Spiritual Formation was a rather brilliant non-assessed class in my first year here at Cliff. But what is Spiritual Formation?
For me the image that supports spiritual formation is that of a master potter. This is image is one that has biblical support which would of course get me brownie points in my essays here, but is also a pretty good basis to life. The image of the potter is God building us up forming us and our spirituality out of clay, building us up and breaking us down, leaving his finger print, and moulding us into a masterpiece where he has left something of himself. This work is not clean or clear cut but rather, rather messy.
What is spiritual formation?
A spiritual hunger for more than spiritual junk food.
A development of our relationship with God moving us to spiritual maturity.
A process for individuals and communities.
Moving towards a Christ-likeness.
A journey of faith.
Painful and pleasing.
Uncomforting and comfortable.
Towards a spiritual identity.
Growth, Unique, unconformity, conforming.
Invisible or often retrospective.
It can be found in our longing and in our absence of longing or in the longer we have to wait.
It can be found in the places of our Gethsemane.
By our streams and forests
In our deserts and dry lands.
Shaping, crushing, painful, lusting.
It is a challenge. A relationship.
It is hard to make sense of.
Further more my challenge this week is to encourage others in there spiritual growth. Do we as a people of God encourage each other enough in this? I challenge you to encourage others in there spiritual formation this week too.
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