The first and greatest human responsibility, according to Jesus, is to fall in love with God–heart, soul, mind and strength. Not a crush. Not a fling. Not a friendship. But a wholehearted, all-consuming, center-of-gravity changing, world-redefining, passion. Everything else, including our self-giving and limitless love for others, flows from this.
So…how does that happen? A first step is to identify what Gary Thomas calls your “sacred pathway.” This is the unique way you connect with God most meaningfully. It’s your spiritual “love language.” It’s how your heart most naturally connects to God’s heart.
The sad reality is that many of us were socialized by parents, friends or churches to believe that there’s really just one way to connect meaningfully with God. Church attendance. Or tithing. Or mission trips. Or understanding doctrine. Or evangelism. And we’ve felt guilty because that way never really felt like our way. We couldn’t understand why others felt so close to God when engaging in that activity and we still felt so far from God. But, in truth, if loving God is the destination we’re driving towards, there are at least nine routes there:
- Naturalists love God through creation, nature and the outdoors. Taking long walks outside. Gazing at sunrises. Listening to bubbling brooks or crashing waves. Photographing awesome scenes of mountains or valleys. Unplugging from technology and just taking in the sights and sounds of creation.
- Sensates love God through the five senses. Smelling candles or incense. Feeling prayer beads. Hearing sacred music. Tasting communion. Walking through a museum. Looking at art. Coloring or painting.
- Traditionalists feel connected to God through rituals and symbols. Liturgies. Crucifixes. Following the Christian calendar. Stained glass. Using the lectionary. Listening to a sacred choir. Practicing fixed-hour prayer.
- Ascetics sense God’s closeness through solitude and simplicity. Finding a quiet place and just being with God. Removing unneeded or unwanted things that distract from God. Spending time in a monastery. Going on a silent retreat. Fasting.
- Activists feel most alive with God through confrontation. Marching. Protesting. Policy making. Organizing community action. Engaging in multiple forms of resistance to injustice.
- Caregivers waken most to God as they provide compassionate care for others. Giving food to the hungry. Visiting the lonely. Being present with the sick in a hospital. Leading a short-term mission trip.
- Enthusiasts connect most with God through mystery and celebration. Attending a long worship service filled with praise. Listening to contemporary Christian music. Joyfully singing aloud to God. Dancing.
- Contemplatives feel and express love to God sitting quietly and reflecting on God’s love for them, writing love letters to God, connecting with God throughout the day. Breath prayer. Centering prayer.
- Intellectuals feel most connected to God when they learn something new about God, spend a significant amount of time in deep Bible study, or read books or listen to teaching that digs deep into truth. Doctrine, theology and church history fascinate them and make them feel alive.
You can take a simple inventory to learn your pathway here: https://groupleaders.org/spiritual-pathways-assessment. The important thing is to find what awakens your heart to God, what makes you feel alive with God, what leads to a sense of closeness and connection to God. If it differs from what’s taught by your denomination, if it’s not what seems to be “in” with your friends, or if it’s not what your parents taught you, that’s OK. God created you for a love relationship with him. He’s shaped your heart to connect with his in a way that is just right for you. Find that way and begin to engage it.
