Inner Archaeology

One or Many Right Paths? [Part 2]

The other day I overheard an interesting conversation between a male Pastor and one of his female staff.  He was coaching her on how to make a request of a church member.  Apparently the Pastor expected the church member would have objections to the request, because he warned his staff person that the member would probably say that the thing could not possibly be done. 

He told her to ask the member if he believed that God willed this particular thing to be done.  If he said yes, she was then to ask the member if he also believes that God enables and provides for that which He wills.  If the member said yes again, the Pastor suggested that the staff person then remind the member that if we know God wills something, we can be certain that God will provide for it.  The only remaining decision is whether we choose to do this something that God wills.

He went on to say that we are free to say "no" to God.  "I say no to God several times a day," said the Pastor.  "The important thing," he continued, "is to be honest about it."

That is one of the clearest discussions of free will that I have ever heard, in or out of the Christian church, and it suggests some interesting questions to ask ourselves:

• How can I know what God is asking me to do at any given moment?
• Do I believe that God enables and provides for what God wills?
• Do I really believe that I have a choice in doing what God asks of me?
• When have I said "yes" to God?  Do I say "yes" because I want to, or because I believe I "should"?
• When have I said "no" to God?
• When I say "no" to God, am I honest about that with myself and God?  Do I know why I am saying "no"?

One or Many Right Paths? [Part 1]

I’m often struck as I work with clients how persistently their philosophical outlook on life impacts their ability to thrive in the midst of career transition. By “philosophical outlook” I mean their basic view of life:  Are we free to do what we want with our lives, or are our lives mapped out for us in advance by an all-knowing God?

For example, I often hear people claim that there is one profession that God designed them to do.  These folks believe they are searching for the proverbial needle in the haystack and want help sifting through the haystack so they can identify that one needle, that one job God calls them to perform for life.

Others, on the other hand, believe that God equips us with inborn strengths and preferences which prepare us to perform a number of job titles – the title of the job(s) we perform matters little in this view so long as we are using the tools which we were formed to use.  In other words, God provides us tools to use life-long, but does not restrict us in how/when we use those tools to serve God’s Kingdom.

These two points of view form opposite doctrinal perspectives which have haunted the Christian church for centuries.  Predestination is the belief that God has predesigned all outcomes, decisions, and actions for us.  We therefore have no choice but to pursue our given calling because it has been preordained for us. We cannot escape doing God’s will because no other choice is possible.  In essence, predestination eliminates free will.

However, believers in free will hold that we are free to live our lives and make our own decisions and choices lifelong. Each choice we make creates consequences for us which help us to learn from our actions and inactions.  Thus, we do what we choose to do, and we learn by doing what we choose whether that action was wise or unwise.  God still communicates God’s will for us, but does not demand that we acquiesce.  We are always free to say, “no,” even to the Almighty.

These two doctrinal perspectives emerged in sharp contrast from one another during the Protestant Reformation almost 500 years ago, yet we still struggle with their implications today.  Is this rusty theology really all that important?  I believe it is, and here’s why.

Whether we are aware of it or not, our beliefs shape our attitude toward the world, toward the events that we experience, and toward the decisions that we make.  If we believe in predestination, we will enter into relationships, circumstances, and choices with the conviction that there is one right way to proceed.  Our task, then, is to discover what that “one right way” is and to pursue it wholeheartedly.

If we believe in free will, we will enter into relationships, circumstances, and choices knowing that we have multiple options before us, more than one of which could be right.  Our task, then, is to select one of the “many right ways” before us and to pursue it wholeheartedly.

What about you … what do you believe?  Do you believe in predestination or free will?  Are you in pursuit of the one right way or the many right ways?

Intriguing, isn’t it?

IA Principle #1

One of the clearest memories I have of my childhood is going to the grocery with my mother and sisters.  I went to the dairy case as instructed to pick something up for my mother, and remember looking into the right side of the case and seeing my face reflected in the mirrors on either side.  Because these two mirrors faced each other, I saw a series of me's looking back, each perplexed and fascinated by the sight of endless reflection.

I've thought about that experience much since then, and have never lost my fascination with reflection.  I believe firmly that it is one of the most powerful forces in the universe.  Why?  Notice what happens to your mind and awareness as you do the following:

Right now you are reading this blog.  In your mind's eye, step back behind yourself and notice yourself reading this blog.  Just watch yourself reading.

Now take this one step further, and take another step back behind the person who is watching you reading this blog.  You are now watching yourself watch yourself.

Try it again, and take one more step back.  You are now watching yourself watching yourself watch yourself.  Keep repeating this process as many times as you can. 

Now, tell me this:  What happens to your mind and your awareness as you do this?  If you experience what I experience, then your mind seems to stretch and your awareness grows as you increase the layers of reflection.  Why? Because reflection creates awareness.  Reflection magnifies and extends awareness.  Reflection builds awareness.

Perhaps this is why reflective tools like journaling, dream intepretation, spiritual direction, and meditation (to mention but a few) are so powerful ... because they generate awareness.  Awareness is a critical outcome of inner archaeology work, hence reflection is a key tool we can use in inner archaeology to produce the awareness we need to discover and respond to our calling.

Which brings me to a core Inner Archaeology principle:

Reflective self-discovery generates awareness of calling:  If you seek to know who you are, look within first.

The Power of Patience

This weekend I cooked and baked a variety of dishes I hadn't made in awhile.  And though pressed for time, I noticed something different in the way I related to the cooking and baking at hand.  Usually I cook or bake to get something done.  I'm results-oriented by nature, and am always anxious (literally) to get to the end of the process.

This time, though, I discovered an unusual quality in me:  patience.  As I stirred the ingredients of the hash brown casserole I was making, I found myself enjoying the way all the ingredients incorporated in the bowl.  Instead of rushing to add the next ingredient, I lingered over the incorporation process and delighted in noting how the color and texture of the dish altered as I followed each step of the recipe.  I found myself inspired by the way the sugars and egg combined in the chocolate chip cookie dough to form the basis for this transformative dough that would, with the addition of a few more ingredients and heat, become a rich, savory, and comforting dessert.

Tonight I find myself reflecting on the power of patience.  Patience makes room for the holy and allows it to work, if we are willing.  Patience honors creativity and gives it space to grow, if we permit.  Patience unveils God's will, if we allow.  Whether we practice patience in our decision making, in our cooking, in our relationships and communications, or in our spirituality, patience always adds a surprising element ... the presence of the Spirit of God.

Take this blog as an example.  I've been working on this project for well over a year that I know of, and probably much longer without realizing it.  Sometimes I'm tempted to quit everything else just so I can focus on this and get it done.  But that wouldn't honor the call at work here.  The call is not only for me to do this work, but to allow others to observe the Spirit's creative process at work - to watch something sacred unfold, as if we were peering into the womb while a baby is formed one cell at a time (which, by the way, we are!). 

So, my challenge is to add something new now and then, incorporate it fully, and note as mindfully as possible what impact each addition makes on the emerging whole ... and not to be in any hurry to rush onto the next ingredient.  Now if I can just remember that!