Friday, August 20, 2010

Christ-Awareness

The Japanese martial artist have a saying, "Miso No Koro," which translates, "Mind Like Still Water." It is comparable to what most athletes refer to as "The Flow" or "Being in the zone." Basically it is an 'unconscious,' or quiet state of mind that allows peak performance in a chosen endeavor. When you are in the zone, you don't analyze, you act. Your training and experience become one and you reach moments of near perfection.

But what happens when such a state of focus is broken? Worry and panic creep in. Questions begin to be raised. Doubt overcomes trust and faith turns into fear. Why is this? Because we fall into a state of self-awareness and our left brain logic over runs our right brain readiness. What is suppose to be a complete unity has been disconnected into unrelated parts.

This is what happens in our relationship with Christ as well. When we have a Christ-Awareness, instead of a self-awareness, we are "in the zone" and the natural flow of life takes place without any question to what God's Will is. It's what Psalm 16:8 means as it states, “I have set the LORD always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.”

- Think of Peter. He walked on water when he had a Christ-Awareness, but he sinks when he had a self-awareness. Take a look at how Oswald Chambers states the difference between Christ-Awareness and self-awareness:

A complete life is the life of a child. When I am fully conscious of my awareness of Christ, there is something wrong. It is the sick person who really knows what health is. A child of God is not aware of the will of God because he is the will of God. When we have deviated even slightly from the will of God, we begin to ask, “Lord, what is your will?” A child of God never prays to be made aware of the fact that God answers prayer, because he is so restfully certain that God always answers prayer.

Where have you been rattled into self-awareness? Where have I become disconnected with Christ? As Chambers states, "Simply ask the Lord to give you Christ-awareness, and He will steady you until your completeness in Him is absolute."


“Come on!” Jesus said. Peter then got out of the
boat
and started walking on the water toward him.
Matthew 14.29 CEV

* The 'X' in the graphic represents the greek letter Chi as in Chi Rho, one of the earliest forms of christogram, and is used by Christians. It is formed by superimposing the first two letters in the Greek spelling of the word Christ ( Greek : "Χριστός" ), chi = ch and rho = r, in such a way to produce the monogram . Although not technically a cross, the Chi Rho invokes the crucifixion of Jesus as well as symbolizing his status as the Christ[1]