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Written by Dallas Willard (1935-2013), an American philosopher and author on Christian spiritual formation.   This is an excerpt from his book “Renovation of the Heart.”

If we are to be spiritually formed in Christ, we must understand and implement the general pattern and all effective efforts toward personal transformation must follow – appropriate vision, intention and means. If this VIM pattern is not put in place properly and held there, Christ simply will not be formed in us.

And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. [2 Corinthians 3:18].

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Written by Mark Roberts, a contemporary author and speaker.

Gracious God, today we thank you for resting. What you did on the seventh day teaches and inspires us. It helps us to realize just how important rest must be.  As we continue to learn about the gift of sabbath, may our minds be open to learn and our hearts ready to act. Teach us to rest, Lord. Amen.

For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.  [Exodus 20:11]

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Written by the Lead Like Jesus team, an organization founded by Ken Blanchard and Phil Hodges that promotes a transformational leadership model based on following Jesus.

The pace of life can accelerate quickly, with demands coming at us from every angle. When this happens, the temptation is to abandon our spiritual habits in order to find more time or to be more productive. Paradoxically, the antidote to busy-ness is not found in doing more, it is found in doing more of the right things. Spiritual leaders need time to hear from God to lead effectively. When times are busiest, guard your heart and your habits!

At daybreak, Jesus went out to a solitary place. The people were looking for him and when they came to where he was, they tried to keep him from leaving them. But he said, “I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent. [Luke 4:42-43]

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Written by George Matheson (1842-1906), a Scottish minister, hymn writer, and author. He was blind from the age of 17.

My soul, if you would be enlarged into human sympathy, you  must be narrowed into limits of human suffering. Joseph’s dungeon is the road to Joseph’s throne. You can not lift the iron load of your brother if the iron has not entered into you. It is your limit that is your enlargement. It is the shadows of your life that are the real fulfillment of your dreams of glory. Murmur not at the shadows; they are better revelations than your dreams. Say not that the shades of the prison-house have fettered you; your fetters are wings — wings of flight into the bosom of humanity. The door of your prison-house is a door into the heart of the universe. God has enlarged you by the binding of sorrow’s chain.

Answer me when I call to you, my righteous God. Give me relief from my distress; have mercy on me and hear my prayer. [Psalm 4:1]

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Written by C.S. Lewis (1898-1963), a British writer and theologian.  This is an excerpt from a letter he wrote to Mary Neylan on January 20, 1942.

I know all about the despair of overcoming chronic temptations. It is not serious provided self-offended petulance, annoyance at breaking records, impatience etc, doesn’t get the upper hand. No amount of falls will really undo us if we keep on picking ourselves up each time. We shall of course be very muddy and tattered children by the time we reach home. But the bathrooms are all ready, the towels put out, & the clean clothes are in the airing cupboard. The only fatal thing is to lose one’s temper and give it up. It is when we notice the dirt that God is most present to us: it is the very sign of His presence.

I waited patiently for the Lord;he turned to me and heard my cry.He lifted me out of the slimy pit,out of the mud and mire;he set my feet on a rockand gave me a firm place to stand.He put a new song in my mouth,a hymn of praise to our God.Many will see and fear the Lordand put their trust in him. [Psalm 40:1-3].

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Written by Max Lucado, a contemporary pastor, author, and speaker. This is an excerpt from his work “Glory Days.”

Who are you? I’m glad you asked. You are:

• God’s child (John 1:12),

• Christ’s friend (John 15:15),

• a member of Christ’s body (1 Corinthians 12:27),

• a saint (Ephesians 1:1),

• redeemed and forgiven of all your sins (Colossians 1:14),

• complete in Christ, lacking in nothing (Colossians 2:10),

• free from condemnation (Romans 8:1–2),

• God’s coworker (2 Corinthians 6:1),

• seated with Christ in the heavenly realm (Ephesians 2:6),

• God’s workmanship (Ephesians 2:10),

• a citizen of heaven (Philippians 3:20),

• adopted into God’s family (Ephesians 1:5),

• born of God, and the evil one cannot touch you (1 John 5:18).

Get acquainted with your new self.

In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. [Romans 6:11]

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Written by Chris Webb, a contemporary Benedictine Anglican priest, author, speaker, and teacher. This is an excerpt from his work “To Bear the Character of God.”

The most odious corruption of love within our souls takes place when we allow love to become inwardly directed and self-absorbed. Christians insist on a simple truth that is strikingly counter-cultural in our contemporary society, obsessed as it is with self-realization and self-regard: we are not here to love ourselves.Now that needs some qualification, of course. It is not that we Christians are called to hate ourselves. The loathing which some people experience when they look in the mirror is neither natural nor healthy. But, contrary to the way many preachers and writers have come to interpret Christ’s teaching on the great commandments, the call to ​“love your neighbor as you love yourself ” (Mt 22:39) does not imply that our first task is to learn self-love. The twelfth-century Cistercian writer Bernard of Clairvaux had a clearer picture. In his short but brilliant work On Loving God, he argued that love at its least perfected is inwardly focused, seeking only its own good. And this self-love is not true love at all, merely the power of love corrupted into pride and vanity. As grace begins to reorder our hearts, though, some of that love starts to turn outward, towards God (and our neighbor), drawing us beyond ourselves – even if initially only because of the selfish benefits we can derive from others. A yet more well-ordered heart is able to love God and others for their own sake. And finally, says Bernard, we then truly learn what it means to love ourselves: to be grateful for the gift of ourselves, the only thing we truly have to offer to God and those around us, to express love. Growth in holiness ends in a proper love of self by turning outward to others, not by turning inward on ourselves.

They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.  [Romans 1:25]

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Written by Keith Riley, a contemporary pastor and author. This is an excerpt from his work “The Sacred Ordinary of Each Day.”

There are spiritual practices that can help us stop and pay attention, receive the gifts, and find God. Handed down by Christ himself and Christians across the ages are simple ways to turn our attention to ​“every good and perfect gift … coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights.”Here’s one to explore: At the end of a day, run back over the day in chunks: morning, midday, afternoon, and evening.  Think about what you enjoyed eating and drinking. Recall the friends you spent time with, the highs of your day, and even the difficult moments. Then, hold your day in prayer before God.  Where did you experience God’s love in your day? Was it in the smile of a loved one, the sun on your face, or the delightful taste of that ice cream?  Look back on your day with curiosity and grace. There is no need for shame or regret. Instead, pray, ​“God, help me to see your gifts to me in this day.” I was able to practice this recently on a gloriously long summer day. Here were some of the good gifts of God’s love to me: the smell of redwood trees in the sun, the taste of my morning coffee, a text message from a good friend, watching my daughter play at the beach, seeing her smile and laugh, the cool ocean breeze, the sunset, and the taste of tacos at the beach.  In each of these good things, I was able to look back and imagine God smiling at me with delight as I enjoyed the goodness of the day… God’s love is waiting for you in the midst of your sacred, ordinary day.

And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.  [1 John 4:16]

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Written by Catherine Marshall (1914-1983), an American author.

Over coffee in our living room, David du Plessis, a minister formerly of South Africa said, “For a long time I was puzzled about what “loosing” and “binding” meant. Then I found out: it means that by hanging onto my judgment of another, I can bind them to the very conditions I’d like to see changed. By our unforgiveness, we stand between the other person and the Holy Spirit’s work in convicting them and then helping them. By stepping out of the way through releasing somebody from our judgment, we’re not necessarily saying “they are right and I am wrong.” Forgiveness means, “They can be as wrong as wrong can be, but I’ll not be the judge.” Forgiveness means that I’m no longer binding a certain person on earth. It means withholding judgment. “How I wish, “ David continued, “that I’d been taught that from the beginning. My whole Christian life would have been different. Judge, judge – there are not more judgmental people in the world than Christians. When the Lord made me face up to that, He told me “you’re not forgiving. You’re a public prosecutor, judging everybody in sight. And I want you to be a public defender – not a public prosecutor.”

For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. [ Matthew 7:2]

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Written by Mark D. Roberts, a contemporary author. This is an excerpt from his work “The Gifts of Wisdom.”

We might define wisdom simply as “the capacity or ability to discern what’s right in life.” Such wisdom doesn’t exist “out there” in some disembodied form. Rather, it is found in persons (especially God!). The wisdom from above is deeply personal. When it is active in our lives, it not only helps us to live rightly but also forms us to be more like Christ. … If we think of wisdom as “the capacity or ability to discern what’s right,” we must remember that this is the capacity or ability of a person. Wisdom isn’t a technical ability. Nor is it a list of best practices that could be separated from the best practitioners. Rather, wisdom is something deeply connected to the human being who has it, uses it, and is formed by it. … Commenting on James 3:3-18, Uli [Chi in his book The Wise Leader] writes, “For James, ‘the wisdom from above’ produces a certain kind of person. It’s not first and foremost a body of knowledge but is instead, embodied in a person.” Wisdom is not just something we possess but something that possesses and shapes us. Therefore, as Uli observes, “Wisdom is about formation, not just about information.”

Who is wise and understanding among you? Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom. But if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not be boastful and false to the truth. Such wisdom does not come down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, devilish. For where there is envy and selfish ambition, there will also be disorder and wickedness of every kind. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace for those who make peace. [James 3:13-18].

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