"In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.  And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by His Spirit."  Ephesians 2:21-22

The idea of spiritual formation has for too long been a very individual idea.  Spiritual formation is, without a doubt, an individual endeavor......it is, however, not strictly an individual endeavor.  There is a measure of spiritual formation that can happen privately, or individually.  We pray.  We read God's Word.  We listen meditatively to what we read in God's Word.  We read classic devotional literature.  We may even engage in fasting from time to time.  These are all necessary components of formation spiritually, but they are not all of our formation spiritually.  There is something about the together aspect that can't be replaced in spiritual formation.

A quick look at the Bible gives us an idea on the nature of what God considers important in our together spiritual formation (thank you Bob Roberts for highlighting some of these):

1. Together in Christ ............Matthew 18:20

2. Together in the Spirit.........Acts 2:1

3. Together in the Church......Acts 2:46

4. Together in Service...........Ephesians 2:21-22

5. Together in Power............Ephesians 3:17-18

6. Together in Reward.........1 Thessalonians 4:17

I am sure for these six, you may be able to find many more as well.  Why is it important to note?  Because it can change the philosophy of how you do what you do and why, and even how Christian organizations do what they do and why.  Let me explain.

For the individual, there is a realm of spiritual maturity that cannot be obtained outside of purposeful interaction with a community of people.  With relationships come stresses, joys, heartaches, headaches, strength, dispute, conflict, forgiveness, etc., etc.  It is only when these things can be processed and lived through spiritually that we grow.  All of the praying and reading and fasting is meant to prepare and cultivate the soil of our hearts to be able to meaningfully engage real life.............not cocoon ourselves away from it.  When squeezed by the pressures of life and people, we then see what we are made of spiritually and whether or not there has been soul growth instead of just theoretical knowledge growth.  The difference is the together piece of spiritual formation. 

The same holds true when thinking about the direction of a Christian church or organization.  If the together portion of spiritual formation is meant only to create a unity in the local church or organization, then I think we have stopped far short of its intent.  Unity in a local faith community is huge, as is unity in an organization, but unity (or the togetherness of growth) needs to extend to other local, like-minded communities of faith as well.  This mindset gives us a theology that views ministry through a kingdom lens, and not just through our local church lens.  Together, in the sense of the mission that Jesus gave His church, represents the opportunity to partner with like-minded churches or organizations in our region for the purpose of every man, woman and child having an opportunity to hear and see the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Spiritual formation is an individual, and a together, endeavor.  To lose that is to lose much of the purpose of spiritual formation.

"For I am not ashamed of the gospel"....  Romans 1:16

I realized very quickly upon my arrival in Bolivia that I have a lot yet to learn.  The point of the trip was to train pastors in Bolivia and Paraguay with some practical tools on leadership, team development, and Biblical training.  I think it was a great success in the eyes of the national pastors and hosts, but it was also a lesson of sorts for me.

Our hosts were missionaries from an organization that works globally in the movement of Jesus Christ.  They are trained and gifted, yet they are so humble and full of faith.  I watched them closely and learned a few things that I want to share with you.

1.  They know what it means to live contented.   I found out that some of the missionaries are living on wages that would not get them anywhere in virtually ANY country in the world.........yet they did not promote their misery.  In fact, it was just the opposite....they were full of joy and excited about their lives in Christ and the privilege of serving in ministry.

2.  They hang on to every word of God.  It seemed to me that every time the Bible was taught or explained, they acted like it was the first time they had ever heard it (though it clearly was not).  They were serious about receiving the truth of God, and putting it into practice in their lives.

3.  Humility is a virtue. These folks were not trying to impress...............it seemed that they lived to serve.  It was incredibly refreshing to be around people whose agenda was serving God and serving others with no thought or desire for personal acclaim.  They didn't have to posture or position, and they were not trying to be "sharp" or "impressive" in demeanor or communication.  They were impressive in that they exhibited humility as a core characteristic of their nature.

4.  Never, ever, be ashamed of the gospel of Christ.  I was blown away with the humble boldness that they demonstrated.  It seemed unintimidating for them to speak to anyone about Christ and His work on their behalf.  Their lives gave evidence of gratitude toward God, and of an unashamed claim to being a Christ follower.

5.  Faith is not theoretical.  Watching these people live every day relying on the provision of God was a stinging rebuke.  Though they are living the way God designed us to live (whether we have alot or very little), it still seemed so out of the ordinary.  That doesn't bode well for the state of modern day Christendom I don't suppose. Maybe worse yet for me personally.

 Truthfully, that list is just a beginning.  I learned much more from them, and from the people of those countries, than I can articulate.  I hope I pay just as careful attention the next time God allows me to travel and do ministry with others in a different culture.......because this trip sure altered some of my perspectives and gave me some new found gratitude - not so much for what I have (though I am increasingly grateful), but simply for Who God Is.

What if you and I lived the list?

"I lift up my eyes to you, to you whose throne is in heaven.  As the eyes of slaves look to the hand of their master, as the eyes of a maid look to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the Lord our God, till he shows us his mercy."   Psalm 123:1-2

Easter Sunday at the community of faith where I am a part was absolutely overwhelming.  I think it is the greatest Easter weekend of my life as far as seeing the activity of God in people's lives.  I was a mess all day, and now I have a spiritual hangover.

I'm relatively glad I have that hangover today though.................it quieted me in soul.  The glow of God's greatness can cause us to live on the adrenaline of that moment for a while, but the reality of who He is begins to creep in when we quiet our soul and listen.  I got quiet this morning and listened.  And what I heard was the need for humility.

When God does great things, He does them to bring glory to Himself.  Sure, we receive good from God using us to work with Him in His plan, but, as one theologian has put it, "we are just distributors, God is the manufacturer."  It is God that initiates His work in the hearts of people, and it is God that carries that work on to completion ( note Philippians 1:6).  If ever we forget that, we are in a place of desperation spiritually because we begin to lean our own competencies and abilities instead of leaning on Christ.

Psalm 123 reminds us that the place our eyes need to look is north of our selves...............so far north that it reaches the throne room of heaven where God resides.  Our dependence on God should be like that of a slave looking to a master or a maid looking to the hand of her mistress.  These are two pictures to suggest utter dependence on God for everything we need.........and everything He desires us to do.  A maid would not even think to try to act independently of her mistress back in the time of the ancients.  She existed for her mistress.  So, too, we are to exist for our God.............the One who knows what He wants us to become and what He wants us to do.

Dependence on God demands humility.  And humility can be hard........especially when things are going well.  But it is a needed component of character in the Christ life, maybe even the MOST needed character quality.  When you see genuine humility in people (not the false kind that is easily discernable) it is so refreshing because it speaks to the life of Christ that is living and active.  On the contrary, one of the most repulsive things to a world looking for Christ is a "Christian" that is full of himself/herself.  What need does the world have of Christ, when those who bear His name seem to be doing just fine without Him (or so they think)?

I am praying that humility will change the playing field of life for you and me.  When genuine, deeply rooted humility takes hold in our life, we will then know more of Christ because He is living out His character through us.  Let's pray together that this happens.......not just for our sake, but for the sake of the world that so desperately needs Jesus.

Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves  (Genesis 3:7, NIV)

I was flying back to Buffalo some months ago when I ran into a guy in an airport in another city (I think Cincinnati, but I'm not totally sure).  He was from our church, but we had never really met.  We had a great conversation, and the crux of the conversation had to do with his desire to serve and be used by God.  The problem, however, had to do with the fact that he couldn't do alot of the upfront service opportunities - he was a "behind the scenes" guy.  He didn't feel equipped or ready or capable.  The struggle that he faced was sorting out the difference between prominence and significance.

Being different in our giftings and make-up is ok.  God designed us, and He intends to use us in the way He made us. (Let me pause here to say that embracing sinful habits and desires and pawning them off as "God made me to be sarcastic, or violent, or sex-crazed, blah, blah, blah is not what I am referring to here).  Being different is exactly what God wants from people that follow after Him..........in fact, note that God tells Israel of the Old Testament and the Church of the New Testament that He wants them to be a uniquely different brand of people (Dueteronomy 14:1-2; 1 Peter 2:9; Titus 2:14).  Unfortunately, the Garden of Eden was a precursor of things to come when sin gets involved in this process of being different.

 When Adam and Eve sinned, notice that they realized then that they were naked, and they covered themselves.  What did they cover?  They covered what was different about them (you can do the math here).  Difference was ok when sin was not around, but now that sin was present it seems that difference became something to be ashamed of.  With a sin mangled perspective on difference, our judgment and perspective gets cloudy as to what is good, or beautiful, or noteworthy.  Think about it......................the women considered beautiful in the dark ages are not the same images of beauty for women that are held today.  Back in the day, beauty was equal to thicker bodies (not skinny ones), large noses (not surgically altered ones), and nearly transparent, pale skin (not the type skin that looks like you bathed in pennies).  Have you seen some of the paintings?  Then you can attest.

The struggle with this is that the idea of beauty, etc. is always changing.  Plus, it is usually those trying to be "beautiful" or "smart", etc. that are doing the comparisons and trying to narrow the field.  Not wise (note 2 Corinthians 10:12).  Again, it is the struggle to gain prominence...................not realizing that prominence does not categorically mean significance.  It is the American Idol syndrome in our culture........do anything to stand out (insert William Hung, Big Bird Lady, Cat girl, etc.).  Standing out is the goal (prominence), but significance (which is really what is desired) is lost. 

As I was reminded by reading a book recently by Ed Gungor, what if small is significant too?  We lose sight of that because of our culture that embraces big and popular and talented.  Unfortunately, in our quest to become big and popular and talented, we descend into sameness.......covering our differences........and embrace wrong ideas of who God designed us to be.  Big or small................God is paying attention (read Psalm 115:12-13).

So this week, cooperate with God and allow Him to use you - the real you - to be an instrument with which He can play His kingdom melody for all to hear. 

You are different..................Good.  That's the way it is supposed to be.