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If
most of us were asked why we thought we were not
fulfilled, why we were not simply happy, we would
likely point to particular features of our
life such as work, relationships, or health, and
attribute our unhappiness to one of these.... To
so many of us the activities of our day are like
parallel lines and many actively resent one area's
impinging on another. The result of this is that
modern life so often lacks a centre, a point
of convergence, a source of unity.
Consequently, men and women lose the sense of
their own creative centre and as a result they
have no contact with their real selves." (John
Main, O.S.B., 1926-1982)
The Lost Soul
Our
world is full of lost souls, and we may be among
them.
Not
in the sense that we have no eternal reward to
anticipate, though our attachment to the earthly
suggests we may not have full confidence in the
heavenly.
Nor
in the sense that our lives lack
direction or purpose -- "poor lost soul"
-- though that might be an uncomfortably accurate
description of some of us,
too.
No,
the lost soul may ultimately be that person who
has lost touch with themselves. In the words of
John Main, they "lack a centre, a point of
convergence." They talk about "juggling plates"
and feel divided between the demands of life.
Everything in their life is moving on separate
tracks at high speed - marriage, family, career,
education, church, etc. Each rail has its
demands and its
limitations.
More
often than not, these tracks feel mutually
exclusive. They tend to collide with each other,
rather than complement each other.
Periodically, they create conflict and friction.
How c
an I fulfill my desires and duties adequately in
every area, without some form of
collapse?
The
result? We have become alienated within
ourselves, unable to reconcile competing
demands or opportunities. We feel torn in many
directions. And, as Main suggests, we are quick to
point to our circumstances as the source of
our stress and
hardship.
We
have become lost souls indeed, because we
have
generally lost touch with the steadying
and stabalizing Presence of Christ within
us.
Thomas Kelly
(a Quaker) noted half a century ago, "Deep within
us all there is an amazing inner sanctuary of the
soul, a holy place, a Divine Center, a speaking
Voice, to which we may continuously return." If
only we
would.
In
evangelical circles we commonly identify the lost
souls of this world as those without eternal
security. Perhaps as we look at the quiet chaos
within ourselves, we'll realize our own need
to rediscover the "inner sanctuary of the soul"
... and rediscover ourselves.
The
journey to this place requires silence and
attentiveness. But be assured, those who were
dead, come alive! And those who were lost, are
found!
In HOPE
-
David
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