What Direction Is Your Spiritual Life Tilting?
What direction is your spiritual life tilting? Because more than likely, it’s leaning one direction or another.
Sure. It’s nice to think your spiritual life is like a rocket shooting straight up to heaven. But it never seems to work out that way.
On two days of the first week in March, it snowed in Dayton, Ohio. I looked outside at the white blanket covering the landscape and thought this isn’t supposed to be happening. It’s March. The official start of spring is only a few weeks away.
It had been a cold winter and I longed for warmth. So I reminded myself that despite the look of winter, spring was on the way.
Temperatures would rise. Flowers and greenery bloom. Yard work begin. Okay, perhaps I could tone down the enthusiasm just a bit.
The point is, time marches on and the engagement of a well-established, physical laws inevitable…
The northern hemisphere of earth warms as it tilts toward the sun. I learned this in 6th grade science.
Amazing I remember that lesson from decades ago, but clueless on where I put my cell phone last night.
One of life’s great paradoxes.
There’s a parallel, spiritual law at work too. It explains why your spiritual life lacks power. Your faith feels cold. And God’s voice sounds distant.
What direction is your spiritual life tilting? When you tilt away from the Son.
How do you know when you’re tilting away from Jesus Christ, the Son of God?
Well, I can’t speak for you, but when I tilt away from Christ my spiritual life takes on a passive posture. And I tend to become a spiritual spectator. Waiting on, expecting God to act. A petulant child demanding my Father to deliver.
Worship becomes a feel-good sensation that lasts a few hours, rather than a dynamic, personal connection with a living God that empowers me throughout the week.
Why is this an indicator of spiritual life tilting?
Because God is never passive. He’s always active. Always. So if he’s not active in my life then it’s not His problem. It’s mine.
What I’ve learned is that the Kingdom of God doesn’t come TO me, it comes THROUGH me. And tilting towards Him is the warming trend that initiates the process.
So what does spiritual life tilting look like?
It begins in my spiritual disciplines. We say it all the time at church.
Spend time in His Word… In prayer…In applying His word to my life.
Okay, so I’m not always sure where and how God is working. That’s part of the faith journey. But when I spiritually tilt toward Him, I sense the warmth of His presence. Assurance of His love. And confidence that His ultimate plan and purpose will unfold. And that too, is inevitable.
So if your faith feels cold. God is remote. And you’re trudging along on a treadmill of meaningless, spiritual activity. One small, intentional move could make a big difference.
Tilt forward.
About Chip Tudor:
Chip Tudor is a freelance copywriter, published author, playwright and pastor. He publishes drama at www.chiptudor.com, books on Amazon.com, and articles on his blog.
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