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- Do you ever get stuck in a rut?
- Does structure help or hinder?
- What about your spiritual friendships?
Consider recent conversations you’ve had with someone who shares your beliefs. Is it simple for you to strike a balance between expressing your troubles with them and thanking God for His love? In some of our relationships, there are more requests for prayer than praise. Because our brains are problem-solving machines, they are continually searching the surroundings for issues to solve. Both for ourselves and others.
There will be another imbalance if we just share positive information. When this happens, the person we are speaking to does not learn about our hearts and our problems. To keep all of our issues to ourselves may seem “selfless,” but it could also mean that we are avoiding dealing with the more difficult aspects of life.
What enables us to create a balance between sharing our sorrows and our joys with others?
CARE practices
This month, a friend and I began an experiment we call “CARE” practices. We have a terrific friendship and frequently discuss spiritual matters, but we felt that adding a little structure could be beneficial.
C = CONNECT with God first.
A = ASK God for a focus for the day. We’ve discovered that in order to think about God, we must consciously choose to do so rather than relying on “chance” or exerting more willpower. We need to train our minds to seek out the positive day by day.
R = REACH out to one another and share what we think God has shown us.
E = Then, throughout the day, EXPERIENCE (focus on, repeat, exercise) what we felt God showed us to focus on.
We anticipated that there might be days when we were pressed for time or our minds were cloudy, so we devised a list of suggestions to pick from, such as: taking a picture of something beautiful and telling each other more about it. The trick is to keep it simple and practice on a daily basis.
Our experiment has far outreached our expectations
There are lots of stories from which to choose. We’re both thrilled with how this is supporting us in building habits we’d tried to establish on our own, such as morning walks and pleasant topics to discuss in the evenings. One day, we combined the words we sensed and spent the day contemplating wonder and fullness. We exchanged photos, songs, and Scriptures throughout the day, enriching the CARE practice.
In case you are not convinced yet…
Hebrews 3:13 encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,”
The phrase “One another” is used more than 100 times in 94 New Testament verses. Approximately 59 of those occurrences are specific commands teaching us how (and how not) to relate to one another. These commands come from Jesus, Peter, John, Paul, and James, and they’re scattered across the New Testament.
Some of you may be thinking …
- “I have good spiritual friends and structure wouldn’t work for us.”
- “I already have a good balance.”
So I am giving you a challenge – what have you got to lose – and think of what you can gain.
Your Turn
- Ask God for an idea to try with a friend.
- While you are welcome to use the CARE template, God may provide something better suited to your needs.
- Let us know how it goes by leaving a comment or using the contact form.
Thank you for those who reached out – I thought this was a great idea
I love this care experiment. And I will be praying for someone to partner with me to do it. Right now I’m just doing something on my own. I put it in as a phone prompt that reminds me every morning. And then throughout the day I add notes to keep a record.
I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know Him better. (Eph 1:17)
Did I get any wisdom or Revelation in the last 24 hours? How did it help me grow in my knowledge of God?
How did prayers over the last 24 hrs change my life and maybe the world?