The Journey--Part Four "Companions on the Way"

The Journey


Invitation to a Journey ~ A Road Map to Spiritual Formation
M. Robert Mulholland & Ruth Haley Barton
plus
Notes and writings on Spiritual Formation from the
Institute for Spiritual Formation, Biola University

Part Four:  Companions on the Way

Lesson 1—Intro to Part 4

1.  Opening Prayer

2.  Spiritual Formation—What is it?
·      Christian Spiritual Formation—everybody is being spiritually formed all the time.  We want to be in a position to be formed by Christ.
·      Mulholland’s definition:  “The process of being formed in the image of Christ for the sake of others. “

3.  Two Faces of Christianity
·      Spirituality as a Static Possession
·      Information and techniques to achieve spiritual fulfillment
·      We are in control of our relationship with God

·      Spirituality as a Dynamic Growing toward wholeness in the image of Christ
·      Increasing faithful response to God
·      Holistic spirituality
·      God is increasingly in control as we yield to Him
 
4.  What is it to “be formed” in the image of Christ
·      Being formed vs. forming ourselves
·      Grace vs. Law/ Spirit vs. Flesh

5.  “…for the sake of others”--- the WHY of the Journey
·      “Isn’t it MY relationship with God that’s at stake here?”
·      “What do others have to do with MY spirituality?”
·      What did Jesus say are the two greatest commandments?  Matthew 22: 36-40
·      What are some other places where scripture speaks about our connection to others?
6.  To allow ourselves to be formed in the image of Christ—or not
·      If you were asked to describe your Christian journey to someone, what would you say?
·      Do you think of yourself as being formed in the image of Christ?  Why?
·      How do you feel about where you are on your Christian journey?
·      Are you “far enough” along?  Are you satisfied with where you are?
·      As far as it depends on you, is your relationship with God “good enough”?
·      Do you experience the Rivers of Living Water in your life?
·      Are you at peace?
·      When was the last time you eagerly shared your faith with others?  What do you remember about that experience?
·      Do you wonder if there is more?
·      Why is it difficult to think about getting “back on the horse” and forge ahead?

7.  Swimming and Floating—An Apologetic

8.  Matthew 25:31-46

8.  What does our Christian walk do for others?
·      Salt and Light—Matthew 5:11-13
·      Reaching out in our own strength, or in the Spirit—what’s the difference?
·      The Body of Christ—Romans 12:5
o   Spiritual Gifts—I Corinthians 12
o   Temperaments—Myers Briggs
o   Horizontal relationships—Galatians 3:28
·      The Rest of the World
o   The “Lost”—who are they?
o   Dealing with trials—how do they do it without Christ?
o   Rejection vs Acceptance—Matthew 5:11-13; I Peter 4:14
o   Ambassadors for Christ—2 Corinthians 5:20

9.  Companions on the Way
·      “Brother, Sister Let Me Serve You” 
·      How we relate to Christ determines how we relate to others.
·      How we relate to others determines how we relate to Christ. 

10.  Closing Prayer

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Journey-- A Study In Spiritual Formation

We are beginning a Journey to the heart of God this year, using 2 resources: I nvitation to a Journey~ A Road Map for Spiritual Formation by M. Robert Mulholland and notes from my certificate course at the Institute for Spiritual Formation, Biola University . We invite you to join us by attending the study at Trinity Presbyterian Church of Camarillo on Thursday mornings, 10 am to 11:30 am OR by following this blog.  I will post my lesson here, as well as any attachments we use in class.  Please give us feedback through the blog--it could be a lively discussion as we invite the Holy Spirit to probe our hearts and continue to fill us with Himself. Week 1 The Journey Invitation to a Journey ~ A Road Map to Spiritual Formation M. Robert Mulholland & Ruth Haley Barton plus Notes and wiritings on Spiritual Formation from the Institute for Spiritual Formation, Biola University 1.   Welcome.   Let’s go on a Journey together.   We...
Read more

Beneath the Cross of Jesus...

Image
Come and sit with me at the foot of the Cross for a few minutes.  It's a peaceful place-- a place where we come to realize that there was never anything to worry about in the first place.  We can sit here with Jesus amidst the weeds of our lives and just ... be.  And it's ok. This next week is a week of remembering Jesus' path to the Cross.  We remember His resolute journey.  Luke says, "He turned His face to Jerusalem".  He knew where He was going and why, and He did not turn away.   Jesus calls us to not "turn away" from ourselves.  Just has He had to deal with fear and dread as He walked obediently toward His death, He calls us to continue, unflinching, in our quest for the whole self He made us to be. Last week we talked about the Shadow Self in each of us--the hidden parts of our hearts represented by the low scores on our Myers Briggs tests.  I have been meditating on my hidden places.  None of them is as extreme as my i...
Read more
This Advent, more than any in recent times, we need courage to go forward and meet the challenges that face us as individuals and as the Church.  Mental illness, as in the cases of many mass shooters, is an issue that is still virtually unaddressed in terms of the average family being able to deal with it.  No simple change to health care is going to to solve it, nor is the prison system.  NAMI is making inroads.  But the spiritual state of our nation is badly damaged, and there needs to be major restoration of the heart of the gospel in our churches.  There needs to be prayer--real prayer.  There needs to be comfort--a taking in of the wounded and the weak--by a church transformed by the Holy Spirit.  Otherwise we are helpless. (John 15:5) I am reposting this Advent blog from the Transforming Center in Illinois. It gave me hope today.  God bless you all this week. Cindy Advent 3: A Time for Courage Posted on December 10th, 2012 by Adele...
Read more