The Present Moment

When it comes to the spiritual life there is no shortage of resources. Kings and scribes of old would marvel at the treasures of knowledge now at our fingertips. Each week this digest contains a few of those gems because we believe knowledge is a starting place for the growth of the soul. 

And that’s just what it is — a starting place. The goal is love.

The world doesn’t need ​“experts” in spiritual formation. It needs people with transformed hearts whose lives reflect the apostle Paul’s description of love in 1 Corinthians 13.

That’s one reason why our two-year school is called the Renovaré Institute for Christian Spiritual Formation instead of the Renovaré Institute of Christian Spiritual Formation — because spiritual formation is a process we undergo, not merely a topic to be pondered. (By the way, the application deadline for this year’s cohort is today, February 1.)

Jean-Pierre de Caussade speaks to this: ​“Theories and studies, without regard for the refreshing virtue of God’s order, are merely dead letters, emptying the heart by filling the mind.”

He offers a fitting close to our month on Guidance: ​“All we need to know is how to recognize God’s will in the present moment.”

With that as a backdrop, I offer a prayer for you and for me:

Father, thank you for hiding all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge in Jesus. Let the knowledge we gain in any area of life give us big hearts instead of big heads. Grant us hands that love instead of thoughts that judge. Our only hope for that is listening to and walking in step with your Spirit, who you’ve so graciously placed inside of us. Give us grace to abide in you each moment today. Amen.