Monday, February 16, 2009

Monday Review: Stay in Love with God

Well, if you were at The Refuge yesterday, you heard my rant about how the Reuben Job's phrasing of rule 3 ("attend unto the means of grace" --Wesley) is less than impressive to me. I think "stay in love with God" sounds very ambiguous and a little too sentimental for me. I would say "stay connected to God".
Here are some thoughts to ponder in review:
How connected do you feel to God? Why is that?
When I connect with our good, loving, life-giving God, I will be drawn even closer to God.
I can only live out rules 1 and 2 (do no harm, do good) when I have the guidance, motivation, inspiration, compassion, and strength that comes from a connection with God.
It's a cycle (or maybe a spiral): as I live out rules 1 and 2, I am drawn closer to God. We encounter Christ when we serve others. (Matthew 25.37-40)
It is a good suggestion to devise a rule of life. How am I going to be intentional about doing no harm, doing good, and staying connected to God?
Manskar's article Opening Ourselves to Grace, is a good introduction to the concept of a rule of life that incorporates the three simple rules.