“The way the early disciples live mystified people around them because the disciples seemed to live in another world. The principles that guided them clearly differed from those that guided others. They practiced a way of life both beautiful and mysterious. Their lives made sense only if one knew that they were living by the power and guidance of God. Their lives were governed by the reign of God and not by the power of politics or the call of culture. They were different because they chose to live their lives in obedience to and in the presence of God. Their radical love of God and neighbor resulted in dramatic actions that perplexed all who observed them.”
Rueben Job,
former United Methodist Bishop
To whom are we listening?
Presbyterian pastor, author and spiritual director, John Ackerman, said, “It is my experience that few congregations listen to God’s call to them, and few help members to listen to their individual call and to nurture their own ongoing relationship with God...Most congregations and people don’t know how to listen to God. Congregations make up their minds by voting according to Robert’s Rules of Order. They rarely listen to God or to each other. Individuals may be doing all kinds of work for God, but they rarely stop long enough to hear what God might have in mind.”
For many years now, I have embraced Celtic Christianity as a way of faith. I have sought to learn and grow into its practices. One of its centers today is the North Umbria Community in Northern England. They say the following about listening to God:
“In the early Irish Church, the Celtic people drew great inspiration from the Apostle John, the beloved disciple. They particularly remembered him as the one who leaned against Jesus’ breast at the Last Supper. He became an image of the practice of listening for the heartbeat of God in the whole of life’s experiences by quiet, silent, contemplative prayer. The early Roman Church drew great inspiration from the Apostle Peter, the undoubted leader of the first disciples. They particularly remembered him as the one to whom Jesus gave ‘the keys of the kingdom’ and who powerfully preached the Word of God to those who would hear. He became an example of the practice of listening for God in the ordained teaching of the Word and in the life of the Church.”
Over the centuries these two aspects of listening to God – the reflective, contemplative inner journey of the heart and the analytical, rational hearing of the Word became separated with the result being a cause for division. However, in recent times we have been seeing a coming together – a clear recognition that we need both streams and traditions.
That listening to God within, at the heart of life and experience; and listening to God through the scriptures, the Church, the means of grace, the gifts of the Spirit are not mutually exclusive. They complement rather than contradict one another.
We need both MEDITATION and CONTEMPLATION as both are important aspects of the spiritual life...
- Meditation is the active use of the mind to analyze, reflect on and discern truth from a passage of scripture or a life situation. In this it is we who actively pursue knowledge of God in relation to his Word and his world. And that’s good, we need to do this. We will be doing this!
- Contemplation is not allowing anything to get in the way of God’s heart, not even the Bible. We are simply waiting on God, open and available to His Person and His Presence, even if that is perceived as Absence. The mind is not in a concentrative ‘pursuit of knowledge’ mode but in a receptive mode. It is allowing the Truth that is God to come to it and not the other way around. The literal root meaning of contemplation is ‘to be in a sacred space’ or ‘to stand in a sacred place’ from ‘con’ = to gaze intently and ‘templum’ = in a sacred place... In both meditation and contemplation, we are seeking God heart to Heart, person to Person; seeking to establish and deepen our relationship through discerning the gentle voice of God in ordinariness and humanness, so as to grow in faith, hope and love.”
How are we listening to God as individuals and as a church? With mindful meditation and silent contemplation?
Cultivating Transformational Leaders,
Steve
