1. The first dimension is the Holy Spirit. Without the Spirit, we are dead in the water, like a sailboat without a breeze. It doesn't matter how we move the sails or the rudder, we need wind to go. He is the life of all we do spiritually. (Romans 8:1,6) Without him, all aspects of our spirituality end up "dead," going nowhere. (Romans 8:7-8)
2. The second dimension is spiritual exercises. Without planned actions, the wind of the Spirit blows right past us. We are like a sailboat without a sail. We may feel it or even enjoy it, but we are not caught up in it. The actions do not cause our movement or growth, but enable us to be moved and be grown. These are often called spiritual disciplines. In Henri Nouwen's The Way of the Heart, he emphasizes the use of two disciplines and their effect on prayer. Examples:
a. Solitude enables freedom from the pressure to control other people, so we can truly seek God and help them.
b. Silence teaches the true use of words and deepens our trust in God and not ourselves.
3. The third dimension is life-practice. Without bringing the Spirit and our spiritual exercises into our daily life, we lack direction. We are like a sailboat without a rudder. God can only direct us in the life we live on a daily basis. We discover his calling and our destiny day by day, as each wind catches us and as we respond to that wind. In this way, the analogy breaks down, because God is not just a force to move us, but places his hand with ours on the rudder to guide us. The point is that we cannot find our way in life without the ongoing influence of the Spirit and the planned action of spiritual discipline being applied to our daily existence. We end up wondering and wandering instead of trusting and living. Example:
Nouwen talks about this in his section on Prayer of the Heart. It is all-inclusive. It embraces all of life. He also has some practical ways in which such prayer can be brought into daily life.
Prayer without these 3 dimensions ends up flat and going nowhere. The 3 dimensions make prayer full and also real to us instead of just a picture.
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