The Transition Part 2

I said at the end of my last posting that I would like to take the metaphor of musical transitions and relate them to everyday life and so here we go. 

As in music, transitions can be especially crucial in our lives and they can stand out as either an affirmation of or an indictment of our character. I have seen many people live a pretty consistent life only to be tainted by the way they went through the transitions of life. These transitions can take on many forms. For instance it can be the loss of a job and the start of a new one. It can be the end of a relationship or the beginning of a new one. It can be the transition from wealth to poverty or just the opposite. It is important to prepare ourself through spiritual disciplines before we ever even get to the time of transition. In other words, plan how you  will transition before you ever get to the place when you have to actually transition.

I talked about the transition of tempo in music in my last posting. This transition is probably the most common type of transition in our lives. We may go from a time when life seems slow or just moderate to a faster pace. Or we may go from a time of extreme busyness to a more reflective season. There are ways we can plan for these seasons. One way is to practice slowing before life gets too fast for you to do anything about it. Get in the slow lane at the grocery store. Get behind the big truck rather than the little sports car at the stop light. Intentionally make yourself slow down. It is harder than you think.

The other comparison that I want to talk about is the "dynamic" transition. Sometimes life seems really loud. So loud that we can't even hear ourselves think, or more importantly we can't hear what God thinks. So practice slowing, but also practice being quiet. Go somewhere and be alone. Don't speak. Don't pray. Just be there, in stillness and meditation. This will prepare you to hear God's voice when things get really loud.

I don't know if I am getting my point across very well today. What I really want to say is better detailed in the book, "The Life You've Always Wanted" by John Ortberg. Basically what he says is that we need to prepare ourself for transitions in life before we ever get there through various spiritual practices. After all, many times it is the transitions in life that really end up defining us.