Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Check Up

Today I am due for my annual check up with my doctor. I schedule these check ups when I think my cluster headaches will start, and then run through everything with the doc. These are never things I look forward to, but I understand the benefit of them and it helps me set goals for the upcoming year.

So as I prepare for this check up (which will happen in a couple of hours) I started thinking about other check ups we need in our lives, esp spiritual check ups.

So today, I would like to run through a list of questions that I plan to answer myself, and invite you to answer as well - all to see where we are when it comes to our spiritual health.

1. How often do you read the Bible in a week?
2. How often do you pray in a week?
3. Are you involved in a Bible Study?
4. Are you part of a small group where you can share your hopes, fears, and concerns and feel safe?
5. Are you involved in a worshiping community?
6. In the past week, have you asked another person if you could pray for them or ask God to bless them?
7. In the next year, in what ways do you want to grow in your faith?
8. What gifts have you discerned that God has given to you?
9. How can you put these gifts into action?
10. Have you asked someone else to pray for you or with you?

These questions are designed to help all of us find ways to grow in our lives of faith. May we all be blessed as we continue to grow in love of God and neighbor.

1 comment:

Betty Dygart said...

I like Pastor E's list. It is another thermometer we can use to measure how "hot" we are in our faith. (Remember, we don't want to be lukewarm, or God will want to spit us out, according to the Book of Revelation).

However, changing our behaviors is hard. Our egos and self-will get in the way. That doesn't mean change is impossible. It is another thing to pray about.

These thoughts bring back to me another of the prayers/meditations included in one of my favorite meditation books, "Prayers My Cats Have Taught Me," by Herbert Brokering.

I Choose What I Want

I know what I like.
If a food isn't right, I won't eat it.
When they change a brand, I can tell.
If I like it, I will eat it;
If I do not like it, it will stay in my bowl.
My taste buds are demanding.
Once I decide, I am stubborn.
I am cat, I choose.
They can't tell me where to walk or sit or play.
I will choose.
I cannot be pushed or pulled or coaxed or threatened.
When I decide, they will know.
Sometimes they wait and wait to see me make up my mind.
I will never be led on a leash.
I can be chased, but I will decide where to run, how far to climb, how long to stay away, and when to come back.

Dear God,
I am willful. I choose what to like or dislike. My will is strong, stubborn. I want to decide where I will be and work and play.
I want to choose my friends and enemies--where to go and not to go. Threats and coaxing will only make me more stubborn, more sure that my way is right--even when it leads to disaster.

Inside my soul a voice says, listen. Inside, your spirit seeks to guide the direction of my will. My soul speaks to me of your presence, your promise. My soul is alive, growing, unfolding in me. And I cannot ignore it.

Dear God, you made my soul to be my self. Thank you for that. Help me to listen more to your guidance and to be less stubborn to the following of your ways.