To be an apprentice of Jesus
“May you be covered in the dust of your rabbi.” —first-century Jewish blessing
“Come, follow me.” —Jesus, Mark 1.17
Order your life around three goals:
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Come & See
“So they came and saw where He was staying, and they stayed with Him that day.” —John 1.39, English Standard Version
“I will ask the Father, and He will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever.” —Jesus, John 14.16
The first & primary goal of apprenticeship to Jesus is learning to live in a constant state of awareness of and connection to the Holy Spirit.
“Abide in me, and I in you.” —Jesus, John 15.4, English Standard Version
This comes down to learning to always be two places at once.
The Practice of the Presence of God.
“The time of busyness does not with me differ from the time of prayer; and in the noise and clatter of my kitchen, while several persons are at the same time calling for different things, I possess God in as great tranquility as if I were upon my knees before the Blessed Sacrament.” —Brother Lawrence
“The first and most basic thing we can and must do is to keep God before our minds…This is the fundamental secret of caring for our souls. Our part in thus practicing the presence of God is to direct and redirect our minds constantly to Him. In the early time of our ‘practicing’ we may well be challenged by our burdensome habits of dwelling on things less than God. But these are habits–not the law of gravity–and can be broken…A new, grace-filled habit will replace the former ones as we take intentional steps toward keeping God before us. Soon our minds will return to God as the needle of a compass constantly returns to the north. If God is the great longing of our souls, He will become the pole star of our inward beings.” —Dallas Willard
“It is unlikely that we will deepen our relationship with God in a casual or haphazard manner. There will be a need for some intentional commitment and some reorganization in our own lives. But there is nothing that will enrich our lives more than a deeper and clearer perception of God’s presence in the routine of daily living.” —William Paulsell
The Practices of Jesus - The Spiritual Disciplines
Examples:
- Silence & Solitude
- Prayer
- Fasting
- Reading Scripture
- Sabbath Keeping
The
“Walk by the Spirit. Keep in step with the Spirit.” —Galatians 5.16a, 25b
If you want to experience the
“The general human failing is to want what is right and important, but at the same time not to commit to the kind of life that will produce the action we know to be right and the condition we want to enjoy. This is the feature of human character that explains why the road to hell is paved with good intentions. We intend what is right, but we avoid the life that would make it a reality.” —Dallas Willard
The lifestyle of Jesus is the
The Practices
- Sabbath (including Sunday worship)
- Solitude & Silence
- Prayer
- Fasting
- Scripture
- Community
- Generosity & Simple Living
- Service
- Witness
Rebuilding my life from the ground up.
Short Term (first steps):
set aside a little time each day for silence & solitude.
Long Term
Simplify your life down to what really matters; slowly cut out all the extra, unnecessary activities; add gradually add in the practices of Jesus.
Practices:
- Solitude: Take the “Spiritual Health Reflection” in The Way’s app or at practicingtheway.org.
- Scripture: Read the “Practicing the Way” Bible reading plan in the YouVersion Bible app.
- Community: Join a Life Group.
Mother Teresa:
“I don’t say anything; I listen.”
“God doesn’t say anything; He listens.”