How do you define Spiritual Formation?
It’s Biblically-informed, Christ-centered living. It involves spiritual disciplines. And living out a life that understands grace, mercy, forgiveness, surrender, and sanctification.
How do you define Emotional Formation?
It is developing an inner life consistent with God’s promises of peace, rest, and joy. It is using wisdom to run an integrated life that loves well and manages fear and sadness.
Where does Spiritual Formation intersect with Emotional Formation?
I think these two concepts intersect in one spiritual-emotional place. It’s at the point where one feels inadequate. That feeling is universal. You’ve repeatedly said or heard these kind of statements.
- “I don’t feel good enough.”
- “What’s wrong with me?”
- “I feel like a failure.”
- “I don’t fit in.”
Remember, you are a copy of the original Adam. You were designed to live in a fabulous garden. The gardener was the ruler of all creation. Absolutely everything was provided. Then Adam messed up and was evicted.
So, the one place where you would never feel inadequate was in the Garden of Eden.
Spiritually, the Garden of Eden or Heaven would feel like home. You are designed to live there. In a fallen world you will feel out of place and inadequately equipped.
Emotionally, you function well with feelings of peace, rest, and joy. But you will feel inadequate and struggle when confronted with ugly emotions and heavy life events. Examples include shame, humiliation, trauma, destructive conflict, disease, disaster, losses and death.
Close
Spiritual you are not designed for fallen world living. And emotionally you have not been well trained to live through tragic, emotional, life experiences. So, get comfortable with the feeling of inadequacy.
Prayer
Father, thank you for accepting me and never making me feel inadequate. I love resting in your presence. Amen.
Bible Connection
Today, the place we find adequacy is in Christ. He said:
On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. – John 14:20 (NIV)