In the last post, I began describing the seven traits shared by all living things, as developed by Mike Breen in his book LifeShapes. The first three (which form the acronymn MRS) are MOVEMENT, RESPIRATION, and SENSITIVITY. If something isn't moving, breathing, or aware of its environment, chances are it is dead! And what holds true in the natural realm is also true of spiritual life; if we are not moving when God commands, being filled with the Spirit, and aware of the presence of God and the needs of those around us, then it is right for us (and others) to question the health and viability of our spiritual lives.
The next four traits which finish the Heptagon (and make the acronym GREN--however you want to picture MRS GREN in your mind is up to you!) are all equally necessary for an organism to live. GROWTH is natural in a healthy living thing. It is most dramatic when the organism is young, but even once something reaches "adult" size, growth continues, until disease and death set in. Likewise we are expected to grow spiritually. Second Peter 3:18 encourages us to "Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." Though Christ told us to "become like children," Paul clarifies the difference between being "child-like" and "childish" in 1 Corinthians 14:20 when he says, "Brothers, do not be children in your thinking. Be infants in evil, but in your thinking be mature." Throughout the Old Testament, the "righteous" (those who are right with God) are described in terms of lush growth:
The righteous flourish like the palm tree
and grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
They are planted in the house of the Lord;
they flourish in the courts of our God.
They still bear fruit in old age;
they are ever full of sap and green,
to declare that the Lord is upright;
he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.
- Psalm 92:12-14
And in the New Testament, Paul lists "the fruit of the Spirit" (qualities which should be growing in us) as "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control" (Galatians 5:22-23).
The next trait is REPRODUCTION. This is growth in the social dimension; if a tribe, herd, or species does not reproduce, it will soon become extinct. Though we don't have to worry that Christ will allow his Body to die off completely, there are churches which have died, and neighborhoods or entire countries where a once-strong representation of the Body of Christ has become virtually non-existent (think of North Africa, for example). One of the marks of a disciple is that they make other disciples; God is faithful and he will not leave himself "without a witness" (Acts 14:17), but his chosen strategy for sustaining and building his body is to use US to bring others into the life of God, and train them in the faith. The content of what is taught is important, as Paul instructs Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:2, "what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also," but the personal touch is also incredibly important, as Paul tells the Corinthians, "Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ" (1 Cor. 11:1). Or, as Mike Breen says, "We all look like sheep from the front, and shepherds from the back." In your relationship to God and to those more mature in the Lord, you are a sheep looking for guidance, but there are people coming up behind you (which you might not even notice), who will be looking to you as a shepherd. And that is all part of discipleship.
The next one we don't like to talk about, but every living creature builds up toxins as a natural process of living, and those would cause sickness and death if they didn't have a healthy process of EXCRETION. Our bodies must eliminate sweat, urine, feces and carbon dioxide, and our spirits must eliminate sin, guilt, fear, anger, bitterness, selfishness and other spiritual toxins. The chief way of doing this involves confession, repentance, seeking forgiveness, perhaps making restitution, and altering our lives. All of this is possible, not by our own merit or effort, but through the power of the cross of Jesus Christ. "In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace," says Paul in Ephesians 1:7, and John tells us "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9). James highlights the benefit of confessing to other believers (and notes the way in which our spiritual lives can impact our physical lives) when he says "Confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed" (James 5:16). We might not like doing it, but we won't be healthy if we don't!
And, finally, all living creatures need NUTRITION, taking in food, breaking it down, and putting it to use in providing the body with what it needs for energy, growth, and maintenance of health. Psalm 34:8 encourages us to "Taste and see that the Lord is good," and at the conclusion of the Eucharist we thank God for "feeding us with the spiritual food of the most precious Body and Blood of your Son our Savior Jesus Christ" (BCP p. 366). Communing with God is what nourishes us spiritually, and most often this means feeding on the Word of God. When Jesus was tempted in the wilderness, and Satan suggested he turn stones into bread, he responded by saying, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God" (Matt. 4:4). Peter encourages his readers to, "Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk [or "milk of the word" KJV], that by it you may grow up into salvation" (1 Peter 2:2), but the writer to the Hebrews reproves his readers for still needing "milk, not solid food, for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil" (Heb. 5:12b-14). Clearly our spiritual faculties are expected to mature--as an infant's digestive tract matures--through taking in more and more nourishment, and not simply sticking with the same diet of "soft food" we start with.
So... (here comes the "Dr. Phil question") How are we doing with all that? What areas of our spiritual lives are strong and healthy, and where do we need some attention? Take some time to think about which areas you may be weak in, and what you might do to strengthen your spiritual life.
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