Messy Spirituality

Although it's been several years since I read it, one of my favorite books is Mike Yaconelli's book "Messy Spirituality." Along with R.C. Sproul's books on Reformation Theology, it has changed my thinking in so many areas of my spiritual life. The writings of these men have freed me to experience this wonderful spiritual journey God has placed me on to its fullest.

That's not to say the journey has always been painless. During the journey, there have been times of great victory, and times of great defeat. There have been times when, like Peter, I felt that no matter what happened I would never forsake my Savior. And, quite the opposite, there have been times when I have hung my head, completely crushed, at my betrayal of him. Again, much like Peter.

I cannot describe my spiritual journey as one of complete victory, nor can I characterize it as one of complete defeat. I can, however, think of one word that describes my journey quite well. Actually there is only one word that I can use. "Messy" describes it perfectly. There may be others like muddled, or cluttered, or confused….but I'm sticking with messy.

That's where I appreciate Yaconelli and his wonderful little book. In it I find that my journey is not the only journey that's been a little on the "messy" side. Abraham's was. Sampson's was. David's was. Peter's was. Paul's was. Actually, when you look at the list of spiritual leaders in the bible, you find that many of their journeys were not as tidy as many of us pretend or wish ours could be.

One of my favorite quotes from Yaconelli's book is his confession that he "is a Christian with a high tolerance for beer." I'm not sure if that's an exact quote or my paraphrase but, either way, I can relate to it. When was the last time you heard that at testimony time at the old church.

I'm back to grace again. Downright radical, incomprehensible, unimaginable, glorious grace. It's the grace that Luther, Melanchthon, and Calvin grabbed a hold of and turned Christianity upside down.

So here's my testimony. God has, through His marvelous grace, allowed me to minister to many people. He has also, through His marvelous grace, held me when my walk became "messy." In the times when my walk was like Abraham's or David's or Yaconelli's at their lowest points…..God's grace was there. It was there as powerfully during the low points as it was during the high points of my journey.

There is so much more, but these were some of my thoughts during my quiet walk along the peaceful Kettle River this morning. My dog didn't seem to appreciate them so much, so I thought I'd throw them on here.