Spiritual Development
Spiritual Development Happens in the Crossroads of Mental, Emotional, Behavioral and Social Health
By Michelle Sanchez, LCSW, holYsm
Part 1: The relevance of Spiritual Development
We all have many kinds of development….Cognitive, Biological, Psychological, Social, Moral, etc. and each of these is well researched and documented in the behavioral and biological sciences. Each type of development has a different set of milestones. Growth does not happen in the void of challenge or change, in fact it happens in the gravity of life, as we strive and learn to stand in spite of the forces pushing us down. Nor can growth occur without a form of nourishment that allows the restructuring of layers and systems to support what is being developed. The body cannot develop physically without input of nutrients, calories, water, air, light, gravity, and various states of safety, rest and movement. Likewise, other forms of development cannot occur without input and types of states.
Research was done in the past on the impact of a void of social input and the study subjects died without relational connection. We all need relationships that afford connection to survive. But not only do we need to develop and grow up in our body, we need to develop and grow up in our heart, mind, emotions, soul and spirit (yes these are all different). The goal is not merely survival, it is thriving. You have taken steps to move from surviving to thriving, and that is why you are seeking support today. That is healthy. You are pursuing development holistically!
So, we know we need input and connections in various ways for different types for development….just as we need physical nurturing as infants for a time, or we teachers for cognitive development for some time, we know we need many other kinds of nurturing and guidance, and certainly for spiritual development at different times.
God in the bible offers a banquet table of amazing spiritual food, and invites us to taste him and see….and be blessed. Psalm 34:8 “ Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.” He also invites us and challenges us to grow spiritually. This means that we also need the input of spiritual nutrients, calories, water, air, light, gravity, and various states of safety, rest and movement for the soul.
Here are some starter questions and considerations for your life. Take time to meditate and answer.
What makes spirituality relevant to your life?
What does spirituality have to do with your dimensions of emotional and mental self as a filter that impacts how you feel your experience of life?
What aspects of emotional, mental and social wellness are relevant to your spirituality?
What is a way you can make time and spend energy to get your daily intake needs met to:
· digest spiritual nutrients, through reading the bible (Jesus says he is the bread of life)
· breathe spiritual air through prayer and meditation (prayer is our breath with God, and he breathed the Word for us)
· drink spiritual water through spiritual input and comfort of others (Jesus asks us to offer water to one another, and he is the Well)
· see spiritual light (Jesus states that by his light we will see, as he is the light of the world)
· learn to stand and walk, even fly spiritually against opposing forces (Jesus is our strength of these movements)
· obtain spiritual safety (he is our tent, refuge, protection through the ecclesia and his word and kingdom)
· enter spiritual rest (of sabbath as time and space, as well as mindset and union with God- he urges us to enter his rest)
· move spiritually through choice, action and deeds into a higher spiritual space of existence (He states that our choices become our jewelry, attire,
our body, our being, times and states…”as we live, move and have our being through him.
The answer is complex yet simple- our steps and daily choices to be immersed in God are where we find these answers and the meaning of life. Our soul is on a journey, through the ages, and possibly aeons. Our companion and the author of the soul and its journey is God, if we choose, and he does mutually, along with his family and heavenly host, and with our body in this realm. Of course, it is the body who hosts our soul now, and possibly other spirits, or Spirit, for this part of the journey. As it has been quoted, “We are not humans having a spiritual experience, we are spiritual beings having a human experience” (Pier Teilhard de Chardin).
We are designed to walk with our body, spirit, God, and Spirit of our spiritual sibling Christ who models the journey that calls us Higher into the next age. This walk with God, self, and others through time is the intersection of all that will continue beyond time as we presently perceive it. The anciently described parts of self…heart, mind, soul and strength, are clearly interrelated and affect one another. Learning how to understand their connection and manage each aspect of the self is of utmost importance because any part wrestling and left undeveloped, can adversely affect the rest of your self, your soul- and cause it to stumble and trip, like a small child trying to keep pace with a running adult trying to do adult things with capacities of a child. How you care for your soul will affect your other layers and parts of self through time.
One could unpack significant meaning in the mere words of God, Creator, and Christ as worth debating when addressing eternity and states the soul may dwell in. For now, it suffices in superficial terms, that as you have perceived these constructs or entities in the form you have, they are existing here for and with the Higher you they wait for and cultivate in Love. Without them, you, as an entity, in present human form hosting a spiritual form, are incomplete, and being incomplete, you need others.
The parts of you attaining a Higher self, will seek Higher others, and also will care about others who are not where you are, if you consider that “higher” or not. We all make judgments that others are in different places, whether bodies or beliefs or behaviors. We all have someone or group we cannot comprehend their differences or choices in difference. Needing others, in spiritual, social, emotional and physical forms, requires emotional, mental and social capacity. This capacity requires a journey of development, just as our physical host must develop, or our minds and bodies would remain incapable of higher-level connection and function. Without spiritual development, there are a number of issues that would inhibit preparation for our next level of connection with God, others and self. So make a decision to read, contemplate, pray, meditate, worship.
Most spiritual literature and those people who are parts of those narratives are always described in a context of relationships and groups, not isolated and alone by practice. While there are times of being alone, spirituality that develops higher awareness, connection with spiritual beings and people, and humanity that endorses understanding in complexity, strength in adversity, empathy in difference. Attributes of spirituality are usually cultivated in mentorship and group relationships of togetherness. These attributes of spirituality are about the person in an environment. And the deeper spiritual truths manifest in application in our love for one another, not merely as a feeling of affection or attraction, but a deep devotion and commitment to others, even in poverty of mutuality or reciprocity for some time. This capacity is what separates the holy from less than holy….the capacity to become like God among others. But the journey starts with knowing God, being loved by God, and taken care of by God. It cannot happen in a vacuum, it happens in the presence of others. God states, “Where two or more gather together in my name, there I am”, and “the Kingdom of God is not here or there, but among you.”
Make a plan for each day and week how you want to pursue your Spiritual Development individually and collectively with others.
Write down your plan, put it in a calendar.
Write down questions you have about this.
Write down options of who you will discuss your questions with, and where you will seek answers.
Pray and meditate over your questions.
You may be uncertain where to read, or what to study. More on this to come!! But for starters here are some passages about what God’s word states about itself…
https://www.openbible.info/topics/gods_word