On the Minister’s Mind

with with Rev. Dieter

Spiritual growth is more than words. We know that, of course, but it bears repetition. I want to take a minute on this because a lot of people spend a lot of time making sure they’re using the right lingo. They’re careful to set aside old words like salvation, heaven, and evil, and pick up new ones like attunement, oneness, and vibration. Sometimes the gyrations folks go through just to keep up with the latest linguistic fashion is spectacular. Somebody might not go to an old fashioned, outmoded “church,” but they go to a spiritual attunement campus for an hour every Sunday. What’s the difference?

Let’s ask ourselves what kind of spiritual path is all that spiritual if it’s made or broken by grammar. If I tell you that once I had a bad meal at a restaurant, and so now I no longer go to any restaurants, what would you say? If I told you that instead of restaurants I go to “nutrition experience centers,” and that I don’t want to be pinned down by a menu, but instead consult a “food option sheet,” would you wonder if I was pulling your leg?

God does not speak English. It doesn’t matter what’s in my dictionary; this is a matter of the heart. If we are to grow spiritually, if we are to have lives that work, if we are to change the world, our work has got to be about more than shifting some nouns around.

Instead of fearing words that we don’t understand, let’s see what happens when we try to understand them. Instead of demanding a lexicon that won’t offend our ears, let’s work for an experience of God in our hearts.

If I believe that spiritual matters are mediated by material transactions, if I can only connect with the Divine if I’ve bought the right gear, or if I’m in the right place, or I’ve said the right words in front of the right person, if my spiritual path is a matter of whim and personality, I’m utterly limited. It doesn’t matter if I call my Ulimate Concern Spirit, or Energy, or Vibes, or Joe Pesci. Whatever it is, if it’s far from me, so is my power. If it’s far from me, it can’t really be God, anyhow. Even if I’ve purchased the right keys or know the right words, I’m ultimately disempowered. I don’t have any experience of God in my midst. That means I’ll always approach life from a place of need, rather than a place of knowing.

This is not about changing words. It’s about a change of heart.

There is something in you that is beyond words, trends, and brand recognition. There is something in you that has always been there. You don’t have to call on it. It’s calling you. Let’s not worry about speaking the right words. Let’s learn to listen.