So don’t you see that we don’t owe this old do-it-yourself life one red cent. There’s nothing in it for us, nothing at all. The best thing to do is to give it a decent burial and get on with your new life. God’s Spirit beckons. There are things to do and places to go.
Romans 8:12-14, The Message Bible
Reflection Questions: Is it possible that we placed more value on the path at soul feeling than Spirit leading? If so, how do we navigate the Path forward?
Inspiration: Parker Palmer (2000) made a statement that led me to the “aha” moment of the above questions. He said, “I had been driven more by the “oughts”…than by a sense of true self. Lacking insight into my own limits and potentials, I had allowed ego and ethics to lead me into a situation that my soul could not abide” (p. 22).
In this time of reflection and fruit inspection I had to ask Holy Spirit to help me identify the places where I made what compelled my soul equal to divine insight. It struck me that my obsession with what “should be” and what “ought to be” was not necessarily an encounter with vision. (read that again, please) Yes, my life is an answer…but not for every need I see. It could be that my values were awakened to a valid cause of concern not to be remedied by my vocation. (my response was WHOA, then crickets)
Bottom Line: A cause that feeds “ego or ethics” (Palmer, p. 22) is not sufficient reason to stay. Natural situations are speaking…and answering the vocation question.
“Vocation at its deepest level is not, “Oh, boy, do I want to go to this strange place where I have to learn a new way to live and where no one, including me, understands what I’m doing.” Vocation at its deepest level is, “This is something I can’t not do, for reasons I’m unable to explain to anyone else and don’t fully understand myself but that are nonetheless compelling (p. 25).”
Father, thank You for your irrevocable gifts and calling. Thank You Holy Spirit for leading and guiding us into all truth. Father, You guide us with your eye. Beyond the sense realm, teach us to know Truth in our vocational path. Show us what to do with our ego and our ethics, those internal response patterns that move our souls to places where we soon want to relocate. Give us wisdom and revelation and we seek to become ourselves, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Palmer, P. J. (2000). Let your life speak: Listening for the voice of vocation. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
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Rooted Grounded Fixed and Founded in the Love of God
This is AWESOME
Awesome… been doing some reflecting during this sabbatical