“I have roared by reason of the disquietness of my heart. Lord, all my desire is before thee; and my groaning is not hid from thee.” (Psalm 38:8-9 KJV)
When I was a child, students who were hyperactive or unfocused were labeled as troublemakers. “Settle down,” the teachers would say, as if children knew how to control their restlessness. Even as adults, most of us are unsure of how to manage the disquiet within our hearts. We sense a longing that cannot be described, a void that cannot be filled, a turbulence that cannot be calmed.
“Spirituality is about what we do with our unrest.” (The Holy Longing by Ronald Rolheiser)
Spirituality is the channeling of our soul’s unrest. Religious practices can be a form of spirituality, but there are many others. Any discipline that settles us down and keeps us whole can be spiritual. But what if we are unruly--dissipating our energy aimlessly? This, too, is spirituality, albeit a careless one. Everyone has a spirit, an energy within the soul. We all feel the disquiet, the restlessness, the longing. What we do with it, how we conduct ourselves, determines the trajectory and impact of our spirit.
The Lord knows the desires of our hearts. He hears every sigh. When we channel our restlessness in accordance with His direction, spirituality becomes purposeful. The turbulence becomes a propellant. The unrest, which once resulted in disintegration, now leads to integration--our souls become whole.
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