In your Church experiences you may at times have wondered, “is this all there is”? “Isn’t there something more to being a Christian?” “This 'church thing’ is not at all fulfilling and I am not growing in Christ. What is the truth? Is there really anything that I could claim as truth, or is everything to be cast in relative shades of grey? There are so many churches and so many denominations. Is there any of them that really teach what the bible says? Even when I attend Church regularly and participate in ministries I never feel like its for me. Maybe I just don’t connect with God, or at least I don’t really understand how to connect with Him. I just feel that something is missing.” Have you ever experienced these thoughts? I think we all express similar feelings from time to time.
In deed there is much more to an abundant Christian life than the routines of weekly worship, occasional participation in ministry, quitting the big sins and trying to bear witness to our acquaintances about Jesus. We need more. Much more. Since the desire for more is within each of us, then it is surely God’s desire that we reach beyond ourselves and grow to deeper Christian maturity. We can’t do that alone, we need each other if we are to engage in intentional development of our relationship with God, in genuine Christian spiritual formation.
Christian spiritual formation is not simply improving the regularity of prayer or Bible study. It is not merely becoming personally accountable for our sins. Christian spiritual formation is the transformation of our spirit through the Spirit of Christ. As Christ-followers, our journey into spiritual formation has a clear destination: “until Christ is formed in you…” (Galatians 4:19)
Spiritual formation speaks of a shaping process of the spiritual dimensions of a person's life. We all have a spiritual dimension, a capacity to be in a relationship with the Living God. How do we accomplish this? It sounds like an almost impossible goal to attain! That is an all to often heard commentary from people who have become frustrated with the institutional church. Many feel disenfranchised, feeling like outsiders no matter how hard you’ve tried to fit in. Most likely the negative experiences you’ve had in the structured church are a result of not being taught how to focus on God and each other. God is more than ready to assist you in becoming just like His Son, Jesus! Wow! What an incredible prospect that exists for each one of us, to be “Christ-like”. I think you want that because there is an internal heart centered tugging that is pulling you to the Divine. We just have to be willing to engage with one another in the process, encouraging and stimulating one another to grow in Christ-like qualities and character.
Christlike spirituality is not a one-sided process. It involves both God and you working together to develop in you a desire and willing attitude if anything is to happen. We don't just get "zapped" into a new state of being without sinful desires and attitudes at our new birth into Christ. Spiritual formation is "a process of being conformed to the image of Christ for the body of Christ, as well as those outside of the body.
Our loving God recognizes and appreciates the individual ways each of us approaches Him, and He encourages us to develop Christ-like characteristics to their fullest measure in our lives. He also challenges us to explore spiritual disciplines with which we are less comfortable as a way to add depth to our relationship with Him. This is where we need each other to grow. He gave us “fellowship” as His way of binding us together and nurturing our Christ-like potential. This doesn’t necessarily mean an organized “institutionalized church”. It means coming together because you want to be part of the “body of Christ”, in unity with others who have the same desire and the same life struggles we all experience.
Renovations4Living wants to add a little “salt and light” to your life, to your community. Far too many people today are giving up on God. Renovations understands how important it is to be a beacon of hope for those seeking to comprehend the troubled world we live in. To be “in Christ” and blessed by Him does not mean you need to be surrounded by the trappings of a church building with all of the structures that come with it. Spirituality, is to be lived and practiced in the lives of all believers. To accomplish that, we who are the body of Christ, need to grow in our personal spiritual formation, to be fully conformed to Christ-likeness.
I understand the cry of your hearts and the pain of feeling alienated by an unsatisfying church experience. I cannot mend the brokeness you may be feeling, only your willingness to yield to God, allowing Him to help you, will you experience the healing of a broken hear and spirit. Maybe through this blog, together we can discover that it's possible to know God deeply and discover the strength only He can provide to endure the challenging times we are living. Life in Christ is a continuous living journey of spiritual formation.
I invite you to engage with your friends and neighbors in making new friends through Renovations4Living. Share your thoughts, rediscover the path and rekindle the passion to a deeper relationship with God. If this small place opens the door for you to begin experiencing the kind of close connection to God you've longed for... and you discover the truly fulfilling Christian experience you've hoped for, then God will have done His work in transformation in your life!
Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. (Romans 12:2 NIV)
And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. (2 Corinthians 3:18 NIV)
