Ryhthm of Life

Developing a Rule of Life

Develop A healthy Rhythm approach to Life

Everyone has a rhythm to life. The problem is many of ours aren’t sustainable.

It is one of the reasons there is systemic racism. Rather than developing and growing in our ability to love well, our culture is increasingly becoming unhealthy and loving less. Instead of systems and rythms that contribute to society, we see the exact opposite.

Racism is sinful, as are the systems and structures which enable and support it. It denigrates people made in God’s image and denies that Jesus Christ died to unite a broken humanity into a new unified humanity (Eph. 2:14-16). It also diminishes our witness for Jesus in the world.

That is why I do not believe we can grow into spiritually and emotionally mature disciples if we do not address the effects of racism and prejudice in and around us. In fact, a core characteristic of an emotionally healthy church is that the culture we build is safe for people of every race and culture, where we look at people different than us and say, without words, “You’re beautiful. You’re valuable. You’re unrepeatable.”

All too often, churches and pastors with power and privilege, like myself, have failed to speak out because we fear offending the people we lead or the communities in which we live. But I urge you to speak up against racism. While racism may take on a different look in Canadian culture it is there and it is ugly. Especially against our indigenous people. Let me encourage myself and you to love everyone well with love of Jesus, and part of that is building a rythm for life that encourages that.

What is example of a rhythm? If I have set aside time in early fall to go hunting, that is part of my yearly rhythm. If I take the last hour or two of my day to binge watch something on Netflix, that is part of my daily rhythm. If I take my family to the lake every weekend over summer that is part of my weekly rhythm. If I spend each morning reading my Bible and praying, that is part of my daily rhythm. What most of us do not see is that our rhythms can be something that are sporadic and even chaotic, or they can move in the direction of being intentional.

For most of us with our busy schedules and commitments, more often than not we are juggling relationships and responsibilities and we feel like we drop more balls than we keep in the air. When we don’t have a consistent way of doing life in four key areas, we end up distracted and overwhelmed by life. Most of us don’t want this to happen but it seems to just get launched on us.

So we wind up

Scattered, Hurried, Reactive, and exhausted.

For example, if I give all I have at work only to come home with the leftovers for my family that is an indicator that my rhythm is off. If I engage in class and give all my energy to school and don’t pour into the relationships that are important to me, my rhythm is off. We want a deep and abiding relationship with God, but we haven’t made space for it. We recognize the need for something but don’t have the energy to give to it. This is where the rule of life comes in:

Pete Scazzero from emotionally healthy spirituality says this about a rule of life or rhythm of life, it is “an intentional plan to keep God at the centre of everything we do…the starting point and foundation of any rule is a desire to be with God and to love him.”

What does the Ryhthm of your life say about your priortiies? What would you like it to say?

The goal of life is to dwell in deep communion with Christ and to be firmly anchored in our union with him. But how and when and where we practice these blessed realities will depend greatly on many factors, including our life stage, work, and physical capacity. If you have multiple jobs or small children, your Rule should reflect those responsibilities. Here are four categories we want to suggest in taking the first steps in developing a rhythm of life. And as you practice them these areas may change over time.

If you haven’t yet, download the worksheet that is part of this exercise. The link is at westwoodchurch.bc.ca/lglo

In developing a rhythm of life we want to think about the imagery Jesus gives us in John 15:1-5. “Remain in me as also remain in you.”

In John chapter 15, Jesus revealed to his followers the realities of the future. He would not be recognized as Israel’s king, but hated (verse 18). What’s more so would his followers. They would soon experience the hostility of an unbelieving nation (verses 18-25). This should come as no shock, for Christ’s rejection had been prophesied centuries before (verse 25).

Jesus gave instructions concerning how His disciples could maintain fellowship and fruitfulness in the difficult days which lay before them. The nature of the relationship between Christ and His followers was to change from a physical one to one that was spiritual, and the means of sustaining this kind of relationship are described for us. Picture with me Jesus words as they are walking past the temple in Jerusalem, and the great impression of the vine hanging by the entry way.

John 15:1–5 NIV

1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. 5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

Each of us would say that we would love if there was more fruit in my life. But think about the raspberries behind me. Can you here them. Come on fruit come on. There sitting their striving to push fruit out. Their encouraging each other, common you can do it. Their jealous of each other because some are better than the others. No of course you can’t hear that. They are sitting their remaining. We’ve tied them up so they can stay healthy but their job is simply to draw up nutrients, stay attached to the lines that keep them standing and at some point their will be fruit.

A vinedresser carefully farms too. Their livelihood and the provision for their family depends on it. It is in their nature to do all they can do to help a vine thrive and be fruitful. They tend the soil, make sure it is offering the proper nutrients, not too much and not too little. They water the vineyard carefully. A Vine grows best when it has to work a little. The vine dresser makes sure the soil has just enough rocky content. They tie up the branches so they get more light. And they protect their vines from disease, wash the pests off of it, nurture, care for, watch over and protect it.

Our Vine dresser is not rash and harsh. Having memorized and been educated in the Old Testament in their younger years and hearing teaching in the temple, the disciples knew this. In Isaiah 5:4 God asks them “ How much more could I have done for my vineyard? " Can you hear the heart of the vinedresser in that statement? With sorrow he asks, “what else could I do?”

Who is the fruit for? The gardener. And who the gardener wants to share it with. Think of that. The picture here is one of a gardener who is working in a way that brings out the best in us. All of our religious self effort, all of our striving to be good enough, counts for absolute zero. What does he want us to do.

Remain

It is the only command in these verses.

And in many cases it makes no sense to us. How can I simply remain? You mean just stay attached? What can I do though. I have to be able to show you how. So often Christians focus on the fruit. The accomplishments for Jesus. We look at the fruit in other peoples lives and start there. I’m going to do that. Instead we should look at who or what we are attached to.

We can fake it pretty good for awhile. Wearing the mask of religiosity. But it doesn’t last. When life gets hard we start to show what we are reallly attached to.

So how can I remain in Jesus? I want to introduce you to a simple tool called a rule of life. It is a trellis for life. A tool to help us remain in Jesus. To truly enjoy God and have him enjoy us.

One of the main reasons people turn away from Christianity is because of the many so-called rules that exist. Many of these rules lead to constraint, legalism and squeezes joy out of us. So associating Christian faith with rules seems counter- intuitive. But there’s a spiritual formation practice called “Developing a Rule of Life” within Christian faith that is not meant to constrain us. I actually liberates us. It is a “Rule” that has the purpose of infusing joy rather than squeezing it out. I’m referring to a “Rule of Life”.

So i want to invite us into taking a small step to develop a personal “Rule of life” to center our life around the love of God.

When most people reflect on their relationship with God, what we see is compartmentalization. That is -- we separate our spiritual life from other parts of our life – like home or work or recreation. Before God, however, every aspect of our lives is equally sacred. What we are missing is an intentional plan to live this out.

We need to recognize that powerful, external forces exist in the culture to cut us off from communion/abiding/remaining with Jesus. Behind these distractions and seductions to pull you and me away from Christ, the Bible says, are

demonic evil powers. The challenge to resist the Beast (as the book of Revelation describes the problem) requires a radical solution. Simply committing ourselves to spiritual disciplines or try harder is not enough.

At the same time, within us is our own fallen flesh/nature that naturally resists God’s will. Our tendency is to do our own will, not God’s will – or at least twist His arm to do what we want.

A Rule of Life finds its roots in the men and women who withdrew from society as hermits to the deserts of Egypt and Syria during the third to fifth centuries to seek God after the emperor had made Christianity legal in the Roman Empire. They wanted to free themselves from the worldliness found both inside and outside the church. They wanted to truly find God and thus bring Him to both the church and the world.

They eventually formed communities and organized their daily life around an agreed upon plan consisting of work, prayer, and the study of Scripture. They knew that to grow and mature spiritually, they needed both one another, and a thoughtful, conscious, purposeful plan. They called this plan a Rule of Life.

Again, please don’t be intimidated by the word rule. The word comes from the ancient Greek word for “trellis.” A trellis is a tool that enables a grapevine to get off the ground and grow upward, becoming more fruitful and productive. In the same way, a Rule of Life is a trellis that helps us abide in Christ and become more fruitful spiritually. It’s been said that a rule of life is “‘an exterior framework for an interior journey’: a kind of scaffolding to use to build the spiritual structure of our individual life with God.” It is an intentional, conscious plan to keep God at the center of everything we do.

It includes our unique combination of spiritual practices that provide structure and direction for us to intentionally pay attention and remember God in everything we do.

The goal - to be with God and to love him in everything we do.

The early church in Acts 2, gathered around a Rule of Life with particular practices that enabled them to prefer the love of Christ above all things – prayer, teaching, fellowship, breaking bread.

Each local church has a trellis, or a Rule of Life. God has raised up various local churches in different cities and communities. We finally commit to one that has a structure, a trellis, a “rule” that we believe will help us grow upward and deeper with Jesus. This may include midweek services, worship, preaching, small groups, ministries, and particular emphases.

On a personal level, however, few people have a conscious plan for developing their spiritual lives. Most Christians are not intentional, but rather function like cars on autopilot. We have an unconscious way that we develop our spiritual lives. That may include reading the Bible in the morning for few minutes, attending church and small group weekly, giving money, praying at dinner, etc. We come to church and interact with whatever is handed to us. We are, for the most part, passive and not intentional.

The invitation is to intentionally take one step to develop your own personal “Rule of Life”. The key word here is INTENTIONALITY. It requires intentionally to anchor us in the hurricane pace and beast of our twentyfirst-century world. Swimming against such a strong current, without the anchor of a Rule of Life, is almost impossible. Eventually we find ourselves unfocused, distracted, and adrift spiritually.

In the life of Christ we see someone who lived by a Rhythm. Jesus often withdrew to lonely places to pray, his family had a practice of visiting Jerusalem at least once a year to keep themselves centered on God. Jesus visited the synagogue regularily on the Sabath. He had a Rythtm to his life that was unhurried and centered on his relationship with his Father. Out of the deep relationship Jesus was able to love others well.

How hurried is your life? Often our own bodies are a better indicator of where we are at in abiding with Jesus. There are warning signs.

1. I feel anxiety in the tenseness and tightness of my body

2. I am not present or listening intently

3. I feel pressure with too much to do and to little time

4. I am rushing

5. I give quick opinions and judgements

6. I am fearful about the future

7. I am overly concerned with what others think

8. I am defensive and easily offended

9. I am preoccupied and distracted

10. I am resentful of interruptions and abrupt

11. A am manipulative, not patient

12. I am unenthusiastic or threatened by the success of others

13. I talk more than I listen.

How might God be speaking through your body today.

So a Rhythm of life helps us build a structure to provide space for abiding in Jesus. The picture comes from a vineyard where a Trellis is needed to support the vines as they grow and produce fruit. The same is true for a Rhythm to life it is a support.

What is true for me is that if I don’t have a rule for life I will be ruled by life.

So how do I start this? We have a resource on our love God love others page to explore this more deeply and here are a few of the steps.

Step 1

Write down everything you currently do (or hope to do) that nurtures your spirit and fills you with delight (e.g. people, places, activities). Think more broadly beyond such activities as prayer, going to church, worship, and Bible reading. Your list may include, gardening, walking the dog, being in nature, talking with close friends, cooking, painting, hobbies, or any number of other possibilities. List as many as you want.

Step 2

Write down the activities you need to avoid, limit, or eliminate that pull you away from remaining anchored in Christ. This refers to avoiding certain things that impact your spirit negatively such as senselessly violent movies, excessive social media involvement, and commitments that take you beyond your limits.

Step 3

Write down the challenging “have to’s” in the next 3-6months of your life that will impact your rhythms. (e.g. caring for aging parents, a special needs child, a demanding season of work, moving, switching jobs, beginning school, an adult child getting married)

Step 4

Fill in the rule of life worksheet as you consider your next 3-6 months. Ask God what he is inviting you to focus on during this season?

For the most part we have rhythm in four key areas of our lives:

1. Prayer/Scripture

2. Relationships

3. Work

4. Rest

Maybe you wan to begin a Bible Reading plan, maybe you want to spend time in prayer at a set time of the day. Maybe you want to take walks were you pray and rest in God’s presence. Maybe you want to sit silently with God and simply build an awareness that he is there with you. This week just pick one thing to do to abide in jesus. But do it on purpose as one of the most important things we will do.

Develop a Rhythm of Life

Step 5

Take a step back and prayerfully examine your personal Rule of Life.

Remember, a rule of life is a Trellis a support a tool to help us live in and out the love of Jesus. He adores you, you are loved by him. Grow in that love. And you will bear fruit, you won’t be able to help it. As you are transformed, you will start to see your family trnaformed, your roomates, your schools, your work, and your world.