With the measure you use, it will be measured to you. . .
Mark 4:25-41
Use it or lose it. Sandwiched between the Parable of the Sower and the Parable of the Growing Seed, this passage first seemed harsh to me, but we do experience this in many areas of our lives. With our bodies, we build endurance and strength in part by exercise and activity; fail to do so and muscles atrophy, the body weakens. With our minds, we build our intellect in part through study and problem solving; fail to do so and the mind will never reach its potential.
How does this work with God? Especially with a God who is always with us and wants to be in relationship with us? Jesus is not saying that God is withdrawing anything, especially himself, from us; it's we that may, whether consciously or subconsciously, allow our given spiritual ability to atrophy and gradually, almost imperceptibly, "lose" our ability to truly hear and feel God.
But wait, there is hope for us spiritual couch potatoes! While C.S. Lewis wrote about Christianity as a progressive death of self, there are some things that only our "self" can do. One of those things is to develop the quality of willingness to exert ourselves spiritually. I think the actual experience of this is (very) different for each person, but no matter where it is on the spectrum between a gradual dawning and a glaring moment of clarity, in the end it is a decision we make (aided by grace) to take the effort. Moreover, it is not simply a decision, but countless decisions made repeatedly, hence the need for willingness. No one ever got toned abs from doing sit-ups for one day, and our spirituality grows stronger the same way.
Rick Downs
