SPIRITUAL PRACTICES - STUDY
By Dr. Barry Stricker
Let’s start with 2 Timothy 2:15. In most modern Bible translations, we won’t find the word “study” in 2 Timothy 2:15. But the concept of study is surely there – and that word itself is what shows up in the King James Version of the Bible. In Paul’s words to young Timothy, we are challenged to study, to do our best, to apply ourselves, to work hard, to put our whole heart into the task . . . of fulfilling the calling that God has put before us. Paul is encouraging Timothy to devote his energy and time and intellectual pursuit and spiritual passion so that he would be able to stand before God one day and declare, “I did the best I could."
SPIRITUAL PRACTICES – STUDY
Often, people think of “study” as dry, boring, and tedious. But that’s not the flavor that we find in 2 Timothy 2:15. What we find there is passion, desire, and even desperation. Study is a classic spiritual discipline. Study calls us...
SPIRITUAL PRACTICES – WORSHIP
Few aspects of our faith are more familiar than worship. At the same time, we struggle to understand the depth and meaning of this central expression of our response to God. In simplest terms, worship declares that God is worthy of...
SPIRITUAL PRACTICES – PRAYER
This spiritual practice called prayer is so mysterious. Scriptures tells us in many cases how to pray, and yet, we're not quite sure exactly how prayer happens, or how it works, or what the result is. But we can be sure that when we...
SPIRITUAL PRACTICES – MEDITATION
Every one of us will fill our mind and our heart . . . with something. Whether we mean to or not – whether we intend to or not – we will find something to dwell on, think about, and ponder. Meditation on God and his ways leads to...
SPIRITUAL PRACTICES – SUBMISSION
The central meaning of submission is giving in to God – and doing that with joy and trust and eagerness. Submission is what we see in Mary’s response to the angel in Luke 1:38 and it is what we see in Jesus’ conversation with the...
SPIRITUAL PRACTICES – SOLITUDE
Often, the idea of being alone can be intimidating or even frightening. Even more, we may feel that, given the noise and busyness of our world, solitude would be impossible. Even so, God’s people for centuries have cherished the...
SPIRITUAL PRACTICES – SIMPLICITY
Simplicity is the spiritual practice that calls us to a singleness of focus. One purpose, one goal, one heart.There's something inside of us that hungers for simplicity. Through practicing simplicity, we experience spiritual...
SPIRITUAL PRACTICES – FASTING
We might think that fasting is essentially choosing to go without food for a spiritual purpose, and that's part of what's happening, but more important than simply choosing to go without food, is deciding where exactly we're going to...
SPIRITUAL PRACTICES – SERVICE
We know all about serving, but often we don't take the next step, and actually serve. We have to get up, and we have to take steps, and we have to move in a certain direction. Paul knows that the Christian life that we talk so much...
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