I Don't Like This Word

I have never cared for the word "sanctification."  It sounds stuffy, holier-than-thou, and downright difficult.  Maybe, years ago, I heard some stuffy, pompous people talking about sanctification.  I don't remember.

Of course the word itself refers to the process of becoming more holy.  Why would that bother me?  Maybe it's my desire to make myself look more holy than I really am.  If I pursue sanctification, then I  have to prove to others how holy I am.  I'm just not good at that.  When I try to be holy, I fall short, so I have to fake it.

To avoid faking it, I just don't talk about sanctification.

Becoming more holy takes a lot of work.  I have to put myself in the position that God can pour his Spirit into me.  But when I practice spiritual disciplines, God does the work of making me more holy.  It flows naturally, or supernaturally, in my life.

I'm reading Dallas Willard's The Spirit of the Disciplines, and it's blowing my mind.  It's making me hungry for real spirituality, hungry for Jesus, hungry for living the real life that Jesus promises.

I might actually want to be sanctified.

So, God, who am I?

I've been preaching for years that we should
Center on God,
Connect in Relationship, and
Change our World. 
As we center on God, I have said, we need to Know God and Know Self.


I have always thought that self-discovery happens when I pay attention to my life.  That helps, but if I really want to know myself, why not ask God?  Surely he knows.  Last Saturday I wrote out some questions I have for God about myself.  I have yet to listen for the answers, but finding the questions is a start.  Here's my list.  What would be on your list?

• Why have you made me?
• How am I unique and special?
• Where is my thinking on target?
• Where am I off base in my thinking?
• What should I pursue?
• What should I give up on?
• What talents am I wasting?
• What makes my heart sing?
• What is my fatal flaw?
• How can I be more fully alive?
• What do you like about me?
• What do you want to change about me?
• What lessons am I failing to learn?
• Do you care about my legacy?  Should I?
• Why do you love me?
• What motivates me?
• What hurts have shaped me?
• What successes of mine really matter?
• What do you need me to hear from you now?
• What are my real talents?
• What should be my most important contribution?
• What habits will help me become my true self?
• What is your purpose for me?
• How can I move beyond myself?
• How can I delight you?

And Now for Something Completely DIfferent..

It's a new year.  It may not be completely different.  Most years are not.

But I have to wonder, what would happen if I approached 2014 with abandon?  If I really believed what Jesus said about seeking his kingdom first.  If I put aside my fears, my inhibitions, my lukewarmness.

I want to live life on the edge and embrace the Christian adventure.  It won't be boring.  It might change the world.