There have been times when I assumed spiritual life was like being in school. If we study and do our homework, we might do well enough to pass the test. If we do well enough on enough tests and assignments, we pass our courses and get a diploma.
We often approach spiritual life the same way we have been taught to deal with academic life. It can feel like spiritual life is a set of problems or challenges, and our job is to solve them.
Spiritual life is not like doing homework or finding the solution to a puzzle. It is not like a murder mystery or a calculus problem, daring us to figure out the answer.
Yes, spiritual life is filled with lessons to teach us, with insights waiting to be gained. We do not, though, resolve spiritual life by following the rules or taking the right steps. We do not gain all we can by thinking our way into the expected, acceptable responses.
More than finding solutions, spiritual life is about asking good questions.
The most helpful questions we can ask are those for which we do not already know the answers. Spiritual life is not about being the first person to find the right answer. Spiritual life is about asking the questions you most deeply want answered.
It is easy for us to get focused on mastering the puzzle by finding the solution. There is something seductive, almost addictive, about knowing the right answer. When we decide we have the answer, we stop look and stop asking questions. We close our hearts, and minds, when we already know.
We experience more when we are asking questions, before we decide we know the solutions.
What are the questions you most deeply want answered today?
When will you ask your next question?
[Image by woodleywonderworks]
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