Relating
For the Sake of Others
For the Sake of Others
The practice of the spiritual disciplines is not solely for our own individual benefit but rather it is just as much for the sake of others. We have reflected already on some of the spiritual disciplines like fasting, simplicity, and solitude or silence - and while these may seem like disciplines for the benefit of ourselves they actually are also for the benefit of others. The first discipline we will look at under this section of "relating" is submission. The practice of silence can be a way of submitting to others by choosing not to push our own agenda or monopolize a conversation; simplicity can also be a way of submitting to another - choosing not to buy the last 'on sale' item at the store (which you don't actually need) so that it will be there for someone else. So, in this section, having looked already at our reasoning about God and our reflection upon what we have discovered and what it means to us individually, we now look at the implications in our relating with others.
The practice of the spiritual disciplines is not solely for our own individual benefit but rather it is just as much for the sake of others. We have reflected already on some of the spiritual disciplines like fasting, simplicity, and solitude or silence - and while these may seem like disciplines for the benefit of ourselves they actually are also for the benefit of others. The first discipline we will look at under this section of "relating" is submission. The practice of silence can be a way of submitting to others by choosing not to push our own agenda or monopolize a conversation; simplicity can also be a way of submitting to another - choosing not to buy the last 'on sale' item at the store (which you don't actually need) so that it will be there for someone else. So, in this section, having looked already at our reasoning about God and our reflection upon what we have discovered and what it means to us individually, we now look at the implications in our relating with others.
"The way of Jesus does not involved endless private, mystical experiences that tickle our fancy. Rather, it is the transformation of mundane activities that have vast public implications for our neighbor. Many of us are blind to the ways that we oppress, neglect, and ignore our neighbor in the little things that we do every day. We have 'blind spots' in our practice of love."
"The way of Jesus does not involved endless private, mystical experiences that tickle our fancy. Rather, it is the transformation of mundane activities that have vast public implications for our neighbor. Many of us are blind to the ways that we oppress, neglect, and ignore our neighbor in the little things that we do every day. We have 'blind spots' in our practice of love."
Kyle Bennett
Kyle Bennett
To guide us in our relating, we will look at the following disciplines of the Christian life:
To guide us in our relating, we will look at the following disciplines of the Christian life: