We should supplicate the grace of God to enlighten us in the knowledge of ourselves, to expose to us our own unworthiness and guilt. Because of His grace moving in us, we can do and be good. Our sins can be forgiven because of Jesus’ love. That the Holy Trinity loves us so much that the Son became man to die for us, and the Holy Spirit enters our very souls through grace so we can participate in the love of the Holy Trinity.We are made for glory! So when we sin, we fall short of the glory that God created us for. We are made to participate in God’s divine life. We are made to love God and to be loved by Him. That we are made for more than sin offers.We begin to walk thoughtfully before our God, to examine ourselves carefully, that we offend not wilfully, in the least degree, the Majesty of Him with Whom we have to do.īut along with awareness of our sin comes awareness of two very important truths. The Spirit guards every avenue of evil, directs its attention on every side hence is born, thirdly, watchfulness. The members made instruments of unrighteousness, revelling is banished, pride mortified, and the body preserved in temperance and chastity. In the second place, amendment no longer are True knowledge works in the first place repentance and grief, changes laughter into weeping, joy into sorrow. That’s why so many spiritual masters tell us that self-knowledge means first and foremost awareness of our sinfulness. While we need to avoid becoming self-absorbed, we do want to know ourselves truthfully. It’s bigger than we imagined and holds the apparent contradictions in tension. Yet, self-knowledge is also an important part of building an interior life.Īs usual when we run across an apparent contradiction in our faith, the truth is BOTH AND. Spiritual masters constantly tell us that following Christ means to think about ourselves less and to think of others more.
Chesterton famously declared, “Angels can fly because they take themselves lightly.” Our theme for the first Thursday of Lent is self-reflection and self-knowledge.
Who cannot rest till he good fellows find, He breaks up house, turns out of doors his mind. Dare to look in thy chest for ’tis thine own And tumble up and down what thou find’st there. Salute thyself: see what thy soul doth wear. So, what’s next for me and my spirit? I will keep working on being the best person I can be, and hope that my spirit will keep opening and blossoming.By all means use sometimes to be alone. By approaching my relationships and interactions with love and compassion, I am not only making my spirit grow, but I am also growing the spirit of others around me. I know that I am serving my spirit when I keep my thoughts positive and my actions meaningful. I still very much value the buddhist philosophies, and try to have them guide my thoughts and actions everyday. I am not just asking for help in times of distress anymore it goes much deeper than that now. I pray for friends and loved ones who need support or healing. I pray for strength, guidance, and the ability to be the best possible version of myself. When I pray, I give thanks for all of the amazing people in my life, as well as the many blessings that I am lucky to have.
I now know what it feels like to pray with your whole heart, and I know the power that my prayers have. I am discovering what it means to believe and have faith. In grieving and mourning over the loss of my sweet baby at 13 months of age, I have finally been able to come to a place where I feel I am nurturing my spirituality. These are such simple and beautiful ways to guide yourself (and your spirit) through life!įast forward to the present. It all made so much sense to me: lead a moral life, be mindful and aware of your thoughts and actions, and develop wisdom and understanding. I would pray, but usually only when I was asking for something or needed some help.Īs a college student, I found myself connecting more to Eastern philosophies of spirituality, like the teachings of Buddha and Zen ideals. I was raised Catholic, so I always had a religious tie to spirituality but I never could seem to find the ability to truly have faith and believe the way I wanted to. This is the beginning, the beginning of my spiritual journey.įor most of my life, I was searching for a way to truly connect with my spiritual side.
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