Finding Spirituality and everything else in between

Last night, I found with great difficulty explaining to someone about my God-given purpose here on earth. After what seemed to be half a day’s conversation, my acquaintance, I thought was in no closer to really understanding what I was trying to convey. Strangely, we spoke the same language but perhaps not at the same level. I remembered a verse in the Bible that explained this quite well: “But the natural man [woman] does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, nor can he [she] know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” 1 Corinthians 2: 14 (NKJV)

Just as I was about to give up the discussion, I shared what I felt was the most important issue that JC has been impressing in my heart. It was again that concept of spiritual intimacy.
Since my acquaintance was married, it was easy to use the analogy of physical intimacy.

Intimate interactions produces some form of result. New knowledge is produced as the undressing of two bodies previously hidden had now become open on view. Everything is seen, both beauty and blemish. A new language is, at the same time, created and learned where communication happens spontaneously between two people without the need for words. A new life conceived. Something is finally understood and learnt. These and more is what JC calls the process of ‘knowing’ each other - you know that ‘other person’ a lot more than anyone else has and equally, ‘the other person‘ knows you better than anyone else does.

In the spiritual realm, there is the revealing of one’s purpose by the God of heaven. But more importantly, during spiritual intimacy, there is the unveiling of who God is and the knowing of yourself in light of how your Creator really sees you. It is also when you see your imperfections against the perfect Christ and the love He has for you in spite of who you are.

Out of this spiritual intimacy is the ‘planting of a seed’ within the womb of your soul. The impact of this revelation on you is not something that can be easily explained, but it leaves a mark and everyday it grows. It’s like telling someone about the growing foetus in your womb. You cannot see it but it’s there and you feel it. As it grows, the ’fruit’ of that intimacy becomes evident to the outside world.

I use to think that spiritual performance (the activities we do in church on Sundays or on Saturdays) is the same as what the Bible described as fruits. I used to do a lot of things in church, leaving me physically exhausted and drained, until I no longer find joy in what I’m doing. It became more of a ‘task’ for me than a ‘service’. “Why is bearing fruit such a miserable activity?”, I asked.

Of course, I got it all wrong. Those things we do are only manifestations of the fruit that we bear. It is not the fruit itself. The fruit that Jesus describes that only comes through intimacy with Him, will compel you to do those things out of the overflow of your heart, without the need to force it out, because His desire has become your desire, His prayer becomes your prayer, and His life - yours. You really cannot give what you don’t have.

Church activities, church commitments, or whatever you may want to call it, noble they may be, is no substitute for the intimate time with Christ. It really is not about our performance that Christ is after, it’s our time. In the words of Christ to Martha, "..you are worried and troubled about many things, But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her." Luke 10: 41-42 (NKJV)