The Whole Equation

Are you a faithful church go-er? Do you dutifully say your prayers, read the bible and so forth?

Doing all, or most of these things, is about half of the equation.  If you are doing them, good for you, but don’t let pride trick you into thinking you’re done growing in faith.

If you do not do these things, maybe it is time to get going!  Explore what you do not know or understand!

The reason I say this is because in the Old Testament Book of Isaiah (Chapter 29, Verse 13) the Lord indicates there is a problem if we honor him with our lips alone, or if our heart is far from him, or if our reverence for him has become a “routine observance” of precepts.

In other words, it is dangerous for us to simply go through the motions, disconnected from God and others. 

If you are doing everything you have been taught to do in order to be a good Christian, but you are doing it without love for your neighbor, purposefulness, or in relationship with Jesus, you are really only beginning on the path of practicing your faith.

What I’m saying is, you might feel like you are doing absolutely as much as you can, but you would be mistaken.  For if you are just going through the motions and giving God “lip service,” that could be a dangerous thing.

It is good to be in the beginning stage of “becoming” but you don’t want to stop there.

Don’t have any more time to give? Your plate is already too full? You’re life is bursting at the seams?

That’s okay, because to move forward does not require adding anything new to your schedule.  If you already have the functional part of Christianity down, now you can work on the hard part.

What is the hard part?

The hard part is being attentive to others, really caring about them.

The hard part is letting go of your need to share your opinion all of the time and not acknowledging the wisdom of others.

The hard part is moving outside your comfort zone.

The hard part is actively growing in virtue and strength of character.

Sacrifice. Humility. Those things that actually change you are the hard part.

When you start acting and thinking differently, recognizing your faults and striving to correct them, and reaching out to others, you are doing the hard part.

Mainly, the hard part is growing a servant’s heart that looks for opportunities to love others, even if that means accepting ingratitude when you are not appreciated, or you are overlooked, or slighted in some way.

One question you might want to ask yourself is whether or not all of the “perfunctory” things you are doing in the name of faith, are having an impact on your life.

Are you living differently because of your bible reading?  Has your prayer life increased your awareness of God and others? Are you transformed by your faith practices?  Have they caused you to turn away from sin?

If all of the things you do are not transforming you interiorly, creating a desire to activate your outward practice of faith or prompting you to become a strong witness to Jesus, you may need to look closely at the entire equation to be sure you have what you need to get to the sum.

Janet Cassidy
janetcassidy.blogspot.com
janetcassidy.blubrry.net