What is spirituality? Spirituality, a much used word, takes many shapes and forms and its meaning has changed much over the centuries. Today its basic meaning is simply that which describes how we live out what we most profoundly believe.
Spirituality for Christians describes our approach to life, how we live, what we think, what we say, what we do, how we pray in embracing and expressing the Gospel of our Lord in our everyday roles, responsibilities and relationships. It is in essence our constant relationship with God.
It is crucially important that our spirituality must not be seen as a separate compartment marked ‘sacred,’ whereas ‘real’ life is lived in all the other compartments marked ‘secular.’ To do this is to set limits and put boundaries on God, who is limitless, who is within us and around us every moment of every day.
Spirituality is about ‘being.’ It touches and influences every part of our lives and every part of our lives touches and influences our spirituality. It is the life of the whole person in relationship with God, in a dynamic, growing, developing movement towards change and transformation into the individual God has created us to be. And as we make that journey, as we question and seek in our lives, we become aware of the influence of God’s Holy Spirit, through whom we can see life and its experiences in fresh ways.
So, spirituality is present in our worship in church, as we relate to God in prayer, in singing, in listening to his word in the scriptures and in sermon, and in sharing the table of his Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. But spirituality is there in our everyday lives, in all we think or say or do, since we are constantly in relationship with God, who is in us and around us all the time. And in our spirituality, in our constant relationship with God, we become aware of his presence in all parts of his creation, including other people and the beauties of our natural environment.
“Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation. You have called us out of darkness into light. Open our eyes to your presence, open our ears to your call, open our hearts to your love, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.” (from David Adam’s The Open Gate)