“Better in Private”
Better: In Private/In Person/In Public
Dr. Mark Foster
January 3, 2021
Colossians 3:1-4

“What matters most is not what you accomplish; it is who you become.” – John Ortberg

has an inner life, a spirit, a soul that is being formed for better or worse.

How is your spiritual life going? 1—2—3—4—5—6—7—8—9—10

How do you

the health of your soul?

Am I growing more easily

these days?

Am I growing more easily

these days?

Two gifts or results of connecting with God are the

of God and the

Reveal Answer

of God.

If

is growing in me, I am less easily irritated.

If

is growing in me, I am less easily discouraged.

“There is a way of spiritual transformation that is accessible to all people and it really does work in the contemporary world.” - Dallas Willard

The path

where we are and as we are – no matter what.

Comparison

spiritual growth.

Better, not “better

.”

“Spiritual greatness has nothing to do with being greater than others. It has everything to do with being as great as each of us can be.” – Henri Nouwen

Don’t Be Afraid to Connect with God and Receive Life (Colossians 3:1)

We have access to the life of

(above) where Jesus rules.

Since we have

to the life of heaven, we are to pursue this

Reveal Answer

.

There is no

from above, since Jesus who raised us, is in charge of heaven.

Like Christmas, which is bigger than a day, the Easter resurrection is

now. (Colossians 3:2-4)

“Just as insight can be desired, so too, it can be unwanted.” – Bernard Lonergan

How to Connect with God and Receive Life

for God all the time—in every place, in every joy, in every pain.

“Real listening means nothing less than the constant willingness to confess that you have not yet realized what you profess to believe.” – Henri Nouwen

Set apart a

and a

Reveal Answer

to be with God and Him alone every day.

Two enemies of connecting with God are

and

Reveal Answer

.

“The question that must guide all organizing activity in a parish is not how to keep people busy, but how to keep them from being so busy that they can no longer hear the voice of God who speaks in silence.” – Henri Nouwen

Jesus’ time alone in the wilderness was not a punishment; it was

.

Spiritual health is not about following

; it’s about following

Reveal Answer

.

Don’t think of solitude as being

, but as being alone with God.

“The glory of God is a human being fully alive.” – St. Irenaeus

Action Steps

Remove the word “

” from your vocabulary and thought life.

Set a time and a

to be alone with God each day.

Be

with yourself as you try and learn and fail, because God is generous.