What We Know vs. What We Do Pt. 2

I wanted to add more to this discussion. I think about this subject often and have many conversations about it, and I find that for many of us, it’s a big issue. We may not be where we should be, and we live thankful for the grace of God, but we don’t stay there. So the big question is, how do we move from the head to the heart?

From Head to Heart

For thousands of years, spiritual disciplines have been used for spiritual formation. Spiritual formation is the process by which we are made into the image of Jesus. These include, but are not limited to, prayer, fasting, solitude, Bible reading, memorization, generosity, fellowship, and celebration. These things work differently to help us grow in our spiritual character and faith. 

Psalm 119:11 says I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. Memorizing scripture helps us recall the truth and promises of God when temptation comes knocking at our door. Fasting is the practice of denying ourselves something, historically food, to focus on our relationship with God. Generosity reminds us to hold the things of this life loosely. As Job said, naked we came, and naked we will go. When we live generously, we show our dependence on God and trust in him over our things. 

I read this excellent book, Saturate, by Jeff Vanderstelt, a few years ago. The book's premise is how to be a disciple of Jesus in the everyday regularities of life. The idea is to set up our lives so that we are constantly immersed in the things of Jesus. 

The music we listen to. The people we hang with. What we watch. What we read. It’s not a “Jesus-only” life but one where, as Colossians 1:17 says, we see him as preeminent above all things. What all of the biblical writers and the church have understood for the last twenty centuries, and most importantly, what Jesus preached, is that what goes into us is what is going to come out of us. In Luke 6, Jesus says that the mouth speaks out of the abundance of the heart. 

From Lips to Life

For us to move from the head to the heart and where the profession of our lips matches our lives, we have to train. John Mark Comer’s latest book, Practicing the Way, places a ton of emphasis on this. Jesus calls us to put this life into practice. In the same way, a person doesn’t become a world-class bodybuilder overnight; we don’t become mature Christians overnight. 

With that said, be gracious with yourself. Often, we find ourselves stumbling our way through this life. That is ok. We are not doing this in our power and strength; we are held and maintained by the grace of the God who loves us so much that he sent his Son to rescue us. 

Therefore, we walk in wisdom. Wisdom, like muscles, takes time to build. Wisdom is the skillful application of knowledge. We can take all the classes and download all the videos, but in order to grow in wisdom, we must find spaces and places where we apply all that we have learned. 

And that is the importance of community. 

I’m steeped in the book of Colossians right now. Like so many others, I am reminded that this book is written to and for a group of people. The Bible is pressing this constant reminder on the followers of God that we must do this together. Some people don’t like using the word must in preaching, but I think there are times and places where it is not only appropriate but necessary. You MUST be in community. 

We experience the deeply formed life among the body of Christ. When working out our salvation, we live it out in practice with others, not in our rooms with our thoughts. 

I think that’s the big idea in all of this. There is no other arena of life where one would attempt mastery without help. There is no other arena in which we try to go at it alone, yet, for some reason, we think the Christian life is the place that works. 

More than that. What we get when we are with other believers is a foretaste of the life to come. Revelation 7 paints a picture of the end. We stand alongside our sisters and brothers in the faith, worshiping Jesus forever. 

For all of the desires of heaven on earth, why not get a bit of it now? When and where we are able. That starts in the beloved community. Find yours. Dig deeply. Love well. 

Current Reads

Althea by Sally Jacobs

The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt

The Whole-Brain Child by Daniel Siegel

A Final Word 

People work on their bodies but not on their souls