Faith Dance - Meditations about Spirituality, Faith, Religion, God, Established church, Christianity, Journals, Reflections, Meditations, FaithDance.com, Faith Dance.com, Mid-Life Crisis

Meditation 16: Luke 13 Care of our Souls

8/25/2009 8:05:58 PM

Then he [Jesus] told this parable: “A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and found none. So he said to the gardener, ‘See here! For three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and still I find none. Cut it down! Why should it be wasting the soil?’ He replied, ‘Sir, let it alone for one more year, until I dig round it and put manure on it. If it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.’”

Luke 13:6-9

I believe we are born into this world for two reasons: to learn certain things that will help us grow spiritually and to use what we learn in service to the world. All other activities in which we engage should flow out of these two things; else what is the reason for us to do them?

If we aren’t giving our souls attention, we miss the point for our existence here on earth. To live focused only on the physical realities of this life while ignoring the deeper spiritual dimension means we miss the point of life.

It’s so easy to put our time and energy into making our lives secure here on earth. We feel we must insure our physical survival first. Our lives are often either frantic or terribly lonely, and we seek to fill the longing within us with things that can never satisfy. We want, more than anything, to distract ourselves—with work, tv, food, whatever we can lay our hands on that will help us forget we’re not quite the people we suspect we’re supposed to be.

I think we also distract ourselves because it’s easier to lose ourselves in these activities than it is to lose ourselves in God. At least, we think it is. The reality, though, is that only God can touch the longing within for something more in life that will help us make sense of it. But we’re so afraid God might ask us to give up people or possessions, or radically change our lives, we run in the opposite direction if God crowds too close. But truthfully, all we’re in danger of ever giving up is our emptiness.

If we truly want to know why we were born into this life, all we need to do is ask for guidance. And seek to serve as a channel of healing grace however God directs. There are many, many opportunities to do that, both large and small, and every one of them is important in the larger scheme of Life.

God whose Life is within me, I asked for guidance as I seek to serve my purpose in this world. Help me not to hide from the lessons I need to learn, but to trust that in everything, your love and compassion surround me. Let me serve as a channel of your grace, bringing healing into this world however I am able. Amen.