Photo by Lenore M. Edman
by David Carl
As I get older, I am starting to see a pattern emerging in
my life. My attention is getting more focused—that’s a good thing. I don’t like
my schedule to be disrupted too much—not so good. I am getting increasingly set
in my ways—not good at all. It has become very clear to me in the last several
years that one of the most obvious characteristics of a disciple of Christ is
that he or she is enthusiastically in a state of change. None of us “arrives”
as a Christian—we are always on the journey.
I am prone to avoid change and disruption, but if I do, I
will become the thing that has been the cause of so much secular finger-wagging:
I will become the controlling, unconcerned Christian. I really don’t want to
become that guy—Jesus was not that guy. Instead, I want to be wholly rooted in
Scripture and willing to jettison anything that keeps me from pursuing Him. I
have made a list of things that I want to do this year to “shake it up”—to keep
myself open and winsome and spiritually agile. Here are a couple of them.
1. Occasionally,
worship with Christians from other traditions.
I was raised
Presbyterian/Baptist/Evangelical Free. A great way for me to shake it up is to
worship at an Anglican or a contemporary church, to visit both large
congregations and small start-ups. They all worship God differently, with
various traditions and styles. Many of the churches I’ve visited I wouldn’t
want to attend every week, but it is so good to see wonderful people serving
God in different ways.
2. Take a day of
silence and solitude.
I have long wanted to do this, but
it is completely out of my comfort zone. I feel down deep that I need to
cultivate the disciplines of silence and solitude in order to understand things
I have not understood before. There is a lot to this—and most of it I don’t yet
comprehend—but I’m going to start learning. Jesus went away for silence and
solitude often; I guess I could start and do it once.
My list includes other ideas, but I want to encourage you to make up some of your own. Open up the windows of your life and let the wind blow through. Shake it up, and don’t let yourself become controlling and unconcerned. Don’t let yourself become “that guy” or “that gal.”
One great way to
refresh you and your family is to bring your kids along with you on the Insight
for Living 2008 Alaska Cruise this July. David Carl and his wife, Cathy will be ministering to the elementary-age kids all week long!. Visit www.insight.org/events for more information.
David Carl serves as
the creative director for Insight for Kids and Insight for Parents at Insight
for Living.
Comments