Tuesday, July 05, 2005
Over the last eight weeks or so I have felt spiritually dead or at least spiritually dormant.
I have had no real desire to pray, meditate, or read and study my bible. Not that I have turned my back on God or lost my faith, but more along the lines of me just wanting be in the other room from Him. He stays in His place and I keep to my own. Which at the time seems like a reasonable living arraignment.
On my drive to work this morning, I realized that this is pretty much a routine cycle in my spiritual life. I have described it in the past as a hot/cold thing or an on/off thing. Some have even suggested spiritual burn out. What ever you call it, I have always felt guilty afterwards, thinking that have back slid or have grown lazy or worse yet, in the words of the famous warning in Revelations, become “Lukewarm”.
For some reason, while thinking about this cycle, an image of a flower came to mind. I was thinking that when a flower is at its full bloom it is very beautiful, much like my spiritual life when it is in bloom. Also, just like my spiritual life, flowers don’t stay in bloom forever. They eventually wither and die. Not to say that the roots dry up and the whole plant die, but rather only go dormant for a short season and then to birth a new bud.
When I think of my spiritual life along those lines it’s a beautiful thing and nothing to feel ashamed about. It’s a life cycle not a death cycle. The dormant seasons are essential for providing growth. Roots seem to go deeper into the soil and grow stronger.
Today I feel like there is a new bud.
I have had no real desire to pray, meditate, or read and study my bible. Not that I have turned my back on God or lost my faith, but more along the lines of me just wanting be in the other room from Him. He stays in His place and I keep to my own. Which at the time seems like a reasonable living arraignment.
On my drive to work this morning, I realized that this is pretty much a routine cycle in my spiritual life. I have described it in the past as a hot/cold thing or an on/off thing. Some have even suggested spiritual burn out. What ever you call it, I have always felt guilty afterwards, thinking that have back slid or have grown lazy or worse yet, in the words of the famous warning in Revelations, become “Lukewarm”.
For some reason, while thinking about this cycle, an image of a flower came to mind. I was thinking that when a flower is at its full bloom it is very beautiful, much like my spiritual life when it is in bloom. Also, just like my spiritual life, flowers don’t stay in bloom forever. They eventually wither and die. Not to say that the roots dry up and the whole plant die, but rather only go dormant for a short season and then to birth a new bud.
When I think of my spiritual life along those lines it’s a beautiful thing and nothing to feel ashamed about. It’s a life cycle not a death cycle. The dormant seasons are essential for providing growth. Roots seem to go deeper into the soil and grow stronger.
Today I feel like there is a new bud.
