Disturbance and Invitation: The Second Half of Your Spiritual Life

“Two Halves” of the spiritual life

In the first post on this topic we began describing the spiritual life in terms of a developing journey, roughly divided into a “First” and “Second” half. 

To summarize key points: 

• One half of the Christian spiritual life is primarily guided and expressed externally, The second half can be a bit more interior (and personalized), as well as difficult. 
• The second  half  may prompt a sort of “ rediscovery” or “redefining”  of faith
• We also learned that both halves are critical to spiritual formation and entering the second is not a mark of moral or spiritual superiority. God is simply inviting the soul more deeply into relationship.
• We observed that the transition from the first half into the second can be recognized, but not scheduled, strategized, or forced. And we noted that it can be unwittingly missed, or even intentionally avoided
• Finally, we said that, except for a few pioneers, much of the Western Church, has focused primarily on the first half of the journey…

We went into a bit more detail. You might want to read that article here. (Link)

We also said that, like any trip, on the spiritual journey you need to know where you are going and where you are now. So you may be wondering… “Am I in the first or second half of my spiritual life.”  Great question! Let’s start to answer by looking at some signs that might indicate you are at least nearing the transition to the other half of your spiritual life.

We’ve created a PDF checklist of these signs. You might want to download and print the document so you can keep a tally of the signs you’ve experienced.

Signs you are entering the “second half” of your spiritual life

• Thinking that there must be “more” than this to the spiritual life. Wondering “Is this all there is?”
• Observing public expressions of Christianity and thinking, “This can’t be what Jesus had in mind.”
• Questioning your own interior experience.
• Longing for a more tangible, personal encounter with God.
• Desiring integration, a faith that affects the whole self.
• Seeking interior peace and relational fulfillment more than material attainment.
• Older emotional wounds suddenly resurface unbidden, begging to be healed.
• Recognizing physical diminishment, pains, or numbed disconnection with your body.        
• Longing to get back to the way you felt with God before.
• Feeling stuck or confused about how to move forward spiritually.
• An urge to stop holding back even while not knowing how to move forward.
• Just going through the motions.
• Living with a sense that you are not fully living… Or not living in true alignment with your highest ideals and values
• Wondering if your life truly matters, if you make a difference.
• Too busy with non-essentials to invest in the important people and moments of life.
• Engaging self-distraction or self-medication through overwork, food, alcohol, or other diversions.

Note all that apply to you, then total your results.

Are you experiencing more than one or two of these signs? If so, you may be transitioning into the second half of your spiritual life. And you may find that the simple act of acknowledging these changes brings discomfort.

Uncomfortable Good News!

Good news: while any of these may impact you, none of these discomforting changes are the real problem. In fact, they may not be a problem at all! They may simply be signs of God’s “Invitation” into a more mature spirituality. A real problem might be that you simply never learned to recognize that invitation.

Recognize the Invitation

The higher your score, the more likely it is that God is inviting you close, into a deeper relationship.. Check out “Accepting the Invitation,” where we explore how to respond .

See you there! Next post

Personalized help for you

I’ve put together 16 discovery modules on The Spiritual Journey to help you understand where you are and move toward where God is calling you in your own life. 

I’d be happy to set aside some time to chat with you about your spiritual life, to get to know you, and explore whether these resources might be a good next step for you. 

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