The wave of spiritual formation

“Then Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.’” (Matthew 16:24)
 
In June of this year, Trevin Wax wrote an interesting article on The Gospel Coalition website called “3 waves that have shaped evangelical churches (and a 4th on the way)." Wax argued that the first wave was the Spirit-filled worship movement from the 1960’s-1980’s, which migrated from Pentecostalism to influence even mainline denominations with a greater openness to speaking in tongues and miraculous healing, expressive forms of worship, contemporary praise songs, and a greater reliance on the Spirit’s guidance in everyday life. The second wave, Wax argued, was the seeker-sensitive church growth movement that originated in the 1960’s but was most prominent in the 1980’s and 1990’s, where an emphasis was made by leaders like Bill Hybels, Rick Warren, and Andy Stanley on doing church in a way that communicated the faith and the Bible in a way that met people’s “felt needs.” This included incorporating practices meant to be attractive to nonbelievers, like coffee in the lobby, impressive children’s facilities, and preaching on relevant topics. The third wave was the gospel-centered wave of the 2000s and 2010s, which emphasized the gospel as not only the way to be saved but as the key to growing as a Christian. This approach, popularized by preachers like Tim Keller, steered away from moralistic teaching and pragmatic church approaches to make sure everything pointed to Jesus and His life, death and resurrection.

Wax argued that he sees potentially a fourth wave hitting the church today, especially among younger Christians, and that is a rebirth of spiritual formation, which he defines as “an allegiance to Jesus as Lord of all of life that requires a total reworking of personal habits and spiritual disciplines.” Spiritual formation includes a recognition that we have two millennia worth of resources and practices that Christians from various backgrounds have used to connect with God and rely on the power of the Holy Spirit. It encourages the development of rhythms of fasting, Sabbath, generosity, solitude, and community, among other practices, in order to make space for deeper experiences of God’s presence and power.

In the article, Wax references John Mark Comer, a pastor and author who has become this generation’s version of Dallas Willard and Richard Foster, someone who is making spiritual formation accessible and attractive to many people in younger generations. I recently read his book Practicing the Way: Be with Jesus. Become Like Him. Do as He Did, and listened to a four-part teaching of his on fasting. I plan to take a few weeks in the Pulse to dive deeper into the importance of fasting, a practice that is of great spiritual importance but rarely practiced today.

For the purpose of today, though, I wanted to express my appreciation for Wax’s observance of the renewed interest in spiritual formation he is seeing in younger generations. I am someone whose preaching style has been very influenced by Tim Keller’s gospel-centered approach. But Wax’s article, and Comer’s books and podcast, gave me insight into how the answer to overcoming strongholds in our life or growing in spiritual maturity is not always just “preach the gospel to yourself” or “believe the gospel more fully.” God has given us spiritual practices such as fasting, Sabbath, generosity, solitude, and community that can help us follow Jesus more faithfully and depend upon the Holy Spirit’s power. Today, I encourage you to take time to consider what, if any, spiritual practices are a regular part of your discipleship, and what step you might take towards seeking God in a more intentional and consistent way.