Dear Friends,
A question being asked these days as we seek to know others better is no longer, “What religion are you?” or “What do you believe?” The question is “What are your spiritual and religious practices?” A few years ago, a woman in her late seventies approached me outside the gate at my house to ask if the foals (baby horses) in my corral would be for sale. I didn’t recognize her but when she introduced herself to me, I remembered she had been one of the most beautiful and popular young television actresses in the 70's. We had a nice talk about horses and living here in Sylmar and when she mentioned spiritual things, I told her I was a pastor and asked what religion she was. She immediately replied, “Catholic.” That apparently was the approved answer when you’re talking to a pastor.
I asked her where she went to church and it turned out that she had not been to Mass since she was a young teenager. She said that today she actually considers herself to be more of a Buddhist. But when I asked her about her spiritual practices, it turned out she was Wiccan.
Baptized as a Catholic, she wasn’t a Christian (follower of Jesus). She liked the Buddhist philosophy but was not a practitioner of Buddhism. The Wiccan “spiritual” rituals and prayers she had adopted and practiced told me who she followed and what she believed. It’s not what we “say” but what we “do” that reveals the truth about who we are.
Many label ourselves, as the actress did, by the religious identity that we think would meet the approval of others, but the terms “Christian,” “Jew” or “Muslim” may be meaningless. If you were baptized Catholic, you are considered to be one for life even if you never attended a Catholic Church since childhood. If you were born to a Jewish woman, you are a Jew for life no matter what your religious beliefs are today. If your father was Muslim you are Muslim and in some countries may even be killed if you profess another faith. But religious identity labels tell nothing about what we actually believe and what is far more revealing is the involvement level we have with our faith.
For example, Christians with a “high level involvement” are those who attend church regularly, read their Bible and have regular personal prayer times. They sincerely and faithfully worship God. They continually self-evaluate, confess their sins and make an honest attempt to follow Jesus and become more like Him.
There are 51 million Catholics in America but only 13% (6.6 million) have “high level involvement.” One third of all Catholics never go to church and 63% attend only a few times a year. There are 13 million Evangelical Protestants and 43% (5.5 million) have high level involvement. There are 7 million Mainline Protestants (ELCA Lutherans, Methodists, Episcopalians) and only 19% (1.4 million) have high level involvement.
A very large majority of those who identify as Christians are “in name only” and have little or no involvement with Christianity. That’s why a person’s self-proclaimed Christian identity tells us nothing about their spirituality or engagement with their faith.
We are saved by grace alone through faith alone but then our Christian growth is up to us. Paul tells us: “Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from Him, throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God – truly righteous and holy.” Ephesians 4:21-24 NLT
The New Testament described process of “sanctification” is to become less like us and more like Jesus. To be a “disciple” of Jesus means that we willingly put ourselves under a “spiritual discipline” that becomes the foundation of a rhythm of ritual that sustains and builds our faith. I recently read a quote by a poet, who said, “The task in life is not so much finding a path in the woods as it is finding a rhythm to walk in.” In music, “rhythm” is a strong, regular, repeated pattern of sound and in our spiritual practices, we need the rhythm of a regular and repeated pattern of ritual.
Your morning ritual may be brewing the coffee and sitting down with your Bible. In the evening it may be lighting a candle and praying printed or extemporaneous prayers. It may be reading a devotional. Your ritual may be filling your home with the sounds of Christian praise and worship CD’s as you sing along while cleaning your house. Perhaps the rhythm of your day continues as you engage in a time of sustained prayer during your afternoon walk or as you sit quietly in the backyard. Your ritual may be praying those short ten second “breath prayers” as you go about your day.
These I mention are only some of the various pathways to a greater level of participation in the Kingdom of God, and what makes these practices edifying and building up are when you’ve established the rhythm of the rituals and they’ve become a regular and repeated part of your day-to-day lifestyle.
One day we’ll be standing before Jesus. The Son of God is not interested in what church we’ve gone to, our Sunday attendance record, or the length of our personal prayer times. Jesus is interested only in the condition of our heart but it is those faithful spiritual practices that change our heart. Will our Lord look at the Spirit-filled man or woman you’ve come to be, smile and say, “Well done, good and faithful servant”?
