Life is a journey of adventure and transformation. You can wander aimlessly through life or you can follow a path but you can not avoid challenges, trials, setback and hardships. There is an ancient pathway that leads to more fulfillment and brings meaning to the hardships.
Though I’m a deeply private person I feel called to share my often feeble, sometimes brilliant, struggle to engage with Life in a manner the brings more abundance. This blog is me sharing what I’ve learned so far on my journey to become healthier, wealthier, wiser, and more Spiritually centered.
Life will either make you or break you and often does both. I’ve stumbled onto a way that produces greater abundance no matter what’s going on. Follow along as I share what I’ve learned and what I’m currently working on.
Journey = the set of difficulties you face that will cause you to grow stronger or weaker.
Adventure = your engagement with the journey to produce results that grow or harm you.
Transformative Path = Receive good things from God, be transformed by them, shine them out freely, have a transformed situation eventually.
“But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.” 2 Corinthians 3:18 (NASB) – Biblegateway.com
Why the Path of the Postmodern Cleric?
I apologize if it sounds a little “out there.” So let me reassure you, dear reader, I’m a simple, scripture-based, Christian.
However, God builds each of us unique, and when we operate in a manner authentic to our uniqueness we’re most effective personally and on behalf of the Kingdom of God. I was born outside the box and the Path of the Postmodern Cleric is my way of sharing my unique walk with God.
I believe my purpose (within the context of my relationship with an all-powerful God) is a journey of transformation. I’m heavily influenced by 2 Corinthians 3, and Romans 7 to 9, because these verses put an end to empty, religious practice and describe a “behold-and-become” walk with God that is more strenuous but ultimately more effective and rewarding. If you need to better explanation of me follow this link to the About Sir Bunch Cleric page.
But enough about me, let’s get to the meat of this exciting project because it’s my life’s work.
What is the Path of the Postmodern Cleric? The Flow of Good Things:
All good things come from God, they flow through us on their way to other people and they transform us on the way through. Ultimately, they return to God. My pursuit of life as an intimate conduit of God’s love has led me to amazing insights that I’d like to share. Abundant life awaits those who take on this path because Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.
What is Postmodern Cleric?
A Cleric is just a Christian adventure writer. We don’t stumble numbly through life, we have adventures with God and then sit at his feet and listen. As God unpacks these experiences with us it bonds his love into spiritual DNA, clarifies our real identity, gives focus to our decisions, purpose to our actions, creates maturity in our character and ultimately produces wisdom and abundance to share with others.
Why Postmodern? I know its a controversial word these days. Basically, I’m using it in the context of the three eras. Pre-modern (Gods/Kings/Destiny etc.), Modern (Age of Reason/industrial revolution etc.) & Postmodern (freedom to pick what works).
Lenses:
One of the most amazing things I’ve discovered so far is how many different ways you can view this path and it’s four parts. The lens that makes it easiest to think of the path and its parts is as a tree, with Roots, Trunk, Branches and a Canopy of twigs/leaves/flowers & fruit. I’ll use this lens as a primary way of communicating about these concepts but there are other lenses which allow us to see more layers to the process. So I’ll revisit each stage of the process several times, but the process as a whole remains fundamentally the same (receive good things from God, be transformed by them, shine them out freely, have a transformed situation eventually.)
Step 1 is to read how to read this blog:
The Four-Part Path:
The path is a four-part process we can learn sequentially. They are…
1) Spiritual Roots
2) Unique Trunk Identity
3) Healthy Branches
4) The Canopy of Wisdom & Wealth
I’ll be blogging about my upcoming adventures (expect craziness), providing updates so you can see what’s working or not, and sharing the things I unpack with God along the line. I’ll file them by the categories above.
I’m writing an ebook on each topic (1 to 4) specifically, but if you follow the links above you’ll get an overview of each concept and be able to sign up for notices when a new article is posted in that category.
A Final Note:
2 Corinthians 3:18 is describing a simple process of beholding and becoming, but think of it as though you’re a broken cup that magic liquid is pouring into. As you fill up, liquid flows freely from holes and cracks, but these openings slowly close from the properties of the magic liquid.
When the cup is full, the magic liquid overflows the rim and pours out into other broken cups. Even though the cup still shows cracks and chips it’s still a conduit of magic liquid into the other cups.
Why Imagine this? Because it’s a more colorful picture of what’s happening. Let’s look at 2 Corinthians 3:18 in the two different translations.
18 And all of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit. (NRSV)
18 So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image. (NLT)
I’ve always read this as though I’m the mirror, reflecting God into the world. It can lead me to think that I need to get myself out of the way of the process. The image I get now is that I’m holding the mirror seeing the Glory of God growing in me as I’m transformed. What if my uniqueness, even the ways I’m broken, aren’t in God’s way at all? What if Grace means that my journey of learning who I am in Christ not only heals me, but it’s my testimony and calling also. What if I don’t have to seek out ways to bare my cross, but by simply standing firm in God’s keeping power while in paradoxical situations I’m all the witness I need to be?
There is so much hear to unpack. I hope you follow my journey on the Path of the Postmodern Cleric so we can really dig into this.
Start here with “How to read this Blog.”
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