T. David Beck: The Simple Way of Jesus

If you desire more contact with God in your life (like I do), then it's good to pick up tools from those who have become masters at this in the Christian tradition. One such master is Ignatius of Loyola, 16th-century Catholic and founder of the Jesuit Order. Ignatius was a Spanish knight, and he was badly injured in battle when a cannonball shattered his leg. He spent nearly a year in a hospital, and during that time he started exploring what it would mean to serve Christ with the kind of loyalty required of an earthly knight. Ignatius of Loyola In his journey, Ignatius noticed that there were some things that drew him closer to God and some things that pulled him farther away from God. He came to call the former "consolation" and the latter "desolation." In my forthcoming book, Luminous , I talk about "practicing the presence of God" and "practicing the absence of God." It overlaps with Ignatius' "consolation" and ...

It's Monday, and it's time to learn from the monastics. Today's lesson is about what we wear. Is what you wear in line with who you are trying to be? St. John Cassian John Cassian (c. 360-436) was a Christian monk who wrote influential books about the monastic life. His book Institutes is a description of monasticism. He starts Institutes not with a discussion of prayer or fasting or reading Scripture but with clothing. Why clothing? Because Cassian wants you to be able to visualize the monk on the outside before talking about the monk on the inside -- his attitudes and heart. Cassian describes the underwear, robe, hood, tunic, cords, cape, and goatskin covering worn by most monastics of his day. Without going into all the detail of their dress, here are the principles of monastic dress. First and foremost, what you wear should be in line with who you are trying to become . A monk wanted to put to death pride and vanity, and become a person wholly devoted to God...

Are you one of those who colors inside the lines or outside? It can make a huge difference in your relationship with God. When I was in fourth grade, I was both surprised and proud to win an elementary school coloring contest. Each student was given a white sheet of paper with an outline of the American flag and equipped with a red crayon and a blue crayon. As a winner, I received an American flag to fly outside our house on holidays. Pretty fitting for a guy whose birthday is on traditional Memorial Day (May 30). :-) The thing is, I won because I colored inside the lines. My shading was consistent, and my page was virtually mistake-free. As a person making adult decisions, I default to the spaces inside the lines, but I get restless there. Things are more comfortable when they make sense and I can predict how one step is going to follow another. I like a feeling of control. And yet I want things to be bigger and more impactful than what I can control. This is part of my develop...

I continue to be astounded by the life lessons inspired by the show The Voice and music in general. Here's one of the bigger ones. Musical truth: There's a difference between a vocalist who can hit all the notes and a singer who commands your attention. Let's call that difference mojo (or passion, or confidence, or swagger, or just plain sass). I have been studying The Voice for three years now, and I've been listening to musical artists from blues to rock to alternative to psychobilly and beyond, tuning in to what marks special artists. There are various factors, but one thing is never missing: mojo and swagger. They know they are talented, and they want to display their talent. Spend three and a half minutes with any Rolling Stones song, and you will get a face full of mojo, swagger, and sass. Spiritual truth: There's a difference between a Christian who says all the right things and a Jesus-follower who commands your attention . Now I'm not advocating ar...

Do you ever find yourself between two worlds? It happened to me today. World #1: the homeless center In the morning, I went to Loaves and Fishes, Sacramento's largest center for homeless support. I talked with three men about their lives, their living situations, and their thoughts about God. Until recently, it would have freaked me out to spend time with homeless folks. But God has worked in my heart. I really enjoy being with these guys and taking in their non-standard views of the world. I also think that the fringes of society are where Jesus is most likely to be found. World #2: the chamber of commerce After Loaves and Fishes, I did some email work, then I went to the East Sacramento Chamber of Commerce luncheon. These also are great folks, and I have been very warmly received in their circle. Toward the end of our meeting today, a sergeant from the police department did an update on things going on in the community. He talked about some recent crimes and a house where ...

Jesus took me by surprise yesterday. Once a month I have a day marked out on my calendar as a "Day with Jesus." It's a discipline I took up a few years ago when a wise counselor recommended it. It sounds simple, but it's surprisingly difficult to pull off. Yesterday morning I was asking Jesus about how he wanted to do the day. I was inspired by a blog post I read this morning by Scott Couchenour at Serving Strong. The post is about remaining childlike and engaging God with wonder and curiosity. Scott's words were in the background as I prayed about the day. I wanted to be childlike and receptive toward God. As I prayed, I felt a leading to do some writing on an article I am drafting for the Covenant's denominational magazine. It's the story of how my entry into the Covenant feels to me a lot like a story of immigration. There's a lot of my personal story in the piece. I felt this leading to write, but because writing is "productive" act...

I have a friend who is looking for a church that has real, Jesus-like love. It sounds fair, right? Jesus said love is a non-negotiable. The only commandment he left with his disciples is, "Love one another" (John 13).  The problem is, it can be hard to find a church with love. Churches get distracted with all sorts of other priorities (being right, getting larger, having more money, making a mark in their city, etc.). When a church gets distracted, love can erode quickly. Hence the need to look for a church with love. This being the case, I offer a few ideas that might help anyone find a church that has love. Disclaimer: these are generalizations, so I know there are lots of counterexamples. Okay, here we go. Ten tips for finding a church that has love: Be open to a church without a great building . The reason? Buildings often become a powerful distraction and can erode the value put on people. If a church doesn't have a great building, you won't hear them say...