Experiencing God - Growth 32

In January of last year, Archbishop Gérald Lacroix of Quebec and Primate of Canada, electrified the airwaves during an interview with this statement:
 “I have a lot of hope for what is growing in our Church. There’s something dying, but there’s something new that’s coming up, that’s growing, that’s sprouting, that is filling me with hope”. 

For the many times I’ve participated in retreats and seminars in the past, I usually began with the anticipation of a change, a quick change in the person I am. After all, we are talking about God are we not? If God wants to change me, then He can certainly do it; and for some, it seemed to be an instant process. But if we examine things closely, we discover that, for most, change is not instant. Change happens through a process of slow growth. So if you haven’t noticed a quick detectible change, don’t be alarmed.   

I invite you to ask yourself a few simple questions. Over time, have you experienced a greater understanding of God? Do you feel closer to God? Are you gentler in dealing with yourself and with others? Through your discipline of daily prayer, do you experience being closer to Christ? These are some of the signs of change; and you can be assured of further change as you continue to follow a discipline for continual growth.

Growing up on a farm gave me first-hand knowledge of this slow steady growth. Nature is a great teacher. The seeds that we planted in early spring took weeks before they could be visibly seen as new young shoots. It would be weeks more before they we big enough to be hoed, and it would be months before they could be harvested. All the change happened without our really seeing it happen. 

In 1978, some 35 years ago, I began the process of discernment and formation towards becoming a Deacon. I was in process because I had limited knowledge and experience about what it was to be Deacon. Between then and now, much has happened; many experiences, many retreats, many ministries, much personal development. I am no longer the same person I was back then. Everything has changed, but I am still as much in the process of growth as I was back then. Growth requires of us to be always in that stance of further growth, so that we continue with our development until a time of harvest. 

In the Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 13, we read: “Jesus puts before his disciples a parable.

“The Kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in a field. It is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown, it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches”.

The Kingdom of heaven that Jesus is speaking does not lie in some far off place. It lies within you. It lies within the expanding heart of every person who is turning to Christ, who is being transformed and re-created by His all-pervasive Spirit. This is why it is so important that the Kingdom within us remains open to growth, open to be nourished by God’s love through Sacrament and Prayer. As God’s Kingdom comes alive within us, we embrace with awe and wonder an expanding vision of God and His plan for us as a part of His creative process.

They say that a picture is worth a thousand words. I would like you to picture a chart which for me describes the process of spiritual growth.  On the left side of this chart is marked “Unrelatedness with God”. On the right side of this chart is marked “Relatedness with God”.  Arrows run from the "Unrelatedness" to the "Relatedness" which indicate the direction that is necessary for spiritual growth. If we are growing spiritually, then we must be moving in the direction towards greater relatedness with God. 

All of us fall somewhere between these two realities. We are all on the bar. Where we are at this particular moment in time is of no importance. What is important is the direction we are going. Do you experience your spiritual growth moving you in the direction towards greater relatedness with God?

Now picture a list of qualities under each of these two headings. The ones of the left under "unrelatedness" are illustrative of some of the qualities that we are trying to move away from. The list on the right under "relatedness" are some of the opposite qualities we are moving towards. If we are growing spiritually, we are moving away from selfishness and towards unselfishness, we are moving away from self-centeredness towards other centeredness. We are moving away from isolation and alienation towards a spirit of openness and community, and so on. You can add more to this list. For example, if we are growing towards greater relatedness with God, then we are moving away from slavery  and growing in greater liberty and freedom as God’s Children.

As God’s Kingdom comes alive within us, we embrace more and more the awe and wonder of His expanded vision for us, His plan for us as a part of His creative process. Spiritual growth is being open and receptive to the workings of the Spirit within us. But there is one thing we have to realize. 

The movement from unrelatedness to relatedness with God is not possible under our own power. Jesus says: “I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in them will produce abundantly, but apart from me you can do nothing.”  This movement to greater relatedness with God is only possible through the love of God that is poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit. 

In my mid-twenties, I had discovered within myself a deep dissatisfaction of life. Despite that fact that I was succeeding in many of my goals (in my accounting career, my family, in acquiring the things I wanted), something was radically missing. I felt empty when it came to love and relationships. As a result, I experienced being isolated and alienated from others. And there seemed to be nothing I could do to dispel the feelings that came from this. In my search for an answer, I decided to get more involved at church. I began to teach catechism, joined the parish men’s group, and I become part of a prayer group. It was there at the prayer group, on a cold November evening during a time of prayer that I let go of my fears, and in tears, turned to Jesus and asked Him for help. It was as if the walls of my alienation and fear washed away, and I experienced, for the first time, Jesus love for me, so strong that the structures of my well planned life were shaken. A few days after this, I was reflecting on the scripture of Jesus walking on the water towards his fearful disciples sitting in their boat, hanging on for dear-life. I heard Jesus’ call to me as well. "Do not be afraid. Take courage, I am with you. Come, step out of the boat, and walk towards me." 

This left with no doubt as how I had to respond. Jesus was calling me, to step away from a way of life where everything depended on my efforts and the false illusion of security it provided, and to step into the waters of uncertainty. Jesus was asking me to begin a journey towards greater relatedness with God. I share this experience reluctantly because it was only a beginning of the long journey that was to follow.

Each of you have had your own beginnings in faith, in which God has worked through your own unique circumstances and experiences. No two encounters with Christ are the same. But there are commonalities in the journey we take.

First, is the recognition of those areas in our lives that are in need of change, our self-centeredness, our clinging to attitudes and ways that prevent us from growing in holiness, whatever they may be.
Secondly, is to place these areas of our lives before the Lord, cry out to Him for assistance, and allow His healing grace to move us into greater relatedness. Only through Christ the vine, and our connection with Him, will we realize our full potential.

Everything that followed in my life from this initial encounter were the integral parts of a life’s journey that has led and continues to lead to greater relatedness with God: commitment to daily prayer, retreats, participation at mass and in church, being part of faith sharing groups, the response in service. This way of life has been necessary to continue the growth towards God that only comes through faith and a gradually submission to Him. 

My recommendation to you for growth in faith is only that. Do what you must, do what you can to remain close to God. Come to church, celebrate Christ’s presence with the community of faith, and be nourished by His presence in the Eucharist. We pray in many ways. Pray in a way that unites your Spirit to His. Service plays itself out in many different forms. Find that activity that draws you into relationship with that abundant source of Life that is available to all. 

Groups of many types are available to stimulate your growth as Christ’s disciples. Find the group which fires up your spirit to live a life that is joyful and abundant. Practice sharing your time and resources, for this builds a spirit of generosity that draws you close to the one who wishes to share with you ultimate joy and abundance. The three fold actions of prayer, fasting and almsgiving are important in that they give witness to our lives built on Christ. But they are also there for another reason. They are there as a discipline to help us break the roots of our own insecurity, our excessive attachment to pleasure and comfort, so that we may enter into greater relatedness with Christ. 

I conclude with another quote from Archbishop Gérald Lacroix. In that same interview that I mentioned as the beginning, he said:

“Bringing people to a personal encounter with Jesus Christ changes their lives because it brings them into a relationship with the Lord, with God our Father, with the Holy Spirit. And this changes everything.  Only this gives them a new vision of life, a new vision of values, and a new vision of family and community. It helps them to be different in the midst of this world so much in need of healing, so crying out to be saved.”