Recently I’ve been doing some study on autism spectrum
disorder. (Psychology has long been an interest to me.) One thing that has stood
out is that no one can really define what is “normal” and what is not. Is
something a disorder if it doesn’t bother the person who has it? I came to the
conclusion that whether you’re talking about mental health, physical health, or
spiritual health, all of humanity is on one long continuum of brokenness. Some
people may appear healthier than others; some may be better able to cope with
the complexities of life, and some may seem more mature. But aside from Jesus
Christ none of us are perfect in any way, no matter what Mary Poppins may claim
for herself.
In Good News for Those Trying Harder, Alan Kraft discusses the beatitudes in
Matthew 5 and particularly “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the
kingdom of heaven” (5:3 ESV). He writes:
“Now most every Christian would
agree this is where the spiritual life begins,
but that is not what Jesus is saying. A quick read through the rest of these
values reveals that these are not onetime events but are to be constantly
experienced—mercy, peacemaking, humility, and brokenness. Jesus is inviting us
to live every moment in a conscious awareness of how spiritually needy we are.
He invites us to continually embrace
and experience the melody of brokenness” (39).
His introduction clarifies:
“When we define spiritual growth as
us becoming more like Christ, as us becoming less and less sinful, what
we are actually pursuing is a spiritual growth path in which we need Jesus less
and less. I need Him less today than yesterday, because the power of sin is not
as strong in my life” (33).
He includes this quote from Thomas Moore: “Our depressions,
jealousies, narcissism, and failures are not at odds with the spiritual life.
Indeed, they are essential to it. When tended, they prevent the spirit from
zooming off into the ozone of perfectionism and pride.”
The point is that God didn’t save us in order to wean us off
our dependence on Him. Spiritual growth and maturity actually comes from
relying on Him more fully over time. Although we have been saved from the power
of sin, that freedom is realized as we learn to lean on God when the
temptations come rather than trying to exercise our own willpower to get us
through. We are all broken, sinners, weak and needy, and we will be until the
return of Christ. When we start thinking we’ve got it all together, we run the
risk of tripping over our own pride and self-sufficiency. As Paul said, “Therefore
let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall” (1 Corinthians
10:12). That verse comes just before the reminder that God is the one who
provides the way of escape from temptation and enables us to endure.
Like many (perhaps most) people I’ve sometimes wondered, “Why
doesn’t God just fix this?” Whether it is a broken body, broken mind, or broken
spirit, God certainly has the power to make it right. But in His perspective,
there are things that are far more important than being “normal.” I’m convinced
that He allows brokenness to remain in our lives to keep reminding us of how
much we need Him.
We’re all messed up,
but we don’t all recognize it. And even if we do recognize that we are broken,
that knowledge can either drive us toward God or away from Him. We can either
learn to depend on Him or we can get angry that He isn’t fixing the problem. It
can also drive toward people or away from them. We can choose to be gracious
toward those who are different from us (either “better” or “worse”), or we can
be envious or arrogant. Obviously God’s desire is for us to love and trust Him
and to extend the same love and grace to others. It’s pretty hard to do that if
our definition of “normal” excludes people. The fact is we’re all abnormally normal.
I think when we do reach eternity we’ll be astounded to see
what perfection actually looks like. Our earthly standards are so far off that
we can’t begin to imagine. We judge Hitler for his conception of a master race,
but our ideas of normalcy are only marginally better. When compared to God’s
perfection, none of us has any claim to superiority.
“God chose what is low
and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things
that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God” (1
Corinthians 1:28-29).
