ALTHOUGH we are many and we are different, we are one Body.
In 1996, Gary Thomas published Sacred Pathways, a book designed to help Christians make the most of their own spiritual temperaments by learning how to “feed” themselves spiritually and how to love God as unique creations of His.
A “sacred pathway” describes the way we relate to God and draw near to Him. Your particular disposition for relating with God is your predominant spiritual temperament.
Many Christians, including me, have tried to follow someone else’s path and found it just doesn’t work. A one-size-fits-all spirituality only leads to frustration. The way to enjoy the riches of a close walk with God is to worship God as you, not as anyone else. God created us differently. Not everyone is a Daniel, and we can’t all be Davids either. Some of us are Dorcases, and others are Elijahs and Elishas.
We can’t all be the same, and that doesn’t mean your way is the “right” way and others are “wrong”. Some Christians will worship with dancing and shouts of joy, others will worship by kneeling in quiet meditation, and many others will worship in many other ways that you may never even occur to you because your temperament doesn’t lend itself to those. The important thing is that it is all to the glory of God through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Gary Thomas summarises his study of the last 500 years of church history thus:
‘Instead of learning from others, Christians have chosen to segregate themselves by starting a new church whenever worship preferences diverge. This segregation has erected denominational walls and impoverished many Christians. Unless you happen to be born into the right tradition, you’re brought up to feed on someone else’s diet. Unfortunately, some Christians have a tendency to question the legitimacy of any experience that may not particularly interest them. Instead of saying, “That’s not for me,” they proclaim, “That shouldn’t be for anybody.”’
If you’ve found yourself in a spiritual rut where you’re just practising mechanised religion or routine devotions and your quiet time is a shadow of what you’ve been doing for years, OR you find yourself judging other Christians for their mode of worship, then this is for you.
Growth and fulfilment do not come by coveting your neighbour’s spiritual walk, so your answer may not be in, say, leaving your denomination for another denomination where you believe you will “find God” or know Him better. Your answer is essentially in finding intimacy with God by understanding your own spiritual temperament. Peace and unity that glorifies Christ will not come by turning up our noses at each other or tweeting derogatory comments. It will come by understanding our differences and helping each other grow in our own pathways.
When I read Sacred Pathways in 2003, I found it to be very helpful, and the notes I came up with regarding my own walk with God and exploring my own temperament are still useful to me over a decade later. So, instead of a book review, I have decided reviews one temperament at a time so that we can squeeze out as much juice as possible.
Gary Thomas lists nine distinct spiritual temperaments and I’ll be reviewing them in this order over the next 9 weeks:
- Traditionalists: Loving God through Ritual and Symbol
- Activists: Loving God through Confrontation
- Naturalists: Loving God Out of Doors
- Caregivers: Loving God by Loving Others
- Contemplatives: Loving God Through Adoration
- Intellectuals: Loving God with the Mind
- Sensates: Loving God with the Senses
- Ascetics: Loving God in Solitude and Simplicity
- Enthusiasts: Loving God with Mystery and Celebration
When you see yourself in one (or two!) of the spiritual temperaments, a lot of things will fall into place, and you will understand many “whys” that have been unanswered over the years.
Do watch this space every Sunday from next week. I trust that you will come away with nuggets of gold that will enrich your worship and your walk with God, and infuse your spiritual journey with life and joy.