Spanish Blog: All of Life is Spiritual

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Friends in Cusco, it seems to me that your culture has a better understanding of the coherence of the sacred and the secular than my own culture.  While my own culture staunchly compartmentalizes the things of God from “everything else,” you recognize that all of life is spiritual, seeking to honor your gods not only at church, but also at work, in schools, in stores, in your vehicles, and at every public event—once again, a beautiful outworking of your deep commitment to worship and a reflection of God’s good plans at work in you.  God’s word encourages pervasive worship in all of life, saying:

 

And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him…  Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.  (Colossians 3:17 & 23-24)

 

 

As a child, I knew that being a follower of Christ meant more than just going to church on Sundays because my parents talked about God at home during the week, too.  I knew that we lived a certain way because we were followers of Jesus.  I knew (quite well) that my parents disciplined me when I disobeyed because God instructs parents to do so.  Training me up to live a certain way was important, not just because they wanted me to behave, but because I belonged to God and my story was important to Him.

 

 

As a parent, I am always seeking how to do a better job demonstrating this reality for before my children: all of life is spiritual.  One of my most favorite quotes attests to this truth:

 

"There is no event so common-place but that God is present within it, always hiddenly, always leaving you room to recognize Him or not... because in the last analysis all moments are key moments, and life itself is grace."
- Frederic Buechner

 

I want my children to know that every moment of life is a moment where God is present with them, and where they can choose to recognize that or not.  In every moment they can choose to either live according to the attributes of His kingdom, or they can choose to live for themselves.  There is no moment in life that doesn’t matter.  Each moment is a gift of grace from our Heavenly Father in which we can submit to His rule and demonstrate before both humanity and the spiritual realm that He is King and we stand with Him.

 

 

I suspect that one day we will realize how significant some of our “trivial” or “mundane” moments in life really were…  I pray and earnestly desire to learn how to slow myself down enough to acknowledge my Savior more regularly, and see His invitations toward love, patience, joy, generosity, kindness--His invitations to participate in the kingdom of heaven right now.