Book Club: Reflection
Psalm 139: 23-24 (NIV)
“Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me and lead me in the way everlasting.”
The Deeply Formed Life by Rich Villodas, the Pastor of New Life Fellowship in Brooklyn is one of the best books I have read this year, I gave it a rare five stars. It covers topics such as the spiritual disciplines, racial reconciliation, sexual wholeness, mission and interior examination, giving practical advice in each chapter on how to grow deeper in our relationship with Jesus. Honestly, I could bang on about this book for hours, but there’s one chapter that really has changed my weekly routine with Jesus and it is called: ‘Deeply Formed Practices of Interior Examination.’ It sounds very complicated, but essentially Villodas advises that checking in with ourselves and our emotions on a regular basis is essential to opening ourselves up to God and his grace-filled refinement.
In one super-practical part of the chapter, Villodas recommends asking yourself four questions at the end of the day or the week. These serve as a starting point for reflecting on your partnership with God. They are as follows:
What are you mad (angry) about?
What are you sad about?
What are you anxious about?
What are you glad about?
Villodas says: ‘As we wrestle these questions [...] we bring to light some of the material that needs to be named, discerned, and healed.’ In short, the process of inner examination or reflection leads to spiritual growth and healing.
Maybe you are an expert in inner examination, or perhaps you’d rather bury your feelings twenty feet underground. Wherever you’re at today, may I encourage you to take some time to reflect on these four questions and see what God wants to reveal in your life. Make sure you remember that we worship a God of grace and love, rather than a God who judges and condemns.
Prayer — Father God, please join me as I reflect on my week. Show me parts of my week to be grateful for, show me where I can grow and reveal what I need to surrender into your hands.