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2
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- What it’s NOT:
- A new “fad” or “program” to grow your church
- Christianity mingling with Catholicism or New Age practices
- Exaggerating our spirituality or prayer life
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3
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- 1 Timothy 4:16
- “Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in
these things, for as you do this you will ensure salvation both for
yourself and for those who hear you.”
- We need to pay attention to the “inside” & “outside” – our formation
involves both.
- “YOURSELF” - Some of us have a tendency to pay more attention to what we
“don’t” do than what we “do.”
- “YOUR TEACHING” - Often the problem in our lives and ministries is
caused by our teaching . . . or what we are NOT teaching.
- “ENSURE SALVATION” - Paul says if you do this, you will surely succeed.
The assurance of success is huge. There is a great burden on pastors
today of not succeeding, and it comes from false teaching of what
“success” is.
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4
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- Proverbs 4:23
“Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of
life.”- The “heart” is the most hidden, deep part of the self.
- It is focused on the “will”: the ability to create or refrain from
creating something.
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5
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- Ephesians 1:16-23
- “I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my
prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the
glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so
that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart
may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has
called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and
his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the
working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he
raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the
heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion,
and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also
in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and
appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his
body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.”
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6
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- Ephesians 1:16-23
- This passage gives a “vision” of what we should expect in our lives.
- Notice the centrality of the knowledge of God.
- Notice how personal this is.
- Your heart “knows” things, and this is what makes a difference in our
lives.
- Today we are so immersed in knowledge that it makes no difference in
our lives.
- People are educated with a knowledge that is contrary to what we are
teaching.
- These are great phrases to take into a time of meditation:
- “that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened,”
- “the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints,”
- “and his incomparably great power for us who believe.”
- Do you think about yourself in these terms?
- Paul knew that we are living in another world - the kingdom of God.
- God is doing something great in the people he calls through Jesus.
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7
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- Colossians 1:9-17
- For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped
praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his
will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in
order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in
every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of
God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might
so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving
thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance
of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the
dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he
loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. He is the
image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him
all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and
invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all
things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in
him all things hold together.
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- Colossians 1:9-17
- Paul had a magnificent view of what he was called to – and it is up to
us to understand this for ourselves.
- It is crucial to put ourselves in these contexts.
- The point is to emphasize the limitless reach of God’s power that we are
involved in.
- We are invited to step into that power, and we need to see that this
passage is speaking to us!
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9
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- à If the apostles and
writers of Scripture had preached, taught, and lived what we are
preaching, teach, and live . . .
- What would Christianity look like today?
- Would there be a Christianity today?
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10
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- The process through which people become the persons they are
- Everyone gets a “spiritual formation”
- “Christian Spiritual Formation” is the process through which individuals
who have received new life “from above” take on the character of Christ
by a combination of effort and grace
- It is “growth in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ” (2 Peter 3:18)
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- Spiritual Formation = our ongoing transformation into greater
Christlikeness
- “Our Journey With Jesus”
- Our – in community vs. alone
- Journey – a process
- With – living the “with-God” life; abiding
- Jesus – the smartest person who ever lived
- What you really believe about Jesus is shown by what you do after you
learn that you can’t do anything . . . and that you need God’s grace.
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12
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- Discipleship is the relationship I stand in to Jesus Christ in order
that I might take on his character.
- As His disciple I am learning from Jesus how to live my life in the
Kingdom as He would if He were I.
- The natural outcome is that my behavior is transformed. Increasingly I routinely and easily do
the things he said and did.
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13
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- It is not enough to grow in only one area of personal formation.
- Case Study: 4 years and little change!
- The prevailing pattern of leaders is to focus intently on one area and
neglect other areas.
- Health, balance, and true effectiveness come when all the parts of
one’s being and character are growing and being formed in the ways
intended by the God who created them.
- “Spiritual Formation” is becoming just another passing fad.
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- Feel distant from God (lack of spiritual formation)
- Struggle with destructive feelings (lack of emotional formation)
- Disconnected & isolated (lack of relational formation)
- Have minds filled with thoughts & ideas other than God and God’s
Word (lack of mental formation)
- Unhealthy in body (lack of physical formation)
- Focused more on models and structures than the content and call of the
gospel message (lack of missional formation)
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15
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- Because God says it is . . .
- What happens when you “pull the plug”?
- Barely 25% of Christian leaders finish well!
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16
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- For Pastors
- Fifteen hundred pastors leave the ministry each month due to moral
failure, spiritual burnout, or contention in their churches.
- Fifty percent of pastors' marriages will end in divorce.
- Eighty percent of pastors and eighty-four percent of their spouses feel
unqualified and discouraged in their role as pastors.
- Fifty percent of pastors are so discouraged that they would leave the
ministry if they could, but have no other way of making a living.
- Eighty percent of seminary and Bible school graduates who enter the
ministry will leave the ministry within the first five years.
- Seventy percent of pastors constantly fight depression.
- Almost forty percent polled said they have had an extra-marital affair
since beginning their ministry.
- Seventy percent said the only time they spend studying the Word is when
they are preparing their sermons.
- * Statistics from Barna Research & Focus on the Family
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17
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- For Pastors' Wives
- Eighty percent of pastors' spouses feel their spouse is overworked.
- Eighty percent of pastors' spouses wish their spouse would choose
another profession.
- The majority of pastor's wives surveyed said that the most destructive
event that has occurred in their marriage and family was the day they
entered the ministry.
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- Ministry is tough work!
- God is more interested in our ‘finishing well’ than in our being
successful!
- [Solo Exercise]
What do we need to pay attention to in order to finish well?
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19
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- Mexico City Olympic Stadium, 7 p.m. Oct 20, 1968. The last marathon
runners were stumbling across the finish line.
- Finally, the wail of sirens signified a lone final runner.
- John Stephen Akwari of Tanzania had injured his leg in a fall. Bloodied
and crudely bandaged he hobbled his final lap.
- Spectators rose and applauded as though he was the winner. When asked: “Why didn’t you quit?”
- Akwari said, “My country didn’t send me 7,000 miles to start the
race. They sent me 7,000 miles
to finish it.”
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20
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- We all entered ministry with both conscious and unconscious motives. Our
conscious motives were not . . .
- Let me see how quickly I can burn-out, have panic attacks, end up
clinically depressed, cause a church-split, etc.
- But . . .How can I finish well, model the gospel and the kingdom of
God, be faithful to the calling I’ve received, etc.
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21
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- 21st Century Challenges to the Formation of Spiritual Leaders
(Tuesday)
- The 6 Dimensions of your Formation
(Wednesday)
- Leading as a Whole-Person Leader
(Thursday)
- Practices for Whole-Person Leadership
(Friday)
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22
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- 21st Century
- Challenges
- to the Formation
- of Spiritual Leaders
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23
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- The 1960’s à
- The church is no longer at the center of activity
- The pastor is no longer the authority in the city
- Leaders don’t know how to lead from the margins
- More attention given to “image management” than “spiritual substance”
- à How do you experience
this challenge?
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24
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- The 1970’s à
- Fueled by the church growth movement
- Large successful churches become the focus for replication and even
franchising
- “If it worked for them, it can work for us!”
- More attention starts being given to external methods and practices than
to internal growth and formation
- The church begins to look to the business world
- à How do you experience
this challenge?
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25
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- Romans 3:9-21
“What shall we conclude then? Are we any better? Not at all! We
have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under
sin. As it is written:
"There are no Fully Devoted Followers™ of Christ, not
even one;
there is no one who is Purpose Driven™,
no one who asks, 'What Would Jesus Do?™'.
All have turned away,
they have together become worthless;
there is no one who follows the 21 Irrefutable Laws of
Leadership™,
not even one."
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26
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- The 1980’s à
- The church has become a vendor of “religious goods and
services”
- Attendees have become “consumers”
- People only interested in receiving benefits from Christ
- Salvation is just heaven
- This has now become the default system in western Christianity
- Many people think they have tried “faith” but they have only tried
“profession of faith.”
- This does not transform – you cannot do discipleship on the basis of
Consumer Christianity.
- à How do you experience
this challenge?
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27
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- The 1990’s à
- The church starts realizing the reality and influence
of a new worldview: postmodernism
- Many have difficulty in understanding the transition from modernism
- Fear of cultural relativism and absence of absolute truth
- Many pastors & Christian leaders received their call in an era that
is past. They feel that they’ve
been left behind.
- à How do you experience
this challenge?
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- “The gospel” has come to mean merely giving mental assent to a series of
facts or statements in order to get to heaven
- Heaven is viewed as only a future reality
- There is no understanding of living in the “kingdom of the heavens” now
- Being a disciple of Christ is optional
- For several decades, we have majored in “salvation” and minored in
“sanctification.”
- à How do you experience
this challenge?
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29
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- Pastors don’t fail in ministry because they forget they are
pastors,
Leaders don’t fail in their leadership because they forget they
are leaders,
. . . they fail because they forget they are persons.
- Your person is the primary tool God uses for building His kingdom – “The
culture of your inner self” (Spurgeon)
- Confusion of “roles”
- Effect on the leader’s “identity”
- à How do you experience
this challenge?
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30
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- The result of all the other challenges
- All we have left are fragments
- Dis-integration of life & ministry
- Did no one think to ask “What will be the consequences if we . . . ?”
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31
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- “The biggest challenge for the church at the opening of the twenty-first
century is to develop a solution to the discontinuity and fragmentation
of the American lifestyle.”
- Lyle Schaller (at a Leadership Network Conference, quoted in Frazee,
The Connecting Church, p. 37)
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32
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- à What are one or two ways
you are feeling pressures and fragmentation in your life?
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33
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34
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- Marginalization à
God-centered
- Models & Programs à
Spiritual journeys
- Consumerism à Discipleship
- Cultural fear à Trinitarian
Immersion
- Reductionism à
Magnification
- Loss of Personhood à
Incarnation
- Fragmentation à Wholeness
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35
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36
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- This is the organizing principle of everything we will discuss.
- This is the structure of spirituality and ministry
- It will work
- Not everyone will choose it
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37
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- All personal change requires vision
- Almost everything can be overcome by the power of vision if it is strong
and good enough
- The vision we are talking about here is of:
- 1. The Kingdom of God and your life in it
- 2. Character Goals
- 3. Your Empowerment
- If we present a vision of something else, we will get a different result
(e.g. How to be a . . . )
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38
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- A vision has to be powerful, and if it is, the way will open through
intention and means.
- Intention to actually fulfill the vision
- The intention is to be Jesus’ student, disciple, apprentice
- This will only come in seeing the goodness of what he said
- Discipleship is not something you just drift into - you decide/intend to
enter into the life you see in the vision
- Once you see life in the kingdom of God for what it is, then you are in
a position to say “I want this above all.” You have to believe it is the
most important thing in the world for you, or you cannot form the
intention.
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39
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- For realizing the Vision
- Spiritual Disciplines effectively implemented
- When you have the vision and the intention, the means become more
obvious
- For example if you want to live without anger or with anger under your
control, what are the means appropriate to bring you to that place?
- If you don’t have intention - forget the means - they won’t work!
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40
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- How to pay attention
- to all the Dimensions
- of your life
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41
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- Many of us hate finding things out about ourselves, getting feedback,
etc.
- We compartmentalize our self-awareness.
- This resistance blocks our self-discovery.
- We make this journey hand in hand with our Creator.
- There is nothing we can ever discover that God cannot deal with it.
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42
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- Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of
compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our
troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort
we ourselves have received from God. For just as the sufferings of
Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort
overflows. If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation;
if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you
patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. And our hope for you
is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so
also you share in our comfort.
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43
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- Without a theology of ministry you can’t survive.
- What is the foundation on which Paul’s theology of ministry begins?
- (:3-4) = God is the God of all comfort
- This is not just comfort for suffering. It’s comfort in the broadest
sense you can think of or describe.
- The formula: I get comfort
(healing) for myself à then
pass it on to others.
- Unless you take this healing for yourself, you have nothing to pass on
to others.
- We are all wounded. None of us is whole. We are broken. We have such
dark secrets that we don’t even want to confront them.
- Our woundedness wounds others if it has not been healed first!
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- Emotional Formation
- Relational Formation
- Spiritual Formation
- Missional Formation
- Physical Formation
- Mental Formation
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45
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48
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51
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52
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53
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54
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- The Need
- Increased interest in “spirituality”
- Driven by the deep hunger of people to establish some kind of identity
and empowerment
- There is a tendency to think of spirituality as related to involvement
in certain events such as church attendance, discipleship relationships,
or a prayer group
- Christian spirituality has not typically been seen as a day-to-day life
that involves every aspect of one’s being
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55
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- Definition
- The process through which people become the persons they are
- Everyone gets a “spiritual formation”
- “Christian Spiritual Formation” is the process through which individuals
who have received new life “from above” take on the character of Christ
by a combination of effort and grace
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56
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- Biblical/Theological Basis
- It is “Growth in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ.” (2 Peter 3:18)
- In other words, our lives increase in
- grace (God acting in our life) and
- knowledge (interactive relationship with God)
- It is not a matter of behaving in certain ways, but of being inwardly
and thoroughly a different kind of person: having the character of
Christ.
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57
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- Importance in the Lives of Leaders
- The problem arises when spiritual leaders rely on external sources of
empowerment and then either ignore or neglect their own spiritual
formation.
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58
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- “Blessed are they who penetrate inwardly, who try daily to prepare
themselves more and more to understand mysteries. Blessed are they who
long to give their time to God, and who cut themselves off from the
hindrances of the world.”
Thomas a’Kempis, The Imitation of Christ
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60
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- The Need
- Tends to surface during times of crisis.
- Personal crises, marital tensions, family problems, and ministry
conflicts all can lead you into a process that opens up new and
significant opportunities for emotional formation.
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- Definition
- Emotional formation is a process that begins with bringing the emotional
parts of one’s being into conscious awareness and focus.
- Bringing issues that have been hidden in darkness out into the light.
- An ongoing process of involving these issues in formational processes
and exercises.
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62
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- Biblical/Theological Basis
- Mark 7:20-23
He went on: “What comes out of a man is what makes him ‘unclean.’
For from within, out of men's hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual
immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness,
envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and
make a man ‘unclean.’”
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63
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- Importance in the lives of leaders
- Gives you the ability to admit your imperfections and issues, yet keep
working through them
- You become oriented toward truth, and thus have the ability to observe
yourself and your actions, versus waiting to be observed by others
- You can’t give away what you don’t have!
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64
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- Primary Issues that Impact Spiritual Leaders
- Addiction
- Stress
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Burnout
- Anger
- Guilt
- Lack of Assertiveness
- Poor self-esteem
- Sexuality
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66
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- Definition
- The process of spiritual transformation that results from being deeply
involved in authentic and life-changing relationships with other people.
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- The Need
- A journey through emotional formation has the potential to bring a
spiritual leader to the realization that no one has all the resources
within to deal with the intense issues of life and humanity. The logical
next step in the process is to find these resources through
relationships with others.
- Individualism
- Isolationism
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68
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- Biblical/Theological Basis
- Genesis 2:18 “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a
helper suitable for him.”
- 2 Corinthians 1:3-7 “. . . so that we can comfort those in any trouble
with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.”
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- Why is it important in the life of the leader?
- It is much too easily ignored by spiritual leaders
- The importance of relationships to physical and mental health is
well-documented today
- Leadership is a relationship
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71
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- The Need
- The tendency to get stuck in one way of thinking
- Breaking free of ineffective paradigms
- The continual profusion of knowledge
- The place of the mind in effecting the other parts of our being
- What we are like is what is on our minds
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72
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- Definition
- The consistent renewing of our minds and thinking so that we are
centered on God and his wisdom for our lives.
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73
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- The importance for leaders
- The source of our life
Minds have ideas, images, beliefs, patterns of inference. There
are feelings in response to those ideas. What you think about - what
occupies your mind, governs your feelings. You can begin to master your
feelings if you change your ideas.
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74
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- Biblical/Theological Basis
- Romans 12:1-2
Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer
your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your
spiritual act of worship. 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.
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76
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- The Need
- The stress of leadership
- Lack of sleep
- Poor nutrition
- Inadequate exercise
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77
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- Definition
- The opportunity to discipline our literal physical bodies for the
purpose of godliness.
- Issues Related to Physical Formation
- Sleeping, Rest, & Stress Management
- Eating, Nutrition, & proper body Weight
- Exercise
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78
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- Biblical/Theological Basis
- Look at the amount of physical healing Jesus does in his
ministry. Jesus put a high priority on people being physically
whole.
- 1 Corinthians 3:16-17
“Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that
God's Spirit lives in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will
destroy him; for God's temple is sacred, and you are that temple.”
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- Importance in the Life of a Leader
- Many God followers too easily write off the importance of the body and
the physical aspects of our being as either unimportant or beyond
redemption. When this happens, the natural result is ignoring the body
and hoping that it will somehow cooperate with our “spiritual” goals.
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81
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- Definition
- The process in the life of a spiritual leader whereby God focuses that
leader’s heart, passion, gifts, experiences, and energies in a direction
that intersects with the mission of God.
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82
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- The Need
- Its brokenness and depravity continually lead the church back to an
inwardness that keeps it from fulfilling the mission Jesus gave to the
church
- The church is only the church when it lives for others (Dietrich
Bonheoffer)
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83
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- Biblical/Theological Basis
- Isaiah 12:4-5
“Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name; make known among the
nations what he has done, and proclaim that his name is exalted. Sing to
the Lord, for he has done glorious things; let this be known to all the
world”
- 2 Corinthians 2:15-17
“For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are
perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the
fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task? . . . in Christ we
speak before God with sincerity, like men sent from God”
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84
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- Spiritual – Looking Upward
- Emotional – Looking Inward
- Relational – Looking Outward
- Mental – Looking Onward
- Physical – Looking Downward
- Missional – Looking Forward
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86
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- Dear God, I have no idea where I am going.
- I do not see the road ahead of me.
- I cannot know for certain where it will end.
- Nor do I really know myself . . .
- and the fact that I think that I am following Your will does not mean
that I am actually doing so.
- But I believe this:
- I believe that the desire to please You does in fact please You.
- I hope I have that desire in everything I do.
- I hope I never persist in anything apart from that desire.
- And I know that if I do this You will lead me by the right road,
- Though I may know nothing about it at the time.
- Therefore I will trust You always, for though I may be lost – and in the
shadow of death –
- I will not be afraid, because I know You will never leave me to face my
troubles all alone.
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87
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88
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- Leading as
- a Whole-Person
- Leader
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89
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- Seeing “The Whole” in Music
- A gifted composer can “hear” the entire orchestra – every part of it,
every instrument – before he or she ever hears the composition played.
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90
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- Seeing “The Whole” in Words
- I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg.
The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid!
Aoccdrnig to rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't
mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng
is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae.
The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a
porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by
istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig huh?
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91
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- Seeing “The Whole” in People
- “As we recognize, respect, and create ways for others to give voice to
all four parts of their nature—physically, mentally,
emotionally/socially and spiritually—latent human genius, creativity,
passion, talent and motivation is unleashed. It will be those
organizations that reach a critical mass of people and teams expressing
their full voice that will achieve next-level breakthrough in
productivity, innovation and leadership in the marketplace and society.
Next time you meet with your team take a moment to look around at each
individual, and ask yourself what you can do as their leader to assist
them in expressing their full voice.”
Stephen R. Covey
An excerpt from The 8th Habit: From Effectiveness to Greatness
book.
Part of FranklinCovey's Leadership: Great Leaders, Great Teams,
Great Results Program.
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92
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- “By health we [usually] mean little more than how we feel. . . . By
health, in other words, we [as a culture] mean merely the absence of
disease. . . . But the concept of health is rooted in the concept of
wholeness. To be healthy is to be
whole. . . . But how can it be whole and yet be dependent, as it
obviously is, upon other bodies and upon the earth, upon all the rest of
creation, in fact? . . . In that, all the convergences and dependences
of creation are surely implied. . . . Persons cannot be whole
alone. It is wrong to think that
bodily health is compatible with spiritual confusion or cultural
disorder, or with polluted air and water or impoverished soil.”
- Wendell Berry, The Unsettling of America, 1997, p. 103
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93
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- The Gnostics elevated the importance of the spiritual over the material.
- This is influenced by Greek thinking with its artificial divisions. It
is much more balanced to understand our lives from the Hebrew
perspective which sees the whole.
- “Contemporary Gnosticism” has taken the spiritual and elevated it above
the other areas of our lives – It is a heresy that says what you are
“spiritually” is most important. The assumption is that if you get the
spiritual into right order, everything else will fall into place.
- As leaders we can make a correction to the way others have separated the
spiritual . . . from the emotional . . . from the physical . . . from
the mental, etc.
- Biblically there is no divide between the dimensions of the person. Who
I am in each dimension of my person is who I am spiritually!
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94
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- “There is something in all of us
that loves to put together a puzzle, that loves to see the image of the
whole emerge. The beauty of a person, or a flower, or a poem lies in
seeing all of it. It is interesting that the words “whole” and “health”
come from the same root (the Old English “hal”). So it should come as no
surprise that the unhealthiness of our world today is in direct
proportion to our inability to see it as a whole.”
Peter Senge, The Fifth Discipline – The Art & Practice of The
Learning Organization (New York: Doubleday/Currency, 1990), 68-69.
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95
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- The result of not seeing something holistically leads to “un-health”
- What happens when we apply this same principle to our lives?
. . . our leadership?
. . . the church?
- Could it be that the amount of un-health in the life of a leader or
ministry is in direct proportion to the inability or unwillingness to
view it as a whole?
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96
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- What keeps you from seeing your life as a whole?
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97
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- The concept of wholeness is implicit in both the Old and New Testaments
- The entirety of the biblical narrative is a story which continually and
consistently gives weight to every aspect of the person
- It is the nature of God to view creation holistically
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98
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- covenant (berîth) - the concept deals with either the wholeness of
something being seen as two parts, or the bond of two parties around an
agreement.
- tamam (tāmam) - is translated with the following concepts: “to be
complete, finished, integrity, sound, soundness.”
- shalom (shālôm) - based upon the concept of being complete or
sound, of entering into a state of wholeness and unity, or a restored
relationship.
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99
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- holiness (hagiasmas ) - the essence of holiness is a dynamic expression
of the divine within the normal processes of daily life.
- salvation (sōzō) - has the sense of either making well,
delivering from evil, or physical affliction. In other words, the
healing in these stories is always of the whole person.
- telios (telios) - signifies an undivided wholeness of people in their
behavior.
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100
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- Matthew 5:48
“Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
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101
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- Luke 10:27 - “He answered: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart
and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your
mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”
- Ephesians 4:13 - “. . . until we all reach unity in the faith and in the
knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole
measure of the fullness of Christ.”
- 1 Thessalonians 5:23 - “May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you
through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept
blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
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102
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- “The salvation or deliverance
of the believer in Christ is essentially holistic or whole-life . . . A
major part of understanding spiritual formation in the Christian
traditions is to follow closely the way the biblical writings repeatedly
and emphatically focus on the various essential dimensions of the human
being and their role in life as a whole.”
Dallas Willard, Renovation
of the Heart
(Colorado Springs: Navpress, 2002), 31.
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103
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104
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105
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- More than any other person who has walked the face of the earth, Jesus
embodied a holistic approach to living.
- “Jesus’ enduring relevance is based on his historically proven ability
to speak to, to heal and empower the individual human condition. He
matters because of what he brought and what he still brings to ordinary
human beings, living their ordinary lives and coping daily with their
surroundings. He promises wholeness for their lives. In sharing our
weakness he gives us strength and imparts through his companionship a
life that has the quality of eternity.”
Willard, The Divine Conspiracy, 13.
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106
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107
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- 2 Timothy 2:15 – “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a
worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of
truth.” (NKJV)
- When new information & ideas come into our reality – It might or
might not change our paradigms.
- “Knowledge” in the Bible is always interactive relationship. Never head
knowledge (John 17:3)
- We need this for each area of our
formation
- à What happens when people
get stuck here?
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108
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- Romans 8:29 – “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be
conformed to the likeness of his Son”
- When we realize there is something we need to do with our lives
- à What are some of the
dangers of this stage?
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109
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- Jeremiah 7:3 – “This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says:
Reform your ways and your actions, and I will let you live in this
place.”
- When we get to the place that we realize there was something too basic
about IN-formation and too external about CON-formation.
- When our lives become more open to change.
- “Always reforming”
- à What needs to be
RE-formed in your life or ministry right now?
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110
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- Romans 12:2 – “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.”
- When change really begins to sink in
- When we can look at our lives and begin to see Jesus
- When we’re able to live our lives as Jesus would live our lives if he
were us
- à What would be different
if every area of your life experienced this kind of TRANS-formation?
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111
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- Understanding and paying attention to all the dimensions of the person.
- A commitment to being formed in each area according to God’s plan for
our lives.
- Seeing wholeness as the goal of our growth and maturity.
- à What might the church
look like if everyone was committed to WHOLE-formation?
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112
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- IN-formation
- CON-formation
- RE-formation
- TRANS-formation
- WHOLE-formation
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113
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- What stages have you seen clearly in your own life?
- Which stage are those you lead most attracted to?
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114
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115
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- “I have always been fascinated by these wagon wheels with their wide
rims, strong wooden spokes, and big hubs. These wheels help me
understand the importance of a life lived from the centre. When I move
along the rim, I can reach one spoke after the other, but when I stay at
the hub, I am in touch with all the spokes at once.”
- Henri Nouwen, Here and Now (1994)
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116
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- The need for an integration of all 6 dimensions – for a “7th
Awareness”
- Paradox of “focusing” (narrow) on “wholeness” (broad)
- Focusing on Jesus
Heb. 12:22 – “fix your eyes on Jesus”
- Acts 14:23 – you must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of
God
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117
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- Don’t try to be like Christ
Efforts to become Christ like (by direct efforts) will always
fail if all you do is try to be like Christ.
- Put effort into forming the main dimensions of the self
- If you want to keep the law, don’t try to keep the law.
- Try to become the kind of person who naturally does what the law says.
- Do something
Jesus said, ‘Without me you can do nothing.”
But if we do nothing, it will be without him.
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118
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- Leaders must emerge to live and teach a Gospel vision of “life now in
the eternal kingdom of the heavens” that leads naturally into
discipleship to Christ.
- Leaders must lead local groups into the choice and intention of a life
of discipleship.
- Leaders must exemplify and teach methods of personal transformation that
yield people who easily do “all that I have commanded you.”
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119
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- Leaders need to rewrite the “contract” - the understanding of what
people think “church” is all about and what they and their leaders are
supposed to be doing.
- Leaders must recognize that the standard activities of “church
membership” are not adequate means for spiritual formation in
Christlikeness.
- Leaders might face tremendous difficulties in their congregations and
organizations because most people expect their leaders to please them
rather than change them.
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120
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- Leaders must organize all our relational and ministry activities around
this kind of transformation into abundance and obedience.
- Leaders must expect people to grow into doing the things Jesus said.
- Leaders should announce publicly that we actually teach people how to do
them—to become the kind of person who does them.
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121
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- We will surely see some people begin to move in transformation and
whole-life formation.
- These disciples can form a core which, by grace and instruction, can
stand steady in the grinding process of congregational change.
- We must continually help them into activities that are genuinely
transforming.
- They will develop a gratifying sense of growth in grace and knowledge of
Jesus, and others, inside our congregations and out, will be drawn in to
a formational way of life.
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122
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- It’s all true
- It works
- It’s accessible to anyone who will put their confidence in Jesus
- There is nothing on earth to compare to it
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123
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- Now may the God of hope
- fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in
hope
- by the power of the Holy Spirit.
- (Romans 15:13)
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124
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|
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125
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126
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- “To keep the lamp burning, we have to keep putting oil in it.”
- Mother Teresa
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127
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- Spiritual Formation =
our ongoing transformation
into greater Christlikeness
- “Our Journey With Jesus”
- Our – in community vs. alone
- Journey – a process
- With – living the “with-God” life; abiding
- Jesus – the smartest person who ever lived
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128
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- The actions that allow us to do what we cannot do by direct effort
- A discipline is something in my power that enables me to do what I
cannot do by my power
- Following Jesus into his practices
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129
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- “Grace” is God acting in our life to accomplish what we cannot do on our
own.
- Grace is not opposed to effort but to earning.
- If we do nothing . . . it will be without God!
- The secret of spiritual growth is not trying, but training.
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130
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- For years the only question they knew to ask was . . . “How many . . . ”
- Decisions for Christ?
- Baptisms?
- Members?
- Attend each weekend?
- Tithe?
- Are in small groups?
- Actively serve?
- We need a question that helps us understand the spiritual journey . . . “Where
are we?”
- The health of the church is not just about numbers, but about the
movement of people toward Christ, toward deep love for God and genuine
love for others.
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131
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- For generations church leaders have been designing and funding an
assortment of church activities and programs that they sincerely
believed would help people grow spiritually.
- Then they encourage as many people as possible to get involved in those
activities and programs, believing that increased participation means
the lost are being reached and believers are growing.
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132
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- A three-year process of study and research (2004-2007)
- Analysis of 6000 surveys at Willow
- Analysis of 300 surveys by people who left Willow within the previous
year
- Analysis of 5000 surveys from 7 churches
- More than 120 in-depth one-on-one conversations with people exploring
their spiritual lives
- Consultation with experts in the area of spiritual growth
- Analysis based on 2.6 million data points
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133
|
- Does increased attendance in ministry programs automatically equate to
spiritual growth?
- IT DOES NOT!
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134
|
- What they did find:
- Spiritual growth is all about increasing relational closeness to Christ
- Personal spiritual practices are the building blocks for a
Christ-centered life
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135
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- Solitude
- Silence
- Fasting
- Frugality
- Chastity
- Secrecy
- Sacrifice
- Study
- Worship
- Celebration
- Service
- Prayer
- Fellowship
- Confession
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136
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137
|
- Solitude
- The choice and practice of being alone, being apart from the press of
the usual human connections.
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138
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- Silence
- No Noise – Quietness
- Not Talking
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139
|
- Fasting
- To go without food or food and drink for a specified period of time in
order to accomplish a spiritual purpose.
- It’s purpose is to stand fast or firm in the face of desire – to bring
you to the place where your desires do not rule your life.
- Fasting is actually feasting upon God –
being nourished by God.
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140
|
- Frugality
- Abstaining from using money or goods that we have in ways that merely
gratify our desires or our hunger for status, glamour, or luxury
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141
|
- Chastity
- To refrain from sexual acts, thoughts and desires, as a way of
accustoming oneself to freedom from domination by sex.
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142
|
- Secrecy
- To refrain from letting our good deeds by known.
- To break our dependency on human approval.
- Those who have a public ministry especially need this.
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143
|
- Sacrifice
- To surrender that which is necessary (e.g. our money for food) or to
accept with joy the loss of what is necessary, to practice the
sufficiency of God.
- Often the receiving of what is imposed upon us in faith and joy than
seeing it as loss. (If something is taken from you, we call it loss. If
it is given, we call it sacrifice)
- Different from “frugality” - not
indulging ourselves in things we don’t need. “Sacrifice” - we are giving
up things that are necessary.
- It may mean the loss of something like reputation. Divorce might be an
example of this.
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144
|
- Study
- In study we focus our mind upon something to bring its substance and
order into our mind and from there into the rest of our life
- Joshua 1:8
- The importance of memorization
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145
|
- Worship
- Worship is the act and state of ascribing greatness to God in every
respect
- Not something that you do with musical instruments before the sermon. It
might happen here, doesn’t always happen.
- “To think of God as he is, we cannot help but lapse into worship; and
worship is the single most powerful force in completing and sustaining
restoration in the whole person.” (Revolution of Character, p. 92)
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146
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- Celebration
- Rejoicing over what God has done for me and others
- The discipline of remembering (Ps. 143:5-6)
- More important in the hard times than any time else – primarily to keep
before your mind that God has done well by you.
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147
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- Service
- To engage ourselves for the good of others – with no regard to what our
reward shall be.
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148
|
- Prayer
- To stay in action with God by asking and waiting. You are not a
spectator when you pray.
- Talking to God about what we are now doing together. When we do things,
we need to always remember to involve God.
- Working with God in the kingdom of God.
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149
|
- Fellowship
- To be with others - especially in worship, learning, and service.
- To know Christ in others without regard to their human “qualifications”
and to be received on the same basis.
- Has special relevance to contemporary life where there is so much
loneliness. But the main point is to see how disciples living together
can grow together in spiritual formation.
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150
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- Confession
- We let down our defensiveness to allow ourselves to be known,
selectively and wisely.
- Being humble before others, and allowing others to know our weaknesses.
No matter how painful things may be, I don’t have to hide them.
- Confession is good for the soul, but bad for the reputation. Often our
reputation needs to suffer. We are not here to defend our reputation.
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151
|
- How Does One Practice Spiritual Disciplines?
- Decide to live intentionally as Jesus’ student
- Begin to obey His teachings in everything
- Observe why you fail
- Practice what will remove the causes of failure – These will be
DISCIPLINES
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152
|
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153
|
- Spend time in solitude and silence.
- Read the Bible to find practical wisdom & insight for life.
- Practice the spiritual disciplines of fasting or meditation
- Intend to live your life as Jesus would live your life if he were you.
- Spend time with a spiritual director.
- Make space in your life and schedule for God.
- Spend time in prayer both talking and listening to God.
- Look for ways the “spiritual” touches every area of your life.
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154
|
- Express your own feelings and convictions balanced with consideration
for the thoughts and feelings of others.
- See a counselor when a crisis or issue arises.
- Think about how family of origin has a significant impact on your
thoughts and behaviors.
- Work on having an accurate self-image.
- Examine your life to see if you are being controlled by any addictions
(e.g. food, drugs, alcohol, sex).
- Don’t use other people to get things done.
- Be aware when you feel emotions such as depression, anxiety, fear, or
anger.
- Make sure your life involves play and leisure.
- Consider what failures in your life might be the method God has chosen
for your success.
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155
|
- Develop a friendship with at least one friend who knows everything about
you.
- Have several friends who will do whatever it takes to spend time with
you when needed.
- Talk with friends about spiritual matters and personal issues in your
life.
- Spend time with a person as a spiritual companion or spiritual friend.
- Look for ways that God communicates his attributes to us through others.
- Confess wrong things you have done to a safe friend.
- Become an active part of a community of God’s people.
- Commit to never solving issues you have with a specific person by
telling someone else about it.
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156
|
- Exercise regularly (e.g. at least 3-4 times a week).
- Sleep at least 8-9 hours a night.
- Examine your life and work load to insure that you do not have too much
stress.
- Perform relaxation exercises.
- Eat a well-balanced diet with the proper amount of protein,
carbohydrates, and fat.
- Commit to becoming the proper weight for someone of your age and
stature.
- Find a new hobby or recreational pursuit which you enjoy doing.
- Exercise with a personal trainer.
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157
|
- Commit to being a life-long learner.
- Read a book that will help you to grow and learn about things that are
new and challenging.
- Attend a seminar or conference that will expand your knowledge and
experience.
- Listen to a speaker or pastor who can help you to gain new perspectives.
- Discuss a stimulating topic with others who enjoy learning.
- Set goals and objectives for the various areas of your life.
- Seek to learn from people of different generations than your own.
- Make time to study topics which you desire to learn more about.
- Find a mentor that will help you to learn and grow in at least one area
of my life.
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158
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- Look for opportunities to share the gospel with others.
- Become more aware of actively living in the kingdom of God in your daily
life.
- Practice hospitality in your home.
- See yourself as someone who is sent by God to the people you live and
work with each day.
- Study the changes shaping the culture.
- Commit to consistently live the mission Jesus gave his followers in
Matthew 28:18-20 to make disciples, baptize them, and teach them to obey
everything he said to do.
- Become involved in some form of social justice or compassion-based
ministry.
- Commit to be biblically and theologically knowledgeable.
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159
|
|
|
160
|
- Applying Spiritual Disciplines to our Formation
- Understand the Foundational Disciplines:
- Take the 6 areas/dimensions of Your Formation into Solitude, Silence,
& Prayer
- Ask yourself: “Where will I start today?”
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161
|
- Applying Spiritual Disciplines to one dimension:
- Spiritual – spend time in solitude, silence & prayer – rest in God
and his grace
- Emotional – journal for confession or self-awareness
- Relational – do a tribute exercise: write several eulogies or get with
one other person for mutual affirmation
- Mental – memorize a passage of Scripture & internalize it as you
practice the presence of God in your life
- Physical – write a covenant commitment for your body, take a hike, or
sleep
- Missional – reflect on how your life is promoting the availability of
the Kingdom of God to others
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Notes
