The cloud of witnesses surrounding us can teach us much about what it means to bring your best self to the life you’ve been given. Vocation, in the richest sense of the term, asks who you are and how you are called to service in a world full of surprises. There is so much to do. How do we stay spiritually healthy in the face of overwhelming need? We must take care of ourselves: Renew, respond and rejoice.
Renewal can range from repentance to daring co-creation. Renewal might be a leap of faith. It could be learning a new skill. Or it might be quiet solitude. The reason it changes shape and strategy is that its aim is transformation. For example, if your spirit is stagnant, renewal is the counter-action (movement of some kind) that restores balance and alignment with God’s will. The opposite would also be true. If your spirit is inappropriately active, stillness might be what’s called for.
When God talks to us about renewal, it is always in a form that invites, inspires, and nurtures. It’s our own voices that sometimes get in the way.
This message was adapted from the first session of the 2011 summer Bible study written by Catherine Malotky and David Engelstad that first appeared in the June 2011 issue of Lutheran Woman Today (now Gather) magazine.
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