In my last paper I talked about hearing from God. The communication that is available to me is the same provided to the incarnate Jesus as God works "an ever-deepening re-formation of my inner personality" towards "an ever more radiant conformity to the life and faith and desires and habits of Jesus" (1). Living in the fullness of the image of Christ begins by studying and understanding the specific habits Jesus cultivated to place himself before the Father. God invites me into the transformative process of becoming his disciple, but the changes only come in accordance with my own willingness to respond and flexibility to adjust my expectations. Jesus demonstrated how this lifelong conversation with God is as dynamic, real, and practical as any relationship I will ever have.
Because God initiates, no skill or prior knowledge is needed in the transformation to having the mind of Christ. God was at work in my heart long before I was recognizing his movements; he only desires my devoted heart to begin this work. With willingness, God can move me forward by leaps and bounds, even as I sleep (2). As my spirit and heart are being renewed, at some point my mind begins to actually sense these movements and then my response can no longer remain passive. To mature into the fullness of the image of Christ I have to - am compelled to – enter the conversation. "We must continually work hard so that each of our actions is a way of carrying on little conversations with God, not in any carefully prepared way but as it comes from the purity and simplicity of the heart" (2).
In the simple desires of my heart, my goal is to please God, as my friend. I know I need to pause when my goal in communicating becomes the seeking after of a particular experience or specific guidance, recognizing that God is always greater than how I feel. God’s desire is not to simply improve my immediate happiness, he wants to truly transform me into the joy and fullness of who he created me to be. And sometimes this "everyday means of character transformation lacks fireworks" or "seems painfully slow" (1). Sometimes it does not even feel good. But I have to remember that God’s goal is not "a scheme for human betterment," or of "Jennifer betterment," but always a matter of a loving God "penetrating a fallen world" by means of building a willing friendship with me (3). Building the foundations of a trusting friendship comes at an unhurried pace, and becoming his disciple is simply my growth into a companionship where I act within God’s will because I truly know him. I have spent enough time in his presence that I know the things that would be right or good without him having to dictate my every step. "He does not delight in having to always explain what his will is; he enjoys it when we understand and act upon his will" (4).
Knowing God well enough to naturally step into the initiative he desires for me is a very practical type of friendship. Close friends can usually anticipate each other’s actions, needs, and wants. Jesus set an example of what this friendship looks like with his constant awareness of the Father, his study of Scripture, and his own varied, creative prayer life. My friendship with the Trinity is to be similar, but natural and unique in the way I immerse myself in God’s presence. "Immersion in the Holy Spirit purifies the heart" and then "action follows essence" (1). God communicates with me uniquely and he desires a response to his gentle leadings in any way my spirit can creatively conceive to respond, with no rule or specific system in how my friendship with God should look (2). "Strain does not seem to do good" (5). Jeanne Guyon even goes so far as to say "it is wisest for you to stay away from any set form, or pattern, or way" and that "elaborate forms and meaningless repetition" create large roadblocks to communication (6). My dialog with God is to be as natural as breathing itself, so that I can be engaged with God in a continuous conversation of my heart, even while doing other tasks or listening to others. This maintaining of a silent inner conversation, while still engaged with the busy world, is the example Jesus set and what I am called to pursue as well, however that looks for my own unique personality and situation.
For a disciple of Christ, there truly is a lot of wiggle room for exercising creativity and movement within God’s will. "God does not have an ideal, detailed life-plan uniquely designed for each believer that must be discovered in order to make correct decisions" (4). God’s desire for me is to stay in constant communication, always learning, and I think he delights in watching me move and wiggle around inside his will, cheering me on as I can be trusted to exercise the full extent of the creativity and initiative he created inside me.
But being trusted to move around freely inside God’s will does not just happen automatically. I cannot merely "want" to be the full person God created me to be, I have to actually "make plans to become so" (7). The transformation to having the mind of Christ involves effort to recognize ingrained habits that prevent God’s work, and conversely, to identify tendencies that will promote the character changes God would desire of me. Action is needed to remove the hindrances and carefully substitute in that which assists movement towards Christlikeness. This path to becoming his disciple will be just as individual to me as my communications and relationship with the Trinity are, but the common thread to every choice and action I make is always "a longing after God" (8).
Meeting with and dwelling with him is where I learn to wisely choose actions, rhythms, and disciplines that constantly reposition me to receive God’s will. Jesus did this in his life as an example for me to learn from. "People we admit to be far greater than we are – and, in the case of Jesus himself, even divine – found it necessary to practice disciplines," so I should expect no less (9). My transformation into the fullness of discipleship begins with my desire to make spiritual disciplines part of my daily life in the same manner Jesus did, but uniquely suited to fit the situations of my current life. "The inner attitude of the heart is far more crucial than the mechanics for coming into the reality of the spiritual life" (8). The exact "how" of transformation is not a rulebook or a prescription to be followed. Instead, it is simply becoming attuned to the inner cooperation of my spirit, knowing God will extend, amplify, and empower even my most awkward and meager attempts towards his will. "The needed change within us is God’s work, not ours" as "divine Love has slipped into our inner spirit and taken over our habit patterns" (8).
God so deeply desires my character to be transformed into his, so that I can intelligibly take initiative in my life, exercise the creativity he gifted me with, and act with love as he would - all automatically. If I do not submit my actions to disciplines that fit my distinctive personality, I will not enter into a "powerful, virtuous new life in a psychologically real way" (9). Just as friendship cannot be simply desired but must be intentionally sought after, transformation must also be sought after as well. Engaging in any discipline is not a matter of seeking to transform myself, it is only placing myself in the meeting place of God so he can work. A discipline is like an inner heart coffee date with a friend - it happens out of a desire to go a little deeper into an undistracted conversation, and it needs to be as natural and freeing as breathing. In that meet-up, God does his work because I am fully willing and present to him.
The whole earth was created as a place for my spirit to interact with God, if I let it be so. Frank Laubach says "that this earth is but a brief school,’ which paints a picture of the world as a training ground for my eternal spirit (5). My personality is not separable from my body, so in order to let God transform my spirit, it becomes necessary to choose disciplines for my body that aid my spiritual growth. This in my part in the process of redemption. I wonder if God enjoys watching me "surprise" him by the actions and choices I make once I can be trusted enough to act from the inner and whole self he designed me to operate from? If the disciplines can "bolster common sense in such a way that it alone can often function as an immediate and reliable guide in spiritual matters," then it must just please God to see me act out this "common sense" automatically (9).
In my practical friendship with God, I listen to the voice of my creator, I reposition myself to hear him, and I act on the heartfelt promptings placed within my heart. This is the example Jesus set of becoming a disciple, living my life to its fullest potential. And because of God’s great love for me, I can step into this life of love, knowing that "the shortest path to God was by a continual exercise of love" (2).
Sources: _______________________________
1.) Foster, Richard J. "Salvation is for Life." Theology Today, October 2004: 297-308.
2.) Brother Lawrence and John J. Delaney. The Practice of the Presence of God. New York: Image Books/Doubleday, 1977.
3.) Yancey, Philip. "Be Ye Perfect, More or Less: Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, and the Impossible Sermon on the Mount." Books and Culture, July 17, 1995.
4.) Willard, Dallas. Hearing God: Developing a Conversational Relationship with God. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1999.
5.) Laubach, Frank C. Letters by a Modern Mystic. Colorado Springs: Purposeful
Design Publications, 2007.
6.) Guyon, Jeanne. Experiencing the Depths of Jesus Christ. Sargent, GA: SeedSowers Publishing, 1975. 7.) Willard, Dallas. "Looking Like Jesus." Christianity Today, August 20, 1990: 29-31.
8.) Foster, Richard J. Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1988.
9.) Willard, Dallas. The Spirit of the Disciplines: Understanding How God Changes Lives. San Francisco: Harper Collins, 1988.
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