Category — Spiritual Partnership

Every fall in the Northwest we experience a weather pattern called an “inversion”.  An inversion weather pattern creates overcast and foggy conditions in the valleys making it cold, damp and dismal. The valleys and low areas are where most people live and work, so they’re often oblivious to the fact that the depressing weather they’re experiencing is localized. Sometimes an inversion will go on for days and can feel very oppressive. But travel a couple thousand feet higher in elevation during an inversion and you’ll burst out of the fog and dampness into warm, dry sunny skies! Not only is the sunshine revitalizing, but the view from above the clouds provides a bigger perspective on life.

All of us from time to time experience an “inversion” in our spiritual lives as well. We seem to get buried under the clouds of our daily grind. We forget the sunshine of God’s grace and presence and feel oppressed by trials and hardship. If relationships around us have grown cold our discomfort deepens and we may become joyless, sad and even depressed. [Read more →]

As I mentioned in The Quest, when I first began meeting with a spiritual partner neither of us had any idea what that would look like or how to proceed. Here’s what we did and what I’ve found to work well over the past seven years. And remember, men meet with men, women with women.

Begin by being very clear about why you’re partnering together. Verbalize with each other that you are establishing this relationship in order to “sharpen” each other (Proverbs 27:17) and “spur” each other in becoming more Christlike (Hebrews 10:24). [Read more →]

After cultivating numerous spiritual partnerships over a period of seven years, I still find it a struggle to develop a relationship with a new spiritual partner! And I know that I’m not alone in this. There are a number of reasons for this sense of awkwardness. One is that we rarely seem to pursue a relationship with someone intentionally. We often just let them happen serendipitously.

Another reason for this awkward feeling is that spiritual partners both know that they are stepping into a relationship in which mutual vulnerability and trust must reign. But left to themselves, relationships often require many years to reach that level of familiarity. Beginning a relationship with that understanding feels different—even scary! [Read more →]

As a young man I was hired by a Christian group to evangelize the villages along the Oregon coast. I had renovated a 1958 VW van into a camper that served as my mobile office and home. The prospect of serving God in this pioneer way was appealing and adventurous to me. That is until I actually began doing it! What I quickly discovered was that doing ministry solo is unnatural and very, very lonely. Jesus sent his disciples out two-by-two. And as far as I can determine, the apostle Paul always had co-workers.

I mentioned in The Quest that I had recognized my need for spiritual partnership long before I knew what it meant to partner spiritually with someone. Like most of us, I had enjoyed friendships with other followers of Christ. In some of those relationships we even enjoyed a high level of transparency and vulnerability. But spiritual partners take that one step further. [Read more →]

When I was twelve years old I went to camp for the first time. One of the highlights of camp for any twelve-year-old boy was swimming in the lake on a hot summer day. But the oversight of a couple hundred high-energy boys is a huge responsibility for the camp staff! They knew there were too many boys and too few staff to provide a safe swimming environment.

So, to make swimming safer they established the “buddy-system”. We were not allowed in the water without our buddy. And when the whistle blew we grabbed each other’s hand and raised our hands high to show that we had our buddy and that everyone was safe and accounted for. [Read more →]