Spiritual Disciplines Influences on Personal Growth

     

                

                 Spiritual Disciplines are part of the discipleship process. Life requires disciplines that adhere to the growth, structure and maturity of an individual. Spirituality requires meditation and time. According to Vos (2012) The spiritual disciplines deserve a place of prime importance in training and practice in daily life. The article mentions about the various types of spiritual disciplines that should be practiced in order for personal growth and influence. These Spiritual transformation can be done through solitude, silence, meditation, fasting, celebration and confession. All of which require discipline through training oneself and being equipped as soldiers. Spiritual discipline influences personal Growth to build great characters which reflect in one's daily interactions. In order to teach, one must be taught and without the process of growth in one's life, no other lives can be touched or inspired. It takes a willing heart and a willing sacrifice. Spiritual discipline calls for change, transformation and hope as it is the constant need for growth in human beings. 

                  To the world at large, in context of Christian community, "Jesus called us not to do what he did, but to be as he was, he was permeated with love" (Vos, 2012). Spiritual Discipline influences personal growth not just in the doing rather in the making. Any given spirituality whether that is Christian, Muslim, or Hindu; to do part take time and patience but the value in doing is to become. According to Willard, "spiritual disciplines as tried and true activiites undertaken in order to give our spirits more control over our bodies, by moulding and shaping our embodied selves" (Vos, 2012). Further, the world at large views spirituality as a sacred form of worship that indwells within a being. Once it takes form, it transforms. 

                    Spiritual disciplines are taken lightly in our world today. The depth by which an inner man is transformed through one's spirit is reflected in the outer man. Much of the disciplines done is to empower us or destroy us. Disciplines are meant to shape us, mend us, transform us and form us; however, spiritual discipline does all that and more. It influences, impacts and purifies us to become who God intended us to be. All the more, personal growth is an individualistic goal. I believe spiritual discipline requires supernatural source or power to bring us under the umbrella of grace that transforms our mind, body and spirit. Only God has the ability to change our hearts. 

                   

Reference

Vos, B. (2012). The Spiritual Disciplines and Christian Ministry. Evangelical Review Of Theology,36(2), 100-114.

http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=c75eff63-8c12-4d9d-987d-c532dd38b69c%40sessionmgr104&vid=4&hid=105

The Influence of Religion & Spirituality on Self-Control

Does a personal belief in religion actually impact self-control? This was the question that Rounding, Lee, Jacobson, and Ji (2012) set out to research for an answer. In a series of four tests that included participants “enduring discomfort, delaying gratification, exerting patience, and refraining from impulsive responses” while subtly attempting to subconsciously “activate god-related concepts” through the use of specific phrases (p. 636). For portion, participants were given tasks that may or may not be religiously primed in addition to the base of each study. The first test involved participants drinking a combination of orange juice and vinegar for $5 per cup that they could drink. The second test involved participants being given the choice to collect their $5 the next day or they could return in one week for $6. The third test involved the participants inputting passages into a computer while listening to loud music, an ego-deplition assignment, and finally were asked to complete a set of geometric puzzles that could not be solved. The final study involved participants completing two tasks on a computer involving identifying information that was shown. For each of the studies, the research team drew the conclusion that those who were given the religiously primed tasks performed better with their self-control. The team came to the conclusion that they had scientific evidence that, yes, religion impacts, encourages, and refuels self-control.

What influences your decision to practice self-control or give in? There are many behaviors and impulses that, when we’re honest with ourselves, would be nice to just throw in the towel instead of practicing self-control. When someone cuts you off in traffic, what is your initial response? Do you get angry, honk your horn, and perhaps even yell at them? If not, what is your reason for holding back? I'm sure that most of the participants would much rather have said no thanks to the offer of the idea of drinking a orange juice and vinegar drink. According to the research team, the ability to complete such a task is able to be completed because of their religiously primed manipulations and self-control.

For those who have a personal belief in God, self-control is more than a behavior or impulse control. It is known as one of the fruits of the Spirit. Galatians 5:19-26 states, “The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.” There will be times when it is very challenging to practice self-control. Our sinful natures would love nothing better than to ignore the fruits of the Spirit. However, the fruits are evidence of our growth in our relationship with the Lord and our becoming more like what he intended for us when we were created. As a child of God, there is more to self-control than simply practicing moral behavior because of religion.

Rounding, K., Lee, A., Jacobson, J.A., & Ji, L.J. (2012). Religion replenishes self-control. Psychological Science, 23(6), 635-642. doi: 10.1177/0956797611431987

Prayer as a Religious Coping Strategy

           Bade and Cook have studied prayer as a religious coping strategy and have found that there are different functions of prayer which describe the purposes for which we pray.[1] Some pray to seek God, others seek understanding and direction, and still others pray to receive things like strength, comfort, or peace. Most have sought prayer for coping at one time or another because they were in need of something. Whether or not they were in need of guidance or wisdom, financial provision, healing, or some other request, the authors note that using prayer as a religious coping strategy is similar to seeking social support from a relationship with God. There is something unique about knowing that God is listening and having the ability to share, connect, and communicate with Him. Participants suggest that prayer calms them, decreases fear, and serves as the channel for communication with God.

            Since there appears to be various purposes of prayer as well as benefits to a person’s emotional disposition from communicating to God, as counselors we must be aware of which forms of prayer are helpful to which clients.[2] One thing is sure: we should be interceding—even if silently—for our clients inside and outside of sessions. When prayer is used as a coping strategy, both the counselee and counselor are aware that can experience intimacy with God, from whom the healing comes. It is my hope that in the counseling profession, when we do not know what to do, our eyes would be upon the Lord, drawing near to Him with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith for He who promised is faithful. The temptation would be to suggest that God will not show up, but I think we miss the point. God’s faithfulness does not depend on us.

If we believe that those who seek God shall lack no good thing, why do we not seek Him? If our help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth, why do we look to things that do not satisfy for help? James encourages those who are troubled to pray, noting that prayers can heal and that the prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. Though these are not new recommendations, I believe the prayerful life brings healing because prayer invites God, the Healer, to work in us and through us. We are told to by joyful in hope, patient in affliction, and faithful in prayer. There are no special conditions in which those are the specific times we should pray. It does not say, “if we feel like it, we should be faithful in prayer.” The Word simply says to be faithful in prayer, so I encourage readers today to ask the Lord for He gives good gifts to His children who ask. Be faithful in prayer.

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[1] Bade, M. K., & Cook, S. W. (2008). Functions of Christian prayer in the coping process. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 47(1), 123-133.

[2] McMinn, M. R. (2011).  Psychology, theology, and spirituality in Christian counseling. Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House. 

Why Do You Forgive?

It was until recently that I fully began to understand the dual purpose of forgiveness. You see, as a child I thought it to be something we did for others. My thought process was something like ‘God forgives me for my wrongdoings, and so I am also suppose to forgive others for their wrongdoings’. I looked at forgiveness as something one did for the benefit of the person needing forgiveness. Now while being told they are forgiven is certainly helpful for the transgressor, being able to forgive another is equally as important for the forgiver. This is especially true in the case of unilateral forgiveness, in which the forgiver forgives an absent party.

Authors Worthington and Scherer (2004) explain that forgiveness can be used as an emotion-focused coping strategy. And since forgiveness is a biblical concept, it is also considered a religious coping strategy. The process of forgiving involves a combination of positive emotions, such as love, compassion, and empathy, against the negative emotions of unforgiveness. Unforgiveness, if left untreated can turn into anger, which is known to have a negative impact on physical health, namely cardiovascular problems. However, if the coping strategy of forgiveness is implemented, it can help to reduce the stress associated with unforgiveness. The authors share that forgiveness has found to have five direct influences on our physical health. These are, (1) it might reduce hostility, (2) it could affect the immune system at the cellular level, (3) it could affect the immune system at the neuro-endocrine level, (4) it could affect the immune system through release of antibodies, and (5) it might affect central nervous system processes. Along with the physical advantages of forgiveness, the act of forgiving also leads to increased social support, less stressful marriages, and increased relationship skills. Altruistic forgiveness also provides emotional and mental healing for the forgiver. It releases the forgiver from replaying the event in their mind, and from holding the injury against the offender. Ultimately, through forgiveness the individual is able to find freedom.

In the article InterpersonalForgiveness as an Example of Loving One’s Enemies, Worthington, Sharp, Lerner, and Sharp (2006) point out that transgressions are inevitable. As part of the fallen world we live in, you will inevitably get hurt and hurt others. Your feelings might get hurt, your trust might be betrayed, and unjustified acts might be committed against you. However, because wrongdoings are inevitable on this earth, God has made it clear as to how we go about them – we are to forgive unilaterally. Therefore even if the offender doesn’t ask for our forgiveness, we are to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us (Matthew 5:44). The benefits to the forgiver are huge. So why do you forgive? Do you do it because that’s how you were taught as a child, or do you see it as a command from Scripture that is in place to help not only the offender, but also to set the forgiver free. Just like the song in the link above says about forgiveness, ‘The prisoner that it really frees is you’.

Worthington, E. L., & Scherer, M. (2004). Forgiveness is an emotion-focused 

     coping strategy that can reduce health risks and promote health resilience: 

     Theory, review, and hypotheses. Psychology and Health, 19(3), 385-405.

Worthington, E. L., Sharp, C. B., Lerner, A. J., & Sharp, J. R. Interpersonal 

     forgiveness as an example of loving one’s enemies. Journal of 

     Psychology and Theology, 34(1), 32-42. 

Heaven is not for Real

            I knew that title would grab your attention!  Don’t worry I do believe heaven is a real place and one day all those who have placed their faith in God will end up there, but I want to talk on the reliability of the book Heaven is for Real.  It is a book about a young child who dies when his kidney erupts, goes to heaven, hangouts in the celestial city with Christ, Gabriel, and everyone else, and then returns to life to tell the story.  I will not go on talking about the story; you can read a synopsis of it elsewhere.  What I want to do is analyze the book with Scripture to show how this book is not true.  I am not trying to discrediting the character of Todd or Colton Burpo.  In the book, they seem like nice people who have the best intentions at heart.  All I want to say is: The accounts in the book cannot be accurate and the Bible be the true inspired Word of God.

            The first point I would like to disagree with the book is that heaven is not a current place to go to.  One day it will be.  Christ will come back, he will raise the saints up and create a new heaven. This is the heaven that will have streets of gold and gates made of pearls.  Right now the saints who have died are in an intermediate state; this state is called “Paradise” in Luke 23:43.  Secondly, Colton said he say people with bodies and wings on them; however, the bodily resurrection will not happen until Christ’s second coming.  It will be then that the transformation of these sinful bodies will take place, but until then the bodies will not be transformed.  Third, the book seems to have a focus on getting back to that “heaven” Colton was at, but as Dr. Jeff Gibbs astutely notes, “There is not one crumb, not one word in Heaven is For Real that God’s full plan of salvation in Christ means eternal life now, and on the last day, full bodily holiness and immortality for all believers and for the whole cosmos.  There is no appreciation for the importance of our bodies, and of God’s promise in Christ to redeem them and raise us to everlasting life.”[1]  Dr. Gibbs says the correct response to the book is to quote the Nicene Creed when it says, “I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world (Greek, “age”) to come.”  Fourth I there is not statement in the Bible that God will take some to heaven and then send them back on earth.  It is actually quite the opposite of that.  In Luke 16 there is the parable of the rich man and Lazarus.   When the rich man asks God to send back Lazarus God says “No!”  This leads into the last point, God said “If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they hear when a man rises from the dead.”  This book has helped Todd and other comes to accept God’s promises in a better way (see pgs. 84, 126, and 130 in the Heaven is for Real); however, we are not suppose to accept God’s promises on anything less than God’s own testimony.  Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians 2:13 “And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers.”  Peter also warned us not to trust any one’s experiences writing, “And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place” (2 Peter 1:19). And Jesus himself said “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." (John 20:29).

            I am not trying to dismiss near death experiences.  There are plenty of people who have reported them.  I am disagreeing that young Colton went to heaven and then came to earth, or that Don Piper spent 90 minutes in heaven, or that Bill Wiese spent 23 minutes in hell.  It is not Biblical to believe so.  As Christians, we are not to accept the experience of others as authoritative, but we are to be searching the Scripture and comparing the Scriptures to man's experiencesto see if they match up.  Colton’s story is a nice story, but it does not match up with the Bible.  So I warn you, do not be deceived by these myths and fairy tales.  Do not be lead astray.  Heaven is real, but it not real because Colton says so, but because Christ says so.

**There are a few other good blogs out on this done by Tim Challis [here], C. Michael Patton [here], and T. A. McMahon [here].

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[1] Jeff Gibbs, “Heaven Is For Real,” http://concordiatheology.org/2011/05/heaven-is-for-real/. 

Spiritual Discipline and Personal Growth

Occasionally, the idea will be presented that Spiritual Discipline is not a big deal. Arguers will say that grace from God is the only thing that can save people and that following a set of "rules" will not help to redeem souls. These arguers are right, however they seem to miss the point of Spiritual Disciplines. Grace is all that can save sinners from death, but, as contended by Dave Wilson, Spiritual Disciplines allow those redeemed by grace to experience God's grace instead of just receive it. But, how does someone experience God's grace through Spiritual Disciplines, and do practices in Spiritual Discipline lead to Personal Growth? First, let's look at 4 staples of Spiritual Discipline as highlighted here. --

The first practice is silence and solitude. As shown in Ecclesiastes 3, there is a time to be silent and a time to speak. In Mark 1, Jesus went off to be alone and to pray. In Jesus' times of solitude he was able to find direction for his ministry.

The second staple is Bible Study. Through Bible Study one can learn God's truths and learn their place in Christ through salvation. Bible Study can increase one's confidence in God, which leads to hope in what they are doing with the knowledge of victory over sin, which in turn leads to an increase in one's overall confidence.

The third staple is simplicity. American culture has become overrun with distractions and piles of stuff. Everyone wants stuff. Living simplistically helps one remove distractions, learn to say no (to avoid burnout and stress, and maintain a positive attitude), focus on spiritual truths, develop talents, and create a healthy baseline for living.

The final staple is memorizing scripture. Scripture memorization helps one conform to Christ, triumph over daily sins, triumph over Satan, comfort and counsel loved ones, communicate the gospel to unbelievers, and communicate with God.

These Spiritual Disciplines allow one to experience God's grace by allowing them to see what they have been redeemed from, how Biblical truths are still active in the world, and how to emulate Christlikeness in daily living.

Personal Growth is characterized by a certain set of feelings, activities, and autonomy. These things include understanding oneself, improving awareness, having a positive attitude, having belief in oneself and one's potential, developing skills, setting goals, and learning to begin tasks with the end in mind. Based on what has been found in the four staples of Spiritual Discipline, a comparison can be made to see how Spiritual Discipline plays into Personal Growth. Understanding oneself is found within Bible Study - a person can learn their origin, morals, values, and the status of their spiritual state through Bible Study. Improving awareness is shown in scripture memorization. Through memorizing scripture one can gain a bigger picture of their surroundings and better combat the sin that they face everyday. Having a positive attitude is shown in silence and solitude. People need downtime to recharge and rest - and it has become common knowledge that proper rest can lead to a more positive attitude. Having belief in oneself and one's potential is found in Bible study and scripture memorization. The caveat here, however, is that belief in oneself needs to be changed to belief in oneself by the power of God. But, confidence, and belief in one's abilities can be found in scripture by reading of spiritual victories and life victories with God's help. Development of skills can be found in silence and solitude. Silence and solitude gives a believer the opportunity to find their direction and then development the talents and skills to go down the road on this direction. Setting goals also occurs in silence and solitude and finding one's direction - through understanding what direction to take a believer can then develop goals to attain. Having the end in mind at the beginning of any task comes from culminating these four staples together and understanding that the battle against sin has already been won - it is just up to the believer to understand this fact and find their part in God's big picture.

The overarching purpose of Spiritual Discipline is to live with Christlikeness. This is a simple standard by which most believers would agree. Personal growth, however, takes many different shapes and forms. For this post I cited a "self-help" website of sorts thats highlights some key area of personal growth, but they are by no means all inclusive or universally agreed upon. So, the question is: what constitutes personal growth? Growth towards what? A simple answer would include working towards being all that you can be. A believer would add "in Christ" to the end of that sentiment. Even still, what is being all that you can? Emulating perfection? In order to be all that we can be we feel as if we need to be perfect, or at least close to it. This is not necessarily true but it paints a picture of the ideals surrounding personal growth which is highlighted by consistent, non-neurotic, and positive living. Humans are created in God's image and Spiritual Discipline is about achieving Christlikeness (Christ is God, and Christ was perfect). So, through Spiritual Discipline, in essence, believers are attempting to be what they were created to be before the Fall - which is "all that they can be." Based on these notions, I would argue that practicing Spiritual Disciplines not only affects personal growth, but it IS personal growth. Both strive after our perfect selves and both hit on the same key areas for maturation.

Can I Cope?

 Religious coping is an area of study that is getting more and more attention all the time. A few things happen when the topic of religious coping is mentioned: people discuss the strictly positive approaches to religious coping that exist and or they focus on coping in a particular area. It seems as if research is telling us that the act of coping in religious populations has far less to do with what we are coping with but rather the ideology of the individual who is coping. According to an article by Pargament, Smith, and Koenig,"Methods of religious coping add unique variance to the prediction of health and well- being above and beyond the effects of measures of nonreligious coping." According to the authors there are several ways a person of faith may attempt to positively cope with the plethora of problems we as humans face such as religious focus, religious helping, religious forgiveness, spiritual connection, and religious purification. However, by its definition coping does not imply purely positive means of adapting to circumstances. Coping is the way in which a person "deals" with a given scenario. Keeping this in mind, several negative coping strategies are mentioned in the aforementioned article as well as in a separate book by Pargament such as: viewing the stressor as a punishment from God, Redefining the stressor as an act of the devil, and becoming upset with God or the individual’s congregation. The results of the Pargament, Smith, and Koening study revealed that the type of coping strategy utilized depended on whether their view of God and the world was secure or marked by tenuousness, fear, and disorganization. In this regard religious coping strategies share ties with studies of God attachment and object relations.

It is interesting to note just how much our attachments influence our lives. If the research holds true, if we view God as concerned with our lives and interested in our struggles we are more apt to want to cope by utilizing that relationship. If our relationship with God has been marred by negative experiences with primary caregivers and other significant people in our lives we are less likely to view God as an amiable resource when we encounter difficulties. The real task is to examine our relationship with the creator. For those of us who have been introduced to God through proper Biblical instruction and adequate relationships with others, dealing with the stresses of life may result in healthy resolution. For the rest of us who maybe struggle with ideas of God as wrathful or angry with us coping may actually lead to more frustration and confusion. If we are to cope in helpful ways we must have a proper Idea of who Christ is and our relationship to him.

It is important to understand our current standing with Christ. Maybe your life has been filled with relationships that have left you feeling inadequate, or somehow insignificant. Perhaps, when the stresses of life take you unaware you feel as though you cannot turn to God because he does not care or is angry with you because of perceived failures. To you the word of God says, "The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and plenteous in mercy...." Psalms 103: 8, 11.

Pargament, K.,Smith, B., Koenig, H., Perez, L. (1998). Patterns of positive and negative religious coping with major life stressors. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 37(4), 710-724

Pargament, K.I. 1997). The psychology of religion and coping: Theory, research, and practice. New York: Guilford Press.