Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Emergent Village

Home
Progressive Christian
Invited to Your Story

Invited to Your Story

Last updated on: January 17, 2013 at 11:18 pm by Sean Graham

Invited to Your Story 2013-01-17T23:18:32-06:00 Sean Graham

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

As we begin 2013, I thought it appropriate to invite you into your story. Sounds a little silly to say, but I truly believe that for those of us hungry to discover God in our lives, we need only look as far as the story we have, and particularly its expression today.

If it is true that the friend of God and the presence of God is always found in the moment, and if God is always present with us, then we need only look as far as us to discover where God is initiating and inviting us into the transformation He imagined. Point of clarification: God’s transformation is only ever into the person we were created to be. It is His restoring work that we refer to in transformation. But what is He restoring? I am thankful today to report that He is transforming you and me.

So today, and everyday forward from this point on, the only task we really have in terms of accessing where God is in our lives and what God is doing, is to ask some very simple questions. The invitation of those questions is to discover where God is working and present right now. So here are some simpler questions to contemplate:

What are you thinking about?

What are you worried about?

What are you excited about?

What do you feel?

What do you want?

Why do you want those things?

These questions might seem very individualistic and self-centered, but really they take us beyond the mindless self-centeredness of our culture and into a self-awareness of what is actually happening in us so that we can begin to discover God’s thoughts, God’s desires, God’s hopes, which inevitably will draw us out of ourselves and into a more loving relationship with others. Using the metaphor of the cross, it is the vertical that draws us into our selves; it is the horizontal that draws us out of ourselves.

My blessing for you this year of 2013 is that you will discover the invitation intrinsic in your every days. That God desires to connect with you. God does it by integrating what is actually happening in you.

What I am describing is the art of contemplation (meditation). It causes us to look within so that we are able to live not compelled by our feelings and thoughts; rather able to live in response to our feelings and thoughts in a more integrated way. Then we are not driven by our invisible forces that don’t really know what we want. Rather we will be compelled by a loving Source that accepts everything that is within you and creates space for everyone around you.

Previous Post

January 16, 2013

By Invitation Only?: Private Summit Actually Threatens to Undermine Emergence Christianity

Next Post

January 18, 2013 God of the Open Door.

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Addiction Advent Atheism Authority Bible Cartoons Christian Year Christmas church church planting Civil Rights Community Contemplative Spirituality Culture emerging church Empire Eschatology Evangelism Events Gender Healing Humanism Islam Justice Kingdom Lent Movement Building Multi-Faith Music mysticism New Wave Emergence origins Personal Poetry politics Prayer Preaching Privilege Racism Religious naturalism Resurrection salvation SKEPTIMERGENT Theology Trauma Uncategorized

Select a Month December 2017 November 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who was killed for touching the Ark of the Covenant?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Ahio Shimei Uzzah Abinadab