The Heavens Declare the Glory of God - quietly.

As I explained in the torchbearer blog, I have struggled a bit as I have moved from seeing myself as a Bible teacher to a spiritual director.

I think this is because lives are transformed when people hear the good news of salvation proclaimed and receive it through faith in Jesus. So, I love proclaiming the gospel and teaching about God’s ways as found in His scriptures.

Yet, if you know anything about spiritual directors, you know we don’t teach. We don’t proclaim. We don’t give advice. We don’t even coach.

We listen. We provide a prayerful, non-judgmental space for people to process their relationship with God and others. We do ask helpful questions and occasionally we might even help people connect the dots of what they already sense God is doing. But for the most part, we are faithful, attentive companions along the way.

I began to wonder: Will I be able to keep my mouth shut? How will I not blurt out advice. Most important, how will I stay faithful to the call to proclaim God’s word to sleeping spirits? Enter Psalm 19…

The heavens declare the glory of God;
    the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
Day after day they pour forth speech;
    night after night they reveal knowledge.
They have no speech, they use no words;
    no sound is heard from them.
Yet their voice goes out into all the earth,
    their words to the ends of the world.

These words confirmed my decision. They remind me that I can point those who already believe in Jesus to discover more of the glory of God and His desire to bring Himself glory through their lives.

It is often those who have been walking faithfully with Jesus for many years who begin to feel compelled to discover their true self (the unique person God created them to be). Or, they may desire to discover the things God has uniquely called them to do for His glory. These processes take discovery not information dissemination. Thus, a spiritual director can be more useful than a teacher. After all, the Holy Spirit is the one actually doing the work.

What I am finding in this transition is that this takes faith that I don’t have to give all the answers. Faith that I can commit people to God because He is faithful and will complete the work He started.

Therefore, I will trust that the God that uses the silent heavens to declare His glory, can use my quiet, faithful presence as well. And that sleeping spirits can not merely be awakened but can become fully alive, bringing great glory to God.