During the three-day Kairos weekend (the prison version of the Walk to Emmaus), we went over an exercise where we mapped out our lives, both our regular life and our spiritual life. The purpose of this exercise is to help the residents realize where they came from and to let them know where they can go, to give them a hope and a future with Christ.
To do this, you basically make a timeline graph, with an arbitrary line drawn parallel to the x-axis that represents the "0" or neutral point. Then you draw your life. If something good and significant happened, you draw your line upwards as far as you think it should go. If something bad happened, you draw your line downwards as far as you think it should go. Sometimes, especially in the case of most of the residents, they might start out with a couple of highs, but then the lows in their life drew them down below the "0" point, indicative of their residence in the prison.
As team members, we were expected to map out our lives as well, as an example to the residents. Based on my spiritual life map and my continuing experiences with Christ since, I have come to recognize that my spiritual life is a rollercoaster. By this I mean that I have very high spiritual peaks in my life, but they are usually followed by very low spiritual failures. It is a pattern that I see played out time and time again. And every time, I hear the words of the Apostle Paul echoing from 1 Corinthians 10:12, "So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall!"
As I have studied Scripture, I have come to realize that my spiritual life patterns are similar to those experienced by David (recognizing, of course, that I am no where near the spiritual giant that David was). David's life, too, was characterized by extreme spiritual highs and then extreme spiritual lows. From the slaying of Goliath in the power of God to dodging the spear of Saul. From being annointed to be king of Israel and the spiritual leader of Israel to committing adultery and murder.
So, what can I learn -- what can you learn -- from a map of your spiritual life patterns? For me, it serves as a warning for times that I am especially vulnerable to falling and failing. After a significant spiritual high -- a good church service, good results from a ministry project, leading people to Christ, spending signficant amounts of time with God -- I know that I am going to have the potential to face a downward spiral. Maybe it's pride. Maybe it's simply unwariness brought on by a spiritual high. But whatever the cause, I can know it's coming and I can take steps to avoid the fall and to stop the precipitous decline. By knowing my danger areas, those areas where I am most likely to sin and fail God, I can better turn away from them and turn to Him, trusting in His power to keep me safe.
As an exercise, I would heartily recommend that each of you map out their spiritual lives in relation to their physical lives. Look for patterns. Look for interactions between the two. And use this tool to better prepare you to stand firm in the face of oncoming temptation.
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