Why Do We Need Spiritual Disciplines?

How are Christian practices, tension and zombies connected? Keep reading to find out!

Both the Bible and Christian tradition emphasize the importance of spiritual growth through practicing various disciplines. These practices have also regained interest in our modern, anxiety-filled culture as people seek peace and meaning. While striving for spiritual improvement, it's tempting to compare ourselves to those who appear more skilled or enlightened, resulting in envy, guilt, and frustration as we aim for consistency and depth in our experience. Why do we find this so challenging? And why are these disciplines so important? Let's delve deeper into these questions.

A Means to an End

First, let's think about the ultimate goal of spiritual disciplines. Popular philosophies often emphasize "Balance," promoting mindfulness and equanimity to alleviate anxiety or tension, or "Performance," advocating efficiency and control to enhance our ability to direct our lives and maximize impact. Both approaches offer wisdom and benefits. However, the true essence of Christian spiritual disciplines eclipses these objectives. At their core, Christian spiritual disciplines seek to deepen our relationship with the most significant person in the universe. This truth is profoundly captured in question one of the Westminster Shorter Catechism: "What is the chief end of man (humankind)? To glorify God and enjoy Him forever."

"At their core, Christian spiritual disciplines seek to deepen our relationship with the most significant person in the universe."

So, what practices or disciplines contribute to achieving the goal of glorifying God and enjoying Him? And how do we measure their effectiveness? Perhaps we could somehow quantify the health of our relationship with God, then assess our progress by comparing our current state to a previous one. For example, we might ask ourselves, "How does my current relationship with God compare to a year ago?" However, this approach is unhelpful due its subjective and qualitative nature. It also overlooks the true goal: the ongoing quality of the relationship, focusing instead on a perceived or hypothetical end-state. I believe there's a much better, although more indirect approach to assess our efforts—a method to guide us in exercising disciplines that are most beneficial for nurturing and expanding this vital relationship.

The Zone of Optimal Tension

The biblical emphasis encourages us to explore disciplines that create a healthy spiritual tension, fostering optimal conditions for relational growth and depth.

The shocking prescription for achieving optimal tension is described by Jesus in Luke 9:23:24:

• Surrender - Deny yourself
• Duty - Take up your cross daily
• Walk - Follow Jesus

In fact, one can observe many examples of the optimal zone of tension in the natural design of various aspects of life and the physical world. Take, for example, the ideal range of our blood pressure, our immune systems, or an engine’s torque and performance (RPM).

While this might resemble a form of balance, it demands a much more engaged and active participation than simply reducing or eliminating tension. It's worth noting that this tension reflects the deeper paradoxical relationship between God's sovereignty and human responsibility, a theme pervasive throughout the Bible. However, delving into this topic warrants much more scrutiny than we can afford at present.

Spiritual disciplines are simply tools to help maintain this healthy tension, keeping us in the ideal zone for a strong and growing relationship. 

Where's My Needle Pointing?

To get started, an excellent first step is to assess our current position in this framework. From there, we can identify which disciplines are the most helpful for moving us towards a positive direction. What is our current inclination in relation to the zone of optimal tension?

• Am I a drifter? Do I tend towards apathy or neglect, leaning towards the nihilistic end of the spectrum—believing life is meaningless or questioning my impact?
• Am I a striver? Am I more likely to push myself toward burn-out and excessive control, veering toward the narcissistic end of the spectrum—fixating on myself and my abilities?

Gifts That Move Us

Thankfully, even without our conscious effort, God provides ample encouragement to sway us into the optimal zone. He acts both directly and indirectly in the world and our lives, embedding His influence into the fabric of existence and expressing His love in various forms. Often, our “needle” is moved by the force of His hand through:

• Life Challenges: Life presents us with specific design limits, including our inability to control circumstances, our constant need for basic necessities, exercise to maintain levels of wellbeing, and ultimately, the realities of loss, ageing and death. These challenges are intended to nudge our needles in the right direction.
• Spiritual Encounters: God intervenes in our lives in practical and even dramatic ways, disrupting our experiences to profoundly shift our needle toward the optimal zone.

Learning to Walk

The Zombie Disciplines (Luke 9:23-24) are radical yet foundational to what the Bible emphasizes. Understandably, they are not very popular:

Being made in God’s image, we possess the creative, life-giving ability to actively participate in this process. Understanding ourselves allows us to better cooperate with God’s work in our lives, consciously engaged in moving our needle toward the center. How? By considering the following categories of discipline:

• Duty (Seeking Disciplines): Those prone to drifting should earnestly heed the call to “Ask and Seek,” focusing on disciplines that enhance personal accountability and increase spiritual expectation. Practices like fasting, gratitude, and journaling are helpful ways to “up the game,” deepening awareness and engagement in the relational journey.

• Surrender (Trusting Disciplines): For those more inclined to striving, disciplines that help to release false control and nurture confidence of God’s character and faithfulness are essential. Activities such as meditation, solitude, and worship can help us “slow down” and find rest in a place of greater peace.

Certain core disciplines that are essential, regardless of our tendencies. Bible reading—immersing ourselves in the narrative of God’s character and heart throughout history—and prayer—authentic and honest communication with God—are vital for everyone. However, our predispositions will influence our approach to these disciplines.

The contemporary Christian initiatives emphasizing leadership and performance, often rooted in corporate and business contexts, have had a negative impact on me. As someone who tends to strive, this emphasis has been counterproductive, pushing me further into the striving zone. For me, the antidote was to adopt a spiritual zombie mindset.

What's With the Zombies?

So, what’s the deal with the zombies? It’s a provocative metaphor underscoring how Christian Spiritual Disciplines bring transformative life by helping us to become the “walking dead.” Dead to self-obsession, dead to the allure of sin, and resolutely walking by following a Saviour who deeply loves us and sacrificed everything for us. This principle is powerfully reflected in Galatians 2:20 - "I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me."

• 
  The discipline of dying - This involves consciously practicing humility—knowing your identity in Christ from God's perspective. It requires focused effort to grow in this truth while constantly subjecting our ego to this reality.
• The discipline of suffering - By definition, discipline is hard and takes work. Although there is a sense of peace and congruence in doing what's right, it's far from painless and easy.
• The discipline of following - In contrast to our pursuit of leadership and performance, following requires a growing discipline of trust and comprehension of God's character and love for us. It involves embracing followership, not leadership, relinquishing control, and allowing ourselves to be guided.

The Zombie Reward

As an additional incentive, it’s vital to keep in mind the Zombie Reward. The counter-intuitive promise found in Matthew 16:26

"For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it."

In conclusion, take some time to assess yourself. Ask for help and prioritize your investment in this most important of all relationships. Beyond measure, additional benefits stem from nurturing this relationship: identity, meaning, purpose and impact. Along the way, take encouragement from these insightful words from Greg Anderson: “Focus on the journey, not the destination. Joy is found not in finishing an activity but in doing it.” ( Link to accompanying slides)