Often when I preach, I am acutely conscious of how much I need to hear the message that is being offered to enable my own growth and spiritual enlightenment. Recent controversy in "the church" has given me cause to wonder how often the things I abhor or condemn are also the very things that I need to befriend and make space for. Things that I perhaps fear and,to counter that fear, try to keep at a distance. It is easier to deal with the darkness in another's soul than in one's own. While I give this pause for thought, I will also muse on Paul's wisdom that "where one part of the body suffers, the whole body suffers".
Our calling is to build up, not tear down, to practice love and forgiveness and to be salt and light - bringing flavour and proclamation that stands up to scrutiny. There is a spiritual discipline in the art of listening, not just to others but to the voice within.
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