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A farmer is helpless to grow grain; all he can do is provide the right conditions for the growing of grain. He cultivates the ground, he plants the seed, he waters the plants, and then natural forces of the earth take over and up comes the grain. This is the way it is with the Spiritual Disciplines--they are a way of sowing to the Spirit.
(www.watersedge.tv/disciplines_intro.htm)
I had breakfast with a dear friend and colleague who had lost weight. I noted to him how much healthier he looks. He expressed gratitude and remarked about the “hard work” it has been. He observed how he was always one to clean his plate. So, he had learned to leave some food on his plate, and that has been a good practice for him in altering eating habits. I looked on his plate, and there was a left over piece of bread, which remained after we left.
St. Paul writes to the Corinthians about the constraining influence of Love:
13If we seem out of our minds, it is between God and us. But if we are in our right minds, it is for your good. 14We are ruled by Christ's love for us. We are certain that if one person died for everyone else, then all of us have died. 15And Christ did die for all of us. He died so we would no longer live for ourselves, but for the one who died and was raised to life for us.
(II Corinthians 5.14, CEV)
The Authorized Version reads for “ruled by Christ’s love for us” the words “constraineth us.” The Greek can mean for “love of Christ” either “our love for Christ” or “Christ’s love for us.” The context, mentioning Christ dying for us, suggests the meaning is Christ’s love for us. Either way, “love” is the decisive factor.
“Constraineth” is the Greek sunechō, “to hold together” (Young’s). Therefore, implied seems the sense of “control.”
To be held together by the Love of Christ or Love for Christ implies the formative agency in how a person lives her life. Likewise, implied is the idea of abstinence.
In a culture in which most assume indulgence is a political right, abstinence is an important spiritual discipline. Among practices of abstinence are solitude, silence, fasting, frugality, chastity, secrecy, and sacrifice (Dallas Willard, The Spirit of the Disciplines). All of these are a form of fasting. Solitude is abstaining from company. Silence is abstaining from speech, from conversation. Meditation is a daily practice of solitude and silence. And, you can practice both solitude and silence among others by becoming mindful and inwardly open to God-within, not extending yourself to engage with others. Fasting is abstaining from food or something else. You could fast from watching television, watching movies, watching sports, using the phone, eating out, eating dessert, eating meat, … Frugality is abstaining from indulging in spending, spending money only on what is necessary. Chastity is when we abstain from sexual engagement. Secrecy is abstaining from letting other persons know about what we are doing; as in, doing good deeds and not letting anyone know. Sacrifice is abstaining from even the essentials of life, expecting God to provide. The discipline of sacrifice needs to be entered only through prayerful discernment.
Abstinence does not have to be a negative matter; indeed, such disciplines can be positive. Such practices, engaged in through spiritual discernment and with proper motives, can be positive experiences.
How do we practice disciplines of abstinence? We do so through love. Through the Love that is our love for Christ and Christ’s love for us, we can fill the emptiness left through abstinence with an increased attention to God. For example, fasting from watching television for a period of time provides time we would have spent watching television with time to spend in spiritual reading and prayer, or serving others.
Spiritual Exercise
1. How do you experience the Love of Christ for you?
2. What spiritual disciplines do you practice to withdraw from daily pleasures or occupations to give room to enjoy more deeply the Presence of God?
3. What role does the Love of Christ play in practicing spiritual disciplines?
4. Do you find yourself attracted to one of the disciplines of abstinence? Which one? How might you practice it?
Prayer
Teach me the freedom of a Love that can say “No” to the cultural addiction to much and more. In the emptiness of abstinence meet me and draw me more deeply into your Being, my Love. Amen.
Brian's book of mystical love poetry, An Ache for Union, can be ordered through major bookdealers.
Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors
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United Methodist Church
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