My Doctoral Studies

I was reading Ken Collin’s book The Theology of John Wesley and was surprised when I read about Wesley’s view on providence:

…Wesley viewed the particular providence of God in a threefold circle of increasing intensity and care. Thus, the outer circle incldues all of humanity, which is composed of “not only the Christian world . . . but the Mahometans . .. . and the heathens likewise.” The second, smaller circle, contains all who are Christians, all who are called such, and all who “profess to believe in Christ.” And finally, the thrid circle, the innermost one, embraces only real Christians, those “that worship God, not in form only, but in spirit and truth.” (page 41)

This view of providence is contained in Wesley’s sermon 68 “On Divine Providence” (which makes quite a bit of sense). Wesley begins by acknowledging God as creator of all things and also knowing all things. From that foundation he writes:

He hath made us, not we ourselves, and he cannot despise the work of his own hands. We are his children: And can a mother forget the children of her womb? Yea, she may forget; yet will not God forget us! On the contrary, he hath expressly declared, that as his “eyes are over all the earth,“so he “is loving to every man, and his mercy is over all his works.” Consequently, he is concerned every moment for what befalls every creature upon earth; and more especially for everything that befalls any of he children of men.

Of the first circle of providence he writes:

We do not now speak of that over-ruling hand which governs the inanimate creation, which sustains the sun, moon, and stars in their stations, and guides their motions; we do not refer to his care of the animal creation, every part of which we know is under His government, “who giveth food unto the cattle, and feedeth the young ravens that call upon him;” but we here speak of that superintending providence which regards the children of men. each of these is easily distinguished from the other, by those who accurately observe the ways of God.

The second circle Wesley writes:

Yet it may be admitted, that He takes more immediate care of those that are comprised in the second, the smaller circle; which includes all that are called Christians, all that profess to believe in Christ. We may reasonably think that these, in some degree, honor him, at least more than the Heathens do: God does, likewise, in some measure, honor them, and has a nearer concern for them. By many instances it appears, that the prince of this world has not so full power over these as over the Heathens. The God whom they even profess to serve, does, in some measure, maintain his own cause; so that the spirits of darkness do not reign so uncontrolled over them as they do over the heathen world.

Wesley says that God takes more immediate care of those who honor God. In short, God honors those who honor God.

Yet, there is another more inner circle in God’s providence. Those in this circle, Wesley says, are the real Christians. Wesley in other sermons has also made a distinction between Christians and Real Christians, or True Christians, or Scriptural Christians. For a short study one might want to look at his sermon Almost Christian where Wesley describes those who are “almost Christian” and those who are truly Christians.

Those who are “real Christians” are those who worship God in spirit and in truth. He writes:

18. Within the third, the innermost circle, are contained only the real Christians; those that worship God, not in form only, but in spirit and in truth. Herein are comprised all that love God, or, at least, truly fear God and work righteousness; all in whom is the mind which was in Christ, and who walk as Christ also walked. The words of our Lord above recited peculiarly refer to these. It is to these in particular that he says, “Even the very hairs of your head are all numbered.” He sees their souls and their bodies; he takes particular notice of all their tempers, desires, and thoughts, all their words and actions. He marks all their sufferings, inward and outward, and the source whence they arise; so that we may well say,

I don’t know how those in Wesley’s world viewed such a teaching on providence, but I’m not sure this view of providence would be considered politically correct today. We like to say that God treats everybody the same. Or, at least view no difference between those who “profess Christ” and those who are real Christians.But as I reflect on this, I can make some sense of it. After all, if a parent has a child who trusts them so much that they listen to what the parent says (third circle) is more protected than a child who doesn’t listen to their parent very well (second circle). After all, when the first parent yells at their child before the child runs into the street, the child will probably stop and thus not be hit by a car. The child who doesn’t listen runs the risk of being hit because they continue running into the street even if the parent tells them not too. Of course the first circle, given this analogy, represents those children who have no idea it is their parent, who loves them, who is telling them to stay out of the street and therefore the child doesn’t pay much attention at all.

What’s the point of all this? Well, if Wesley is right, then those who are sold out to Jesus and his way experience a greater intimate care than those who simply profess Christ. There is a message for those of us who believe that we can profess Christ yet live outside of Jesus’ will and way. In fact, if Wesley is right, we hinder and forfeit God’s care and influence in our lives.

Powered by ScribeFire.

Laziness works itself out in excessive activity

– Dr. Steve Marytn

There have been countless occasions in my life when I’ve heard that God has a plan for my life. Usually, I’m told, this is a good thing. I’m told that God’s plan is the best thing for me and, in fact, is wonderful! My job is to discover what God’s plan is for my life and when I do, I will be glad that I did.

What I’ve heard in these statements is this: “God has a plan that will make you happy.” Yes, I will admit it. When I hear about God’s plan for my life I always believe that God’s plan will somehow affect me in a good way. I will end up being happy, or healthy, or I will finally get the dream of my life, or I will be successful, or popular, or satisfied, or fulfilled.

Then I read this from St. Teresa of Avila:

Your attitude should be like that of a servant when he begins to serve. His care is about pleasing his master in everything. But the master is obliged to provide his servant with food as long as the servant is in the house and serves him, unless the master is so poor that he doesn’t have enough either for himself or for his servant. In our case this isn’t so; the Master always is, and will be, rich and powerful. Well, it wouldn’t be right for the servant to go about asking for food when he knows that the master of the house takes care of providing it for him, and must do so. The master would rightly tell his servant to be occupied in serving and seeking ways to please the master, for the servant, by worrying about what isn’t his own business, would be doing everything wrong.

Hmmm… all this time I thought God’s plan was about pleasing….(here it comes)….me. Yep. I will admit it. When I hear that God has a wonderful plan for my life I believe that plan, that wonderful God-birthed plan, is all about me and my pleasure, or happiness, or contentment. What if I got it all wrong? What if God’s plan is about God? What if my job isn’t to discover God’s plan for my life, but discover what God wants or better yet, how I can serve God? Why is it so easy to make God’s plan about me and my plan? Why is it so easy to make God’s will about my will? Why do I keep trying to get God to serve me and my purposes, when my job is to be serving God and God’s purposes? Only when I serve God will I discover what I was created for. Only then will I understand what the “Joy of the master” is all about.

Today is the first day of my class. Even though we have multiple sessions each day, it is a retreat setting. That means we are away from….just about everything. We eat here, we sleep here, we do everything here. That means there will be time. Time to reflect, think, read….oh yea…and use the internet connection Yes, we do have internet and my cell phone works. I was amazed. Perhaps cell phone service and Internet access are becoming a basic service such as running water and having showers in your room.

One of the questions that came up this morning, that I believe is important for everyone to pause and ask, is, where am I heading? It is easy to get caught up in our day to day stuff. We have responsibilities, errands to run, kids to take care of, and stuff to do. It is easy to allow all of that to drive our lives. Yet, we must remember, what we do is not the same as who we are.

In Psalm 84:5 the Psalmist writes, “Happy are those whose strength is in you, in whose heart are the highways to Zion.” The professor said that “strength” could be translated as refuge and “Zion” isn’t in the text, but rather implied. The image is of pilgrims making their trip up to Jerusalem for one of the yearly festivals. The Psalmist is reflecting on those who are heart is on a pilgrimage of sorts.

So the question, “Where am I heading?” is a good one. Is my refuge God, or is it in my own strength and ability. When things come up, is my first response (to myself), “I can do that!” or is it looking to God as a refuge and strength? Is my heart on a highway that leads to God and God’s will for my life or am I traveling down a highway that brings me a sense of accomplishment, pride, or validation?

So….where are you heading?

I’m in the midst of doing reading for my next class. It covers formative spiritual along with Wesley’s stress on various small groups (class, bands, etc). It is all very interesting and reignites my interests in Covenant Discipleship groups. I had started the groups in one church, but didn’t stay long enough to see how well they worked. Perhaps now is the time to try them again.

I’m also trying to add technorati information to this blog. Here is the Technorati Profile.

It seems to me that the evangelists may well have faced, as a major task, the problem not so much of how to cobble together enough tradition to make a worthwhile book, but of how to work out what to include from the welter of available material. The old idea that the evangelists must have included everything that they had to hand was always, at best, a large anachronism.

John, in his gospel, basically says this same thing at the end of his Gospel. “But there are also many other things that Jesus did; if every one of them were written down, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.” (John 21:25)

I’m not sure who this woman is, but she has done a wonderful job describing the process of spiritual or contemplative reading. Her blog post is here. Here is an excerpt:

Many have referred to Lectio Divina as an ancient art. It begins with listening deeply with “the ear of our hearts” as St. Benedict described the process. This means being still, sitting in silence, as the words on the page are slowly read and embodied through the heart and senses. This practice requires quieting down to be fully present to the lectio….reading…of the chosen sacred text.

Once a passage appears that speaks to me in a personal way I begin to meditate upon the meaning that is the beginning of the meditatio…..meditation stage of lectio divina. This is an important step of the process where I open my consciousness to allow the Word I am reading to become personally meaningful in a way that touches and inspires me at the deepest level.

Oratio….prayer…is the third stage. This is the place where I allow what I have been meditating, to begin to create change and awareness within my heart and mind. I have been reading, listening, and meditating and now I open myself in loving conversation with God to fully embody what I have received.

Finally, I simply rest in contemplatio….contemplation of the presence of God who has inspired my heart. I am in silence. I let go into this time of embracing the fullness of the experience.

I really enjoyed my last class….and now it is time to do the paper. I’m not sure why, but I always question myself as I write it. I’m never sure what the professor wants. Then I catch myself and decide, it doesn’t matter what the professor wants, the important thing is what I’ve learned and how I’ve been changed through the process and how I can use this in ministry. Then I start wondering what the professor wants.

…every moment of our life has purpose…every action of ours, no matter how dull or routine or trivial it may seem in itslf, has a dignity and a worth beyond human understanding…yet what a terible responsibility is here. For it means that no moment can be wasted, no opportunity missed, since each has a purpose in man’s life, each has a purpose in man’s life, each has a purpose in God’s plan. Think of your day, today or yesterday. Think of the work you idd, the people you met, moment by moment. What did it mean to you — and what might have it meant for God? Is this question too simple to answer, or are we just afraid to ask it for fear of the answer we must give? - Father Walter J. Ciszek, S. J.

It has taken much time, but I’m discovering that Father Ciszek is correct. I tend to view my life as a series of (relatively boring) moments. What if all my moments have purpose? What if even the dull, boring moments are a part of God’s plan?

I’m learning to see that every moment of my life is a gift from God. Not only that, but every moment of my life God is inviting me to join Him and experience His presence. If I don’t recognize that, I will probably miss the invitation and instead of accepting His invitation, it will instead pass me by.

Discovered this in one of the books for my doctoral program, Pathways to Spiritual Living by Dr. Susan Muto:

Everyone needs silence: the teacher, the nurse, the social worker; the artist, the poet, the doctor; the lawyer, the housewife, the cabdriver. To neglect this need is to risk living a tense, fragmented, spiritless life. Formation in Christian living is not confined to monasteries; it is a survival measure in the modern world. If we do not nourish our souls, they atrophy as do bodies without food. To maintain any kind of Christlike presence in the world, we need to seek silence and its fruits in the practices of spiritual reading, meditation, prayer and contemplation

As I spend time with Christians I’m discovering that we need to restore Christian spirituality. Muto is right when she says that Christian formation “is a survival measure in our modern world.” Instead of allowing our lives flow from an inner core that has been shaped and formed by Jesus, we allow our culture to shape and form us. We might argue the point, but I’m finding some very “unJesus” like attitudes, characteristics and actions within some of the most “Christian” organizations I serve.

I have a feeling that if the issue of silence, reflection and/or contemplation were to come up, many who are a part of those organizations would confess they spend most of their time in a frantic pace to ‘do what Jesus’ wants them to do (This is ironic). They may pray. They might read their bible daily. They perhaps, even have a quite time. Yet, those things have become pragmatic and functional rather than transformational.

We need to restore a spirituality that transforms us at the core so that our actions might flow from a center whose core and King is Christ.