“You can strive for perfection, your goal can be perfection, your focus can be on perfection but if you require perfection in anything you do in life…you will never be happy.” Gino Auriemma University of Connecticut women’s basketball coach…as his team is closing in on a perfect season.
At the beginning of most Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings the beginning of Chapter 5 (“How it Works) from the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous is read. “How it Works” explains the 12 spiritual steps of AA and the role they play in giving the hopeless, hope. The first time I heard “How it Works” there was one part that really jumped out at me…“Many of us exclaimed, “What an order! I can’t go through with it.” Do not be discouraged. No one among us has been able to maintain anything like perfect adherence to these principles. We are not saints. The point is, that we are willing to grow along spiritual lines. The principles we have set down are guides to progress. We claim spiritual progress rather than spiritual perfection.”
Considering where I was in my life, spiritual progress made me feel like I had a chance at “getting” this God thing that many people in recovey told me was my only hope for continuous sobriety. For years I thought I had to have it all together in order to receive God’s grace but spiritual progress gave me a new perspective on things. As I’ve grown in my faith over the years I totally understand why God had his son serve as the sacrificial lamb for all of our mess ups. He gives us no excuse for ever giving up on our spiritual journey. It is through Christ’s death that we’ve been given new life.
Over the years as I have grown closer to Jesus, I find myself desiring to get even closer. This desire to grow closer to Jesus is because of a new, healthy addiction I have to the fruits of the Spirit. When I once thought the fruits of the spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control…Galatians 5:22) were reserved for only the perfect, I find myself experiencing them more days than not…and I was/am one screwed up dude! The reason I note “was/am” is because I know how to become the old screwed up Jay and that is by growing distance between myself and The Lord. Jesus gives us the ability to fail, repent and get back up and keep walking the spiritual journey. Through his death and the subsequent cleansing of all our sins committed and yet to be committed, he gives us all the ammunition we need to conquer satan and the negativity he tries to suck us into.
This post came to me as I was reading 2 Peter 1:5-8 the other day. Simon Peter was talking about the process involved in attaining the “fruits,” “For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith, goodness, and to goodness, knowledge, and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance, and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities to increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Peter was telling us that attaining the “fruits” is a step by step process that eventually allows us to be effective and productive for the Lord Jesus Christ which simply means bringing others to Him. If you are a Christian and struggling right now, take a moment and reflect on your journey. Have you made progress? If you have then you’re on the right path. This whole spiritual journey is definitely a process, not an event. If you seem to be having trouble making progress, try working a 12 Step Program. The 12 Steps are a great way to assure you are progressing on your spiritual journey. After all, that is “How it Works.”
P.E.A.C.E.
