Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Overspiritual VS. Real Relationship

Today, as I was doing devotion, I learned something valuable. I took a different approach to the devotion with God. Usually devotion is the time for me to pour out all I feel and all I think and what are my concerns. Today, I told God I just want to listen and I want to know what He wants to reveal to me this season.

I have heard of many stories and opinions on how certain people are being overspiritual, talking about God 24-7. "How to reach out if you are so overspiritual?"...one would ask. But today as I quietly sit down just wanting to listen from God, this was the one thing that was revealed to me....and trust me I wasn't even thinking about this issue. And it has no relevancy to anyone. What is being over spiritual what is not...I have got these answers popping out to me (haha...I can imagine some voices saying: yea, she is being overspiritual now :P)....well, I encourage you to read on =)

This season is definitely a season of outreach. All of us are busy trying to grow our own cell groups so on and so forth. We are running toward the vision of 10,000 by 2015. Everybody is excited. But how many of us know that we can actually still do outreach without needing to be overspiritual nor over concerned about being spiritual? (see a show of hands*)

People want to have a genuine relationship with us. It is not about being too "godly" so that others would feel that they are actually too "sinful" and need to repent, nor it is about compromising our standards so that others can see us as relatable. It is about being REAL...and being REAL in your love for others. That is what builds relationship. Not the mask and superficiality that you put on when you meet others. It is about being us and being NORMAL in the way we relate to others. Not trying to be something we are not. Hence, overspirituality or anti-spirituality is not the answer. It is about EQ - knowing who you are relating with, how to relate, when to say the right things and again...being REAL....in other words, your emotional quotient plays a big part in building relationship! People like being around real people.


What then is one overspiritual? Overspiritual is when one loses its touch with reality. Everything and anything has got to do with divinity. Watching TV becomes sinful; fashion becomes worldly; listening to secular songs become worldly; loud music becomes devil's music; every single thing that happen has to do with God (when actually it can be our mistakes at times...so we push the blame to God); every nightmares and bad dreams are enemy attacks; every accidents has got to do with us doing something wrong so God punishes us; every friend we reached out to are no longer seen as friends but lost souls; thou shalt not have friends outside church because they are "not holy"; "should i go movie?" ask God first; "should i marry this guy?" ask God for a sign...no sign then the answer is no, everybody is suggesting that I should consider this person as a partner...oh it is a sign from God I am destined to be with this person; I dreamt that I marry this girl..it is a sign I am destined to be with her; I asked God for a sign and I open the bible, God showed me this passage...that's it! that must be the sign...even though I don't understand what the passage is saying...I have to interpret it until I get it to match  with my situation somehow;..... so on and so forth.




The definition of overspiritual is when every single thing we do that used to be logical, now seemingly becomes illogical. Everything suddenly becomes out of control.....silly mistakes which are avoidable becomes God's plan. At times it is true, but many times it is not exactly that spiritual. That is why sometimes people find Christians complicated, because things which are seemingly logical in the realistic world can become very very spiritual. I do not deny the existence of spirituality and the possibility of things being spiritual at times. Yes, at times accidents are plans from God...but it is not to the extent that human suddenly becomes a robot...everything that happens we no longer need to be responsible for, and everything that happens becomes incontrollable. At the end of the day, life is still about making choices, and we still have to bear consequences for  our choices of actions.



Nonetheless, there are also controversy about the word "overspiritual". At times, people are confused between being overspiritual and having a real relationship with God. "Am I being overspiritual?" a disciple asked me one day when she was sharing her encounter with God to me. Having revelations, hearing from God, discerning, having convictions about certain things in life, excited when encountering God is definitely not being overspiritual. It simply means he or she is really excited about this relationship he or she has with God that this individual is eager  to share it. We are spiritual beings created for spiritual experiences as well as relationships. Take the scenario of one being in BGR for instance. One would be excited about something his or her partner gave, or said and share it at least with his or her BFF or somebody close. Because the relationship means a lot to this person, it is very REAL and he or she is just excited about the progression that are going on between both of them.





However, choosing the right person to share with is also very important. Likewise, in a BGR you cannot be sharing everything with everyone you see. It has to be only with the certain person you trust and a certain person who are interested in your life. The one thing I realized recently is that premature sharing, or sharing with a person who is unable to comprehend or understand what you are going through or experiencing will cause confusion. That is when one would seem overspiritual to the other because it just doesn't make sense.



Conclusively, I would say, do not be ashamed of having a real relationship with God. Know the difference of being overspiritual and being real with Jesus. But be wise in choosing those whom you would share things with. Not everybody can take the things you are about to reveal. And we do not want to lose friends nor our common touch just because we unwisely share certain things that others are not ready to accept. Worst if we share revelations to a person of a different faith. However, saying this I am not eliminating the importance of sharing testimonies. Testimonies are life stories given from God. That one should be shared...at the right time and in accordance to necessity though. Timing and setting is everything. Do not share at the wrong time. Nonetheless, visions that are meant to edifty others or meant to be fulfilled or run together can be shared to a large crowd, but visions and convictions which are personal should always be reserved, and if you are eager to share, share it with someone who are close and who would understand. Someone wise or understanding enough that you can be accountable with. Wisdom is always the KEY :D

Love is something real. Not only to men but to God. If you love Him, you love Him. Know the difference and be real in it :) Real relationship need not public display of affection to be strong. A mutual intimate understanding / expression between two parties is already more than sufficient.



Hope you are blessed! 


Oh Cuteness!