Sunday, October 9, 2011
Anchored in Grace
Once while tent-camping, I awoke after a rainy night to puddles around the edges of the tent and water dripping through the top of the tent. Due to haste and laziness, the tent had not been secured effectively with stakes at either the base or across the rainfly. Though the tent looked good the night before, it only took some moisture, wind, and my restless movement through the night to make my shelter a pathetic sponge to the rain. Since then I've always been very careful to make sure my tent is tightly anchored at all the important places. I wish I could give the same attention to my life of faith: Learning to drive my roots into the trustworthy bedrock of Christ. Alas, I take shortcuts instead of putting in the proper time and energy to ensure that my soul is anchored in the firm ground of God's love and power. When skies are clear and the breeze is light, my shelter works just fine without being adequately staked. But when conditions become less than ideal, my refuge from the elements can quickly become a sad excuse for a dwelling. A camp that is not secure is no camp at all. For me, these anchors always include prayer, study, and Christian accountability. Prayer keeps my imagination, outlook, and sense of reality rooted in a living relationship with my maker, savior, and friend. Study aligns my efforts, ideas, and attitudes with the word and will of God. Christian accountability offers me mutual support, alternative perspectives, and a tangible sense that I'm not alone. Like soil that holds, they have to be consistent and strong. To neglect any one of them loosens the hold on the Rock and risks my slipping into the mercy of the conditions around me. These anchors cannot be afterthoughts. They are not optional enhancements that one can choose to employ if they have extra time. Prayer, study, and christian accountability are what make the difference between a sturdy shelter and a flimsy toy that can easily rip, tear, leak, or fall under pressure. Lord, give me the discipline to regain a well anchored camp that can withstand the onslaught of challenging conditions.
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Ray,
ReplyDeleteI read your stuff and I wonder if you view yourself this way? You are one of the most spiritually connected people I know and I admire your willingness and openness to talk about your mystic side in casual conversation. I cannot tell you how much I admire what you do and how your convictions make me want to be a closer follower of Christ.
I may be reading too much into these things, but I hope you are not too hard on yourself. You are more 'anchored' than anyone I know. Obviously I am not in your context, but I cannot imagine what the onslaught of challenging conditions in your life are right now.
At the very least please know you are in my prayers and in high esteem at the Valendy home.
Peace.
Jason,
ReplyDeleteI've always been hard on myself. But know that writing about the ways I can find a sense of being grounded in God's grace is wonderfully helpful for me. I mean for my tone to be more of a celebration of discovery than a self-mortifying analysis. I can't tell you how much it means for me to hear you talk about how anchored I seem - and being spiritually sound is paramount in my life - but the truth is that I am deeply affected by the things that happen around me, particularly the negative things that strike the wrong chord with me. Part of that is an empathetic bent, but part of it can be a fixation on the negative and a ignoring of the overwhelming positivity that is all around! Thank you for your encouragement and for helping any other readers understand the true heart of my reflections.
-Ray
Pastor Ray,
ReplyDeleteAnchor deep my brother- the storms always come but your foundation seems firm.
Thanks & God bless,
Mark Walter <><