Motivation Monday - Why It’s Time to Recenter and Rest Your Soul
“In this cultural moment, if the Kingdom is indeed at hand, we as a ministry are not called to do more, but that which we do, we must do in the strength of the Lord. We must refocus our attention on developing our inner life, and rest in God’s presence. We need to place Jesus at the center of all of our doing and learn the sacred art of being. We need to recenter our time and attention.”
I once read a story about a man who lost his life in a late winter when a sinkhole opened beneath his home’s foundation, causing the floor to collapse and simply swallow up the house.
We can experience ‘sinkhole’ syndromes in our life as well. A sinkhole may be triggered by failure at work, a severed relationship, harsh criticism, ongoing uncertainty in the face of living both in an after-pandemic reality, or for no apparent reason at all. But if feels like the earth has given way.
We have two worlds to manage at any given moment. The outer world that consists of the news of the day, career, family, possessions, church and social networks. We also have an inner world that is more spiritual in nature, where values are selected, and character is formed - a place where worship and confession and humility can be practiced.
Because our outer worlds are visible and measurable and expandable, they not only demand our attention, but they are easier to deal with. The news, the weather, the availability or inability of solutions to our real and perceived problems are in front of us in moving colour without letting up.
I have frequent conversations with women who are struggling with the volume of the things they do. What they do as it relates to productivity and success, affects self-esteem if at the end of the day, doing all the things has not been enough.
The result is that our inner world is often cheated and neglected, because it does not shout quite so loudly.
We can effectively ignore our souls for large periods of time before it begins to cave in.
We become spiritually vulnerable.
We become untethered to the Source of stability, faithfulness, life, and joy.
In our increasing addiction to the news of the day, we
become blind to the needs of our own soul. We lose our center.
Gather is moving into a season where we are being called not as much to the ‘what’ we do, but how we are and who we are. We are sensing that perhaps our best way to equip Christian women across Canada is to call them to the deeply formed life and putting their souls at rest.
Jesus, in Luke 9:1-9, sends out his twelve disciples, with power over all demons, and to heal diseases. This power is given so that their message will be received as authoritative. Their message, in Matthew 10:7 is, “the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” The disciples, like John the Baptist, were preparing the way of the Lord (Mark 1:1-3)
If Jesus has called you, as a female image bearer of God,
with the same authority on mission, how must you live?
When Jesus sends out the twelve, He sends them without the supplies that one would normally take on such a mission. This was to teach the disciples to depend upon the Lord to supply their every need, and thus to develop and strengthen their faith (Luke 22:35).
In this cultural moment, if the Kingdom is indeed at hand, we as a ministry are not called to do more, but that which we do, we must do in the strength of the Lord. We must refocus our attention on developing our inner life, and rest in God’s presence. We need to place Jesus at the center of all of our doing and learn the sacred art of being. We need to recenter our time and attention.
A soul without a center has difficulty making a decision. When the soul is not centered, one is never sure what temptations are ones that should be resisted, or what sacrifices one should be making. We lose our north star. We do things like binge watching, over-indulging, escaping, or over-working because our internal compass is on hiatus.
A soul without a center feels constantly vulnerable to people or circumstances. Elijahs’ soul grew terrified under the threat of Jezebel and he runs and hides. David runs from his son Absalom and becomes completely exhausted. In both circumstances it is only God that restores the soul and recenters it so they can go back out into the world.
A soul without a center is easily thrown. We didn’t see any of this current reality coming. We were thrown off-kilter and quickly tried to accommodate the new with constant pivoting. As the months have turned into years, our short-lived accommodations have not met the need of our souls to truly be planted and standing strong while a world undoes itself around us.
God is still propelling you forward.
You just may not see it.
There may be changes coming that require a centered soul
to withstand it.
You just may not see it.
Consider these truths:
2 Corinthians 4:17-18
We view our slight, short-lived troubles in the light of eternity. We see our difficulties as the substance that produces for us an eternal, weighty glory far beyond all comparison, because we don’t focus our attention on what is seen but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but the unseen realm is eternal.
Psalm 51:7
“Lord, shape a Genesis {new} week out of the chaos of my life.”
Pay attention to your soul. Center it. Ground it. Nurture it. Look for the new in what God is doing in you more than you focus on all that is going on around you.
Pray with our Gather board, team and volunteers, as we consider how to then live as we put our souls at rest as a ministry. We pray for you to be reawakened to the joy of Jesus as your Center.
We are hungry and thirsty for more of God’s presence. We invite you to join us at Gather Rise February 4, 2023 in Calgary. https://www.gatherwomen.com/gather-rise-2023
We pray that together we will be reawakened to the new He wants to do deep in our hearts. And our souls will find rest in Him. That is how we shall then live.
I believe in you!
Cathie