Day 1 – The Spiritual Discipline of Detachment

The needed change within us is God’s work, not ours. ~Richard Foster

Today is the first day of Lent. On this day many people choose to go to church and have a cross of ashes drawn on their forehead while being told “Remember you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” These words remind us of our mortality, and open the door to a season of reflection. During Lent we are invited to spend time considering how our life-as-lived is incongruent with our life-as-declared. In other words, we may say we believe Christ died and was raised again, but we don’t live like it. Lent invites us to practice what we preach! It’s not just about giving something up, like wine or chocolate. It’s about giving up those things that keep us from being like Jesus, which is where the discipline of detachment comes in.To be honest, this is just Day One and I’m already feeling the sting of letting go. In another post I’ll talk about how hard it is for an Enneagram One (Perfectionist) to let go. Here’s my confession for today: I’m struggling to let go of my perfectionism and let you see my “clunky,” amateur blog. Yikes! I’m already living the “letting go” of this season. I know you will have grace, so… Let’s talk about the discipline of detachment.Being disciplined is hard work! For me it’s so much easier to be disciplined when something or someone else is driving me. When I was teaching school, I had to be at school before 8:00 a.m. and that schedule drove me to get up at 4:45 a.m. so I could be at the gym by 5:15 a.m. so I could be home by 6:15 a.m. to wake up the kids and get them in the car to drop them off at daycare before school so I could make it across town in time to start the school day. Does some version of that sound familiar to you? But, now, when I make my own schedule and no outside force is driving me, I find it difficult to be disciplined enough to get up by 6:30 a.m.! Discipline touches all aspects of my life…eating, drinking, sleeping, exercising, working, friendships, Facebook, Pinterest, and so much more including my spirituality.I want to drill down a bit on the idea of spiritual disciplines. Spiritual disciplines are intentional, physical practices that open us up to the transformational activity of Christ. Here’s the thing… I can’t just grit my teeth and decide to “let go”. God does the work of transformation, but I am invited to participate. I actually have to do something with my body, which, in turn, opens up space in my spirit for God to work the transformation. We are integrated beings. Our physical bodies, our intellect, our emotion and our spirit all engage life and are part of our journey to follow Christ. Spiritual transformation is a project in which we physically participate. We do the work of the discipline, and God does the work of transformation. The spiritual transformation that happens changes us in order for us to be more like Jesus in the world. In other words, the transformation doesn’t stop with me!I would like to make this more beautiful and less linear, but here’s one way of thinking about it:

I engage in a spiritual discipline => Christ works a transformation in my spirit => the transformed “me” is able to more authentically love the world around me

Back to detachment… The discipline of detachment is not about going to “la-la land.” It’s about letting go of certain attachments in order to be able to attach to Christ. I am not detaching into nothingness. The underlying desire of detachment is “to nurture the spirit of trust that is attached to God alone.”I guess what it comes down to is, “How much do I trust God?” Do I trust that when I “let go” God will be there? Will there be another trapeze coming my way? Is there really a safety net? So begins the journey…