Things Above

In this Things Above episode, James Bryan Smith explains the concept of a spiritual mirror. Smith learned about the phrase “spiritual mirror” from George Macdonald, a great Scottish writer and preacher in the 19th century. James quotes from Macdonalds book Creation in Christ to help explain the concept of the spiritual mirror.

“When we think Christ, Christ comes; when we receive his image into our spiritual mirror, he enters with it. When our hearts turn to him, that is opening the door to him, that is holding up our mirror to him; then he comes in, not by our thought only, not in our idea only, but he comes himself, and of his own will. Thus the Lord, the Spirit, becomes the soul of our souls, becomes spiritually what he always was creatively; and as our spirit informs, gives shape to our bodies, in like manner his soul informs, gives shape to our souls. In this there is nothing unnatural, nothing at conflict with our being. It is but that the deeper soul that willed and wills our souls, rises up, the infinite Life, into the self we call I and me, makes the I and me more and more his, and himself more and more ours; until at length the glory of our existence flashes upon us, we face full to the sun that enlightens what is sent forth, and know ourselves alive with an infinite life, even the life of the Father. Then indeed we are; then indeed we have life; the life of Jesus has, through light, become life in us; the glory of God in the face of Jesus, mirrored in our hearts, has made us alive; we are one with God for ever and ever” (George MacDonald, Creation in Christ)

It is as if Jesus is waiting for us, waiting for us to set our minds on him, and the moment we do, MacDonald says, Christ comes. James goes on to say that as we set aside time to—as MacDonald puts it—think Christ, the image of Christ is being imprinted in our hearts. And in so doing, we become not someone else, but we become truly who we are, truly ourselves, truly the person God designed us to be.

Christian spiritual formation means that we are being formed into Christlikeness. That is what MacDonald is describing. By setting our minds and heart on Jesus, we open the door to Him, and he enters, and his image is now reflected in the spiritual mirror in our hearts.

“And all of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit” (2 Corinthians 3:18)

The glory of the Lord shines upon us like the reflection in a mirror, and as we gaze upon Jesus with the spiritual mirror in our heart, the same image of Jesus is transforming us into his image.

Josh Larsen sits down with James Bryan Smith for a "Things Above Conversation" about Josh's latest book "Movies are Prayers." Josh is the co-host of the radio show and podcast Filmspotting, author of Movies Are Prayers, and editor and film critic at Think Christian, a website exploring faith and pop culture. He’s been writing and speaking about movies professionally for more than two decades.

In this episode, Josh and James dive deep into the impact art has on our theology. Movies do more than tell a good story. They are expressions of raw emotion, naked vulnerability, and unbridled rage. They often function in the same way as prayers, communicating our deepest longings and joys to a God who hears each and every one.

Josh brings a critic's unique perspective to how movies function as expressions to God of lament, praise, joy, confession, and more. His clear expertise and passion for the art of film, along with his thoughtful reflections on the nature of prayer, will bring you a better understanding of both.

Anger and worry are two emotions we deal with on a daily basis. We worry because we feel like it will help us to fix whatever problem we are dealing with. We use anger to make others behave as we want but in the long haul, it is destructive. In this episode, James Bryan Smith explains this glorious thought: relax, Jesus runs the universe. When we face problems, when we feel ourselves becoming angry or anxious, we do well to turn to Jesus, to invite him into our situation, to see our situation in light of Jesus and his resources and his power and his provision and his wisdom. Smith explains that we are not to act as if don’t care about these moments in our life but rather we should turn to Jesus in these moments. James closes the episode by quoting the chorus to the gospel song “Because He Lives”

In this Things Above conversation, James Bryan Smith interviews William Paul Young. Paul is best known for his book “The Shack” which has sold over a million copies. Young is a native of Alberta, Canada and now lives in Washington with his wife Kim. He is also the author of “The Crossroads” “Eve” and “Lies We Believe About God”

In this episode, Paul and James discuss the struggles that came with publishing “The Shack” as well as how it became such a huge success. Paul explains that he only intended to write “The Shack” for his kids and how he never expected it to become as big as it did. James asks Paul to give us a deeper explanation about his writing process and how it impacts his faith life.

Later on in the conversation, Paul gives us a few examples from his life where he struggled with his faith and how he was able to find God during those difficult moments. Paul and James both give explanations about how we can experience trinitarian reality in our daily lives.

If you are interested in seeing Paul in person he will be speaking and leading a workshop at The Apprentice Gathering 2019. Register here!

Discovering our identity can be a lifelong journey. We all want to know who we are. In this episode, James Bryan Smith explains how our journey towards self-discovery is found in the invitation to be with Jesus. If we are to discover who we truly are, we must do so through discovering Jesus’ call to us. Smith goes on to explain that we are God’s beloved - that is our true identity. Jesus knows each of us individually, and sets each of us on a unique mission. By responding to Jesus’ invitation, we are called into Christ’s company. We know who we are when we discover we have been written into His story. He - and His story - are beautiful, good, and true. And in Him, so are we.

In this Things Above Conversation, James Bryan Smith interviews author Emily P. Freeman about her latest book, The Next Right Thing. People average 35,000 daily decisions. Some of those decisions can really wear us down, which leads to the problem of chronic hesitation and decision fatigue. Emily’s book helps the reader make decisions with clarity, with confidence and with God.

If you have trouble making decisions, because of either chronic hesitation you've always lived with or a more recent onset of decision fatigue, Emily offers a fresh way of practicing familiar but often forgotten advice: simply do the next right thing. With this simple, soulful practice, it is possible to clear the decision-making chaos, quiet the fear of choosing wrong, and find the courage to finally decide without regret or second-guessing.

Whether you're in the midst of a major life transition or are weary of the low-grade anxiety that daily life can bring, Emily helps create space for your soul to breathe so you can live life with God at a gentle pace and discern your next right thing in love.

It’s not abnormal for people to wonder, where is God? Maybe life isn’t turning out the way you hoped. You’ve lost a job or a loved one or your sense of purpose. And this causes us to feel alone, or at least very distant from God. If you feel distant from God, it begs the question, who moved? It turns out, God is already present.

In Psalm 139, the psalmist says:

7 Where can I go from your spirit?

Or where can I flee from your presence?

8 If I ascend to heaven, you are there;

if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there.

9 If I take the wings of the morning

and settle at the farthest limits of the sea,

10 even there your hand shall lead me,

and your right hand shall hold me fast.

So whether or not we feel or experience God’s presence with us is not determined by God, but determined by us.

Why is it important for us to recognize God’s presence? For starters, it leads to a richer, fuller life. Conversely, failure to recognize God’s presence leaves us restless, distracted and dull. Here are five practices to increase awareness of God’s presence:

1. Take time each hour to give God some thought. Offer Him your consciousness for just a few minutes throughout the day.

2. Reserve an empty chair in your room for Jesus. Imagine him sitting with you as you work or read or visit with someone.

3. Memorize Scripture. By holding God’s word close to your heart, you will feel His presence.

4. Imaginative prayer. Pick a passage from the gospels and place yourself in the story. What do your senses (sight, smell, sound, taste, and feel) detect?

5. Practice “beauty-spotting.” Pay attention to the beauty the surrounds you.

Key verses include Psalm 139, Psalm 16:8.

In the latest Things Above conversation, James Bryan Smith talks with Jen Pollock Michel about her latest book, Surprised by Paradox. Among many things, they explore the depths of topics, such as paradox, awe, certainty, mystery, and calling. They even share a couple of jokes about a paradox that you won’t want to miss.

Surprised by Paradox invites us to recognize that, in a world filled with ambiguity, many of us long for a belief system that provides straightforward answers to complex questions and clarity in the face of confusion. But while there are certainties in Christian faith, at the heart of the Christian story there is also a paradox. Jesus invites us to abandon the polarities of either and or in order to embrace the difficult, wondrous dissonance of and. Michel’s book helps us recover the paradoxes and mysteries that keep us sane. By them, we learn to trust in a God who is way bigger than our limited expectations. As Michel says, “God has set the world alight with his presence. We just need eyes to see.”

In this episode, James Bryan Smith explains this glorious thought: "Christ plus nothing equals everything." Jim goes on to explain that when we allow other things in our life to take the place of "nothing" in the formula it will not equal everything.

Key Verses include (1 Cor. 2:3-5) (1 Cor. 13: 1-3)

Temptation can lead to real problems. In this episode of the Things Above podcast, James Bryan Smith discusses the nature of temptation, then offers and unpacks six facts about temptation that can help you overcome it.

1. Everybody is tempted.

2. God is not the one tempting us.

3. Temptation itself is not sin.

4. Being tempted does not mean you are a bad person.

5. Temptation does not come from outside of us, but from our own desires.

6. There is always a way out of temptation.

You can experiment with a soul-training exercise to help overcome temptation. It’s called “Play the Tape.” When you play the tape, what you’re doing is remembering your experience with giving in to temptation and how you felt afterward. You recall how it led to nothing good. You also recall your feelings of regret. When you play the tape, you also have the opportunity to remember your experience with NOT giving in to temptation. You felt good, didn’t you? You felt strong. That’s because you were walking in the light, as John said. And it felt right because you are a child of the light.

C.S. Lewis put it like this: “A man who gives into temptation after five minutes simply does not know what it would have been like an hour later.” Lewis is alluding to playing the tape. In those early moments of temptation, the sin may look enticing. But if you play the tape, you remember what happens in ten minutes, or an hour later, you can see it for what it is. And awareness is our best weapon in dealing with temptation.

Key verses include Romans 7:15, 1 Corinthians 10:13, James 1:12-14, Ephesians 4:26