where are you living?

I’m reading Graham Cooke’s The Secret of a Powerful Inner Life–less than 60 pages, but slow going because there’s so much to think about. Here’s what caught my attention this morning:

How much of our “spirituality” is threatened by opposition? Do we feel the urge to control or dominate in human confrontations? How much of our peace is destroyed by conflict? How easily upset are we? How long does it take us to regain normal, good humor? How vulnerable are we to anger, resentment, and bitterness? How long do we hold a grudge? How quick are we to forgive? How willing are we to be restored?

If the answer to any of those questions is, in any way, negative, we are more likely living in our souls than in our spirits.

Ouch!

Lest this leave you feeling overwhelmed with your failures, Cooke offers hope in the next paragraph:

God is breaking our controlling selves by enabling us to submit to the spiritual fruit of self-control. Our dominatnig, manipulative selves must become humble and submissive to Christ. We must learn to reassert our wills as the vehicle of the spirit over our emotions and thought lives.

Tagged as: emotions, fruit of the spirit, Graham Cooke, self-control, soul, spirit, submission, will