as pursuing a hedonistic lifestyle, Augustine dabbled in several philosophies of the time. First he experimented with Manichaean religion that saw the universe as an ongoing battle between good and evil forces. Then he pursued Neo-Platonic thought. Although incomplete in itself, Neo-Platonism proved to be the bridge that would help lead him to Christ.

Augustine’s teaching career eventually took him to Rome and then Milan. Because he taught rhetoric (public speaking or communication), Augustine began to attend the cathedral in order to listen to the great preacher, Ambrose. Bit by bit the gospel message began to reach him.

One day Augustine was in his back yard, wrestling with life, with his constant compromise with lust and his sensual lifestyle. The Lord supernaturally broke into his world. As Augustine was sitting under a tree he heard a child’s voice repeated singing, “Take up and read, take up and read.” When he looked over the fence, however, no one was there. Then Augustine looked down at the Bible he had next to him. He picked it up and read the spot where the Bible fell open: “Not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts.” (Rom 13:13-14, NASB). Augustine was convicted to the core. This led to his repentance and conversion, being baptized on Easter day by Bishop Ambrose.

Continued Venture
Augustine’s venture did not end with his conversion. This is only about half way through Confessions. His pilgrimage carried on as he grew in his relationship with the Lord.

Another profound encounter he had with the Lord took place at the Italian port city of Ostia. Monica had been with him for some years in Italy, and she aging. One day Augustine and his mother were looking out over the garden and talking about heaven. As they did so, both were caught up into a glimpse of heaven. Soon after, Monica died.

Throughout the remainder of Confessions, Augustine continues to tell his journey as he grew into an ever-deeper knowledge of God.

Our Spiritual Pilgrimage
Augustine presents the believer as the homo viator—the person on a journey. Let us not settle for where we are with the Lord at the moment. Rather, let us continually push forward, as Paul states in Phil 3:12-14,

“Not that I have already . . . been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. . . . But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

2011 © Glenn E. Myers

Meet the Mystics: Augustine Calls Us to Desire

2011-06-22T08:13:00.000-07:00

“Thou hast made us for thyself, and our heart is restless until it finds its rest in thee.”
-Augustine of Hippo, Confessions

Augustine
Augustine of Hippo (354-430) is a figure who looms larger than life in the history of the church. Many know him as a great theologian who emphasized God’s grace, taught on the Trinity, and refuted Pelagianism. He helped to lay the foundation for the whole Western church, both Protestant and Catholic.

But Augustine was also a mystic—one who had a truly personal relationship with God. Although Augustine lived a worldly life for many years, the Lord supernaturally crashed into his life at one point leading him to a verse in Scripture that led to his conversion. From then on, Augustine cultivated an intimate walk with the Lord. Augustine and his mother, Monica, also had a phenomenal encounter before she passed away in which they were both experienced a taste of heavenly glory.

Desire
In his writings Augustine has much to say on spiritual growth. One of his key themes is that “desire.” Desire (longing, craving) is the starting point—it is what draws us to the Lord gets us out the front door to go on a journey with God.

Created in God’s image we are born to desire. That capacity to desire is good. Desire is meant to be directed toward loving others—both God and other people. However, because of the fall our desire became twisted inward (concupiscence, lust) and we focus on ourselves and our pleasures.

In his autobiography, Confessions, Augustine describes the many earthly pleasures he pursued before coming to Christ. Our hearts run after many false pleasures and empty pursuits that will never satisfy us.

Augustine sees desire as the driving force of our lives. Salvation is not a matter of killing all desire in our lives, as it is sometimes preached. Rather, repentance means redirecting our desire.

Only in a genuine relationship with God—Father, Son and Holy Spirit—will our restlessness be stilled. Spiritual growth, therefore, is all about stirring up our desire for the Lord, directing our steps toward him and continually cultivating our personal relationship with him.

Life-Long Pursuit
When many contemporary Christians read Augustine’s statement, “Our hearts are restless until they find their rest in thee,” their thought is “been there, done that.”

This is the wrong response. Far too many people today can describe when they “prayed the sinner’s prayer” but they have grown little since then. Although they claim to be saved, they have little interest in the Lord. Rather, their desire is directed toward material possessions, physical pleasure, success, and even recognition in ministry. It has been years since they genuinely pursued the Lord.

What we desire—what we pursue—tells the truth about us. If we pursue carnal comforts, then our lives are carnal. The spiritual path we are on is headed in the opposite direction from the Lord. As Jesus said, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matt 6:21).

Desire is all about where our treasure is. It is the foundation of our spiritual growth. Desire is good so long as we turn from all the self-directed gratifications that seem so innocent.

Instead of ignoring the restlessness in our hearts or being led astray into self-absorption, let us direct our desires toward others and, above all, toward God.

2011 © Glenn E. Myers

Meet the Medieval Mystics

2011-06-08T07:59:00.000-07:00

Who were the medieval mystics? What did they believe? What could we possibly learn from them in our day?

“Dark Ages” Full of Light
The Middle Ages (medieval era) lasted roughly from 400 – 1400 AD. Since the enlightenment, this time period has often been referred to as the “dark ages.” This is a misnomer. While the years from 850 - 1050 AD were dark times of chaos and limited education and culture, most of the rest of the Middle Ages was a time of learning. Especially from 1100 onward, this was a time of great light spiritually.

By the thousands people came into a personal relationship with Christ and pursued him with their whole heart. Many of these Christians are referred to the “medieval mystics.” That title seems odd to us today. “Mystic” has a negative connotation in our day, referring to something strange or something related to TM, Buddhism, New Age or the occult.

In the Middle Ages, however, the mystics were simply Christians who cultivated an intimate relationship with Jesus, committed themselves to spiritual growth, and believed prayer was a genuine conversation with the Lord.

Cultivating a Personal Relationship With Christ
Studying the mystics and reading their writing has become my life’s work. Again and again I am amazed how similar their faith is to ours today! As I have studied many of them, I’ve seen seven characteristics of most medieval mystics:

•They pursued a personal relationship with God—recognizing that simply being part of a church was not enough.
•They sought to follow Jesus in daily obedience and discipleship—even when that path led to suffering.
•They nurtured a dynamic prayer life, setting aside the busyness of the day to spend time with their savior.
•They cultivated intimacy with the Lord—experiencing his love for them and pouring out their love in return.
•Often they encountered God’s presence in prayer, Scripture reading and celebrating the Lord’s Supper.
•They recognized that the Christian life is one of growth in sanctification—overcoming sin, learning God’s word, serving others and continuing to surrender our will to God’s.
•They longed to experience as much oneness with the Lord as is possible here on earth.

When we understand who they were, we realize how closely related we are to the medieval mystics!

Some of them have left writings behind, so we know a bit about their lives and their experience in the Christian life. Over the coming weeks I want to introduce you to some of these key men and women, as well as their profound insights on spiritual growth. I hope you enjoy these blogs as well as take away some practical wisdom for your own walk with Christ.

© 2011 Glenn E. Myers

Detaching from our Anxious Approach to Word

2011-05-31T07:02:00.000-07:00

How often we approach our daily work with anxiety and stress. We blame our lack of time with God on our busy schedule, and we accuse our responsibilities for hindering our spiritual maturity.

However, “it is not your work that hinders you” from spiritual growth, asserts Johannes Tauler, “but rather the disordered way in which you work that hinders you. You fail to keep God clearly in your love, in your longing and in your heart. Thus you are scattered and distorted within, and God is not completely intrinsic to you. Truly, what hinders you is not your work or anything other than yourself." [1]

We assume that it all depends on us, and that we need to work harder and longer to get everything done. However, Scripture tells that the fruitfulness of our labor depends on the Lord and that he gives us peace and rest:

Unless the Lord builds the house,
its builders labor in vain.
Unless the Lord watches over the city,
the watchmen stand guard in vain.
In vain you rise early and stay up late,
toiling for the food you eat—
for he grants sleep to those he loves. (Ps 127:1-2)

Let us cast our cares on the Lord all day long as we approach our work and responsibilities, and let us truly enter God’s rest!

1. Johannes Tauler Predigten: Vollständige Ausgabe, edited by Georg Hofmann (Freiburg: Herder, 1961), sermon 17, p. 122. The translation is my own.
© 2011 Glenn E. Myers

Clinging: What We Must Let Go (and reflections by Johannes Tauler)

2011-05-20T09:24:00.000-07:00

We cling to all kinds of things! We cling to material possessions and a multiplicity of comforts and pleasures in life. Some of us cling to other people. Others grasp for success in their career, along with power, promotion and prestige. Still others obsess over their looks and workout endless to improve their body image.

Of course we hate to admit that we are actually clinging. As Christians we know we shouldn’t cling. So, we deny that we have a problem (“I am simply trying to be a good steward of my body,” we assert). Or we excuse it as not being important (“A little innocent indulgence never hurt anyone,” we tell ourselves.) Sometimes we compare ourselves with others who have much bigger issues than ours, and that makes us feel good about ourselves!

The problem is that when we are clinging—even to harmless things—we cannot be clinging to Jesus. If my hands are clutching possessions, they cannot be holding on to the Lord. If my mind is filled with anxious thoughts about climbing the ladder, it is not focused on God’s faithfulness that provides for me.

Detachment
Clinging can also be compared to eating junk food. If I nibble on junk food all afternoon, amazingly I won’t be hungry for healthy food at dinner time. Likewise, if I am filling my thoughts and my heart with material possessions or people or success, I curb my inner longing for God. Like junk food, these things do not give me lasting satisfaction—they are not what I am truly hungry for. However, like junk food, they numb my true appetite for the Lord so that I do not hungrily seek the Lord in prayer, Scripture, worship and fellowship!

“Do not love the world or anything in the world,” states 1 John 2:15-16. “If anyone love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world—the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does—comes not from the Father but from the world.”

If we want to grow spiritually, we need to stop the intake of junk food. We must cease clinging to all our little comforts, bad habits and things that keep us engrossed in worldly pleasures. We have to detach.

“We must arise from everything that is not God—from self and all created things,” says Johannes Tauler. “Such rising sets off deep within us a fierce longing to be stripped free and liberated from everything that separates us from God. The more we lay aside all these things, the more such longing grows within us!” [1]

Who is On the Throne?
Ultimately the question is: Who is on the throne in my heart? When I’m clinging to something, I give it center place in my heart. When I place anything on the throne, the Lord moves off the throne. He will not share his throne with any idol!

Serious believers who move forward in God are “noble people who truly arise and thereby shine forth (Isa 61:1). They allow God to prepare their inner depths,” continues Tauler, “and abandon themselves completely to God. They empty themselves of ‘self’ in all things and do not cling to anything.” [2]

Spiritual growth is so much more than “praying the prayer” or “getting saved.” It is more than knowing our Bible—the Pharisees were experts at that! Rather, spiritual formation is about detaching from all the false loves in the world in order for that “fierce longing” for the Lord to arise in us—and out of that longing for us to pursue Jesus with all our strength!

1. Johannes Tauler Predigten: Vollständige Ausgabe, edited by Georg Hofmann (Freiburg: Herder, 1961), sermon 3, pp. 35-36. The translation is my own.
2. Ibid., p. 37.
© 2011 Glenn E. Myers

God uses Suffering to Shape our Lives: Reflections by Johannes Tauler

2011-05-10T13:37:00.000-07:00

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sister, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” -James 1:2-4 (TNIV)

Every day has its trials—big ones, little ones, petty and irritating ones! And every day I need to remind myself to embrace the circumstances that come my way. Indeed, I must remember to consider these things as pure joy!

The preacher who has affected my life more than any other has much to say on this topic. His name is Johannes Tauler, and he lived 700 years ago. In one of his powerful sermons he states:

“Oh, whoever indeed lovingly embraces in the depths of their hearts the bitter circumstances that God gives them, what glorious life blossoms in such people! What joy, what peace, what a noble thing that would be! Yes, the smallest as well as the greatest suffering that God ever sends you, he gives you out of the depths of his inexpressibly great love, as the highest and best gift that he even could, or ever has given you. If only you embrace it, it would be so helpful to you!”

“Yes, all suffering—the smallest hair that falls from your head and you don’t even notice, about which our Lord said that not even a hair will go unnumbered—all suffering that comes upon you, as small as it may be, God has seen from eternity and loved it and had it in mind in order to send it to you.”

Tauler continues, “So it is with the loss of joy or possession or honor or comfort or whatever God sends you—such losses form you and serve to guide you to true peace, if only you can embrace them. . . . All the suffering that God gives us to taste is justified, for through suffering he will lead us to great things. Thus he has set everything as hardship for us. Had he wanted, he easily could have made loaves of bread grow in the field like grain.

Nothing that happens to us is by accident. In God’s sovereign knowledge and absolute love, he allows everything that comes our way—and has a plan how he will use it! Tauler concludes:

“Just as the artist foresees in his mind how he will make each stroke of the brush on the canvas—how short or long or wide,—and there is no other way if the painting is to become a masterpiece—where he should use red or blue—so God does the same, and a thousand times more, in our lives with through much suffering and many strokes of color. He does so in order to achieve in us the masterpiece that pleases him the most, so long as we truly embrace these gifts—these bitter circumstances—from him.”[1]

God specifically chooses the circumstances that I need in my life to transform me. Just like an artist skillfully selects each dab of paint to make a masterpiece, God is making a masterpiece out of your life and mine. When I truly see this, I can indeed count it all joy when circumstances go awry, knowing that God is going to use it to make me mature and complete—his work of art!

1. Johannes Tauler Predigten: Vollständige Ausgabe, edited by Georg Hofmann (Freiburg: Herder, 1961), sermon 3, pp. 30-31. The translation is my own.

© 2011 Glenn E. Myers

Beguine Classics: Mechthild of Magdeburg

2011-04-28T05:54:00.000-07:00

O God, You are my God;
Early will I seek You;
My soul thirsts for You;
My flesh longs for You
In a dry and thirsty land
Where there is no water.
-Psalm 63:1 (NKJV)

Aching for More of the Lord
Have you ever longed for the Lord so much that you literally ache for his presence, his touch, his love? In Psalm 63 David describes such an inner craving that even his body yearned for the Lord.

This same longing is articulated by one of the godly women known as the Beguines. Mechthild joined a Beguine community in Magdeburg, Germany, in the thirteenth century and spent many years there. Mechthild was passionately in love with the Lord from the time she was twelve years old, and she pursued the Lord continually:

“O Lord, if it could ever happen to me that I might gaze upon you as my heart desires and hold you in my arms, then the divine pleasures of your love would needs permeate my soul to the degree possible for people on earth. What I would be willing to suffer thereafter has never been seen by human eyes. Indeed, a thousand deaths were too little. Such, Lord, is my painful longing for you!” (p. 134)

During the latter half of her life she wrote her work, Flowing Light of the Godhead, describing her walk with the Lord and inviting other thirsty souls to pursue God with all their heart, mind, soul and strength. Mechthild writes:

“I delight in loving him who loves me, and I long to love him to the death, boundlessly, and without ceasing. Be happy, my soul, for your Life has died for love of you. Love him so fiercely that you could die for him. Thus you burn ever more without ever being extinguished as a living flame in the vast fire of high majesty.” (p. 53)

God’s Flowing Love
As much as Mechthild enjoys the Lord’s presence, however, spiritual experience per se is not the theme of her book. Rather, she focuses on God’s overflowing love that continually pours out toward us.

The Christian life always begins with God. Our story begins with God’s initiative to love us and reveal himself to us. When we receive Christ, it is simply in response to his love for us since before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4)! When we pray, we are simply articulating desires that he has placed on our hearts. God is always prior. God is always self-giving and self-revealing. God is love!

God’s unceasing river of love is what Mechthild’s book is all about:

"O you pouring God in your gift!
O you flowing God in your love!
O you burning God in your desire!
O you melting God in the union with your beloved!
O you resting God on my breasts!
Without you I cannot exist.” (p. 48)

In light of God’s overflowing presence that is available to us, Mechthild invites us as her readers to continually soak in that love and pour it out to others. Let her prayer be the prayer in each of our hearts:

“Jesus, dearest Lover of mine, let me approach you . . . with deep love for you in my heart, and never let me grow cold, so that I constantly feel your intense love in my heart and in my soul and in my five senses and in all my members. Then I can never grow cold.” (p. 309)

Mechthild’s Classic
If your heart resonates with such passionate longing for the Lord, you will want to read Mechthild’s Flowing Light. A complete edition in English is available in the Classics of Western Spirituality. All the above quotes are from this volume.

•Mechthild of Magdeburg. The Flowing Light of the Godhead. Translated by Frank Tobin. The Classics of Western Spirituality. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1998.

My book that was just released in IVP’s Formatio Series provides an introduction to Mechthild and the key spiritual formation themes that she explores.

•Myers, Glenn. Seeking Spiritual Intimacy: Journeying Deeper with Medieval Women of Faith. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2011. ISBN: 978-0-8308-3551-5.

Mechthild’s writings can be found in several other collections, including the following:

•Bowie, Fiona, ed. Beguine Spirituality: Mystical Writings of Mechthild of Magdeburg, Beatrice of Nazareth, and Hadewijch of Brabant. Spiritual Classics. New York: Crossroad, 1990. ISBN: 0-8245-0993-5.
•Murk-Jansen, Saskia. Brides in the Desert: The Spirituality of the Beguines. Traditions of Spirituality Series. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2004. ISBN: 1-57075-201-X.

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Beguine Classics: Hadewijch of Brabant

2011-04-19T06:52:00.000-07:00

What does it mean to be in love with Christ? In concrete ways, how do we pursue him with all our heart, mind, soul and strength?

The women known as Beguines help us to flesh out the answer in our everyday life. One of their original writings that we have today is by the 13th century Belgian woman named Hadewijch. Pulsating with a palpable love for Jesus, Hadewijch’s writings draw us as readers into a fresh appreciation of—and fresh encounter with—the Lord.

Passionate Love for God
First and foremost, Hadewijch invites her readers into an intimate love relationship with God who is Love.

“O beloved, why has not Love sufficiently overwhelmed you and engulfed you in her abyss? Alas! when Love is so sweet, why do you not fall deep into her? And why do you not touch God deeply enough in the abyss of his Nature, which is so unfathomable? Sweet love, give yourself for Love’s sake fully to God in love.” (Hadewijch, 56)

This thirteenth-century Beguine from Belgium was passionately in love with God! From the time she was ten years old, she had experienced God’s remarkable touch in her life. As the leader of a Beguine community, and as a writer, she called believers to leave behind half-hearted Christianity in order to plunge into a fully engaged, fervent love relationship with the Lord.

“You should always look fixedly on your Beloved whom you desire. For he who gazes on what he desires becomes ardently enkindled, so that his heart within him begins to beat slowly because of the sweet burden of love. And through perseverance in this holy life of contemplation, wherein he continually gazes on God, he is drawn within God. Love ever makes him taste her so sweetly that he forgets everything on earth.” (Hadewijch, 88)

The sweetness of such an ardent love of the Lord will woo us away from all the false loves of the world—all the distractions and addictions that clamor for our attention. These hold no interest for us if we truly taste the overpowering presence of Jesus!

When the Feelings Fade
Second, Hadewijch prepares her readers for the time when these passionate feelings and intimate encounters with the Lord fade. The emotions of falling in love do not last forever. Initial experiences of “spiritual sweetness” give way to a more mature love.

That is okay. While we are certainly to enjoy emotional connection with the Lord when we experience it, we dare not cling to it. Feelings come and go, and we cannot gauge our spiritual growth on them. Rather, the fruit by which we are known is our growth in Christ-like character.

“Virtues and not sweetness are the proof of love, for it sometimes happens that he who loves less feels more sweetness. Love is not in each person according to what he feels, but according as he is grounded in virtue and rooted in charity (Eph. 3:17). Desire for God is sometimes sweet; nevertheless it is not wholly divine, for it wills up from the experience of the senses rather than from grace.” (Hadewijch, 66-67)

Those who try to cling to feelings and experiences are often led astray. Indeed, we find out that they were more interested in having a “spiritual high” than they were in loving God.

“For we discover in these souls that as long as sweetness endures in them, they are gentle and fruitful. But when the sweetness vanishes, their love goes too; and thus the depths of their being remain hard and unfruitful. . . . These are fainthearted folk; they are easily elated when all is sweet and distressed when anything is bitter. A small heavenly favor makes their heart exceedingly joyful, and a small sorrow exceedingly afflicts it.” (Hadewijch, 67)

Although it is hard to let go of those initial feelings of being in love, we must do so in order to move on a mature love of Christ. Hadewijch is a wise guide in this process.

Invitation to Read the Classics
Hadewijch’s writings consist primarily of poetry with some letters she wrote to younger women she mentored, as well as fourteen visions that she recorded. If you appreciate poetry and profound figurative language, you will really enjoy this Beguine’s works.

A full collection of Hadewijch’s writings in English is available in the Classics of Western Spirituality. All the above quotes are from this volume.

•Hadewijch. Hadewijch: The Complete Works. Translated by Mother Columba Hart. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1980. ISBN: 0-8091-2297-9.

My book that was just released in IVP’s Formatio Series provides an introduction to Hadewijch and the key spiritual formation themes that she explores.

•Myers, Glenn. Seeking Spiritual Intimacy: Journeying Deeper with Medieval Women of Faith. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2011. ISBN: 978-0-8308-3551-5.

Hadewijch’s writings can be found in several other collections, including the following:

•Bowie, Fiona, ed. Beguine Spirituality: Mystical Writings of Mechthild of Magdeburg, Beatrice of Nazareth, and Hadewijch of Brabant. In Spiritual Classics. New York: Crossroad, 1990. ISBN: 0-8245-0993-5.

•Dreyer, Elizabeth A. Passionate Spirituality: Hildegard of Bingen and Hadewijch of Brabant. New York: Paulist Press, 2005. ISBN: 0-8091-4304-6.

•Murk-Jansen, Saskia. Brides in the Desert: The Spirituality of the Beguines. The Traditions of Spirituality Series. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2004. ISBN: 1-57075-201-X.

Especially if the feelings of spiritual sweetness have faded in your life and you wonder why the Lord is ignoring you, I highly suggest Hadewijch’s writing. She offers some of the deepest insights, and she expresses herself with profound thought and heartfelt passion.

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Seeking Spiritual Intimacy

2011-04-09T14:48:00.000-07:00

Just a quick note this week to say that my book is out and is available on Amazon!

Lent: Being Attentive to Others

2011-04-01T14:31:00.000-07:00

“Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For the measure you use, it will be measure to you.” (Luke 6:38)

One of the greatest gifts of love we can give anyone is our attentiveness. When we offer others our compete focus, we show them how much we value them. Instead of being preoccupied with our own workload, our financial pressures and our struggles, we show them genuine care by assigning them our undistracted time and undivided attention.

The reverse is also true. When others are attentive to us—wanting to know how we are doing inside and listening without thinking of something they want to say—we know we are loved.

Yet, how often we forget to focus on others! Most days we go through life inattentive to people around us. Dwelling on the things that weigh us down, we obsess about ourselves and give only casual notice to those we see. “How are you doing?” is a greeting rather than a question, and our interest remains fixed on our problems. In our self-obsession we fail to love others and we run the risk of caving in on ourselves.

Lent has always been a season for fasting. Perhaps this Lent you and I can fast from our self-focus in order to be truly attentive to others. We can step away from our continual self-obsession and silence our self-worry long enough to listen to people, especially those we care about the most.

Jesus calls us to pour ourselves out. “Give, and it will be given to you,” he commands. Whatever amount of love and attention we show others is precisely the measure that will come back to us. Of course we dare not give simply in order to get—that is called manipulation. Rather, we give freely, and—for a few moments of listening to someone else--we forget about ourselves. In due time, we will discover others giving us the time, attention and interest that shows us how loved we are.

Lord Jesus, set me free from the quicksand of self. Just as you care for me and attend my every thought and need, help me to get out of myself in order to care for others. Show me how I can be attentive to those around me and love them as never before. Amen.

© 2011 Glenn E. Myers

Lent: a Time to Listen

2011-03-24T09:33:00.000-07:00

“After the fire, [there was] a still small voice. And it was so when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and behold, there came a voice unto him, and said . . . .” -1 Kings 19:12-13 (KJV)

Our God is a speaking God, and he would speak to us if we would but listen. “God is forever seeking to speak Himself out to His creation,” asserts A. W. Tozer in his Pursuit of God. “The whole Bible supports this idea. God is speaking. Not God spoke, but God is speaking.”

Listen – Silent

In order for us to hear his voice, however, we must still our racing thoughts, slow down our frenetic activity and set aside intentional time to listen to him. There in the quietness he will restore us and speak to us. The words “listen” and “silent” have the same six letters in them. In order to listen, we must silence all of the other noises in our minds. Likewise, if we want to hear the Lord’s voice, we must be still.

Johannes Tauler, the preacher who greatly influenced Martin Luther, calls us to inner stillness: “In this midnight silence, in which all things remain in deepest stillness and where perfect peace reigns, there we will hear God’s word in truth. For if God is to speak, we must be silent; if God is to enter in, all other things must make room for him.” [1]

As long as we are preoccupied, we will not hear the Lord’s words of love, comfort and direction for our lives. However, if we stop to listen, he will surely speak.

During Lent, let us attend to God’s voice with all our focus. Let us dedicate these days to establishing a habit of silence and listening to our Lord.

Gracious God, thank you that you are not silent! You spoke the Word in all eternity, you pour out your loving thoughts to us continually, and you desire to speak to us today. Here I am: I am listening to what you would say to me today. Amen.

_____
1. Johannes Tauler, Johannes Tauler Predigten: Vollständige Ausgabe. Edited by Georg Hofmann. Freiburg: Herder, 1961.

© 2011 Glenn E. Myers

Lent: A Time to Draw Close to God

2011-03-10T05:46:00.000-08:00

“Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus . . . let us draw near to God with a sincere heart.” –Hebrews10:19-22 (TNIV)

God invites us into his presence. As Christians we are often like the believers in the book of Hebrews—we have the way open to the Father, but we fail to come to him.

Lent is a season set aside to draw nearer to God. It is an appointed time to pursue afresh the deeper life. For nearly 2000 years, Christians have dedicated the days leading up to Easter to draw close to the Lord. This is a time to refresh our relationship with him and to refocus our hearts, minds and lives upon God the Father.

In order to refocus our lives, we must intentionally set aside everything else and draw apart with God. In his book, Making All Things New, Henri Nouwen observes, “Without solitude it is virtually impossible to live a spiritual life. Solitude begins with a time and place for God, and him alone. . . . If we really believe not only that God exists but also that he is actively present in our lives—healing, teaching, and guiding—we need to set aside a time and space to give him our undivided attention.”

Yesterday was Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent. What is something special you can do over the coming weeks to give the Lord your undivided attention? Where is the best place for you to have intimate time with him—a place where you know you will not be uninterrupted? How can you focus all your attention on him?

This Lenten season let us come—individually and corporately—to God’s loving, healing, transforming presence.

Heavenly Father, thank you that you welcome me into your presence. I want to draw closer to you over these coming weeks. Please show me what areas of my life need to change and what ways I can set aside special time for seeking you. You have invited me to come - and my response is "yes, I come to you!"

Embracing Struggle: A Morning Prayer

2011-03-03T17:47:00.000-08:00

Photograph by Drew Collins

Much of our spiritual growth in life comes from struggle. If we are willing to embrace the challenges and trials that God allows in our lives, he will use them to train us, strengthen us and transform us.

Following up on my last blog, here is a prayer that I’ve been praying most mornings for the past few months. It has been very helpful for me to get the right mindset for the day. It prepares me for the struggle—or whole colorful array of unexpected struggles—that will come my way!

Embracing Struggles Today
Today, Father, I embrace the struggles set before me, just as if I were wilderness camping.
By your grace, I will count it all joy as I face a whole bouquet of trials today.

I will face struggles at work head on and grow through them.
With responsibilities at home, I will be proactive.
I renounce being passive.

In my interaction at work and home, I welcome relational challenges instead of avoiding them.
In all of these I will please you, O Lord.

Rather than seeing these challenges as unnecessary inconveniences or debilitating hassles, I will embrace them as opportunities to grow.
Let me view them from your perspective, O Lord—divinely appointed occasions for you to work in my life! Amen.

© 2011 Glenn E. Myers

Embracing Struggle: Wilderness Camping and Spiritual Formation

2011-02-22T07:18:00.000-08:00

Photograph by Drew Collins

The wilderness! I love exploring the wilds, hiking in new mountain ranges and camping under the stars. Many summers I venture onto the pristine lakes of the Boundary Waters in northern Minnesota. Here the brave of heart encounter the tall timber, crystal clear waters, and endless woods filled with martins, moose, beaver, wolves and the like.

Away from buildings and fences and everything built with right angles, the wilderness brims with life and adventure. That adventure entails challenge and danger—if you don’t pay attention, you can easily wash over a waterfalls onto the rocks beneath. The wilderness is very unforgiving! Venturing into it calls for alertness, some hard work and daily struggle.

Some campers are ready for struggle; others are not. Each summer I have taken different men—ranging from 15 to 50 years of age—with me into the wilderness. What is fascinating is that some guys “get it”—wilderness camping is a lot of work, and each day faces new struggle. Others don’t—they presume this is going to be a trip for relaxing. Somehow they assume that camp sets itself up, meals cook themselves, and forest rangers carry our canoes on the long portages. When the reality of the wilderness hits them, they are shocked! They do not want to embrace the struggle, and they usually do not enjoy the adventure at all.

Struggle is central to wilderness camping. In order to see the glories of the wilderness, it takes a lot of effort. The privilege of waking up to the call of loons on a misty lake comes at a price. Life in the wilds is hard work and it challenges us with continual struggle.

Whole Bouquet of Struggles
Struggle is likewise a standard dynamic of the Christian life. Trials, tribulations and struggles of many kinds find their way to our door each day. The book of 1 Peter—which is all about trials and suffering—calls us to have joy in the midst of our struggles. “In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials” (1 Peter 1:6).

The Greek word for “all kinds” or “various” trials means “various colors.” In effect, the Lord is telling us that we will have an assortment of trials in many colors—a whole bouquet of struggles in this life! That may entail persecution, but it also includes physical pain, frustrations, suffering and struggles of all kinds.

Contemporary Western Christians don’t like to hear this message of struggle. Our culture idolizes “comfort,” and we see the easy life as one of our inalienable rights. Therefore, we assume something is wrong when we go through difficulties.

Peter addresses this assumption as well. “Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed” (1 Peter 4:12-13). There should be nothing surprising about facing daily trails and struggles—that is part of life on this earth as we follow Christ.

The Path to Transformation

Struggle is a necessary path in our pilgrimage. Just like with wilderness camping, struggle is a fundamental dynamic of spiritual formation.

James also highlights the role of trials in our life. Just as Peter, James uses the same word for “many kinds” of trials, referring to that whole array—that whole bouquet—of difficulties that God uses in our lives. “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trails of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything” (James 1:2-4). If we embrace the trails that God allows in our lives, we will develop perseverance and be perfected in character.

When I am camping, I enjoy even the tough times because I know that facing the challenges affords me the opportunity to experience the unspoiled beauty of the wilderness. So, in my Christian walk I am learning to “count it all joy” when trials and problems present themselves on a regular basis. Embracing struggle is the Lord’s chosen path to the unblemished, mature spiritual formation that he is hammering out in my life!

Detachment: Emptied in Order to be Filled

2011-02-15T06:05:00.000-08:00

Detachment is the doorway into the deeper life. The reason we detach from created things is to that we are free us to love God with our whole being.

It should be noted that detachment is not an end in itself. The goal is not asceticism. Rather, we let go of created things to make ourselves empty inside so that the Creator has room to come in and fill us as never before.

Receptive
God desires that we have “a free, receptive and uplifted spirit, not enchained by anything—neither by what we desire or what we love—a spirit that is ready to let go of everything except what God desires it to have,” notes Johannes Tauler. “Then, were we to own a whole kingdom, we would still remain genuinely poor in spirit with nothing hindering us from receiving God—so long as no temporal thing is the source of our peace and satisfaction. Rather we continually stretch out our hands of desire solely toward the merciful generosity of the pure Good, which is God himself. That alone can bring contentment in our will and our inner depths.” [1]

But if we are willing to empty ourselves, God will certainly fill us! “Empty yourself, so that you can be filled,” exhorts Tauler. “If we are in the state where our depths have been prepared, then, without doubt, God must fill them completely else the heavens would burst and fill the void. Much less does God allow it to remain empty—that would be contrary to his essence and his righteousness.” [2]

Thirsty
Today I am more thirsty for Jesus than I have ever been in my life. Having walked with the Lord for over forty years, I find myself craving him more than I did when I first entered a personal relationship with him.

I am so thirsty that it is painful! But that pain is a good thing—it is precisely such pain that stirs me out of complacency and energizes me to clean house! In reality, it is the Holy Spirit who does the housecleaning. At this point, I am glad to allow the Spirit to turn everything upside down in the process. Let him throw things out at will. Let me be emptied out as never before so I can be filled and might experience “how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that [I] may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God” (Ephesians 3:18-19).

Will you join me? Will you allow God to detach you and empty you that he might fill you in ways that you never imaged?
_____
1 Johannes Tauler Predigten: Vollständige Ausgabe,ed. Georg Hofmann (Freiburg: Herder, 1961), sermon 5, p. 56. The translation is my own.

2 Ibid., p. 17.

© 2011 Glenn E. Myers

Detachment means Cleaning House . . . . . Insights from Johannes Tauler

2011-02-08T09:03:00.000-08:00

If we want to enter into the deeper life—the abundant life—that Jesus promised us, we need to detach from anything and everything that would hold us back.

Cleaning House
Why is detachment such an essential spiritual discipline for those who desire to experience the deeper Christian life? The spiritual rhythm of detachment is like cleaning house.

When we first give ourselves to the Lord and invite him into our lives, it is as if we welcome Jesus into the “living room” of our hearts. We allow him to clean things up as we repent of coarser sins. Once we are “presentable” in Christian circles, we are often pretty well satisfied.

However, there are other rooms in our hearts that still need to be emptied. They are often filled with worldly things that we want to cling to—whether material possessions, people, our physical appearance or any number of petty little pleasures. While they may not be sinful in and of themselves, they take our time and attention. Like Frodo in Lord of the Rings, we begin stroking the ring and obsessing about whatever “our precious” might be, until it betrays us and begins to control us!

Emptying Ourselves
Therefore, we need to detach. We need to allow God’s Spirit to search our inner lives and clean house.

So long as we are clinging to popularity, power and pride, our hands are not open to receive what the Lord has to give us. If our thoughts are preoccupied with our own plans and projects, we are not receptive to God’s new direction for our lives. So long as our hearts are cluttered with things that we hold on to for security, we are not free to accept the fullness of the Almighty—the only one who can truly satisfy us.

Serious believers who desire to move forward in God need to “empty themselves of ‘self’ in all things and do not cling to anything—neither in their service to God or their manner and practice of devotion,” observes Johannes Tauler. They demand their own way “neither in what they do or what they let undone; neither in this nor that; neither in joy nor suffering. They receive all things from God in humble fear and again reach out to him completely in naked poverty of self, in willing surrender, and humble themselves under God’s will. They are satisfied with whatever God wills in all things—whether in peace or strife—for they focus completely on the good and pleasing will of God [Romans 12:2].” [1]

Empty is Uncomfortable
It is uncomfortable to be empty. We feel unfulfilled and lonely. This is the experience of withdrawal. Whatever we have used to get our “fix,” we will go through withdrawal when we detach from it.

But if we are willing to empty ourselves, God will certainly fill us! (continued next week . . . )
_____
[1] Johannes Tauler Predigten: Vollständige Ausgabe,ed. Georg Hofmann (Freiburg: Herder, 1961), sermon 5, pp. 37. The translation is my own.

© 2011 Glenn E. Myers

Detachment: Untying the Canoe

2011-01-29T06:23:00.000-08:00

Photograph by Drew Collins

Many Christians I meet truly desire to pursue a deeper life in Christ. They are tired of the shallow Christianity that surrounds them. They dissatisfied with the lukewarmness of their own walk with God.

If we truly want to move to a more profound plane in our spiritual life, however, we need to detach from all the things that bog us down. Hebrews 12:1-2 says, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” Not only sin holds us back, but anything that encumbers us and weighs us down will keep us from running the race as God desires.

One of the essential rhythms of genuine, transformative spiritual formation is the practice of detachment. Detachment is letting go of the many things that we cling to. It is loosening our grip on anything that we try to fill our inner emptiness with. Detachment is breaking our emotional attachment to the many things that we tend to clutch so tightly.

Detach from What?
We need to detach from anything created. As created beings we have a propensity to grasp other temporal things. There are three general categories of things that we cling to. So long as our hands cling to them, we are not free to cling to the Lord.

First, most of us need to detach from material possessions. Our preoccupation with buying stuff is unhealthy. We work extra hours to make the money needed to buy all of our toys. Then more time and effort are devoured as we try to maintain them and store them. Concurrently we complain that we have little time for prayer or the closest friendships in our lives—and we cannot figure out where our time has gone!

We need to detach. Detachment is such a foreign concept to contemporary Western believers. Our lives are surrounded by so much materialism that we have adopted more or a worldly orientation than we begin to realize. Rather than grasping our possessions, we must learn to hold all things loosely. We enjoy them as blessings from the Lord, but do not claim them for our own. As we release our death grip on all that we possess, we being to discover a new freedom in life.

Second, we tend to cling to people. God has given us others to love and from whom we can receive love. Relationships are some of the greatest blessings in this life. However, when we begin to cling to those closest to us, we run the risk of turning them into idols. Instead, we must hold all people as a gift from God and not grip them so tightly that we try to draw our life from them.

Third—and most insidious—we cling to ourselves. As fallen human beings, we hold onto our wants, our comforts, our way of doing things. We also defend our plans, our agenda and even our own concepts of how we want to grow spiritually. Just as much as we cling to material possessions, we tenaciously clutch our own spiritual agenda. Our fallenness creeps into our own way of doing spiritual formation. Again, we need to detach.

Canoe tied to the Shore
Trying to move forward spiritually without detachment, is like trying to paddle a canoe while it is tied to the shore. No matter how thin the cord is, so long as it connects the canoe with land, the canoe is going nowhere.

So it is in Christian spiritual formation. So long as we maintain our attachments to stuff, we will not move forward on the spiritual venture that God has for us. But as we daily practice detachment, we discover a freedom that we have only dreamed of for our lives. Like the canoe unbound from the shoreline, we can glide forward on an exploration of a vast new territory that God has waiting for each one of us!

© 2011 Glenn E. Myers

Detachment: Essential Dynamic of Deeper Spiritual Formation

2011-01-17T14:39:00.000-08:00

We constantly focus on the wrong things. As fallen human beings, how often we fail to direct all of our affection toward our loving Creator! Instead we fixate on created things—material possessions, people, popularity, power, pleasure, and the list goes on.

When we came to Christ, we repented of our worldly orientation. However, such repentance was not simply a one-time event that solved everything once and for all. Rather, our initial turning was just the beginning of a repentant lifestyle. Jesus calls us to die daily to ourselves and our temporal orientation in order to genuinely follow him.

Letting go of all the worldly diversions that we tend to hold on to is classically referred to as “detachment.” If we desire to pursue the deeper spiritual life in Christ, we need to practice detachment on a daily basis.

Isaiah 60:1-2 says,

“Arise, shine, for your light has come,
and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.
See, darkness covers the earth
and thick darkness is over the peoples,
but the Lord rises upon you
and his glory appears over you.”

Reflecting on this passage, one of the great spiritual writers of the church, Johannes Tauler, challenges us that we have a job to do. We must arise and shine!

“God desires and requires but one thing in all the world. This he desires so much that he turns all his diligence upon this one thing, namely that he would find our noble inner depth . . . empty and ready for him to fulfill his divine work.

“We must raise ourselves up from everything that is not God—from self and from all created things. Such rising sets off a turbulent longing in our depths to be stripped bare and set free from everything that separates us from God. The more we lay aside all these things, the more such longing grows within us and flows out over itself, and—when God touches our naked depths—it often surges through our flesh and blood and marrow!”[1]

As you seek to grow spiritually this new year, what do you need to detach yourself from? What do you need to stand up and walk away from in order to let Jesus’ light shine into your life? The Lord is ready to pour out his glory and you and me, but we must first stand up, detach ourselves from all the false fulfillments that the world has to offer in order to let God’s glory appear on us!

-----
1 Johannes Tauler Predigten: Vollständige Ausgabe,ed. Georg Hofmann (Freiburg: Herder, 1961), sermon 5, pp. 35-36. The translation is my own.

© 2011 Glenn E. Myers

Epiphany: Light Breaks into the Darkness

2011-01-10T06:38:00.000-08:00

Light! Light breaks through the darkness. Epiphany is all about light—God shining into the darkness of our world.

January 6 marks the day of Epiphany on the church calendar, celebrating God’s breaking into the dark world. This day commemorates God’s appearance (i.e., “epiphany”) to the Gentiles as the three magi came to worship Jesus.

So often we place the emphasis on the magi, but the bigger story is God’s—revealing himself to a dark world. The magi would never have come unless, out of love, God chose to reveal himself to them. Through the star, God shined forth in the physical light and called the magi to come. Then on Epiphany, God radiated forth in Jesus, the Light of the world!

In Isaiah 42:6-7 God says concerning the coming Christ:

“I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness;
I will take hold of your hand.
I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people
and a light for the Gentiles,
to open eyes that are blind,
to free captives from prison
and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness.”

This time of year the sun is weak and the earth lies covered with snow during the dark, cold months of winter. (The photo above was taken a crisp morning at 6 degrees below zero!) Yet we have this certain hope—the light is ever-increasing. The days are becoming longer, a few minutes each day. In time the hours of sunlight will overcome the cold and melt the snow. Although it will take a few months, springtime is certain.

Likewise in our lives, the light of Jesus’ shining grows stronger and stronger. His appearance (“epiphany”) is for the deliverance of us, Gentiles and Jews alike, as Isaiah states. Whatever the dark area or need in our life, Jesus is ready to radiate his love, deliverance and healing.

Our Lord will open the eyes of the blind—if we but reach out to receive his light. He will free us from the prison of captivity—whatever that looks like in each of our lives. He will release us from the dungeon of darkness—as we seek to live in his light.

© 2011 Glenn E. Myers

New Year's Prayer: Promise and Hope

2011-01-03T07:59:00.000-08:00

Our God is a God of Promise! From the Garden of Eden where the Lord promised a coming savior (Genesis 3:16) to God’s promise for Noah in the rainbow (Genesis 9:8-17) to his promise never to leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5), God’s word can be trusted.

The photo above is the beautiful rainbow that the Lord gave us on New Year’s Day. What an image of God’s hope and promise shining on wintry land! “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are ‘Yes’ in Christ” (2 Corinthians 1:20).

Perhaps you will join me in this prayer for the new year.

. . . . PRAYER FOR THE FUTURE . . . .

Hope
As I look to the future, I will hope in you, O Lord,
Choosing expectation instead of fear,
Anchoring my soul in your goodness,
Resting in your omnipotence and wisdom,
Because you know the plans that you have for me:
Plans for welfare and not for calamity, giving me a future and a hope. (Jeremiah 29:11)

Trust
O Lord, teach me to place all my trust in you,
To not take my “self-fulfillment” too seriously; rather,
To choose expectancy instead of fear,
To abandon myself to you and not to lean on my own
understanding, and
To be attentive to you in all my ways,
knowing that you will open a path before me. (Prov 3:5-6)

Wait
I shall wait upon you, Loving God, and your timing,
Living life in light of the vision your have given me,
Loving the questions you have placed before me,
Living out those questions in my daily life,
Embracing the mystery of your ways,
Cultivating receptivity, and
Enjoying the process, no matter how long it may be.

Step Forward
O Lord, today let me move forward in obedience,
Praying that your will be accomplished in my life,
Taking the steps that you have revealed for now,
Listening to your voice guiding me in the path on which I should walk.
Amen.

© 2011 Glenn E. Myers

Christmas: An Invitation to Stillness

2010-12-19T17:41:00.000-08:00

“Silent night, holy night,
All is calm, all is bright.”

Silent, attentive and still, the world waited to receive its savior. Into the tranquil night hours, God the Father spoke his Word, Jesus, to humanity. The Father sent his one and only Son to be Emmanuel—God with us. “The Word became flesh and tabernacled a little while among us” (John 1:14).

Christmas is an invitation to stillness. It is a call to quiet our hearts and focus our minds on God’s Word to us. The antithesis of pop culture’s hectic “holiday season,” the true season of Christmas is about quietness and receptivity.

While Christmas celebrates Jesus’ coming into the Roman-ruled world of Caesar Augustus some 2000 years ago, it goes beyond a mere remembrance. Christmas welcomes us to receive Jesus anew into our own situation, with whatever joys and sorrows face us today. Each of our worlds is very different than Caesar’s—but just as much in need of Emmanuel. Our life situation may even be very different this year than it was a year ago. The observance of Christmas calls us to invite Jesus afresh into our world—with its new challenges, new losses and new opportunities.

How can we, like Mary and Joseph, receive him amidst all our quests and concerns for the future? How can we, like the shepherds, realize God’s glory as it breaks into our everyday life?

In order to be attentive and receptive to the Lord, we need to set aside space for stillness in our lives. Isaiah 30:15 calls us to return and rest in the Lord if we desire to see his deliverance. It invites us into quietness and trust so that we can have our inner strength renewed:

“In returning and rest you shall be saved;
in quietness and trust shall be your strength.” (RSV)

One of the most beautiful reflections on Christmas I have ever read comes from the fourteenth-century preacher, Johannes Tauler:

“In this midnight silence, in which all things remain in
deepest stillness and where perfect peace reigns,
there we will truly hear God’s word. For if God
is to speak, we must be silent; if God is to enter in,
all other things must make room for him.”

What things are crowding him out of your life right now? Where are your thoughts so loud and hectic that you have no space to listen to him? Tauler continues:

“We should often cultivate this deep silence within
us and allow it to become the habit of our life, so
that through habit it takes firm root in us.”[1]

Let us set aside time for stillness each day this Christmas season to pull back from our frenetic activity in order to nurture quiet space in our hearts. Let us cultivate calm and receptivity. In that midnight silence, let us welcome Jesus into our world, our situation as it is right now, and into the inner sanctuary of our being.
_____
1. Johannes Tauler, Sermon 1. Although not well-known today, Tauler’s sermons profoundly impacted believers in his generation, Martin Luther during the Reformation, and thirsty souls over the centuries. The translation is my own from Johannes Tauler Predigten: Vollständige Ausgabe. Edited by Georg Hofmann. Freiburg: Herder, 1961.

© 2010 Glenn E. Myers

Advent: Season of Watching, Waiting and Transformation

2010-12-13T06:55:00.000-08:00

“Come, thou long expected Jesus,
Born to set thy people free;
From our fears and sins release us,
Let us find our rest in thee!”

Advent is a season for waiting. Since the early church, Christians have set aside the four weeks leading up to Christmas as a time of watching, waiting, and preparing our hearts to celebrate Christ’s birth.

Much spiritual growth takes place when we set aside a time intentionally to wait on God. We listen with fresh awareness of what he might want to address in our hearts. We watch for what he might be initiating in our lives. We attend to the still, small voice through which he often speaks in our souls.

Sometimes that spiritual growth is remarkable and immediate. Other times it is less noticeable, yet nonetheless real. He addresses a bad attitude that we have been harboring. He gives us a fresh glimpse of his Father’s love for us as a son or daughter. God plants a seed of hope in our hearts—a seed that may take months of years to grow and bear fruit.

Waiting Comes Hard to Us
Contemporary culture is one of the quick fix and immediate resolution. We satisfy our hunger at the drive through rather than take the time to enjoy a healthier, better meal. Even though the quality of food is lacking, we content ourselves far too easily with its convenience. We have lost the art—indeed the fruit of the Spirit—of waiting in patience.

In the same way, we settle for fluff in our spiritual lives. We allow ourselves to be satisfied with superficial change rather than pursuing a more profound encounter with the Living God. Charles Wesley’s advent hymn is an appropriate prayer during this season: “from our fears and sins release us, let us find our rest in thee!” We all harbor fears—although we often deny it. Most of us fear what others think about us. Some fear loneliness; others fear intimacy. We fear the future, and we fear failure. In short, we live fearful lives, even though as Christians we know we do not need to fear. Advent is a season to actively wait on God and ask him to silence the voice of fear within.

Advent is a time to invite God to refine our character and transform our hearts. To experience lasting, substantive change in our lives, we need to watch and pray. This is a season for active, whole-hearted waiting on God, looking to him to change what we cannot on our own power.

Tension
Waiting necessitates tension. If I am waiting for someone or something, I have positive expectation, on the one hand, and unmet expectation, on the other. This creates an inner tension within me. Until the wait is over, I have two opposing dynamics working inside of me.

Waiting is an integral part of much spiritual growth. We experience tension—and feel emptiness—that are a part of waiting. If we settle for an immediate resolution, opting for a quick, easy answer to our inner hunger, we forfeit the deeper fulfillment that comes only when a long-awaited desire is finally fulfilled.

Creative tension leads to genuine growth. God works in our hearts during this such times of discomfort—uncovering fear, exposing wrong priorities, and revealing disordered affections. He also works in positive ways—affirming his call in our lives, kindling genuine passion for his purposes and developing much-needed endurance.

Scripture
The Psalms are replete with accounts of those who had to wait years—even decades—as the Lord worked in their lives. David describes his waiting on God: “For you I wait all the day.” Such waiting comes with confidence, however: “Indeed, none of those who wait for you will be ashamed.” (Psalm 25:3, 5 NASB). David exhorts us to do likewise:

“Wait for the Lord;
Be strong, and let your heart take courage;
Yes, wait for the Lord.” (Psalm 27:14 NASB)

Genuine waiting demands focus and emotional energy. When we are waiting for something we want, or waiting for our plans to work out, we become exhausted. However, when we are waiting on God we are renewed!

“Yet those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength;
The will mount up with wings like eagles,
They will run and not get tiered,
They will walk and not become weary.” (Isaiah 40:31 NASB)

This Advent
Advent is the season for waiting afresh on the Lord. Let us not lose this opportunity amid all the hustle and bustle. Instead, let us take the time and energy to wait on God. It will transform us. It will give us new focus and fresh strength that comes only from the Lord!

© 2010 Glenn E. Myers

Advent: Season of Spiritual Longing

2010-12-06T06:17:00.000-08:00

“O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here,
Until the Son of God appear.
Rejoice, rejoice, Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.”

Such words of longing! Such aching desire poured out in prayer for Emmanuel to come afresh into the dry, captive and exiled areas of our lives!

Such are the words of advent. The four weeks leading up to Christmas—and the beginning of the church calendar—advent is a time set aside to stir afresh the spiritual yearnings within. It is a season to kindle the deep desires of our hearts.

As a child I always looked forward to December. I remember going to church the first Sunday in advent, however, only to hear the mournful melody and haunting lyrics of “O come, O come.” Disappointed, I could not understand why we were singing such a sorrowful song. Why weren’t we belting out joyful Christmas carols?

The older I have become, though, the more I resonate with the aching message of this beautiful hymn and the more I understand the importance of setting aside the season of advent to uncover the profound longing in our hearts. Life consists of more than just Christmas and Easter. Yes, Christ has come and redeemed us, but so long as we are in our mortal bodies, we will hunger for more of him. We need to invite him into the empty rooms of our hearts. We must allow him to set us free from areas where we are held captive. We long for Jesus’ fresh touch in our lives.

Longing in Scripture
David longed for a fresh experience of God’s presence. He panted for the God of his spiritual passion:

“As the deer pants for streams of water,
so my soul pants for you, O God.
My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When can I go and meet with God?” (Ps 42:1-2)

Once I thought that our inner longing was instantly and permanently fulfilled at conversion. The more I have read spiritual writers throughout church history, however, the more I have realized that spiritual longing never disappears in the Christian life. In fact, it often increases as we grow and mature. The more we come to know the Lord, the more we realize how little we know him and how much we desire Jesus in his fullness. Young believers often assume they pretty well have it all; mature believers know that they have just begun to ascend the mountain of the Lord, and they yearn deep inside for more of him. Psalm 84:1-2 resounds with the same yawning desire for the Lord and his presence/dwelling place:

“How lovely is your dwelling place,
O Lord Almighty!
My would yearns, even faints,
for the courts of the Lord;
my heart and my flesh cry out
for the living God.”

Seeking
Beyond recognizing the yearning in our spirits, we must do something about it. We do so by intentionally seeking the Lord. Seeking “puts legs,” as it were, on our longing.

If we seek him with our whole heart, God promises that we will indeed find him. As he promised to his people in Jeremiah 19:13-14: “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you.”

Rather than ignoring our hearts’ longing or numbing it with endless activity and shopping for more “stuff,” let us set aside extra time for waiting on God this advent. That could be through following an advent calendar and reading its daily Scripture passages. It could consist of going on an advent retreat. Or it could take the form of sitting quietly by candlelight in the evening, waiting and listening in silence.

This Advent
Longing is spiritual atmosphere of advent. This season is the time to stir afresh the inner yearning for the Lord. Whatever means it might be, let us not rush through the season of advent on our way to the celebration of Christmas. If we do, Christmas will seem superficial and we will miss most of its spiritual significance.

Rather, let us long for the Lord this advent and allow our hearts to ache for a more profound encounter with him. Let us seek him with our whole heart. If we do so, we will experience his coming afresh and come to know him on a deeper level than ever before.

© 2010 Glenn E. Myers

Soaking in Scripture: Spiritual Formation through Lectio Divina, part 5

2010-11-29T09:58:00.000-08:00

The goal of lectio divina is that we would become saturated with God’s Word. We want our minds, our attitudes and our actions to be steeped in Scripture. As we do so, our lives will be transformed from the inside out.

The Whole Person
While lectio divina is not the only way to spend time in the Bible, it is a great way to integrate Scripture with our lives. If you are acquainted with the categories of the Myers-Briggs Temperament Inventory, you will recognize how lectio divina utilizes four different faculties. Reading/hearing Scripture engages our sensory (S) powers of seeing and hearing. Meditation involves our thinking (T). Prayer opens our feelings (F). Contemplation engages our intuitive side (N).

For each person, one or two of these activities comes easily, and one or two is usually difficult. Some of us are good at thinking but not so comfortable with our intuition. Lectio divina invites us to keep these in balance. We enjoy the rhythms that come naturally, and we work at the ones that come harder. By doing so, we keep our heart and our heads together, engaging both in our walk with the Lord.

Preparation: Silencio
In the daily practice of lectio divina, it is helpful to prepare ourselves to center on God’s Word. Often we need to quiet our minds and turn off the incessant “to do” list. We need to still our souls and intentionally create some inner silence if we want to hear God’s still, small voice speaking to us.

In his book, Invitation to a Journey, Robert Mulholland refers to this preparatory step as silencio (pp. 112-113). As well as quieting our noisy thoughts, silencio entails cultivating an attitude of submission. I am not in control of the passage; rather, I am going to let God’s Word control me. Therefore I approach his Word in humility and submissiveness, open to hear what he wants to say to me and ready to obey, no matter the cost.

The words “silent” and “listen” have the same six letters in them. The reality is that they are two sides of the same coin. On the one side, I become silent. On the other side, I am then ready to listen.

Incarnatio
Finally, after our time in lectio divina, we need to live out—to flesh out—what God has spoken to us. Mulholland aptly calls this step of application Incarnatio. Here we incarnate—put into flesh--what the Lord has directed us through his Word. “The whole focus of spiritual reading is to encounter God in ways that enable God to transform our being and doing in the world,” affirms Mulholland (p. 115).

Fleshing out our Bible reading can mean many different things. It may entail doing something that we have failed to do, or it may mean that we stop an action that is hurtful. Incarnatio might entail a change of attitude or nurturing very different thoughts in our heads. If for years we have felt neglected by God, Incarnatio might entail nurturing thoughts of God’s loving embrace and never-failing presence. Such application is the fruit borne from soaking in God’s Word.

Just Do It
My prayer is that you would be spending time in God’s Word. If you are not really soaking in Scripture—or if your Bible reading seems to be disconnected from your life as a whole—I’d encourage you to try the rhythms of lectio divina so that your life, your thoughts, your attitudes and your actions can be saturated in God’s Word.

I pray that you would soak in God’s Word and allow it to permeate your heart and mind throughout the day. May you treasure your time with the Lord and be renewed by his presence as you are “being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory” (2 Corinthians 3:18).

Further Reading
Here are some good books on lectio divina. There are many more works available on the subject, but these are a good place to begin.

-Casey, Michael. Sacred Reading: The Ancient Art of Lectio Divina. Liguori, MO: Ligouri/Triumph, 2001.
-Davis, Ellen F. and Richard B. Hays, eds. The Art of Reading Scripture. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2003.
-Dyck, Elmer, ed. The Act of Bible Reading: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Biblical Interpretation. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1996.
-Hall, Thelma. Too Deep for Words: Rediscovering Lectio Divina. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1988.
-Mulholland, M. Robert. Shaped by the Word: The Power of Scripture in Spiritual Formation. Revised Edition. Nashville: The Upper Room, 2000.
-Pennington, M. Basil. Lectio Divina: Renewing the Ancient Practice of Praying the Scriptures. New York: Crossroad, 1998.
-Resseguie, James L. Spiritual Landscape: Images of the Spiritual Life in the Gospel of Luke. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 2004.

© 2010 Glenn E. Myers

Soaking in Scripture: Spiritual Formation through Lectio Divina, part 4

2010-11-22T09:07:00.000-08:00

After we read Scripture, meditate on it and respond in prayer, the fourth rhythm of lectio divina is contemplatio. Here we contemplate—focus on—God with us. Rather than rushing directly into the day’s activities, we linger for awhile in his presence. We might remain seated where we are, enjoying God’s company, or we might take a walk with the Lord outdoors.

4. Savoring God’s Presence
Contemplatio is attending to God’s presence. Here we behold the beauty of the Lord. We bask in the brilliance of his light. Like taking in a spectacular view from the top of a mountain, we savor a bit of God’s splendor.

During this fourth rhythm of lectio divina, we are not analyzing anything or necessarily saying anything; rather, we fix our gaze on the Lord. David describes such attentiveness to the Lord in Psalm 27:4,

One thing I have asked from the Lord, that I shall seek:
That I my dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,
To behold the beauty of the Lord
And to meditate in His temple. (NASB)

David wants to “behold” or “gaze upon” (NIV) the Lord. In the same way, we can dedicate the last part of lectio divina to center on God’s presence. The Latin translation of “behold” or “gaze upon” is the verb contemplatio, hence the name of this fourth rhythm.

Resting and Relationship
In contemplatio, we delight in God’s divine presence. Like holding the hand of someone we love, we simply appreciate his nearness. Like two lovers sitting on a swing together, we relish God’s friendship. We experience Jesus’ closeness to us—we absorb his love. As we do so, we come to know how deeply we are cherished.

Contemplatio is not the time for mulling things over in our minds; rather, it is an opportunity to seek God’s face. David continues in Psalm 27:8,

When You said, “Seek My face,” my heart said to You,
“Your face, O Lord, I shall seek.” (NASB)

Our culture is one of activity and analysis. We like to “do” something to make ourselves useful. Likewise, we like to analyze and critique. Contemplatio is about neither doing nor critiquing. Instead, it is about relationship and resting. That makes this final rhythm of lectio divina more difficult to grasp—and much more difficult to do—for most modern Christians.

During this time we are not trying to be productive. Rather, like a relaxed Sunday afternoon with close family and friends, we want to waste time, as it were, with God. Of course, intimate time with God is anything but a “waste.” Yet, that is often how it feels to us because in the back of our minds we want to get on with our “to do” list for the day.

Therefore, learning contemplatio takes commitment and practice for most of us. We need to determine that we will not cut our time with God short in order to move on to the “important things” of the day. Instead we remind ourselves that our close connection with the Lord is by far the most significant event of the day, and we are not going to skimp on it.

Should Christians Practice Contemplation?
Some believers question whether or not contemplation is legitimate for Christians to practice. Having been told that it is “emptying one’s mind”—a form of transcendental meditation—they avoid it.

While they raise a legitimate concern, this objection comes from a misunderstanding of Christian contemplation. Far from emptying our minds, contemplatio engages our hearts and minds—but not in an analytical way.

In fact, we all participate in contemplation at various times: viewing a sunset, enjoying a beautiful painting or piece of music, gazing into the eyes of someone we love. Contemplation engages our faculties in an aesthetic/relational way. In none of these situations have we emptied our minds to enter some state of nirvana. If we were blanking out our minds, we would miss the sunset or painting or person across from us. Instead of analyzing, however, we are soaking it all in at once, as it were.

In the same way, during contemplatio we actively attend to God’s presence. We soak in his love and glory all at once rather than analyzing any particular attribute of the divine. We enjoy his presence. Such adoration and enjoyment is what David calls us to in Psalm 27 as he describes his longing to gaze up/behold/contemplate the Lord.

Adoration
Finally, in this fourth rhythm of lectio divina we take time to adore the Lord for his splendor and majesty. We stand in awe of the Almighty. Like soaking in a magnificent sunset, we still ourselves in silent adoration of our God. We bask in his glory.

Many of us have experienced contemplatio from time to time at the end of Sunday worship. For example, after singing “Holy, Holy, Holy,” the congregation remains for a few moments in silence. This is not a dead silence by any means—to the contrary, it is pregnant with the Lord’s manifest presence. We touch God’s grandeur and awesome holiness.

Such times of silent awe are priceless. Our theological belief in God’s holiness is changed into a live encounter with that holiness. The more we experience God’s righteousness and utter divinity, the more we will be transformed by it. As 2 Corinthians 3:18 states, “we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever increasing glory” (TNIV).

Adoration in God’s presence does not need to be limited to singing our favorite hymns or worship choruses. It can become part of our regular devotion to the Lord as we take time for contemplatio. We must remember, though, that we are not seeking an emotional high or spiritual experience. Rather, we are attending to God’s presence and adoring him—simply because he is worthy of our attention and worship! Experiences, per se, will come and go. Emotions ride up and down. Our focus, however, remains fixed on the Lord. That is what contemplatio is all about.

Practice
Try it this week. After your Scripture reading, meditation and prayer, “hang around” for awhile in God’s presence. You may be able to focus for only a few minutes at first—that is okay. A short time may be all that you are ready to encounter.

Like looking into the eyes of someone you love, this interaction can be deeply intimate and very intense. As a result, you may not always be able to maintain your focus for very long. Your mind might begin to wander. That is normal. Rather than become discouraged or upset with yourself, gently gather your attention back on the Lord. You might do so by reviewing your Scripture passage, or you might refocus by softly speaking the name “Jesus” or “Abba,” centering your thoughts back on the One you love.

Also, you may not be able to practice this fourth rhythm of lectio divina every day. Take time for contemplatio as you are able. The more you experience it and enjoy it, the more you will look forward to those uninterrupted moments alone with God!

© 2010 Glenn E. Myers

Soaking in Scripture: Spiritual Formation through Lectio Divina, part 3

2010-11-15T10:53:00.000-08:00

Meditation on Scripture leads naturally into the third rhythm of lectio divina: “oratio”--prayer.

3. Praying Scripture
As our hearts and minds become saturated with God’s Word we spontaneously begin to pray that passage back to our heavenly Father. “Lord, give me the tenacity of the woman who touched the hem of Jesus’ garment.” “Develop that kind of daring faith in me.” “Show me what obstacles I need to press through in order to get closer to Jesus.” “Please heal the places where I am bleeding inside.”

In prayer our hearts become fully engaged in God’s Word. Often when we simply read a portion of Scripture, we remain rather detached. But as we meditate on it—and particularly as we pray it back to the Lord—our hearts engage in the process.

The prayer portion of lectio divina should remain focused on the verses at hand. This is not the time for going through our prayer list or interceding for others. While petition and intercession are valuable forms of prayer, they can be done at a separate time. Instead, during the time of lectio divina, our prayer centers on what God is speaking to us through his Word and what he wants to do in our lives. We submit ourselves to the Creator of the universe and give him our undivided attention.

Too often when we read the Bible we know the Lord is addressing things in our lives, but we run off before we have taken God’s message to heart. However, when we make the effort to meditate on what God is saying and then take time to pray about it, God’s Word sticks in our minds, sinks into our hearts, and bears fruit in our attitudes and actions.

By praying God’s Word back to him, we pull together 1) our Bible reading, 2) our prayer and 3) our daily existence. So often we keep these three facets of life quite compartmentalized from each other. Lectio divina is a gentle structure that integrates all aspects of our lives. It is holistic.

Various Prayer Responses
When I honestly open myself to God through his Word, I am time and again convicted of sin in my life—ways I have hurt others, bad attitudes I have harbored, hurtful words I have said, good words and actions I have failed to do. I have trespassed against God in “thought, word and deed; by what I have done and what I have left undone.” When Scripture shines light on a hidden sin in my life, I need to respond with a prayer of confession. In addition, I’ll ask the Lord to fully reveal my fallen actions or attitudes. Then I pray that he would pull it out of my life by the roots—no matter how painful that process might be or how long it may take.

Other mornings, Scripture causes me to see God’s blessings in my life as never before. My prayer time then focuses on expressing thanks. It might turn into a time of worship and praise for God’s goodness to me and faithfulness in my life.

At other times God’s Word sheds new light on his love for me and I begin to realize how cherished I am. As well as thanking the Lord for his lovingkindness, my prayer might flow right into a time of basking in God’s goodness and love for me, which is contemplation, the fourth step of lectio divina.

Progression
There is a logical progression through the rhythms of lectio divina. We begin by reading a passage of Scripture several times to get it into our minds. Then we meditate on it, reflecting on it from different angles. This naturally leads into praying the passage back to the Lord.

In day-to-day practice, however, we may not always proceed from one step to the next in such a linear fashion. As we meditate on the passage, we often go back to reread it in order to clarify what it says. After we have prayed in response, we might go back to meditation to see how God’s Word further applies to us. Then we return to prayer, asking the Lord to work that into our lives.

Thus we glide back and forth among the various rhythms of lectio divina. That is good because lectio divina is not a formula or method; rather it is a willingness to be teachable and an attitude of receptivity. It is an integrative approach to soaking in God’s Word and God’s presence. Lectio divina is a mindset of allowing God’s Word to address whatever he desires in our lives and to shape us as he pleases. So long as we are becoming steeped in Scripture, and transformed by it, our time is a success!

In my own practice of soaking in God’s Word, these three steps of reading, meditation and prayer often take place with the aid of pen and journal. As part of my lectio/reading, I’ll write out the verse or verses that I’m focusing on. Like reading aloud, the process of writing slows me down and helps me to see each word in my passage. Writing out the verses is also helpful if I’m going to memorize a portion of Scripture. Next, I record some reflections on the passage. Sometimes this is in paragraph form; other times it is simply bullet points. Such meditation on God’s Word often flows seamlessly into prayer. Finally, I often write out my prayer response to the Lord. Here I commit my situation to him, ask for help, and surrender my will to his plan.

Personal Practice
As you read and meditate on God’s Word this week, try praying the Scripture back to God. Some might realize that they have been doing this all along. Others will find this a bit awkward—or a bit intimidating. As you make prayer a natural part of your time in God’s Word, however, it will become more and more spontaneous for you.

Because lectio divina takes longer than many Christians are used to spending in their daily devotions, you may find that you need to set more time aside for the Lord. On a practical level, you may decide to do lectio divina one or two days each week and on the other days keep the Bible reading plan that you are already on. Find what works for you. The goal is not fitting our lives into a new method; rather, it is soaking in Scripture so that our heads, hearts and hands become saturated with God’s Word.

© 2010 Glenn E. Myers

Soaking in Scripture: Spiritual Formation through Lectio Divina, part 2

2010-11-08T06:24:00.000-08:00

Lectio divina is a fourfold rhythm of soaking in God’s Word that weaves together 1) our Scripture reading,2) our meditation on Scripture, 3) our prayer and 4) our quiet enjoyment of the Lord’s presence.

Over the past number of years as I have taught on lectio divina in various classes, retreats and seminars, many believers have expressed that they already practice various steps of lectio divina in their devotional time. In one sense none of this is new, which is good—it is simply part of our common practice as Christians, spending time in God’s Word and prayer. However, they also tell me that seeing the whole picture of lectio divina is really helpful to them. It gives words to what they have been doing; it encourages them to intentionally soak in God’s Word and his presence; and it helps them to see how the various rhythms fit together.

2. Scripture Meditation
After we have read a passage several times and put down our Bible, our time in God’s Word is not finished. Rather, it is just getting started! The second rhythm of Lectio divina is “meditatio”—meditation on the Scripture we have read. Here we ponder the passage and approach it from many different angles. We reflect on key words in the passage. We picture the events in our mind or even place ourselves in that setting. In short, we steep ourselves in God’s Word and allow it to saturate our minds, our hearts and our lives.

The Hebrew word for meditate relates to animals chewing the cud. After a cow eats grass and swallows it, it goes into the first stomach to begin digestion. Later the grass comes back up for the cow to chew the cud some more before it goes into the second stomach. So goes the digestion process throughout the day until the grass reaches the fourth stomach for final integration into the cow’s system. When we meditate on God’s Word throughout the day we do the same thing. We read it in the morning, chewing on it for awhile. Later that morning it comes to mind and we gnaw on it some more. Again in the afternoon, we reflect upon the passage and review it in our minds. As we continue to meditate on the Scripture throughout the day, it works its way into our whole being.

In meditation we also ponder how the passage applies to our lives. Asking questions such as, “How does this relate to me personally?” and “What do I need to change?” we seek to apply what we are learning. As the Lord commands in Joshua 1:8, “Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it.”

Placing Ourselves in the Passage
A fruitful way of meditating on Scripture is to imagine it in our minds. Take for example the woman who had been bleeding for twelve years who comes to Jesus to be healed in Luke 8:43-48. To bring this account alive, we can picture the multitude of people pressing one another in an attempt to get close to Jesus. We smell the crowd. Then we see the woman who had bled for twelve years attempt to work her way closer to Jesus. Is she slipping in between others? Is she elbowing people to get past them? Those who recognize her pull back in surprise because she is unclean and not supposed to be out in public—they do not want to become contaminated! We hear their condescending comments but see her continue on, ignoring the humiliation. Finally she sees Jesus, and we watch as she rivets her attention on the hem of his robe. With one final thrust of her hand her finger tips touch it. Jesus reels around as power flows out of him and she is healed!

Meditation continues by asking questions that apply the passage to our own lives. How can I press closer to Jesus? What obstacles must I press past in order to reach him? What is it that I need healing for in my life? Do I want that healing as badly as this woman? Am I willing to ignore opposition and words of shame hurled at me in order to reach the Lord?

Another way to flesh out this passage is putting yourself right into the scene. Picture yourself as that woman. Feel her desperation! Feel her uncompromising drive! If you do so, you will learn this passage as you never have before—you will live our Scripture in ways you never thought possible.

A similar way of personalizing a passage of Scripture is by putting our name in. For the past three years, a verse I have meditated on again and again is Isaiah 43:1, “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are Mine!” (NASB). In this passage, God is addressing his covenant people; therefore, as part of God’s people today, it applies directly to me. So when I review this passage, I place my name right in the verse: “I have called you by name, Glenn; you are Mine!” Every time I hear my name there it comes alive to me —even after doing so dozens of times over the past several years.

Listening to the Holy Spirit
We should pay particular attention to portions of Scripture that catch our attention. Robert Mulholland suggests that after you have finished your Bible reading, you should “return to those places where you experienced harmony or dissonance. . . . What is God saying to you in that experience of harmony? . . . Is the Word addressing you at some unrealized point of your life where you are hungering and thirsting for wholeness and life? . . . Is the Word calling to some deep emptiness that longs to be filled?”

Likewise we need to focus on the phrases that disturb us. The Holy Spirit gets our attention by making us feel uncomfortable when we hear his Word. Mulholland continues, “What is God saying to you in the experience of dissonance? Does the dissonance reveal something in your being or doing that is in rebellion against God? . . . Is God addressing some habit, some attitude, some deeply ingrained perspective that is inconsistent with God’s purposes for your wholeness? Is the Word probing some relationship that is not healthy?” [1]

Memorizing
The process of meditation becomes turbocharged when we make the effort to memorize a passage of Scripture where God is really speaking to us. The practice of memorizing invites us to reflect on the verses on a whole new level. It causes us to recognize what specific words are used and see what comes first, what comes after that and how they are connected. We pick up on repetition or cadence in the passage.

In addition, memorizing Scripture enables us to take the passage with us all day long. We review it again and again, reminding ourselves of what the Lord is speaking to us. In this way, God’s thoughts toward us wash over our heart and mind all day long and often into the night as we fall asleep.

One colleague of mine spent one and a half years soaking in John chapter 1. He would read a verse and steep his thoughts in that one verse for his devotional time. Then he would write the verse out on a card and put it in his pocket to review throughout the day. He and his wife memorized John 1 together and would quiz each other. In this way he committed the whole chapter to memory and reviewed it constantly.

Often I memorize passages that stand out to me during my Bible reading. I don’t do this so that I can be good a Bible quizzer; rather I memorize verses where God is speaking to me so that I can take with me throughout the day. Far more than I need food and water each day, I need God’s Word. It encourages me when I’m down and discouraged; it instructs me how I should walk; it corrects me where I am in sin; it renews my mind; and it constantly pours God’s love and acceptance and grace into every part of my life.

When I’ve memorized a meaningful passage, I find myself thinking about again and again during the day. As I lie down to sleep at night, the words come echoing back through my memory. I find myself feeding on the passage continually. As Joshua 1:8 commands, I begin to “meditate on it day and night.”

Putting it into Practice
Try it this week! After you have read a passage several times, stay sitting in a chair and meditate on the passage. Picture it in your mind. Place yourself into the story. Let God’s Word address you personally. Or, you may want to take a walk while you reflect on the passage. Let your mind approach the verses from different angles. Ask questions of the passage. Let it become alive to you.

Then, take one or more verses with you throughout the day. Try memorizing a key verse and review it throughout the week. As you do so, I pray that God’s Word would saturate your thoughts, your attitudes, your actions and the whole of your life. I pray that his Living Word spoken to you would indeed become the very air that you breathe!

[1] M. Robert Mulholland, Shaped by the Word: The Power of Scripture in Spiritual Formation. Revised Edition (Nashville: The Upper Room, 2000) pp. 151-52.

© 2010 Glenn E. Myers

Soaking in Scripture: Spiritual Formation through Lectio Divina, part 1

2010-11-01T08:49:00.000-07:00

Central to Christian spiritual formation is God’s Word. As we give Scripture our undivided attention, we invite the Living Word to saturate our minds and hearts. We allow Scripture to change us from the inside out.

God’s Word is “living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart” (Heb 4:12).

The light of God’s Word exposes the dark places in our lives—secret sins, toxic attitudes, hidden addictions, unattended wounds, and deep shame. The revealing power of God’s Word brings conviction where we are not right with God and others. The remedial power of God’s Word heals the broken places of our hearts and lives. Ultimately God’s Word transforms us.

While various “spiritualities” circulate in today’s pluralistic society, genuine Christian spiritual formation emerges from Scripture. We would know nothing of God except that he has revealed himself. Rather than creating a god of its own choosing, Christian devotion is the response to God’s self-revelation in the Bible. We cling to Scripture because it is God’s heartbeat expressed to us.

Relational
In today’s information revolution, words convey a lot of mere information. We become accustomed to skimming vast amounts of data as we look things up online. Unfortunately, we often use the same approach when we come to Scripture. We look for new information. If we don’t find anything new, we quickly become bored and move on to something else. Therefore, for those who have read the Bible for years, it is easy to adopt the attitude of “been there, done that.” Because we know some of the basic information in the Bible, we assume that we “have it down,” and our minds move elsewhere, seeking new stimulus and novel information.

Instead we need to approach God’s Word relationally. Scripture is personal communication from the all-loving Father to us. It is much more akin to a hand-written letter to us than a Google search on a given topic.

Words are the primary means by which we connect, person-to-person. They express our thoughts to the other person and ultimately communicate our love for them. Although we connect with others by touch, eye-to-eye contact, and other means, words are probably the greatest way that we share our hearts with others. This is especially true in our relationship with the Lord. Because we cannot see him or touch him physically, it is through his Words to us and our words to him that we cultivate our relationship.

God’s Word is his self-expression to us. Love is essentially self-giving and self-revealing. Because God is love, he pours out through his Word. That Word is the Logos—the Son, the second Person of the Trinity—who fully expresses who God is. That Word is also the Scripture, comprised of various messages of love, acceptance, warning, instruction and discipline that express his thoughts toward us.

Lectio Divina
One substantive way of soaking in God’s Word and savoring his presence is known as lectio divina. The standard method of spending time in Scripture for nearly fifteen hundred years of Christianity, lectio divina is Latin for “sacred reading,” “spiritual reading” or “devotional reading.” It is an approach to our “quiet time” that makes space for us to saturate ourselves in God’s Word.

Lectio divina is an approach to God’s Word that opens our minds for him to speak to us and opens our hearts to experience intimate relationship with him. It entails a fourfold rhythm for our devotion: 1) reading Scripture, 2) meditating on that passage, 3) praying it back to the Lord, and then 4) simply enjoying God’s presence.

1. Reading & Hearing Scripture
The first rhythm is reading God’s Word. Here we take a passage and read it through several times. When we repeat the passage more than once we notice small but important items that we missed the first time through.

Reading it out loud is best because it slows us down and highlights words that we would otherwise skip over. Speaking God’s Word aloud allows us to hear God’s message with our ears, as well as see it on the page. It enables us to taste the words with our mouth, as it were, when we pronounce each syllable. As Psalm 19 states, his words are “sweeter than honey” to those who are willing to enjoy them!

Many mornings, I also write out the passage in my journal. The process of writing forces me to notice each word. It gives me space to see how various ideas are connected to each other in the sentence or paragraph or that I’m centering on for the day. The motion of writing engages me in active learning, plus it helps me remember the passage.

In order to give adequate attention to our day’s portion of Scripture, it is often best to choose a shorter section. Lectio divina takes a brief passage of Scripture—usually one to a dozen verses—and focuses our attention on this passage. Instead of trying to keep up with a Bible reading plan, we concentrate on a few verses of God’s Word and soak in them. Rather than racing through a quick chapter of the Bible before rushing out the door, as so many contemporary Christians are wont to do, lectio divina helps us to decelerate and savor Scripture—not trying to inhale it as we would fast food at the drive through.

The aim of the Christian life is not to “get through the Bible” in a given amount to time. Rather, our goal is to allow God’s Word to “get through us” thoroughly and repeatedly so that we are transformed into the image of Christ.

Application
The rhythms of lectio divina welcome us to step off the merry-go-round of our fast-paced lives in order to slow down and enjoy some unhurried moments with the Lord. In my coming blogs I will explore some dynamics of meditating on Scripture, praying the passage, and then relishing God’s profound presence. These rhythms invite us to soak in Scripture and appreciate it for what it is—God’s very Word spoken to us!

If your current method of Bible reading is bearing fruit in your life, stick with it. But, if your current method is not bearing fruit—or if you are not really spending time in God’s Word—I’d encourage you to try something different. Several days this week take a few verses and try reading them aloud several times through. Then just savor God’s thoughts to you throughout the day.

© 2010 Glenn E. Myers

Bernard of Clairvaux: Passionate Faith

2010-10-27T12:58:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite figures in church history is Bernard of Clairvaux. He had such a desire to know Jesus more and passion to enter into deeper intimacy with the Lord. A key figure of the Middle Ages, Bernard helped to redirect the whole focus of the church, centering in on a personal relationship with Christ.

Here is the URL to my recent article on Bernard on CBN.com:

http://www.cbn.com/spirituallife/churchandministry/churchhistory/Myers_Bernard_of_Clairvaux.aspx

Choosing Light: A Morning Prayer

2010-10-21T07:16:00.000-07:00

Photograph by Drew Collins

A number of years ago I began to write out morning prayers for my daily time with the Lord. These prayers emerged from the needs in my life and the things for which I was sporadically praying. Because God was working on these areas in my life, I realized that I ought to be giving them more intentionality. One way to do that was to pray them each morning as I began my day.

While some Christians have been taught to avoid written prayer, Scripture itself is replete with written prayers. The Bible records Moses’ prayers, the judges’ prayers and a host of David’s prayers. We read Jonah’s prayers and those of the prophets and kings of Israel. The New Testament provides several of Jesus’ prayers and quite a few of Paul’s for his fellow believers. Many hymns and worship choruses are simply prayers set to music. Written prayers are a vital part of our inheritance of the faith.

As the dark days of winter approach, one prayer that has been helpful to me is “Choosing Light.” If you struggle with discouragement or darkness of any kind, I pray that the words of this prayer come alive in your life.

Choosing Light

This morning, O Lord, I choose light, for you are a God of light and in you is no darkness. (1 John 1:5; James 1:17; 1 Tim 6:16)

As I meditate on your goodness and love for me, I embrace encouragement and I renounce the darkness of discouragement, for our God is the God of all encouragement. (2 Thess 2:16)

Trusting in you, I will choose hope and anchor my soul in hope, as I refuse the darkness of despair. (Heb 6:19)

Today I will run toward what I tend to avoid, and I reject the darkness of fear, for God has not given us the spirit of fear but of power and love and a sound mind. (2 Tim 1:7)

Fixing my eyes on you, O Lord, I will reach out toward family and friends—encouraging them and letting them know that they are valued and taken care of. I refuse the darkness of division and rejection, and instead I choose light, life and love.

All day long I will embrace challenges at work and home, and I renounce the darkness of defeat, for I have the victory in Jesus and in him I am more than a conqueror. (Rom 8:37)

Amen.

-Glenn E. Myers

Recommended Classic: Introduction to the Devout Life by Francis de Sales

2010-10-09T07:14:00.001-07:00

A breath of fresh air, Francis de Sales’ classic, Introduction to the Devout Life, invites all believers to enter the deeper life in Christ. Not reserved for just a few spiritual people, the life of genuine devotion to Jesus is available to all believers.

Describing the inner life of faith, De Sales welcomes his readers to engage in a deeper walk with the Lord than they have known before. With profound insight, he exposes our self-focus and the spiritual games that we often play instead of allowing Christ to transform our thoughts, attitudes and actions. Appreciated by believers with a sincere desire to grow—evangelicals and Roman Catholics alike—this work is down to earth.

De Sales opens the book with several guided reflections on Scripture. It addresses the pragmatic issues of Christian growth including purity, patience, humility and anxiety, and it deals with the situations of everyday life, how they can be sanctified, and how we can be truly sanctified in the process.

With penetrating insight, de Sales challenges us to practice spiritual disciplines that we need most—not necessarily the ones we like the best. “In practicing any virtue, it is well to choose that which is most according to our duty,” he states, “rather than most according to our taste” (86). Fasting may come easily to some, but what they need to work on are gentleness and patience. Others may prefer solitude, but confessing sin is more valuable. Still others like small group sharing and activity, but their greatest need—and opportunity for most profound growth—comes as they cultivate solitude and their own personal walk with Jesus.

De Sales offers helpful tools for honestly examining our lives, our attitudes, our obedience and our spiritual formation. In the final section of the book he suggests ways to take a yearly retreat to review our growth and gain new focus for the coming year.

Introduction to the Devout Life is a practical manual on how to live the deeper life. It challenges us not to be satisfied with the status quo of our spiritual growth, yet encourages us to be gentle with ourselves and others during that maturation process. It breathes with creativity, wisdom and hope. Although not as well known as some other classics, this book is one of the true gems of Christian spiritual formation!

Francis de Sales. Introduction to the Devout Life. Vintage Spiritual Classics. New York: Random House, 2002. ISBN: 0-375-72562-8.

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

What is Spiritual Theology?

2010-09-13T10:53:00.000-07:00

Perhaps the strongest term for Christian spirituality is “spiritual theology.” Our lived faith can never be separated from our understanding of God as revealed in his Word. This is what separates true Christian Spirituality from the many other “spiritualities” in circulation today. The term “spiritual theology” is valuable because it seeks to keep together the content of our faith as Christians and the outworking of that faith in our lives.

Traditional Use of the Term
Classically, spiritual theology has been the academic study of Christian formation. It has been divided into two fields: ascetic theology and mystical theology.

Ascetic theology focuses upon much of what we term “discipleship” today. It looks at our training (askēsis), especially in terms of practicing various spiritual disciplines, as practical steps in putting to death our old nature of sin so that we can walk in the freedom of the Spirit.

Building upon that foundation of discipleship, mystical theology looks upon our intimate encounter with God. What we call “experiencing God’s presence in prayer” or “feeling God in worship,” is what Christian mysticism is about. While the word “mystic” has developed a negative connotation in its contemporary usage, in its classical usage it simply emphasizes the heart-felt love for God and the experiential relationship with the Lord to which all believers are called.

Although the term spiritual theology has maintained this traditional, narrower definition since the nineteenth century—and though it was often seen as a subset of systematic theology—the term today often carries a broader connotation. In particular, spiritual theology seeks to integrate our faith with our practice, especially emphasizing the Trinitarian foundation of our Christian faith.

God is a Trinity of Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
Christian Spirituality, by definition, needs to be Trinitarian. Orthodox Christianity has always worshiped a God who exists eternally as three Persons. God is love (1 John 4:8), and love is of necessity relational. From all eternity the Father and the Son share intimate communion with each other, as seen especially throughout the Gospel of John. By the Holy Spirit, the Godhead invites us to participate in that love relationship.

Our Trinitarian faith shapes our relationship with the Lord. Spiritual formation is essentially relational. God is personal. That personal God invites us into the same love relationship that the Father and Son share (see John 17). For a valuable discussion of Trinitarian theology and spirituality, see Philip Sheldrake’s Spirituality and Theology: Christian Living and the Doctrine of God.

Spiritual theology keeps our Christian formation from becoming simply one more self-improvement program on the market. It ties our practice with our personal relationship with God. Moreover, it emphasizes that relational character of our lives—spiritual growth is lived out in friendships with others and friendship with God.

© 2010 Glenn E. Myers

Selected Bibliography Spiritual Theology and Theological Anthropology
Allen, Diogenes. Spiritual Theology: The Theology of Yesterday for Spiritual help Today. Cambridge/Boston: Cowley Publications, 1997.
Chan, Simon. Spiritual Theology: A Systematic Study of the Christian Life. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1998.
Grenz, Stanley J. The Social God and the Relational Self. Knoxville: Westminster John Knox, 2001.
Houston, James M. The Prayer: Deepening Your Friendship with God. Colorado Springs, CO: David C. Cook, 2007. ISBN: 07814-44268.
McIntosh, Mark A. Mystical Theology: The Integrity of Spirituality and Theology. Malden, MA: Blackwell, 1998. ISBN: 1-55786-907-3.
Sheldrake, Philip. Spirituality and Theology: Christian Living and the Doctrine of God. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 1998. ISBN: 1-5707-5224-9.
Torrance, Alan J. Persons in Communion: Trinitarian Description and Human Participation. Edinburgh: T & T Clark, 1996.
Zizioulas, John. Being as Communion: Studies in Personhood and the Church. Crestwood, NY: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 1985, 1997. ISBN: 0-8814-10292.
__________. Communion and Otherness: Further Studies in Personhood and the Church. Edited by Paul McPartlan. New York, NY: T&T Clark, 2006. ISBN: 978-0-56703-1488.

Selected Bibliography on the New Monasticism of the Middle Ages

2010-09-09T07:17:00.000-07:00

Here are some great works focused on the New Monasticism of the Middle Ages. A great place to begin would be Southern’s paperback, which includes several good chapters on the developments of this time period. Lawrence would be the best single volume on the topic of monasticism, especially the new monasticism. Leclercq helps contemporary Christians appreciate the wonderful spiritual vitality of the men and women in the monasteries, and Grundmann provides an excellent overview of the spiritual renewal movements of the Late Middle Ages.

New Monasticism & Spiritual Movements in the Middle Ages
Bouyer, Louis. The Cistercian Heritage. Translated by Elizabeth Livingstone. Westminster, MD: The Newman Press, 1958.
Casey, Michael. Athirst for God: Spiritual Desire in Bernard of Clairvaux’s Sermons on the Song of Songs. Kalamazoo, MI: Cistercian Publications, 1988. ISBN: 0-8790-7877-4.
Constable, Giles. The Reformation of the Twelfth Century. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998. ISBN: 0-521-63871-2 or 0-521-30514-4 (1996 hardcover).
Grundmann, Herbert. Religious Movements of the Middle Ages: The Historical Links between Heresy, the Mendicant Orders, and the Women’s Religious Movement in the Twelfth and Thirteenth Century, with the Historical Foundations of German Mysticism. Translated by Steven Rowan. Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 1961/1995. ISBN: 0-268-01649-6.
Lawrence, C. H. Medieval Monasticism: Forms of Religious Life in Western Europe in the Middle Ages. 3rd ed. Harlow, England: Pearson Education, 2001. ISBN: 0-582-40427-4.
Leclercq, Jean. The Love of Learning and the Desire for God: A Study of Monastic Culture. Translated by Catharine Misrahi. New York: Fordham University Press, 1982. ISBN: 0-8232-0407-3.
Lekai, Louis J. The Cistercians: Ideals and Reality. Kent State University Press, 1977. ISBN: 0-87338-201-3.
Leyser, Henrietta. Hermits and the New Monasticism: A Study of Religious Communities in Western Europe 1000-1150. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1984. ISBN: 0-312-36999-9.
McGinn, Bernard. The Flowering of Mysticism: Men and Women in the New Mysticism – 1200-1350. Volume 3 in The Presence of God: A History of Western Christian Mysticism. New York: Crossroad, 1998. ISBN: 0-8245-1743-1.
Pazzelli, Raffaele. St. Francis and the Third Order: The Franciscan and pre-Franciscan Penitential Movement. Chicago: Franciscan Herald Press, 1989. ISBN: 0-8199-0953-X.
Thoman, Bret. The Road to Peace in Assisi: Following Francis and Clare in the Footsteps of the Lesser Christ. N.p.: Lulu, 2010.

A Few Primary Sources
Francis and Clare: The Complete Works. Translated by Regis Armstrong. In The Classics of Western Spirituality. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1982. ISBN: 0-8091-2446-7.
The Love of God and Spiritual Friendship. Translated and edited by James M. Houston. Portland, OR: Multnomah, 1983. ISBN: 0-88070-017-3.

A Few Reference Books
Jones, Cheslyn, Geoffrey Wainwright and Edward Yarnold, eds. The Study of Spirituality. New York, NY: Oxford, 1986. ISBN: 019-504170-4.
Leclercq, Jean, Francois Vandenbroucke and Louis Bouyer. The Spirituality of the Middle Ages. Volume 2 in A History of Christian Spirituality. New York: Seabury Press, 1968. ISBN: 0-8164-0326-0.
Sheldrake, Philip, ed. The New Westminster Dictionary of Christian Spirituality. Second edition. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox, 2003. ISBN: 0-664-23003-2.
Southern, R. W. Western Society and the Church in the Middle Ages. Pelican History of the Church. London: Penguin, 1970.

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Laypeople Join Francis of Assisi and his Revival: Third Order Franciscans

2010-08-30T07:33:00.000-07:00

As multitudes heard the preaching of Francis and the Little Brothers, young and old, men and women, married and single, came to Christ. Single and widowed men were free to join the Friars Minor—the “Little Brothers.” Single and widowed women joined the Poor Clares, although their houses were fewer and less accessible to women across Europe.

But what was to be done with those who were married? They wanted to remain committed husbands and wives, and they wanted to provide for their children.

Middle Way
Several years before he died, Francis made provision for those who were not able to join the Little Brothers (referred to as the First Order) or the Poor Clares (Second Order). This Third Order was for laypeople who wanted to maintain their lives in the world—holding jobs and raising families—while following a spiritual life as much as possible.

Such a middle way between the religious life of monks/nuns/friars and the secular life of ordinary people is part of the genius of the New Monasticism of the Middle Ages. The Beguines of northern Europe provided opportunity for laywomen, initially including married housewives as well as the single maids and widows. In the Alpine regions of southern France and northern Italy, the Waldensian movement sought to include whole families as well as the men who traveled about preaching two-by-two.

Above all the Humiliati in the regions of northern Italy around Milan provided three opportunities for people to join their spiritual renewal movement. For those going into “full-time ministry,” as it were, they could take vows and become an Augustinian canon. Or one could live in a single sisters’ household or a single brothers’ household, remaining laypeople. Or, the third option—especially for married men and women—was to remain as part of the family and live out one’s spiritual growth while living at home and maintaining a job. This option was referred to at the “Third Order” and was confirmed by papal rule in 1201. Undoubtedly Francis and Cardinal Ugolino, who helped provide structure and protection for the Franciscans, knew of these developments taking place several hundred miles to the north. It is likely that Francis fashioned his rule for the Third Order with this model in the back of his mind.

Movement of Laypeople
Thus, Francis’ Third Order was not the first of its kind; however, it soon became the most popular and most influential movement of laypeople seen since the Early Church.

The Third Order commitment was similar to what we have today as “accountability groups” or other small groups for spiritual formation. They dedicated themselves to prayer, some fasting, and meeting together each month.

Just a few of the best known figures who sought spiritual growth by becoming part of the Third Order Franciscans are: the writers Dante and Petrarch, the artist Giotto who painted the scenes of Francis’ life in the Basilica of St. Francis, explorers Christopher Columbus and Vasco da Gama. A number of the popes, as well as King Louis IX (St. Louis) of France and Elizabeth of Hungary and Thomas More of England were significant political figures who led spiritual lives as Franciscan tertieries.

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Clare of Assisi and the Beguines: Solidarity with the Poor and Needy

2010-08-14T06:45:00.000-07:00

Clare’s stay at the Benedictine convent was short—perhaps only several weeks. While she appreciated the committed life of the nuns, she wanted to follow Francis’ pattern rather than that of the Old Monasticism. Traditional monasticism in the Middle Ages maintained the class distinctions of the world. Daughters of nobility lived lives of relative leisure in the Benedictine convents. They came in with sizeable dowries from their families—along with a maid or two to wait on them—which situated them with a lifestyle they were used to. Maintaining their own room, or suite of rooms, they would never need to work a day of their lives; instead, they dedicated their time to corporate worship, study, reading and personal prayer.

It was a comfortable existence, especially pleasing to those who desired to ready and study, learn Scripture and pursue a life of contemplative prayer. However, their maids, coming from the lower classes, would spend their days cooking, cleaning and doing all the manual work for them. Likewise the convent’s fields were cultivated by the sweat of the peasants who worked the land.

No Special Privileges
Clare had problems with this inequity. Perhaps her stay at the convent of San Paolo delle Abbadesse opened her eyes to the reality of the worldly stratification that had edged into the Church because she entered not as nobility but as a commoner. Because she took vows against her parents’ desire, Clare came into the convent with no dowry. Without her inheritance to finance her stay, she was assigned to manual work with the women of lower status.

Like Francis and others in the New Monasticism, Clare envisioned a community of believers who lived life on a level playing field. She wanted to set aside the stratification of the world in order to relate to other women, sister-to-sister, instead of mistress-to-servant.

In addition, Clare disliked the total enclosure from the outside world that the Benedictine convent entailed. She wanted to be involved in hands-on ministry like Francis. Again, the movements of the New Monasticism engaged in active ministry—the evangelical life—rather than simply pulling apart from the world. While Clare deeply desired to maintain a life of prayer, she also hoped to invest her time in ministry to the poor and needy.

Beguines
Thus, after a brief abode in the convent, Clare transferred to a household of Beguines living just outside the town of Assisi. Like the Beguines of northern Europe (see Deep Wells blogs on the Beguines), these laywomen had formed their own small community where they could grow together spiritually.

In the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, “Beguine” was a generic term used for laywomen who formed their own Christian communities. Rather than a large, centralized movement, the Beguines were simply dedicated women who formed independent households all over Europe. They came mostly from the growing middle class in the emerging cities of the Later Middle Ages. Although we do not know specifics about the Beguine community where Clare stayed, most Beguines engaged in active ministry to the poor, sick and especially the lepers.

Visiting the Beguine House
The Beguine house where Clare went in 1212 still stands today just above the town of Assisi. For some years it was inhabited by Beguines and then passed into the hands of the nuns. Since around 1500, however, it has been owned privately. While much of the house has been rebuilt over the centuries, two rooms—pictured above—have the original walls intact.

On our pilgrimage to Assisi in April, we had the phenomenal opportunity of visiting the very house where Clare stayed. Bret Thoman, the leader of our pilgrimage, lived with his wife and family for some time in Assisi and discovered many out-of-the-way places like this. (See link to StFrancisPilgrimages.com.) During our visit he took our group to the house, and the family who currently own the estate graciously allowed us to tour the parts of the manor house that were original to Clare’s day.

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Recommended Classic: Sacrament of the Present Moment by Jean-Pierre de Caussade

2010-08-10T07:04:00.000-07:00

God is hidden in the mundane and painful of daily life, as well as the Holy Spirit’s leading in the present moment. Such is the theme of Jean-Pierre de Caussade in his classic, Sacrament of the Present Moment. The author invites us to “recognize God in the most trivial, the most grievous and the most mortifying things that happen” and to embrace “everything equally with delight and rejoicing, and welcome with open arms what others dread and avoid” (63).

De Caussade encourages us not to seek God in phenomenal spiritual experiences or acclaimed Christian ministry because the Almighty is found in the most ordinary events of our lives, “in the peace of solitude, in prayer, in submission, is suffering, in succor given to another, and in flight from idle talk and worldly affairs” (19). Spiritual formation is not about the spectacular or the heroic, rather “God reveals himself to the humble in small things” (3).

Because the Lord works in our lives through the challenges of everyday life—of the present moment, no matter what it looks like—spiritual maturity is available to all believers. In order to grow, we “have only to carry out faithfully the simple duties of a Christian and of [our] condition, humbly to accept the suffering involved and to submit without question to the demands of Providence in everything that is to be done and suffered” (4).

“Sanctification consists of enduring moment by moment all the trials and tribulations it brings, as though they were clouds behind which God lay concealed,” writes de Caussade. “The only condition necessary for this state of self-surrender is the present moment in which the soul, light as a feather, fluid as water, innocent as a child, responds to every movement of grace like a floating balloon” (21-22).

This masterpiece by de Caussade is actually a collection of his sermon notes that were later compiled and published after his death in 1751. It comes into English with a variety of titles, including The Abandonment to Divine Providence and The Joy of Full Surrender. It is the same book—although rendered somewhat differently. I love the translation cited here by Kitty Muggeridge.

Works Cited
Sacrament of the Present Moment, translated by Kitty Muggeridge (New York: HarperCollins, 1982), ISBN: 978-0-06-061811-7.

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Clare of Assisi: Radical Pursuit of Christ

2010-08-06T09:08:00.000-07:00

The year was 1212 and the young woman Clare was eighteen years old. In Italian her name was Chiara—“light”—and from childhood she had sought the true light of following Christ. Coming from a noble family situated atop the hill of Assisi, Clare had been promised in marriage to the son of nobility—a financially advantageous arrangements for both parties.

Clare, however, did not want to marry. Instead she wanted to dedicate her life to Christ and serve him with every moment of her day. In particular, she wanted to follow Francis’ model of tending the needy and living in community where social distinctions were discarded. Francis’ example of the Evangelical Life had been noticed by people from all strata of society. The poor and lepers received aid—and genuine love—from Francis and the other Little Brothers. Wealthy merchants were challenged to use their growing income to help those in need instead of simply satisfying their own comforts. Nobility likewise saw a model of humility and the willingness to lay down one’s station in life. Like Bernard of Quintavalle, other well-to-do nobles and merchants soon began to join Francis’ little movement.

Because Clare was from the upper class, she would not have had any regular interaction with Francis from the merchant stratus of the town, and she would not have been able to venture down to the marshlands where he and the brothers lived. However, all of Assisi had heard of his work among the lepers. Moreover, Clare had listened to the small, brown-robed friar preach upon a number of occasions as the cathedral of San Rufino.

Clare wanted to live the same kind of lifestyle—and she had a plan. On Palm Sunday of 1212 she and her maid snuck out of her parents’ wealthy home and stole their way down the hill below Assisi to the small chapel of the Portiuncula. There Francis shaved her head as a sign of her commitment to the life of a nun. (See above photo of the mural portraying Francis consecrating Clare.)

Several brothers then whisked the two women away to the Benedictine convent of San Paolo delle Abbadesse. There they would be safe from any family members who might want to retrieve the young noblewoman and force her into marriage.

Such hostile retrieval of women from becoming nuns was not uncommon in the Middle Ages. Especially if an advantageous marriage was already lined up for them, noble families often kept their daughters from pursuing a spiritual life. However, Clare was beyond their grasp at the convent of San Paolo because of the papal protection that it provided. She would spend the next several weeks there in safety.

Cost—and Reward—of Following Christ
Clare understood the cost of following Christ. She was willing to make the radical commitment of placing him before all human relationships. Such a dedication of one’s life is precisely what our Lord said it would take to follow him:

“I tell you the truth,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—and with them, persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life” (Mark 10:30, NIV).

As Clare left behind her most cherished treasures, she gave herself fully to Christ. In time, she also received the persecution spoken about in this passage. However, she also received the many blessings that our Lord promised—a new home, many sisters and a wonderful, abundant life in Jesus!

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

What is the Role of Spiritual Disciplines in Spiritual Formation?

2010-07-31T10:12:00.000-07:00

Spiritual growth is intentional. We have an active role to play in our progress in the faith—that is why much of the New Testament is addressed to believers. 2 Peter 1:5-7 calls us to make every effort in our growth as Christians, adding to our faith “goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love.”

Our responsibility in spiritual formation includes our rhythms of prayer, Scripture, solitude, listening, fasting, service, worship, evangelism and other actions that align our head, hearts and hands with God’s will. Although these are “disciplines”—things we do in a consistent, disciplined fashion as disciples of Christ—many prefer the term “rhythm.” These activities are like breathing in and out—the regular rhythm of life for a believer.

Spiritual disciplines never earn salvation (Ephesians 2:5-11). Nevertheless, we are called to train ourselves in godliness (1 Timothy 4:7). That word “train” is the Greek term askēsis, from which we derive the English words “ascetic” and “asceticism.” Ascetic practices, then, are the spiritual training exercises—the spiritual disciplines—that help us grow.

Rather than earning us anything, these activities are ways that we make time and place to cultivate our relationship with the Lord. As well as simply enjoying God’s presence during our time set apart for him, we allow him to work in our lives. We open our minds, our hearts and our wills to receive what the Lord has for us—whether to encourage us, direct us, confront us or conform us in ways of which we are not even aware.

As we spend time in Scripture—reading, studying, memorizing, meditating, praying a passage back to God, or doing a combination of the above via Lectio Divina—we are listening for God’s Word to address our lives. Simply keeping up with a reading program, and even memorizing Scripture, is not sufficient, as the Pharisees so clearly demonstrated. Mentally they knew the Bible inside and out, but they failed to allow God’s Word to impact their lives. We need to soak in Scripture and allow it to renew our minds (Rom 12:1-2) and refocus our hearts. Continually we ask the questions: What do I need to learn from this? How must I change? What does this passage say concerning my life? How do I see God’s love for me? Then, we must be ready to follow through on what it says to us. Scripture must be followed by action, as Jesus said, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it” (Luke 11:28).

Foundational to spiritual growth is solitude with the Lord. Personal relationship of any depth requires one-on-one communication where we are free to share from our hearts. Prayer is our personal time with God. Far from being an item to mark off on some checklist, it is intimate time with the One we love more than anyone else. It is something we look forward to—that “sweet hour of prayer” that draws us from a “world of care”! Uninterrupted solitude, then, gives us the space necessary to pray. As Henri Nouwen observes, “Without solitude it is virtually impossible to live a spiritual life. Solitude begins with a time and place for God, and him alone. If we really believe not only that God exists but also that he is actively present in our lives—healing, teaching, and guiding—we need to set aside a time and space to give him our undivided attention” (Making All Things New, p. 69).

While the exercise of spiritual disciplines is by no means the whole of the Christian life, it is a valuable dynamic of discipleship and lays a foundation for further growth in Christ. On page 158 of his book, The Spirit of the Disciplines, Dallas Willard groups spiritual exercises under two categories: disciplines of abstinence and disciplines of engagement. The former group includes what we refrain from doing; the latter refers to what we take initiative to do.

Disciplines of Abstinence
Solitude, Silence, Fasting, Frugality, Chastity, Secrecy, Sacrifice

Disciplines of Engagement
Study, Worship, Celebration, Service, Prayer, Fellowship, Confession, Submission

When these practices become the rhythm of our lives, we place ourselves in a position where we are open and receptive to the transforming work of the Holy Spirit. It is God’s Spirit who changes us, put these practices help us to be attentive to all that he has for our lives.

© 2010 Glenn E. Myers

Selected Bibliography on Spiritual Disciplines
Barton, Ruth Haley. Invitation to Solitude and Silence: Experiencing God’s Transforming Presence. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2004. ISBN: 0-8308-2386-7.
__________. Sacred Rhythms: Arranging Our Lives for Spiritual Transformation. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2006. ISBN: 0-8308-3333-1.
Calhoun, Adele Ahlberg. Spiritual Disciplines Handbook: Practices that Transform Us. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2005. ISBN: 978-0-8308-3330-6.
Foster, Richard J. Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth. Rev. Ed. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1988. ISBN: 9780060628390.
Harris, Mark. Companions for your Spiritual Journey: Discovering the Disciplines of the Saints. Vancouver: Regent College Publications, 2005.
Jones, Tony. The Sacred Way: Spiritual Practices for Everyday Life. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2005. ISBN: 978-0-310-25810-0
Ortberg, John. The Life You’ve Always Wanted: Spiritual Disciplines for Ordinary People. Expanded Edition. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2002. ISBN: 0-310-25074-9.
Nouwen, Henri J. M. Making All Things New: An Invitation to the Spiritual Life. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1981. ISBN: 0-06-066326-X.
Whitney, Donald S. Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life. Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress, 1991. ISBN: 1-57683-027-6.
Willard, Dallas. The Spirit of the Disciplines: Understanding How God Changes Lives. New York: HarperCollins, 1988.

How does Christian Spirituality fit with Evangelicalism?

2010-07-27T10:15:00.000-07:00

While the concepts of the Christian growth and maturity have always been a part of biblical faith, the terminology of spiritual formation is rather new to evangelicalism. The year 1978 served as a watershed as Richard Foster published his first edition of Celebration of Discipline and James Houston assumed the Chair of Spiritual Theology at Regent College.

Although a few Evangelical publishers have been reluctant to broach the subject, most have recognized that spiritual formation is part of the mainstream of evangelical faith. A quick look at the bibliography below shows the tip of the iceberg of evangelical works on spiritual formation and the history of Christian spirituality.

As mentioned previously, there is good reason to be cautious about anything promoting “spirituality” in our day, since so much of what is written comes from a perspective of New Age or Eastern Religion. An alarming number of Protestant and Catholic writings—as well as retreat centers—have uncritically adopted New Age thought. Nevertheless, we do not need to abandon the concept of Christian growth simply because various writers and speakers have distorted it.

While soundly biblical and evangelical, the study of Christian spirituality or spiritual formation includes a much broader Christian discussion. Such a broader approach is absolutely necessary to save evangelical thought from its limited perspective. Because of this broader appreciation of the Christian faith, many fundamentalists will not subscribe to the developments in Christian spiritual formation. Nevertheless, the vast majority of evangelicalism recognizes its value.

Throughout the centuries, great figures have clearly articulated Jesus’ atonement and salvation by grace, especially Augustine of Hippo, Bernard of Clairvaux, Anselm of Canterbury, and lesser known figures such as the German preacher Johannes Tauler. Although many Protestants today do not realize it, Martin Luther and John Calvin deeply appreciated Augustine, building most of their theology on the foundation he laid. They also respected Bernard, with his unflagging commitment to Scripture, and Anselm, with his emphasis on Christ’s substitutionary atonement on the cross. Luther stated that next to the Bible itself, the Johannes Tauler had the greatest impact on his theology. Therefore, spiritual formation today seeks to bring the writings of such key figures to a contemporary audience.

Thus the best thinking on spiritual formation includes Protestant, Roman Catholic and Orthodox perspectives—all Christians who recognize that faith must be lived out personally in a vital relationship with Christ and who receive salvation through Christ’s death and literal resurrection. Such an orthodox understanding of the faith has always been part of the historic Church and is perhaps summarized most clearly by the Apostles’ Creed and Nicene Creed.

© 2010 Glenn E. Myers

Selected Bibliography on Christian Spirituality and Evangelicalism
Bloesch, Donald G. Spirituality Old and New: Recovering Authentic Spiritual Life. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2007. ISBN: 978-0-8308-2838-8.
Chan, Simon. Spiritual Theology: A Systematic Study of the Christian Life. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1998.
Foster, Richard J. Streams of Living Water: Celebrating the Great Traditions of Christian Faith. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1998. ISBN: 0-06-062822-7.
Foster, Richard and Gayle Beebe. Longing for God: Seven Paths of Christian Devotion. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2005. ISBN: 978-0-8308-3514-0.
George, Timothy and Alister McGrath. For All the Saints: Evangelical Theology and Christian Spirituality. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox, 2003. ISBN: 06642-26655.
Gordon, James M. Evangelical Spirituality: From the Wesleys to John Stott. London: SPCK, 1991. ISBN: 0-2810-4542-9.
Richards, Lawrence O. A Practical Theology of Spirituality. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1987. ISBN: 0-310-39140-7.
McGrath, Alister. Beyond the Quiet Time: Practical Evangelical Spirituality. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 1995. ISBN: 0-8010-5708-6.
__________. Spirituality in an Age of Change: Rediscovering the Spirit of the Reformers. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1994. ISBN: 0-3104-2921-8.
Schmidt, Richard H. God Seekers: Twenty Centuries of Christian Spiritualities. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2008. ISBN: 978-0-8028-2840-8.
Scorgie, Glen, et al, eds. Dictionary of Christian Spirituality. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2010.
Sittser, Gerald. Water from a Deep Well: Christian Spirituality from Early Martyrs to Modern Missionaries. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2007.

Recommended Classic: Interior Castle by Teresa of Avila

2010-07-23T16:19:00.000-07:00

Many people today are discovering the goldmine of spiritual insight found in the Interior Castle by Teresa of Avila. Teresa describes seven stages we go through in our pursuit of intimacy with Christ. Packed with brilliant insights, Teresa’s portrayal of the Christian pilgrimage is one of the best works ever written on spiritual progress.

Describing the stages of spiritual formation, Teresa uses the imagery of a Castle with seven levels to it—much like seven concentric circles. We enter the Christian life on the outer circle and progress toward the innermost circle where Christ shines brightly. He resides in the innermost chamber of the believer’s heart. The process toward an ever-closer relationship with our Lord is long, though. Teresa is honest in her discussion of the various fleshy temptations (she calls them lizards!) that keep sneaking into the rooms of our life. If we persevere, however, we will enjoy an ever-deeper intimacy with him.

Teresa was a Carmelite nun in 16th century Spain. Through the heartaches of life—and ministry—she put her roots deep down into Christ. She became the head of a convent and eventually led a whole reform movement in the Carmelite Order. Teresa was radically in love with Jesus. A blessing to Christians ever since, Teresa recorded the principles of spiritual growth that she learned along the way. In a charming style, she presents those principles in her various writings, especially the Interior Castle.

Appreciated especially by believers open to spiritual gifts, the Interior Castle describes various spiritual gifts and spiritual experiences of breath-taking ecstasy that many encounter along the way. Yet, Teresa is so down to earth. She always points out our subtle self-focus and challenges us to truly understand ourselves (self-knowledge) and our propensity to pride and selfishness. Yet she provides unflagging hope—we can achieve the relationship with Christ we were meant to have.

Down-to-earth and practical—as well as soaring with spiritual heights and intimacy—Teresa’s classic is a must-read for anyone studying the process of Christian formation.

How do Discipleship and Spiritual Formation Relate?

2010-07-19T12:38:00.000-07:00

The field of spiritual formation and what we call discipleship overlap substantially. Both pursue spiritual growth in Christ, and both emphasize the dynamic process of that growth. They explore what it means to follow Christ and live as his disciple. In a sense, the terms are synonymous—both can refer to the whole of our Christian life. However, as they are commonly used today they have somewhat different connotations. There are recognizable differences in how each approach the arena of Christian growth.

Discipleship
1. Foundational
Discipleship focuses on laying a foundation in the Christian life. It introduces new believers to the basic truths of Scripture—the authority of the Word, assurance of salvation, content of the Gospel, and the call to a sanctified life. Discipleship aims at establishing the basic rhythms of the Christian walk, especially a daily devotional time that cultivates Bible reading and prayer. Likewise, it seeks to institute the rhythms of corporate faith, especially worship, small group fellowship and commitment to a local body of Christ. Discipleship begins the process of character development and holy living, in particular confronting more blatant sins of the flesh. It also challenges believers to direct their attention toward others through service, evangelism, outreach and ministry of various kinds.

Because these foundational elements are necessary to all new believers, discipleship lends itself to being packaged as a program. Whether through a class, small group, or one-on-one, discipleship often maintains a basic curriculum upon which to build one’s life of faith.

2. Focused on Activity
Second, the term discipleship focuses on activity. It calls believers to action both in terms of their own spiritual practices and their service to others. By doing so, discipleship views spiritual growth primarily as a result—sometimes even a predictable, measurable outcome—of the various activities it purports. Its orientation toward activity emphasizes the need for discipline and the training of our mind, body, will and emotions.

3. Narrow in Scope
Finally, discipleship tends to be fairly narrow in its scope. It usually centers about the basics of private prayer and Scripture reading and memorization. Even within Bible study and prayer, modern discipleship emphasizes the cognitive and rational dynamics of these disciplines.

Spiritual Formation
1. Whole of the Christian Life
Spiritual formation includes the basic elements of faith but goes on to incorporate the whole of the Christian life. Instead of focusing primarily on the foundation—as does discipleship—spiritual formation provides a map for growth the whole of one’s life.

Since Origen in the third century after Christ, spiritual growth has often been seen in terms of three overarching periods or eras of the believer. These have been given different names over the ages, but very much refer to the same basic stages of growth:

1. Purgation Beginner Discipleship
2. Illumination Progressing Service/Ministry
3. Union Mature Christ-Life

Just as 1 John 2:12-14 refers to three stages in life—children, youth, fathers/mothers—to describe various believers, this threefold schema recognizes that there is going to be growth in Christ. If there is growth, then newcomers are beginners, by definition. Classically this stage was called purgation because one main focus of this season in life is being set free and cleansed—purged—of worldly ways and worldly thinking. Our contemporary concept of discipleship corresponds almost exactly with this traditional first season of Christian growth.

Unfortunately, many Christians in our day never move beyond the basics of discipleship. In fact, far too many never see their foundation laid well at all. However, there are those who press on in the Lord and move into a second season of life. These are the progressing, ones who are experiencing a victorious Christian life. They have general triumph over besetting sins in their lives. They have learned to persevere with Jesus day in and day out. They maintain a vital walk with him and make time to cultivate that personal relationship. They know God’s Word and share it with others. In fact, it is because the Scripture is bright and clear for believers in this stage that it was originally referred to as illumination.

Finally, we have those who are mature in the Lord. They share an intimate relationship with God that has been tested through the ups and downs of life. A. B. Simpson referred to this as the Christ Life. No longer seeking the blessings or even the power of God, these believers are simply in love with him. Christ has become their all-in-all. Repeatedly the New Testament calls us to move on to maturity.

These are three general eras of spiritual formation. Although this paradigm might not be perfect, it gives a nice overview of progress in the Christian life. That overview offers not only a map for our personal growth, it provides a challenge for many today who simply want to pray a little prayer and then hold on ‘til heaven. Such a concept of stagnant faith is found nowhere in the New Testament. Rather, we are called continually to press on, running the race “to get a crown that will last forever” (1 Cor 9:25) and growing up until we all “become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:13).

2. Beyond Activity
Spiritual formation moves beyond the activism of standard discipleship. While it recognizes the need for our engagement in the process of growth, it realizes that the deepest transformation that takes place in our lives comes about through hardship, trials and suffering. James 1:2-4 states, “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials; knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, that you may be [perfect/mature], lacking in nothing” (NASB). Like our passive role in receiving radiation treatment, we embrace circumstances that God allows in order that he can burn out the cancer of self-focus that encircles the vital organs of our lives. Much maturity comes only through testing, trials and suffering.

Likewise, as we mature much more of our prayer becomes silence and surrender to the Lord. While we still bring big and little requests to our Heavenly Father, we learn to listen to him more and simply to rest in his presence. We cultivate stillness.

3. Broader in its Approach
Finally, spiritual formation has a broader approach than discipleship. It incorporates a much wider set of spiritual rhythms. In addition to Bible reading and memorization, it embraces the practice of lectio divina. It highlights the role of spiritual retreats and pilgrimages, as well as fasting and silence and solitude.

Spiritual formation is also broader is scope in the way that it appreciates a wider view of Christians found in other denominations and believers from the past 2000 years of the church. Discipleship is a popular evangelical term, and it often assumes one must become an evangelical in order to be saved. Spiritual formation recognizes believers in Roman Catholic settings, Orthodox churches and genuine Christians over the centuries. It has a great appreciation for the spiritual writings from the past 20 centuries of church history. One classic that beautifully describes the process of spiritual maturity is Teresa of Avila’s Interior Castle. Teresa describes the stages—and the struggles—of spiritual growth with insights I have never seen by other authors on the Christian life, past or present. Appreciating classics such as Teresa’s, the field of spiritual formation offers wonderful new horizons of the faith to contemporary Christians.

© 2010 Glenn E. Myers

Selected Bibliography
Andrews, Alan, ed. The Kingdom Life: A Practical Theology of Discipleship and Spiritual Formation. Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress, 2010. ISBN: 978-16000-6280-3.
Cloud, Henry and John Townsend. How People Grow: What the Bible Reveals about Personal Growth. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2001. 0-3102-2153-6.
Howard, Evan B. The Brazos Introduction to Christian Spirituality. Grand Rapids, MI: Brazos, 2008. ISBN: 978-15874-30381.
Mulholland, M. Robert. Invitation to a Journey: A Road Map for Spiritual Formation. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1993. ISBN: 0-8308-1386-1.
Smith, Gordon T. Beginning Well: Christian Conversion and Authentic Transformation. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2001.
Teresa of Avila. Interior Castle. Translated by E. Allison Peers. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1961. ISBN: 0-385-03643-4.

Recommended Book: A Praying Life by Paul E. Miller

2010-07-16T07:37:00.000-07:00

For those looking for a great book on prayer and spiritual growth, I highly recommend Paul Miller’s book, A Praying Life (NavPress, 2009). Engaging the reader from the opening pages, A Praying Life presents prayer as an ongoing conversation with a loving God. Stepping back from the “discipline” approach to prayer, Miller show how much of our common practices of prayer are fake—therefore they kill prayer.

Instead Miller demonstrates how we need to weave prayer into our daily lives, relationships and struggles, as he masterfully weaves his own story with the lessons of prayer. In 1981 he and his wife, Jill, had a special needs child, which has shaped their whole life since. At one point the heartache and exhaustion they experienced virtually closed down their practice of prayer—only to have that prayer life resurrected in a vibrant and holistic way.

If you have ever struggled with prayer, this book is for you! Miller presents a fresh approach to our walk with God and provides lots of stories as well as practical suggestions. Each chapter is brief, interesting and oh so applicable! A Praying Life is one of the most refreshing reads I have had in a long time!

What is the Goal of Spiritual Formation?

2010-07-12T08:59:00.000-07:00

The goal of spiritual formation is Christian growth. That growth entails development of character, inner transformation and deepening friendship with God and others.

First, spiritual formation means growth in character. The objective in the Christian’s life is not simply to “get saved” but to be changed into Christ’s character, conformed to Christ’s very image (Rom 8:29). In his Invitation to a Journey, Robert Mulholland provides a concise definition of spiritual formation as “(1) a process (2) of being conformed (3) to the image of Christ (4) for the sake of others” (p. 15). As Paul stated in Galatians 4:19, he was in labor until “Christ is formed” in us.

Second, spiritual formation is inner transformation—it is not simply conforming to a set of expected rules of conduct. Some Christian communities fall into this trap, assuming that outward compliant insures inner growth. Rather, formation means that we are in the process of a substantive metamorphosis. Sometimes referred to as the deeper Christian life, we are to be changed from the inside out by God’s work in our lives. We are to be transformed by the continual renewal of our minds (Rom 12:2). We become like what we worship. Thus as we adore the Lord and contemplate his glorious splendor, we are transformed from “glory to glory” (2 Cor 3:18).

Such inner transformation necessitates that we honestly face the manifestations of our old “man”—the old self or old nature—often referred to as the “false self.” We are called to put off the old nature that we all have because of the fall —indeed, put to death that old self—and instead put on our new nature in Christ (see especially Eph 4: 17-32 and Col 3:1-17). Mulholland’s Deeper Journey and various other works listed below provide practical guides to recognizing our old nature and walking in genuine transformation.

Third, spiritual formation leads into ever-deepening intimacy with God. Christianity is not simply moral living—it is by necessity a personal relationship. From the opening chapters of Genesis through the final pages of the New Testament, God seeks a vibrant friendship with us as human persons. Even in his old age, the Apostle Paul prayed, “I want to know Christ,” desiring an ever deeper relationship with the Lord (Phil 3:10). In devotional classics, perhaps nowhere is that journey toward intimacy more beautifully described than in Teresa of Avila’s Interior Castle.

Christian Tradition
Although the terminology of “spiritual formation” may be new in some Christian circles, the concept is clearly stated in the New Testament, using various phrases, such as putting on our new nature, walking in Spirit, bearing the fruit of the Spirit, and growing in sanctification. Such an emphasis upon Christian growth has followed through the centuries of the church, sometimes with different nomenclature:
• Moral theology
• Practical theology
• Christian education
• Christian living.
The discipline of spiritual formation overlaps substantial with each of these fields. While each of these terms has a slightly different emphasis and approaches Christian formation from a unique angle, all share the same goal of transformation and growth in Christ.

© 2010 Glenn E. Myers

Selected Bibliography
Barton, Ruth Haley. Invitation to Solitude and Silence: Experiencing God’s Transforming Presence. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2004. ISBN: 0-8308-2386-7.
Bridges, Jerry. The Pursuit of Holiness. Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress, 2005. ISBN: 1-57683-463-8.
Crabb, Larry. Inside Out. Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress, 1990. ISBN: 08910-91963.
Hougen, Judith. Transformed into Fire: An Invitation to Life in the True Self. Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel, 2002. ISBN: 0-8254-2890-4.
Houston, James M. In Pursuit of Happiness: Finding Genuine Fulfillment in Life. Vancouver: Regent College Publishing, 1996.
Manning, Brennan. Abba’s Child: The Cry of the Heart for Intimate Belonging. Colorado Springs: NavPress, 1994.
May, Gerald G. Addiction and Grace. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1988. ISBN: 0-06-065537-2.
Mulholland, M. Robert. The Deeper Journey: The Spirituality of Discovering Your True Self. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2006. ISBN: 0-8308-3277-7.
__________. Invitation to a Journey: A Road Map for Spiritual Formation. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1993. ISBN: 0-8308-1386-1.
Smith, Gordon T. Beginning Well: Christian Conversion and Authentic Transformation. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2001.
Teresa of Avila. Interior Castle. Translated by E. Allison Peers. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1961. ISBN: 0-385-03643-4.
Thrall, Bill, Bruce McNicol and John Lynch. TrueFaced: Trust God and Others with Who you Really Are. Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress, 2003. ISBN: 1-57683-446-8.
Thomas, Gary. Sacred Pathways: Discover Your Soul’s Path to God. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1996/2002. ISBN: 0-310-24284-3.
Tozer, A. W. The Pursuit of God. Harrisburg, PA: Christian Publications, 1982. ISBN: 0-87509-366-3.
Willard, Dallas. The Divine Conspiracy: Rediscovering our Hidden Life in God. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1998.
__________. Renovation of the Heart: Putting on the Character of Christ. Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress, 2002.

What is Christian Spirituality? What is Spiritual Formation?

2010-07-05T10:15:00.000-07:00

Christian spirituality encompasses the entirety of the Christian life. A holistic approach to faith, it includes our beliefs and practices, as well as the way we live our everyday lives. As believers, our friendships, our acts of kindness, and our inner thoughts and attitudes reflect our spiritual well-being—and contribute to our formation—as much as our spiritual disciplines, corporate worship and active evangelism. Christian spirituality is “the character of our actual, lived relationship with God through the Spirit of Christ, as describing our practice of relationship with Christ” (Howard, 16).

A certain caution should be used, however, when employing the term “spirituality,” since it finds wide usage today, often carrying overtones of New Age thought, Eastern religion and/or nature worship. When assessing spirituality, we must see if what is being purported is genuine Christianity, rooted in Scripture and centered on Christ as fully God and fully man.

Christian Spiritual Formation
Often used synonymously with Christian spirituality, the term “spiritual formation” is valuable because it highlights the process of growth in the life of a believer. The life of faith was never meant to be static—conversion is the starting line, not the place to set up camp for the remainder of our time on earth! We indeed are on a pilgrimage.

John Bunyan’s famous work, Pilgrim’s Progress, is a classic devotional work on the process of spiritual growth. In his Confessions, Augustine of Hippo masterfully describes the inner journey he took from unbelief to faith in Christ, and then his growth in faith toward intimacy with God. The Spiritual Espousals by John Ruysbroeck (Ruusbroec) is a lesser known classic that systematically and insightfully depicts states of Christian growth. Perhaps the best recent discussion of the process of formation is M. Robert Mulholland, Invitation to a Journey.

God Initiates: We respond
God designed us to mature spiritually. We cannot cause our own growth or transform ourselves—no matter how hard we try—any more than we can save ourselves. Rather, the Lord is the author and perfecter of our faith (Heb 12:2), and the One who began a good work in us will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus (Phil 1: 6).

God works in us “to will and to do his good pleasure,” states Philippians 2:13. Nevertheless, as verse 12 asserts, we have a role to play: we must “work out our salvation with fear and trembling.” While God is the one who forms us, we must respond to the divine initiative. We have the responsibility of acting in obedience to the Lord’s commands.

The very terms “spiritual formation” and “spirituality” imply the role of God’s Spirit in our growth. While prayer and Scripture study, spiritual direction and the practice of various disciplines, may all be part of our journey, it is the Holy Spirit who works in our lives to convict of sin, to transform us and to bear fruit in our lives (Gal 5:22-23). Our role is to “live in accordance with the Spirit” and allow ourselves to be “controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit” (Rom 8:1-17). We must “keep in step with the Spirit”—walking by the Holy Spirit, and being led by God’s Spirit (Gal 5:16-25).

Spiritual formation, then, is the study or the science of our responding to what the Lord is doing in our lives. It looks at the process of spiritual growth and what our role is in that process. That role includes intentional rhythms of prayer, solitude, Scripture, worship and other spiritual disciplines. It involves our response to trials and the unexpected circumstances of life. Our task entails the cultivation of godly friendships and self-sacrificial service to others.

The study of spiritual formation also looks at the various stages of growth along the journey. Because most believers progress through similar steps in their maturation process, it is valuable to explore the dynamics of those common experiences in our pilgrimage. While not trying to fit everyone into the same mold, the discipline of spiritual formation seeks to offer insights, encouragement and direction, especially during dark and dry times of life.

© 2010 Glenn E. Myers

Selected Bibliography on Christian Spirituality and Spiritual Formation
Augustine of Hippo. Confessions. Translated by Henry Chadwick. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. ISBN: 0-19-281774-4.
Boa, Kenneth. Conformed to His Image: Biblical and Practical Approaches to Spiritual Formation. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2003. ISBN: 978-0-310-23848-5.
Bunyan, John. The Pilgrim’s Progress. Grand Rapids, MI: Fleming H. Revell, n.d. ISBN: 0-8007-8609-2. Plus, there are literally hundreds of editions of this classic.
Collins, Kenneth. Exploring Christian Spirituality: An Ecumenical Reader. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2000. ISBN: 0-8010-2233-9.
Dunham, Maxie. Alive in Christ: The Dynamic Process of Spiritual Formation. Nashville: Abingdon, 1982.
Francis de Sales. Introduction to the Devout Life. Translated by John K. Ryan. New York, NY: Doubleday, 1955.
Howard, Evan B. The Brazos Introduction to Christian Spirituality. Grand Rapids, MI: Brazos, 2008. ISBN: 978-15874-30381.
John Ruusbroec: The Spiritual Espousals and Other Works. Translated and edited by James A. Wiseman. In The Classics of Western Spirituality. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1985. ISBN: 0-8091-2729-6.
Lawrenz, Mel. The Dynamics of Spiritual Formation. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2000. ISBN: 0-8010-9097-0.
Lovelace, Richard F. Dynamics of Spiritual Life: An Evangelical Theology of Renewal. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1979.
McGrath, Alister. Christian Spirituality: An Introduction. Oxford: Blackwell, 1999. ISBN: 978-0-6312-1281-2.
__________. The Christian Vision of God. Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Fortress, 2009. ISBN: 978-0-8006-3705-7.
Mulholland, M. Robert. Invitation to a Journey: A Road Map for Spiritual Formation. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1993. ISBN: 0-8308-1386-1.
Packer, James I. Knowing God. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1973. ISBN: 0-87784-770-3.
Scorgie, Glen. A Little Guide to Christian Spirituality: Three Dimensions of Life with God. 2007.
Smith, Gordon T. On the Way: A Guide to Christian Spirituality. Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress, 2001. ISBN: 1-56783-237-6.

Francis of Assisi and World Missions

2010-06-28T06:35:00.000-07:00

Mural of Francis and his first companions

Preaching the Gospel to all of Europe and bringing spiritual revival to Christendom was wonderful; however, for Francis and the brothers it was not enough. They desired to preach Christ’s love and atoning death and resurrection to the whole world.

Francis himself had a burning passion to preach Christ to the Muslims. Although they were the archenemies of Europe—and although Francis probably assumed he would be martyred in his mission—he set about to take the Gospel to the Muslim world. On his first attempt in 1212 he suffered shipwreck and had to return to Italy. Undaunted by this delay, Francis set about a second time in 1214, going through Spain and attempting to cross over to Morocco. Somewhere in Spain, however, he was waylaid by sickness.

Determined to share Christ with the sultan of Egypt, Francis embarked on a third journey in 1219, this time achieving his desired destination. Crossing from the Christian territories in Palestine, Francis was captured by Muslim forces and brought before the sultan. Although the sultan did not convert to Christianity when Francis shared the Gospel with him, he did promise better treatment of Christians taken in combat.

Missions Around the World
Over the following decades Franciscan missionaries began to evangelize the far reaches of the world. Friar William of Rubruck traveled to China and back, making a voyage—and some accompanying maps of the known world—similar to the later work of Marco Polo. Friar John of Montecorvino likewise preached in India and then China, arriving just after the death of Kublai Khan. He became the first bishop in China.

Upon the discovery of the New World, Franciscan missionaries risked their lives to share the Gospel in both of the Americas. While the history of the conquistadors is marked with violence, greed and a quest for power, the Franciscan missionaries who often accompanied them leave behind a very different story. Filled with the same compassion as their founder, Francis, and inviting multitudes into the personal relationship with Christ that Francis knew, the Franciscan missionaries marked the beginning of the modern missions movement that has circled the globe.

Reflection
Although Protestants today look to Martin Luther as the one who articulated their theology of justification, they can look to Francis of Assisi who laid the foundation for the renewal of world evangelization. (In fact, Luther, Calvin and other Reformers never caught on to the need to engage in World Missions. They were so engrossed in reforming Christendom that they neglected preaching the gospel to the non-Christian world. It took several generations until the Moravians and Pietist renewal of Protestantism caught on to the idea of world missions.)

Only in eternity will we have opportunity to know just how many godly Little Brothers—Friars Minor—were sent around the world as missionaries, often laying down their lives for the spread of the Gospel. Only then will we begin to know the tens of thousands who came into Christ’s kingdom as a result of their labors!

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Explosive Ministry: 5000 Join Francis of Assisi

2010-06-21T06:55:00.000-07:00

Francis’ order of Little Brothers exploded with fire! Men from all stations of life began to join the movement. They were sent out to preach the Gospel two-by-two across Italy and soon across Europe.

Just eight years after Francis and his band of 12 men received approval from Innocent III—no less than 5000 friars were part of the movement! Imagine if that happened today—if a young man in his twenties from your hometown were to begin a mission organization that multiplied into 5000 strong on the field within eight years! That is precisely what happened in Assisi.

In May 1217, all 5000 brothers gathered for the first comprehensive gathering of the Franciscan Order, known as the “Chapter of Mats.” Assembling at the little stone chapel of the Portiuncula, the Friars Minor held their first general chapter—general council—sharing the great works God had done, challenging each other spiritually and establishing some organization for the movement and its work across Europe.

They divided the map of Europe into various provinces, Francis in charge of France, and five of his closest colleagues over other areas of Christendom. While Francis was never able to go on the preaching tour of France that he had hoped, his virtual army of preachers canvassed Christendom. Although the Church was long established in Western Europe, the Gospel had not truly reached the rank and file of common people. The Franciscans addressed that lack and brought Jesus’ love to the general population, especially in the growing towns of the thirteenth century.

Ministry Across Europe
Friars became very popular among the multitudes. Because local clergy were often poorly educated and known for sexual immorality, serious Christians chose to listen to the Friars rather than the parish priests. Beguine complexes almost always asked for a Franciscan Brother to be their pastor. As a result, most of the Friars Minor became ordained so that they could perform pastoral duties and provide pastoral care for the people.

The Friars Minor made further contribution to Christianity across Europe by infiltrating the newly formed universities. While all of the institutions of higher learning were Christian in their orientation, rationalistic thought had infiltrated their teaching of theology. Combining brilliant learning with vibrant faith, Franciscan scholars helped to counteract the negative sides of medieval scholasticism. In 1253 Bonaventure took the Franciscan chair of theology at the University of Paris and later assumed the position of minister general of the Order. Bonaventure’s personal devotion to Jesus shines through all his writing, and his work Journey of the Soul into God is a masterpiece on the progress of spiritual formation.

There is no way to know the untold numbers who came to Christ because of the ministry of these humble Little Brothers and their determination to share Jesus’ message and his practical love with others.

Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels
Because of its importance, the Portiuncula still stands today. However, to preserve it, the large basilica of St. Mary of the Angels (above photo) was built around it shortly after Francis’ death. Now the simple chapel stands in the center of a giant church building, making visitors use their imagination to picture what it was like 800 years ago in the midst of grassy pastures. Photos are prohibited in the church, so unfortunately I have no picture to provide here.

The Portiuncula and St. Mary of the Angels still serve as the world center for the OFM—Order of Friars Minor. You might find it interesting that because of its importance to the Franciscan movement, the friars who evangelized in North America named one of the cities in California after this church: “the Angels”—Los Angeles.

This site stands as a memorial to several significant things. First, the humble stone chapel reminds us of St. Francis’ simplicity and love of being out in the fields. Second, it calls to mind the revival spawned by the phenomenal growth of the early Franciscan Movement, which was organized and mobilized here in 1217 at the Chapter of Mats. Third, it stands as the center of the ongoing ministry that Francis’ legacy has around the world today.

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Solitude and Prayer: The Power behind Francis of Assisi's Ministry

2010-06-14T12:29:00.000-07:00

“In repentance and rest you shall be saved,
In quietness and trust is your strength” (Isaiah 30:15 NASB).

On the one hand, Francis and the brothers who joined him threw themselves into ministry for others. Preaching the Gospel, tending lepers, caring for the sick and poor, and raising support daily to provide food for themselves and the poor, they were part of the Evangelical Lifestyle of the New Monasticism. They loved Christ and his people, and they sought to serve the Lord with all their strength.

On the other hand, Francis would often pull apart for solitude and prayer. The above photo is of the Hermitage of the Carceri, a wilderness retreat in the mountains several kilometers above Assisi, where Francis would often pull apart for 40 days of solitude. Here he and other friars would pray, wait on God, humble themselves and fast on bread and water. Not only did Francis maintain this rhythm of withdrawing from the world during the 40 days of lent, he did so during advent and other times of the year.

Seeing the Carceri during our pilgrimage in Assisi was so interesting for me personally. Having read about Francis over the years, I seldom ran across much written on his extended times of solitude. These long seasons of retreat were so important to Francis’ spiritual well-being and ministry, however. They were part of the rhythm of his life, and here is the place where he came.

Rugged mountain slopes characterize this protected ravine which stands above Assisi at some 2500 feet altitude. Being there in person helped me to understand Francis as never before. I especially identified with him because I also love to go to the wilderness for solitude. For my whole adult life, wilderness camping has been my place of extended solitude with the Lord. The basic difference between my wilderness retreats and Francis’ is that I use a portable nylon tent, and he and the brothers stayed in wood huts at some point replaced by a stone structure! These provided the cells—Carceri—for solitude where they sought the Lord.

Solitude: Source of Power and Direction
That time alone with God was significant for Francis because it provided the power behind his ministry. It is those who “wait upon the Lord” who “gain new strength,” states Isaiah 40:29-31. Although vigorous young men stumble badly, those who wait on God will “mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary” (NASB).

Francis knew this secret. Even after a long day of ministry, he would often go into the woods at night to be alone with the Lord. There he would spend time in worship and prayer. At times his companions would come to find him, only to see Francis totally rapt in God’s presence. In addition to these daily times alone with God, Francis regularly withdrew for forty-day retreats at the Carceri.

Francis, of course, was simply following Jesus’ model. In Mark 1 we read about Jesus’ full day of ministry at Capernaum. Preaching in the synagogue and then healing people and casting out demons all evening, Jesus must have been exhausted when he went to bed that night at Peter’s home. Nevertheless, before dawn he got up and went off to a “lonely place” for prayer.

When Peter and the others finally found him, they wanted Jesus to return to the gathering crowd at Peter’s place to continue the healing ministry. However, the Lord shocked everyone by declaring that instead they needed to move on to the other villages, because “that is what I came to do.” In the solitude of that morning, Jesus saw things clearly and he received direction for the day. Although he would return to Capernaum in due time, Jesus knew that he had a different call on him for the time at hand.

Francis followed suit and spent considerable time waiting on God for power and direction in his life and ministry. It is estimated that, at least some years, Francis might have spent upwards of 200 days in prayer at the Carceri. That would be over have been over half the year. Far from being wasted time, this solitude was essential to maintaining his relationship with God and rejuvenating his ministry.

Compulsive Contemporary Christians
Many contemporary Christians can identify with the first aspect of Francis’ life—busy ministry. As a whole, we are driven by a compulsive need to “do something,” whether serving in a soup kitchen, sharing the Gospel or keeping programs running at church. Therefore, we need to learn from the counterbalance of Francis’ life—the intentional cultivation of solitude, prayer, fasting and waiting on God. Of times we have relatively little to show for all the effort we expend. Were we to invest more time in intimacy with God—receiving fresh strength and clear direction—we would, like Francis, have far more fruitful ministry!

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Francis of Assisi: Simple Huts and Small Chapel

2010-06-08T11:43:00.000-07:00

Francis, Bernard, Peter and Giles formed a small community of likeminded believers, inhabiting two stone sheds used for animals in the pastureland below Assisi. Although the original sheds are gone, replicas have been erected in their place. See photo above.

Christ-Centered Community
The four spiritual brothers slept in the one shed. About the size of a “four man tent” today, the accommodations were barely large enough for four adults to sleep shoulder-to-shoulder. In fact, they drew marks on the ceiling to define where each one’s space began and the others’ ended! The second shed was used as a kitchen. The area in between served for fellowship and prayer.

Soon others joined until the small community numbered a dozen. From all strata of medieval society, they laid aside their differences to live together on equal footing as brothers. This is the point where Francis and his twelve companions went to Rome to receive approval for their community, as described in the last blog.

Little Portion
Upon returning from Rome, Francis and the brothers found their huts occupied by animals. One of the local farmers had claimed the sheds for himself. Rather than causing conflict, the little community moved to another location in the marshy meadowlands below Assisi.

In the middle of one field stood a small stone chapel that Francis loved to frequent. That chapel and the surrounding area were owned by the Benedictine monks whose monastery overlooked the whole valley. Francis approached the Abbot to request the use of this “little portion”—Portiuncula—of land, which the Abbot allowed Francis and the brothers to utilize. The chapel of the Portiuncula has been preserved to this day, with the original walls still in tact.

In April, when we went inside the little chapel just below Assisi, I gained a whole new appreciation of Francis and his companions! I love unadorned, little chapels, and I love the fields. That is where the new community of brothers chose to settle for the remainder of their days. As I touched the stone walls and looked out the small windows, it was amazing to think that these are the very same walls where Francis came to spend time alone with the Lord, day after day. This was the window he looked out to see the sunny sky and the pouring rain. Just being there gave me a fresh appreciation for Francis’ simplicity, his admiration of God’s creation and his humble pursuit of the Lord.

Simplicity of the Gospel
Francis’ simplicity was both in terms of an uncomplicated lifestyle—living in stone huts and then on the “Little Portion” of land with its small chapel—as well as his undivided focus on Jesus seen in his personal prayer life, his serving the multitudes and preaching the Gospel in the common language.

What a powerful model for radical Christians in our day!

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Francis of Assisi: Power of Simplicity

2010-05-31T18:55:00.001-07:00

Ironically, Francis became one of the most significant reformers in the Church over the past 2000 years, pointing untold numbers to Christ. While he sought a life of simplicity, he was used in extraordinary ways. Precisely because he did not seek greatness, God placed him in a position of remarkable leadership—both during his lifetime and in the centuries that have followed. “For whoever exalts himself will be humbled,” declares Jesus in Matthew 23:12, “and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”

Not wanting to be in rebellion against the church, Francis and the brothers who had gathered around him went to Rome to receive official recognition of their movement by the pope, Innocent III. The most powerful pontiff ever, Innocent III was used to controlling kings around Europe and found no time for the dirty bunch of beggars who came to see him.

Francis before Innocent III

That night, however, the Lord intervened. In a dream, Innocent saw the cathedral of Rome beginning to collapse. It was suddenly upheld in one corner by a simple man wearing a brown peasants robe. Recognizing this simple man as the leader of the beggars who had tried to visit the previous day, Innocent summoned Francis and the brothers. After hearing their story, he gave them verbal approval for their little community, which was soon to mushroom into a worldwide missions movement.

Indeed, more than any lead figure during the Middle Ages, Francis helped to save the Western Church from collapsing under the weight of power-hungry leaders like Innocent himself. Restoring the focus back on Jesus, ministering to the masses and preaching the Gospel around the world, Francis is deeply appreciated by Protestants and Roman Catholics alike.

Who Do We Want to Model After?
Many American churches and Christian leaders today share a closer affiliation with the success mentality of Innocent III and his quest for power than they do with Francis and his humble service to Christ. We think that Christian leadership has to do with power, numbers and money.

How can we get back to the simplicity of serving?

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Francis of Assisi: Prayer of Simplicity

2010-05-25T06:41:00.000-07:00

Francis’ emphasis on littleness—being a minor player in life—stood, and still stands, in contrast to the way many in the Church have conceived of leadership. Instead of position, Francis sought humility. Instead of being served by those lower down the ladder, he served others, especially those in the lowest, most broken places of life.

Francis Serving the Leper

In the Gospels when the original twelve had one of their squabbles about who would sit in positions of honor, Jesus rebuked them: “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:42-45).

Such is the heartbeat of Francis’ famous prayer. A radical call to simplicity and humility, these petitions will substantially change our focus in life if we pray them with sincerity.

Prayer of St. Francis

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:
Where there is hatred . . . let me sow love.
Where there is injury . . . pardon;
Where there is discord . . . unity;
Where there is doubt . . . faith;
Where there is error . . . truth;
Where there is despair . . . hope;
Where there is sadness . . . joy;
Where there is darkness . . . light.

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
To be consoled . . . as to console;
To be understood . . . as to understand;
To be loved . . . as to love.

For,
It is in giving . . . that we receive;
It is in pardoning . . . that we are pardoned;
It is in dying . . . that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.

Reflection
What a powerful prayer! How often we have heard it said that if we want to see prayer answered quickly in our lives, just pray for patience or humility. The very day we do so, the Lord brings circumstances into our lives that try our patience and call us to cultivate humility—often in painful or unexpected ways! So it is with these profound words of St. Francis. If we honestly pray this prayer we will open ourselves up to be transformed by God’s Spirit from the inside out!

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Brothers Join Francis of Assisi

2010-05-18T07:09:00.000-07:00

Following Jesus’ direction for his life, Francis continued to restore the church building of San Damiano. Ignoring those who taunted him for wearing poor clothes and begging for supplies, Francis set his face like flint in obedience to God and faith that he would not be put to shame (Isa 50:7).

Not everyone thought Francis was mad, however. Bernard of Quintavalle, one of the wealthiest nobles of Assisi, was watching the young convert very closely. Knowing Francis since a child, Bernard was convinced that Francis’ profession of faith was genuine. One evening Bernard invited him for dinner and a night in a comfortable bed. Pretending to be asleep, Bernard kept awake to see what this radical Christian would do that night. After a bit of time, Francis slipped out of bed to spend several hours in prayer. Bernard watched as Francis whispered again and again, “My God and my all,” and was rapt in God’s presence.

Bernard was right! He knew it—Francis was the real thing. He had not only given up his family money, he had given his heart completely to God. After a hard day of laboring on the church building, Francis—much like Jesus—spent the solitary hours of the night in intimate prayer.

The next morning, Bernard joined Francis—the first of the Little Brothers in what was to become the Franciscan movement: the Order of Friars Minor. Bernard sold his extensive holdings and gave the revenue to the poor. Then he joined Francis in his simple lifestyle of manual labor and ministry to the needy.

Needless to say, the addition of Bernard gave people of Assisi a new perspective on the work of the radical young believer. Francis’ eccentric lifestyle was not some passing fancy; rather, it was the evidence of a genuine repentance and the beginning of a life committed to Jesus. It was also the beginning of a new movement which was soon to grow with explosive force. Bernard’s presence added tremendous weight to the movement. He brought respectability and permanence. The fellowship of the Friars Minor was begun.

Radical Community
Soon Francis and Bernard were joined by others. They came from all strata of society. Peter Catani was next to join. He was a local priest who had lived in community with other priests (canons) near the cathedral in Assisi. His addition furthered both the respectability of Francis’ group, as well as its diversity. After Peter came brother Giles, a simple peasant living in the marshy valley below Assisi.

Such a community of men from different stations in society was unheard of in medieval Europe. Particularly in Italy, it was unthinkable.

Strata of Society
The different levels of society in medieval Italy are easy to picture when we look at a photo of the Assisi. The higher up one lived geographically, the higher one’s station in life. On top of the hill in Assisi was the castle where the duke lived. Part of the Holy Roman Empire until Francis was about 16 years old, Assisi’s duke was appointed by the German Emperor. All of the Assisian nobility sided with him and lived just below the castle. The height of their large homes symbolized their status in society—they were referred to as the Majores, the “major” people, i.e., playing in the major leagues of power and positions of leadership. The location of their homes also provided protection by its close proximity to the fortress in case the lower classes should ever start an uprising.

Below the nobility lived everyone else. These were the lesser people in society—the Minores, i.e., those playing in the “minor leagues” of life. The Minores included the wealthy merchant class from which Francis came. Their homes were in the vicinity of the Piazza Communal—the plaza of the common people. Below the merchants were the artisans—the cobblers, blacksmiths and the like. Further down toward the valley floor lived the peasant class who worked the fields, which were owned by the nobility and wealthy monastery of Assisi. Finally, in the swampy lowlands one found the leper hospices where the lowest of low lived is squalor.

Just before Francis began his community, Assisi had undergone a political revolution where the nobility who ruled the city were ousted, and the merchant class gained control. Some blood was shed and many of the noble families fled for their lives. No love was lost among the various socioeconomic strata in Assisi!

Littleness
In light of these political events, Francis’ band of brothers was all the more remarkable. It made a statement to everyone: Jesus is no respecter of persons! He loves rich and poor, and calls them all the same through the Gospel. Moreover, he summons all to live together in genuine community, not segregated by class and income. Francis’ movement would demonstrate true Christian love and fellowship, not only to the divided populace of Assisi, but eventually to all of Europe and finally to the whole world.

Francis’ emphasis was upon being minor—lower, little, humble, playing in the minor leagues. Thus he and his brothers adopted the title “little brothers”—Friars Minor. That title takes on new meaning when we understand the society of the day. For Bernard and other nobility to join Francis, they had to renounce their title and rights as Majores. All the brothers took the mentality of being little and lower.

Philippians 2:5-7 describes how Christ emptied himself when he came to earth:

Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
but made himself nothing [literally: emptied himself],
taking on the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness. (NIV)

Everyone who joined Francis gave up money and titles and power in order to serve. Just like Christ, they had to empty themselves.

Reflecting on this movement, Christians today need to ask the question: What rights and privileges am I holding on to? What would it mean for me to “have the same attitude at Christ” and empty myself? Finally, am I willing to do just that?

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Cost of Discipleship: Francis of Assisi's Commitment

2010-05-11T10:04:00.000-07:00

When Francis heard Christ’s voice calling him to “repair my house,” Francis set about rebuilding the dilapidated structure of San Damiano. To do so, Francis needed supplies, and he had a plan. Since he had always had access to family funds for parties he wanted to throw, the young man figured it would be fine to use his father’s money for this noble project. So Francis saddled his horse and took a bolt of expensive cloth to the nearby market of Foligno. Selling both the horse and the cloth, he returned with a bag of gold coins to give to the priest at San Damiano to buy building supplies. Sensing that something was wrong, however, the priest refused the gift.

When Francis’ father, Pietro, found out what his son had done, he was furious. He not only “grounded” Francis but actually imprisoned him in their home. When Pietro went off on one of his long business trips, Francis’ mother released him. Picking up where he had left off, Francis began the restoration of San Damiano. In order to obtain building material for his project, Francis went through the town asking for supplies.

When he returned home Pietro was further enraged to find his son disgracing this well-to-do family by begging. Francis had become the joke of the town, shaming the family name of Bernardone. Infuriated, Pietro dragged his son before the bishop to have him rule in his case. Francis had a choice to make: would he love his family and cling to his inheritance, or would he give his life complete to God his heavenly father?

Without hesitation Francis made his choice. In an act that symbolized his complete renunciation of his family’s money, Francis took off all his clothes and dropped them at his father’s feet. Surprised by the naked young man standing in front of him, bishop took off his own cloak and covered Francis. This he most likely did out of embarrassment but also to show that Francis was now under the church’s jurisdiction. Francis had, in effect, taken a vow of poverty and was now under canon law instead of civil law. Having abandoned the expensive clothes of his youth, Francis would, for the remainder of his life, wear the coarse brown robe of a poor person as he followed Jesus in unmistakable humility.

Counting the Cost
This famous scene of Francis disrobing before his father took place in front of the bishop’s palace and Assisi’s old cathedral, shown in the photo above. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer noted, the gospel is entirely free, yet it will cost us everything. For Francis, this meant surrendering his family’s name and inheritance.

So often Christians today want to have both—the comforts of the world and the Christ. But repeatedly Jesus calls all true followers of his to make a choice. “If anyone would come after,” says the Lord in Luke 9:23-24, “he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it.” Spelling it out even further, Jesus asserts in Luke 14:26, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple” (NIV). The call of the Gospel is absolute—in comparison to our love for Jesus, our loyalty to all others will seem almost like hatred.

Although we may not need to repeat Francis’ action literally, the Gospel calls every true believer to make the same choice. Will we abandon ourselves so completely to Jesus that we are willing to walk away from everything and everyone else to follow him?

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Spiritual Restoration: Christ Calls Francis of Assisi at San Damiano

2010-05-05T06:21:00.000-07:00

One indicator that a person has truly been converted is that he or she simply wants to spend time with God. So it was with Francis after his conversion. He invested hours in prayer and solitude, especially at the small church of San Damiano, which was somewhat of a wayside chapel about a kilometer below the city of Assisi. Although the building was in disrepair, it had a beautiful cross hanging in the front. There Francis found a wonderful place to be alone with his Lord.

One day while in prayer Francis heard Christ speak to him: “Go, Francis, and repair my house, which as you see is falling into ruin.”* Taking Jesus’ instruction literally, Francis began to renovate the church building of San Damiano. (In the next blog, more will be said of this project, the resistance Francis received, and what he learned from it all.)

While Francis began with the physical recon- struction of a church building, he soon began to realize that God had much more in mind. The Lord wanted Francis to bring restoration to the Church as a whole. Through his ministry Francis helped restore the entirety of the Church in Western Europe. Christendom was in need of renewal. Problems abounded in the Middle Ages—much of the church hierarchy was focused on power and money, many priests were living in immorality, people of Europe had no access to the Gospel in their native languages, and Jesus seemed distant and unapproachable.

Francis and the brothers who joined him took the spiritual renewal begun a century before by Bernard of Clairvaux and others (see blog on Bernard), and he brought it to the common people on a grand scale. Instead of wealth and power that the bishops enjoyed, Francis chose simplicity, poverty and compassion for people in need. Rather than living in immorality, the Franciscans became known as godly men who were genuinely called preach the Gospel. Instead of Latin, Francis and the other friars preached in the local dialect and helped to get portions of Scripture translated into the common language, so people had access to God’s Word.

Finally, Francis helped to make Jesus accessible to common people. His humility helped them see Christ’s humility and his humanity. His emphasis on the flesh-and-blood Jesus who walked the earth enabled the average person to identify with the Savior. In fact, Francis is the first one to assemble a manger scene at Christmas time, allowing us all to have a visual picture of what Jesus’ birth, his manger and his unassuming beginnings must have been like.

Thus God used Francis to help rebuild his Church in a dramatic way. The young man from Assisi began with simple steps of refurbishing the physical church building at San Damiano—later to become the convent where Clare and other women formed the first group of Franciscans sisters, the Poor Clares. In time, however, the Lord multiplied Francis’ ministry to help restore spiritual life to tens—and perhaps hundreds—of thousands of people across Europe, bringing substantive spiritual restoration to the Church as a whole.

Reflection on Restoration
In some of the same ways, the Church today is in need of reformation in our day. Just like the medieval hierarchy, many church leaders today are caught up with power, numbers and money. Under the label of “leadership” and “church growth,” focus is often placed on furthering our own little institutions while individual people are neglected.

The whole movement of “Christian Spirituality” and “Spiritual Formation” today is a response to the misdirection in much of the institutional church. In short, it is a renewal movement. It is focused on the restoration of broken lives and hopefully a revitalization of the Church as a whole.

Another question we were asked on our pilgrimage is: Have you ever been called to restore something? If you are reading this blogsite on deep wells and spiritual formation, most likely you have been called to spiritual renewal in your own life and perhaps the lives of others. What is the Lord’s commission on your life? What facet of restoration are you called to?

The Lord may have spoken to you in a dramatic way, as he did to Francis, or he may have placed a burden on your heart that simply will not go away. However God has chosen to get your attention, what will be your response? What aspect of restoration catches your imagination? How are you engaged in such renewal? If you have not yet begun, what are some practical steps you can take this week?

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Francis of Assisi: Early Life and Conversion

2010-04-30T06:19:00.000-07:00

Town of Assisi

What led up to Francis’ conversion, his intimate walk with Christ and his lifestyle of evangelism?

Early Life
Born in 1181 or 1182 into a wealthy merchant family in the Umbrian town of Assisi, Francis lived the comfortable life growing up. His father was a cloth merchant who traveled regularly to France to buy silks and bring home the latest fashions. As a teenager Francis loved to don expensive clothes, drink with his well-to-do friends and throw lavish parties. His parents seemed to indulge his frivolous lifestyle by providing the funds for all of Francis’ revelry.

Desiring to add the title of “knight” to his station in life, Francis joined the Assisi forces when he was about twenty and went to war against the nearby town of Perugia, only to be captured in battle. The Lord began to work in Francis’ heart as he lay sick in a Perugian prison for a year. However, upon his release Francis returned to his lifestyle of partying and fun. A few years later he made a second attempt at gaining a noble title by joining in battle against the Holy Roman Emperor.

The Lord, however, had other plans for Francis. Encamped at the city of Spoleto the night before military engagement, Francis heard Jesus speak to him in a dream and turned back from battle. The life of the rich young man from Assisi was changing dramatically.

Fruit of Repentance (Matthew 3:8)
The Lord was in clear pursuit of Francis. After some halfhearted attempts to return to his former lifestyle, Francis came to the crossroads of conversion in his life. While riding across Umbria one day he unexpectedly ran across a leper. For a young man used to fine clothes and material comforts, this divine encounter caught him off guard. Francis had always been repulsed by the sight of lepers and avoided them completely. The rotting flesh on their faces, disfigured bodies and smell of decay made them difficult to love, even for the most compassionate of people. Francis had never even tried to relate to them, let alone reach out to a leper or attempt to understand their plight.

But something switched inside of Francis that day on the road. He dismounted from his horse, went over to the diseased man and did the unthinkable—he kissed him. Leprosy was contagious, and much like AIDS in our day, people feared contracting it. However, Francis ignored all caution and instead extended compassion to the man. From then on Francis no longer saw a broken, deteriorating body when he looked on lepers but he saw Christ!

The proof of genuine conversion is a changed life. Jesus said that we would know them by their fruits (Matthew 7:16- 20). Repentance means turning around 180 degrees and going in the opposite direction. Francis demonstrated such repentance. He was forever transformed from the inside out, abandoning a life of self-indulgence and wasteful living. As much as the wealthy pampered young man from Assisi had once reveled in wine, parties and the good life, he now committed himself to the life of service and simplicity—indeed poverty. As much as he had prided himself in fine clothes, he now began to humble himself and identify with the poor, sick and lepers.

Sharing in Christ’s Suffering
Francis’ care for the lepers was not simply doing a good deed or being kind to those in need. Much more, Francis was identifying with Christ in his compassion and his suffering. Toward the end of his life, the Apostle Paul prayed “I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death” (Phil 3:10). Francis shared in Christ’s sufferings in dramatic ways during his life. One of the first ways that he identified with the Lord was by risking his life as he reached out with love and touching the lepers (Matthew 8:3).

Handing the leper was not a one-time event for Francis. Instead, ministry to the sick, especially those living in the leprosaria outside of Assisi, became the hallmark of Francis’ ministry and that of the whole Franciscan Order. As mentioned in the last blog, the little brothers—Friars Minor—not only preached the Gospel as they went from town to town, they provided food for the poor and especially tended the lepers.

Reflection
Early April 2010 my wife and I went on a five-day pilgrimage in Assisi. (See link to St. Francis Pilgrimages.) When describing Francis’ encounter with the leper, the leader asked us a probing question: Who are the “lepers” in our lives? Who are the people that naturally repulse us?

We all have them—people who we cannot stomach. Often they represent something that we are afraid of, something that we are running from. On our own we will never be able to love them. However, if we allow the Lord to change us—genuinely convert us from the inside out—he will love those people through us. In fact, if we truly allow God to transform us, we will be able to love them and see Christ in them. Are you willing to be transformed like that from the inside out?

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Francis of Assisi: Apex of the New Monasticism

2010-04-24T08:13:00.000-07:00

The New Monasticism of the Middle Ages found its fullest expression in the life and ministry of Francis of Assisi. Born in 1181 or 1182, Francis renounced the world around the age of twenty-three, converting to a personal relationship with Christ and committing his life completely to the Lord.

Soon a dozen men from all walks of life joined Francis. They sought the Lord regarding what kind of lifestyle they should live. Should they use their resources to establish a monastery where they could pull apart for total prayer, or should they engage in public evangelism and service to the poor and sick?

The Lord answered them in a clear and dramatic way, giving them three passages from the Gospels: “Jesus said, ‘If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me’” (Matthew 19:21). “He told them, ‘Take nothing for the journey—no staff, no bag, no bread, no money, no extra tunic’” (Luke 9:3). “Then he said to them all: ‘If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me’” (Luke 9:23).*

With this divine mandate, Francis and the brothers began to follow Jesus as literally as they could. Soon they initiated their mission work, traveling two-by-two through the countryside, preaching the gospel in the local dialect from village to village. In some districts they helped to have portions of the Bible translated into the vernacular so common people could understand the Good News. Just like the original 12 and then 72 disciples (Luke 9 & 10), they took no money or resources with them. Instead, they raised their own funds, relying on the donations of people along the way to provide food and clothing. Much of what they collected, however, they did not use themselves but instead gave to the poor and sick.

Leper Church of Santa Maria Maddalena
(photo taken during our recent pilgrimage in Assisi)

The neediest of the day were the lepers who lived in small colonies, serving as hospices outside of the city. Separated from the rest of society and suffering a slow, agonizing, humiliating death, the lepers were the bottom rung of humanity—often times hardly considered to be human. Although as a young man Francis had been repulsed by the sight of lepers (see upcoming blogs), he now made service to these suffering individuals the centerpiece of his ministry. The above photo is the church of Santa Maria Maddalena, which served one of the leprosaria just below the town of Assisi and which was one of the places Francis spent time tending the lepers—feeding, washing, bandaging, and simply touching them as a sign of his love and care for them.

Francis and his brothers chose the title Friars Minor—little brothers—a name signifying their low station in life and their desire to serve everyone, especially the lowest of the low. They wore (and still wear today) sandals and a plain brown robe tied with a rope belt. In contrast to the wealth and power of the ecclesiastical hierarchy, the little brothers emphasized their position of service, their solidarity with the poor and their practice of spiritual humility. The apex of the Vita Apostolica, Francis and his coworkers wanted to emulate the life of the original apostles. Above all, they wanted to follow Christ, imitating his example and lifestyle as simply and completely as possible!

Reflection Questions
If someone read the Gospels for the first time and then looked at your life, what correlation would they see between the two? What contrast or contradiction might they find between your lifestyle and that of Jesus and the first disciples?

Has God called you to serve him in a radical way? How have you responded? If you have been shrinking from the vision the Lord has given you, what fears or hesitations are holding you back?

*All biblical quotes have been taken from the NIV.
2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Foundations of the New Monasticism Laid by Bernard of Clairvaux

2010-04-18T14:25:00.000-07:00

Laying a foundation for the New Monasticism of the High Middle Ages, Bernard of Clairvaux proclaimed a message of personal relationship with Jesus. Bernard was a fiery preacher and important leader, but above all he was a lover of God. His preaching and his writing led tens of thousands to Christ and spearheaded a spiritual renewal in the medieval church.

Personal Faith
At the age of twenty-two and on fire for the Lord, Bernard joined the newly-formed Cistercian Order in the year 1112. The Cistercians were gung ho for God—they were the Christian “Green Berets” of the twelfth century. They lived extremely simple lives and committed themselves to hard physical work, prayer, learning Scripture and growing in Christ-like character.

Deeply in love with Jesus, Bernard wanted to see others enter the same intimate relationship with the Lord that he had. Bernard made it clear that such a relationship with Christ must begin with repentance from our old life. We need to abandon sin, our worldly focus, and our way of living that always centers on self. We need genuine conversion—in fact, one of the booklets Bernard wrote is entitled “On Conversion.”

Christian History Magazine has a great introduction to this key figure. See image above. A great one-volume introduction to Bernard that includes “On Conversion” is Bernard of Clairvaux: Selected Works, translated by G. R. Evans, Classics of Western Spirituality, New York: Paulist Press, 1987.

Moreover, he welcomed them into a genuine relationship with Jesus. At this point in the Middle Ages, many people in Europe were nominal Christians. Although they went through the motions, they had not approached Christ personally. Indeed, most were afraid of Christ, who was painted only as the angry Judge, coming in vengeance to condemn sinners to hell.

Without compromising God’s call to holiness, Bernard portrayed Jesus as the Good Shepherd and loving Savior. This is the one and only Son, whom, out of love, God sent into the world to save sinners. Bernard’s positive presentation of the gospel and his powerful preaching won thousands to Christ.

More than that, Bernard showed Jesus as the heavenly Bridegroom and ourselves as the bride of Christ. For Bernard, the bride of Christ referred to the church as a whole (Eph 5:25-33) as well as to each soul who receives him. He wanted the truth of Scripture to be personalized by each believer. Above all he wanted others to experience and know and feel Christ’s overwhelming love for them.

Significance
Not only was Bernard the most influential believer of his century, he stands as one of the most significant teachers in the history of the church. Bernard’s writings pulsate with spiritual life. He always highlighted grace, asserting that we cannot earn salvation in any way—it is all a gift from God.

His greatest contribution to believers in his day—and to the many movements that followed—was his invitation to experience Christ personally. By emphasizing each believer’s special relationship with Christ, Bernard laid the foundation for the New Monasticism of the Middle Ages.

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

The New Monasticism of the Middle Ages

2010-03-26T11:44:00.000-07:00

For nearly one thousand years, nearly all monastics basically withdrew from the regular affairs of the world. Some of this was good (see last blog), yet it was lacking. Vibrant faith needs to reach out to those around us in both caring and sharing. We need to care for others, especially those in greatest need, in practical ways. We also need to share Jesus’ love with everyone around us.

Genuine believers in the Middle Ages recognized the need to care and share, so the picture of monasticism began to changed during the 1100s. A new monasticism emerged, engaging in the world to help the sick and poor, as well as evangelize both countryside and city. This new monastic movement was committed to an evangelical—i.e., gospel—lifestyle.

Evangelical Lifestyle
First, instead of staying behind the walls of a monastery, these men and women traveled about the countryside sharing the gospel. They tried to follow Jesus’ command to his disciples (12 and then 72) in Luke 9 and 10. Because Jesus gave these instructions to his apostles (“sent ones”), this lifestyle was often called the vita apostolica—apostolic life.
=>Traveling two-by-two
=>Preaching the gospel in the local dialect
=>Often translating a portion/book of the Bible into the local dialect so people had access to God’s Word.

Second, following Luke 9 and 10, they lived simple lives. Owning no extra clothes and taking no food with them, they lived off of what people in the villages supplied. They were called mendicants (those who beg for a living). Today we would call them missionaries who raise their own funds!
=>Lives of simplicity/poverty
=>Living from donations

Third, they did practical ministry among those in need. They nursed the sick and tended the lepers. They provided food to the poor, often going hungry themselves because they passed on the food that had been given to them.
=>Care for the poor
=>Tending the sick, leprous and dying

Fourth, the new monasticism often included laypeople. Some—like the Beguines and Humiliati—formed their own lay communities. Others lived at home with their families and joined in the ministry as they were able.

This was a new monasticism of the time. Traditional monks did not care for it. They could not understand being out among people all day—ministering to the poor, nursing the sick and preaching the gospel. But opposition did not slow down the new monastics. They were radically committed to Christ and wanted to serve their Lord by serving those around them.

The Beguines (discussed on this blogsite) were part of the New Monastic Movement of the Middle Ages. Other groups like the Dominicans, the Humiliati and the Waldensians were also part the vita apostolica. The best-known of these new monastics were St. Francis of Assisi and his followers, who brought the gospel to all of Europe and began a mission movement around the world! Some of my upcoming blogs will be dedicated to his phenomenal movement.

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

The Monastic Impulse

2010-03-19T07:53:00.000-07:00

Why would anyone want to join a monastery? To answer that question, we need to understand how monasticism developed over the years. Although most modern Christians cannot grasp the rationale for becoming a monk or nun, monasticism has played a key role in preserving and propagating genuine faith throughout church history. During the past twenty centuries, many of the most on-fire believers of the church were monastics.

From around the year 250 AD through the Middle Ages, many serious believers who wanted to follow God with their whole heart saw joining a monastery as their best avenue to do so. “Do not love the world or anything in the world,” states 1 John 2:15 (TNIV). “If you love the world, love for the Father is not in you. For everything in the world—the cravings of sinful people, the lust of their eyes and their boasting about what they have and do—comes not from the Father but from the world.”

Especially after Constantine came to power and made Christianity the favored religion of the Roman Empire in the early 300s, nominal Christians began to fill the church. No longer a place for those who were passionately seeking Christ, churches merged with the politics and culture of the day. While it was great to be free from persecution, lukewarm Christianity grew rapidly. From that point on, radical believers began to pull apart to form their own communities—thus monasticism began to grow.

In addition, entering a monastery was the only chance that most Christians had to learn the Bible. Individuals and families had no personal Bibles. However, especially by the Middle Ages, joining a monastic community gave one a chance to hear Scripture read daily and memorize it. Many monks and nuns had the whole book of Psalms memorized, reciting all 150 Psalms by heart each week as they gathered for chapel seven times each day. (By the way, how is your Scripture memory coming along?)

The monasteries also offered a good education, a safe place to live, and community with like-minded believers who, for the most part, truly wanted to grow in Christ. Younger brothers and sisters could find older mentors. Therefore, radical followers of Christ often gave up the opportunity for marriage and joined a monastery for a unique environment in which to grow spiritually.

Reflection
Over the years many from the outside—both Protestant and Roman Catholic—have misunderstood monasticism. However, when seen in context, we can begin to appreciate the monastic impulse and what brought hundreds of thousands into monasteries and convents up to our day. Of course not all monastics live up to the ideal. That should not surprise us, however, or tarnish the goal that they had in mind—indeed, far too many evangelical preachers and other clergy today fall into the same sins as did some monks and nuns.

Nevertheless, we can be spurred on by their example and their genuine zeal. While we may not want to join a monastery, per se, we need to pursue many of the same goals: soaking in Scripture, vital Christian community, freedom from this world’s materialism, and a deep personal walk with Jesus.

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Beguines: The "New Monasticism" of their Day

2010-03-19T07:51:00.000-07:00

In many ways the Beguines were a part of the “New Monasticism” of their day. While remaining laywomen, most of them lived together in communities. Some of these were smaller households of a dozen believers; others developed into communities of several hundred women. Early in the movement married women were among the Beguines, living with their families and joining the community of single women for Scripture reading and ministry as they were able.

The Beguines committed themselves to a simple spiritual rule of gathering for Scripture morning and evening. This was a much simpler rule than the Benedictine monks and nuns who attended chapel seven times each day. Such a simple rule allowed the Beguines to work for a living throughout the day. Especially those who spun wool and pressed linen were able to focus on the day’s reading as they worked with their hands.

They cultivated spiritual friendship within their communities, nurturing a common spiritual life. Beguines also made a commitment of obedience so long as they remained in the beguinage.

The wealthier Beguines who founded the beguinages and owned their own homes extended hospitality to needy women, inviting them to join the community. They welcomed poorer maidens from the countryside who had no money to build their own home. Such maids were provided dormitory living as minimum cost, as well as a job in the textile industry, so they could begin to earn a living.

In addition, Beguines served the general population in need—especially the poor, the sick, the lepers and the dying. They provided education for poor girls in the town who otherwise would never have the opportunity to learn to read and write.

To see the parallels with the New Monasticism movement of our day, see the website:
http://newmonasticism.org/12marks.php

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Beguines Model Spiritual Formation

2010-03-13T06:35:00.000-08:00

The Beguines were laywomen who had a personal relationship with Jesus and formed Christian communities so that they could cultivate intimacy with the Lord. Beginning just before the year 1200, they started a movement that soon included tens of thousands of women, mostly singles and widows, who lived together in large households. Here they lived with like-minded believers and pursued knowing Jesus on a deep level. In their communities, they enjoyed a safe place to live and work, as well as fellowship with sisters in the Lord. Younger women could be mentored by older sisters in Christ, and all had the opportunity to hear Scripture read on a daily basis.

Paradigm of Spiritual Formation
The Beguines provide twenty-first century believers a wonderful paradigm of the deeper Christian life. They exemplify for us:
~Radical commitment to Christ
~Daily soaking in Scripture
~Passion for Intimacy with Jesus
~Self-sacrificing service to those in need
~Creativity—some of the first in Europe to write in vernacular
~Cultivation of genuine spiritual friendships
~Initiative in founding a new form of Christian community
Part of the radical New Monasticism of their day, they provide a working model for believers today who are sold-out for Jesus.

Monuments to the Beguine Movement
While only a few Beguines still live in Belgium today, more than a dozen of these complexes are preserved as historical sites today. The beautiful Beguinage in the city of Bruge, Belgium still stands today (photo above). Although no Beguines remain at this location, nuns now use this quiet space and wear the habits of the women who once walked here.

If you ever have the opportunity to travel to Belgium, Bruges is a must-see! It is one of the true gems of Europe. Although not as well known as some other sites on the Continent, the old city in Bruges gives you a feel for what life was like in the Middle Ages. The Beguinage welcomes tourists and pilgrims, who are invited to quietly explore the grounds and join in the chapel for evening vespers. One of be best preserved beguinages, Bruges gives Christians today a glimpse of the dedicated lives lived by these saintly women of God.

Great Books on the Beguines
Bowie, Fiona, ed. Beguine Spirituality. Crossroad, 1990.
Dickens, Andrea J. The Female Mystic. I. B. Tauris, 2009.
Grundmann, Herbert. Religious Movements of the Middle Ages. University of Notre Dame Press, 1995.
Hadewijch. Hadewijch: The Complete Works. Paulist Press, 1980.
King, Margot, trans. Two Lives of Marie d’Oignies. Peregrina Publishing, 2002.
Lerner, Robert E. The Heresy of the Free Spirit in the Later Middle Ages. University of California Press, 1972.
The Life of Beatrice of Nazareth, 1200-1268. Cistercian Publications, 1991.
McDonnell, Ernest W. The Beguines and Beghards. Rutgers University Press, 1954.
McGinn, Bernard, ed. Eckhart and the Beguine Mystics. Continuum, 1994.
Mechthild of Magdeburg. The Flowing Light of the Godhead. Paulist Press, 1998.
Murk-Jansen, Saskia. Brides in the Desert. Orbis, 2004.
Simons, Walter. Cities of Ladies. University of Pennsylvania Press, 2001.

Bowie and Murk-Jansen’s works offer nice introductions to the spirituality of the Beguines. Simons provides a readable but thorough study of the development of the Beguine movement in Belgium, highlighting its early years as well as the establishment of the great Beguine complexes/compounds, some of which stand today. Grundmann paints a broader picture of the Beguine movement, introducing readers to its development in Germany and placing it in its historical context of the great women’s revival that swept northern Europe. Although this is by no means an exhaustive list of books on the Beguines, these are some of the most helpful.

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Voices from the Past Speak Powerfully in our Day

2010-03-11T11:58:00.000-08:00

Christians today are looking for models of deep spiritual formation. They want to know what an authentic life of faith can look like. Many are dissatisfied with the shallowness of most of what surrounds them, and they are open to learn from the rich heritage of the church, extending over the past twenty centuries.

Countless radical believers have run the race before us and serve as a cloud of witnesses surrounding us as we fix our eyes on Jesus as the author and finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:1-2). We must not ignore these spiritual mentors from our Christian heritage—men and women whose wisdom and experience have stood the test of time. They serve as companions on the pilgrimage and guides as we traverse dry deserts and endure dark nights of the soul.

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Pilgrimage to Beguine Complexes in Belgium

2010-03-02T07:50:00.000-08:00

Leuven Beguinage

Church begun in 1234

My wife, Sharon, and I have read about the Beguines with fascination over the past eight years. In 2005 we had the opportunity to visit various Begijnhoven (beguinages) in Belgium for two weeks. What a privilege to wander the streets where these godly women once walked! Our day in Leuven still stands out to us!

At its peak, some 300 Beguines filled the townhomes of the Begijnhof in Leuven. They had their own church building that began construction in 1234. In fact, they were allowed to establish their own parish, separate from the town, and one of their priests eventually rose to the papacy.

While many of the women worked at spinning wool, dying cloth and pressing linen, some of the Beguines established schools, especially for poor girls of Leuven who otherwise would have no opportunity to learn to read and write. At one point the Leuven Beguine complex housed ten small schools for girls and had to refuse any more, so great was the desire for public education.

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Visit the Beguine Complex in Leuven, Belgium

2010-02-22T10:37:00.000-08:00

A Building from around the year 1200 in the Beguinage in Leuven (Louvain)

Walk the narrow cobblestone streets that wind through what was for centuries the Beguine complex in Leuven, and you will gain a glimpse from the past. Once home to three hundred women, this beguinage began as a small group of women devoted to serving the Lord by tending the sick and dying. Because hospitals were virtually nonexistent, these women established an infirmary around the year 1200. It likely functioned as a clinic and somewhat as a hospice for the dying. See photo on the blog of Feb 1, 2010, for a picture of that building that still stands today and functions as the faculty dining room for the University.

While most of the existing buildings standing today were built at a later time, three buildings date back to around 1200: the infirmary, the church and the building in the above photo.

Today the townhomes that made up the beguinage are part of the University of Leuven and serve as housing for students and faculty. However, all are requested to remain quite along these corridors—there is still something special about this space that was dedicated to seeking God!

Tourists and pilgrims are welcome to wander the streets and alleys. Walking here one wonders what life would have been like over the hundreds of years that Beguine women lived, worked and prayed within these walls!

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Soaring and Sinking

2010-02-08T06:55:00.000-08:00

The Beguines model for us an excellent balance of solitude with the Lord and serving those in need. The two must always go hand-in-hand. Mechthild of Magdeburg describes these two dynamics of the Christian life in terms of “soaring” to God in intimacy and then “sinking” to the most humble of duties as we minister to others.

During intimate times of solitude, we soar to God in spiritual ecstasy, writes Mechthild. “Ah, kind Father, God in heaven, draw my ever-flowing soul unimpeded into yourself and flow toward [me], Lord, with all the delightful things you have within yourself. . . . Ah, and give me, Lord, the rapture of your Holy Trinity in the sweet soaring of love, Lord, so that I may enjoy with honor all your generous gifts and so that, sweet Lord, I may never ask you for something, Lord, which you do not want to give me for your glory. Amen.”(1)

Such soaring is followed by a time of “sinking down.” In service to others and in our patient endurance of suffering, we lower ourselves in humility. Soaring ecstasy and sinking humility must be kept together in the life of a believer. Indeed, the lower we are willing to sink, the more we are able to soar. As Mechthild phrases it, “The deeper I sink, the sweeter I drink.”(2)
In another passage Mechthild describes the flowing out in service and back in intimacy with the Lord by describing our soul’s climbing a mountain and descending the other side. We ascend the mountain to connect intimately with the Lord: this is our mountain-top experience of love. However, we must climb down again, bringing the power of that encounter to minister to others.

When the soul in her pursuit of love and the great longing of her God-stalking heart has ascended the lofty mountain of powerful love and beautiful knowledge, she acts like the pilgrim who has climbed the mountains with great zest. Once we have been with the Lord, we begin to cool off and sink down in profound humility, says Mechthild.

From there the soul withdraws from the intimate moment with the Lord in order to serve others for God’s glory. In fact, the soul is humbly willing to go to the lowest place possible to serve God. When the soul has therefore “ascended to those heights possible for her while she is still attached to the body and has sunk to the deepest point that she can find, then she is full gown in virtues and holiness.”(3) This is Mechthild’s ultimate concern, that through intimacy and suffering service—soaring and sinking—we would become mature in Christ-like character and holiness.
_____
1 Mechthild of Magdeburg, The Flowing Light of the Godhead, trans. Frank Tobin, in The Classics of Western Spirituality (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist, 1998), 217.
2 Ibid., 156.
3 Ibid., 184.

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Serving Others in Need

2010-02-01T07:33:00.000-08:00

From the beginning, the Beguine movement was all about serving others in need. Many of the first informal Beguine communities in fact formed around specific ministry opportunities.

Mary of Oignies, her husband John and the women who joined them gather around the common task of tending lepers in Williambroux, not far from the town of Nivelles. This was grueling work, bandaging the festering wounds of the lepers, feeding them and praying with them as they were dying. It was also dangerous work—leprosy is highly contagious. Like Mother Teresa of the 20th century, the Beguines were willing to serve Christ in the most humbling ways.

Not far away in Leuven (Louvain), a group of devout believers also formed an infirmary or clinic for the ill around the year 1200. That original building still stands today as part of the University of Leuven. (See photo.) In time this group formed into a community of Beguines.

Beguines became known for their care of the sick and dying. In Germany, the term “Beguine” became synonymous with what we would call “hospice” work today—tending the dying, both physically and spiritually.

Beguines also became known for educating children, especially girls from poorer families who otherwise had little opportunity to learn how to read and write. Beguines not only taught them the basic language skill in the local language (Middle French, Flemish or German) but also instructed them in faith and godly character. The same beguinage in Leuven—that eventually numbered nearly 300 women—served as home to some ten small schools! In fact, they had to limit themselves to these ten schools because even more girls wanted to come for an education.

Reflection
The balance of solitude, prayer and Scripture, on the one hand, and practical service, on the other, is one of the reasons that the Beguines are so interesting—and such a good model for passionate Christians today. These women were very active in the towns in which they lived. While many enjoyed the peace and safety of living in Christian community, they did not cloister themselves away. Instead they sought to share the love of Jesus that they had experienced with all those around them, especially those in greatest need.

2010 © Glenn E. Myers

Beguines' Love of Scripture

2009-11-14T08:45:00.000-08:00

I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.
(Psalm 119:11)

A Day Centered about Scripture
Each morning the women rise early and gather together to hear Scripture read. They are grateful for the opportunity to learn God’s Word. Individuals have no Bibles of their own at this time in history, but spiritual communities possess portions of Scripture that have newly been translated into Dutch, German and French. Few Beguines know Latin, so they are privileged to hear God’s Word in their native language.
After the morning chapel the women return to their rooms where they work with their hands throughout the day—sewing, spinning, and pressing linen (see above photo). All the while they repeat the morning’s passage in their minds. As they labor in silence, they meditate on the Bible reading, savoring God’s Word in their hearts. They reflect on the portion of Scripture and seek how it relates to their lives. Their whole day will focus on this passage. The opportunity to learn Scripture and soak in it throughout the day is one of the main reasons that these women joined the Beguines.

Midday they proceed to the cupboard in the corner of their room (see photo). The top third holds the dishes they brought from home, and the bottom section serves as a pantry. The middle opens into a table where they eat alone as they reflect on the day’s Scripture. Praying the passage back to the Lord, they apply it to their own life in order to be transformed by its truth.
Throughout the afternoon the women continue to work alone and then gather again in the evening for a closing chapel service for the day. Afterwards, they take time to enjoy each other’s company and share what they have learned from God’s Word throughout the day. The Beguines appreciate the fellowship they are privileged to have in Christian community.

Our Lives
Like the Beguines of long ago, let us value the tremendous opportunity we have of hearing the Bible in our own language. In appreciation, let us savor Scripture and allow it to permeate our hearts and minds throughout the day. May we soak in God’s Word, treasure our time with the Lord and be transformed by his truth and presence in our lives.

©2008 Glenn Myers
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Love Takes Risk

2009-10-03T14:15:00.000-07:00

Although ardent desire permeates the pages of Scriptures, it often startles us when we first experience it. We are not sure what to do with such intense inner emotions. Often to experience such powerful inner longing is painful, and we are afraid of being overwhelmed.

If we are truly to experience the Lord’s love for us, we must learn to let go of control. Not only is love a powerful force, but when we are in love with God Almighty, we cannot be the ones in charge. Much of our contemporary spirituality that seeks to place God—and our relationship with him—into a neat, orderly box is merely a fantasy of our own making. Vibrant, living relationship does not fit into quick quiet times. Moreover, any “god” contained by our boxes and controlled by our expectations is not the God of Scripture who rides on the winds of the storm and in whose presence the mountains shake to their very foundation (Psalm 18).

The Beguines were not willing to settle for such tame spirituality or such a shadow of relationship with the true God. They wanted to encounter the Creator of the universe and were willing to be overwhelmed by his divine presence in prayer.

Afraid of Disappointment
Another reason we are afraid to tap into our subterranean desires is that we know we might be disappointed. Will we be hurt if we expose our hearts? What if our longing for love is not fulfilled? What if we surrender our hearts to such intense longing for Jesus only to find that we cannot truly experience an intimately relationship with him as we had hoped?

Love requires risk. When we open ourselves to be loved, it also leaves us exposed to hurt, and most of us avoid such a position of weakness. True relationship makes us vulnerable because relationships are never static. They ebb and flow, and our emotions are bound to go up and down. Even a relationship with the Lord has highs and lows as we see throughout the Psalms. The Lord never forsakes us, but at times we cannot experience him as we would like. Other times he surprises us with his manifest presence. Vital Christianity entails risk, and take that risk, we must!

Here again the Beguines provide wisdom and insight. Another of these devout women of the thirteenth century named Hadewijch wrote a letter encouraging one of the young women who looked to her as a mentor:

"O beloved, why has not Love sufficiently overwhelmed you and engulfed you in her abyss? Alas! when Love is so sweet, why do you not fall deep into her? And why do you not touch God deeply enough in the abyss of his Nature, which is so unfathomable? Sweet love, give yourself for Love’s sake full to God in love" (p. 56).

Hadewijch was aware that we can be hurt or disappointed even in our love relationship with the Lord. Because it is truly a love affair with another Person, we are vulnerable. As a result, some people who lack courage fear that cost will to too high and therefore withdraw from Love. In doing so, however, they lose all the good that they would have gained from opening their hearts to the Lord, asserted Hadewijch.

Therefore, we need to take courage: we must take the risk of opening up to the Lord. In one of her poems Hadewijch challenged us as her readers to “take the adventure”! Although our hearts might temporarily feel hurt at times, in the long run we will discover God’s great faithfulness to us. If we persevere, we will experience the fidelity of divine love.

"He who wishes thus to progress in love
Must not fear expense, or harm,
Or pain; but faithfully confront
The strictest commands of Love . . .
In all her comings and in all her goings:
Anyone who behaved thus, relying on Loves’ fidelity,
Would stand to the end, having become all love in Love" (p. 218).

Personal Reflection: Tap into Our Longing
Let us not settle for bland devotion or some tame religion. Rather, like these women of old, let our spiritual formation throb with longing for the Lord and pulsate with passion for an intimate relationship with the personal Creator of the universe. Willing to release control, let us pursue the Lord with all our heart, soul, mind and body—not satisfied with anything less than the adventure of being in love with Almighty God!

Hadewijch’s powerful writings can be found in Hadewijch: The Complete Works, translated by Mother Columba Hart, in The Classics of Western Spirituality (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist, 1980).

2009 © Glenn E. Myers

Longing for the Bridegroom

2009-09-28T06:42:00.001-07:00

O God, you are my God,
earnestly I seek you;
my soul thirsts for you,
my body longs for you,
in a dry and weary land
where there is not water. (Psalm 63:1)

As we passionately pursue Jesus, we begin to realize how powerful a force that yearning is within us. Longing for the Lord can be intense. Throughout his life King David passionately pursued the Lord. David tells us in Psalm 63 that not only his heart, but his whole body ached for God’s presence. Likewise David compares his intense longing for the Lord to the way that a thirsty deer gasps desperately for water in the heat of the Judean desert. “As the deer pants for streams of water,” he cries out in Psalm 42, “so my soul pants for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?”

Many of the Beguines experienced the same overwhelming desire that David describes in the Psalms. These godly women in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries abandoned themselves to the Lord and longed for him with their whole heart, soul and body.

Intense Love
Because we have the writings of some of these Beguines, we can learn from their intense desire for Christ. Not satisfied with brief daily devotions, as so many Christians settle for in our day, these women sought the Lord in intense prayer. Their spiritual formation was constantly fueled by a burning love for Jesus and a yearning to draw closer to him. Mechthild of Magdeburg expressed to the Lord her inner longing:

Jesus, dearest Lover of mine, let me approach you . . . with deep love for you in my heart, and never let me grow cold, so that I constantly feel your love in my heart and in my soul and in my five senses and in all my members. Then I can never grow cold.

Like David in Psalm 63, Mechthild longed for the Lord with her whole being. Her body literally ached for the Almighty in her life and her physical senses craved his divine touch. Such a spiritual fire characterized the women of the medieval spiritual revival and can be found throughout their writings.

Mechthild’s ardent yearning for the Lord ignited a fire in her heart. Her desire for the Lord was intense and indeed all-consuming. Mechthild cried aloud in her longing for the Lord’s intimate love which is so sweet and wonderful that she said no one could begin to explain “even half of the intensity of my longing and the pain of my suffering and my heart’s pursuit and my soul’s striving for [you], to hang inseparably in your embrace forever.”

Personal Reflection
At times we all ache deeply inside. Instead of trying to ignore that ache or numb it with food, medication or busyness, we need to realize that we are ultimately craving more of God. When we do so, we can begin to allow the Lord to fill all the empty places in our hearts.

2009 © Glenn E. Myers