Your Family: Spiritual Wellness or Spiritually Toxic?
Posted on 09. Nov, 2010 by Angie Wyatt in Blog
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With Thanksgiving approaching, and Christmas in tow, now is the time to focus our Spiritual Wellness on the ways we engage our family. How do our family relationships affect our spirituality? Do our family dynamics reveal whether we are practicing Spiritual Wellness or suffer a toxic spirituality?
From marriage to children to in-laws, our families are an incredible resource for helping us become the people we are destined to be. Our families challenge us, push our buttons, abuse us and affirm us. For better or worse, our family is the best training ground for Spiritual Wellness.
The following inventory will give you spiritual insight into your family dynamics. I encourage you to use this inventory as a resource to help you hear God. Remember to not judge your family. Instead, reflect on your own spirituality with God’s help. As you read this inventory, prayerfully ask God to show you the truest intent of your heart. How do you really think or feel about your family?
Toxic spirituality: My goal is to be just like my family, or My goal is to be nothing like my family.
Spiritual Wellness: My goal is to be like Christ.
Toxic spirituality: I’m more concerned with belonging to my family, than belonging to God.
Spiritual Wellness: I belong to God. I am God’s child.
Toxic spirituality: I love myself, for better or worse, to the extent that my family showed me love.
Spiritual Wellness: Because God loves me, I love my family as myself.
Toxic spirituality: I submit and serve my family because of their (or my) manipulation and control.
Spiritual Wellness: I serve and mutually submit to my family because I am autonomous (by free will).
Toxic spirituality: I focus on problems in my family, to the point of judging others.
Spiritual Wellness: I focus on positive solutions in my family.
What is God saying to you as you read this inventory? Are you challenged to grow? Share you thoughts with us.
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4 Responses to “Your Family: Spiritual Wellness or Spiritually Toxic?”
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Mom Driving You Mad? | Spiritual Wellness
09. Nov, 2010
[...] you’re here, don’t forget to take our Spiritual Wellness Inventory of the Family. This month, gear up for the holidays by focusing your Spiritual Wellness journey on your [...]
Jan-Michael
10. Nov, 2010
The Inventory list included one that often gets complicated:
[ "Spiritual Wellness: I focus on positive solutions in my family." ]
My Mum has Alzheimer’s but wants to continue her generous support of certain charities and has a substantial investment portfolio.
My sister gets angry if my Mum wants to support her charities and we all agreed to 3 charities, Ahlzeimer’s, Red Cross and SPCA for animals and a modest donation to each quarterly. My sister now wants to just “tell” my Mum but not actually make the donations.
This I could not abide and now my sister has told my Mum she cannot afford to support charities anymore.
I get the Statements and with a paid house, homecare from the Gov’t there is enough money to allow these charitiy donations.
So, positive solutions I still try to find but when it is not a two person situation but a matter where one is elderly and an agreement has been broken, it is hard to stay positive. For my part, I have reviewed the substantial investments with my Mum but she feels my sister will just scream if the modest donations are made. So to keep “Peace” she sadly days. “Just leave it”.
A conundrum that I will have to continue to address with His help.
He is Blessing all, always
J-M
Angie Wyatt
11. Nov, 2010
J-M, It sounds to me like you’re doing a great job focusing on how to find positive solutions for your mom. I think aging parents is one of the most difficult times to trudge – particularly among siblings. I admire that you want to help your mom maintain her autonomy. I think it’s respectful of you. I immediately wondered if there was another way she could give to charity? Some charities need people to write encouraging notes, or to join a prayer chain. I hope she will stay encouraged. I LOVE the elderly. I think older people add maturity and strength of conviction to a younger generation. I pray God’s peace for you mom.
Jan-Michael
11. Nov, 2010
Great suggestions Angie, for helping my Mum find a use for her talents in helping charities. As you wrote, “Some charities need people to write encouraging notes, or to join a prayer chain.” My Mum always wrote beautiful poetry and verse. She may not be able to ennunciate words as well now but prayers do not require the verbal skills as much as the deep Love and belief in the power of prayer, which is so strong in her.
Thank you so much for your thoughts and prayers, Angie.
He is Blessing all, always
J-M