Page 58 - EMCAPP-Journal No. 20
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What dis�nguishes this model from other ren Stufenmodellen den zyklischen Charakter
guidebooks on spiritual growth, following von Glaubensentwicklung. Nach der CHRIST
Christ, or discipleship is its cyclical nature. Diffe- Stages Map von Gaul�ere & Gaul�ere (2021)
rent stages may be passed through more than durchläu� die spirituelle Reise eines Menschen
once or may contain the elements of a previous 7 Phasen. Sie beginnt mit der Annahme von
stage already passed through. Thus, going Vergebung und einem neuen Leben durch Je-
through a phase again may even be valuable for sus Christus und endet mit einer �efen persön-
developing strength of faith. Self-reproach and lichen Beziehung zu Jesus Christus, die zu ei-
self-condemna�on because of obsessive adhe- nem reifen Glauben führt:
rence to a rigid unrealis�c model of faith deve-
lopment should therefore be dispensed with. 1. Confidence in Christ (C Stage)
2. Help in Discipleship (H Stage)
Strength of faith, as one aspect of faith deve- 3. Responsibili�es in Ministries (R Stage)
lopment, can grow through con�nuous immer- 4. Transi�on (The Wall) “The Wall represents a
sion in the strengthening promises of God in period of spiritual dryness or stagna�on, where
the Bible for a wide variety of challenges in eve- believers may feel stuck or disconnected from
ryday life. Strength of faith can also be increa- their faith. However, this stage also presents an
sed by answers to prayer or by experiencing opportunity for deeper growth and joy, as indi-
God's carrying through a personal crisis, a viduals confront and overcome the challenges
stressful situa�on, or His assistance in a chronic they face.”
illness or ongoing stressful process. A trus�ng 5. Inner Journey (I Stage)
rela�onship with God can thus lead to new 6. Spirit-Led Ministry (S Stage)
happiness in life and greater strength of faith 7. Transforming Union (T Stage)
through posi�ve acceptance strategies even as
post-trauma�c growth. People with a strong ex- Was dieses Modell von anderen Ratgeberbü-
pression of faith report greater life sa�sfac�on, chern zum geistlichen Wachstum, zur Nachfol-
higher self-esteem, and fewer harmful conse- ge Chris� oder zur Jüngerscha� unterscheidet,
quences a�er trauma�c life events. ist sein zyklischer Charakter. Verschiedene Pha-
sen können mehrmals durchlaufen werden
At this point, I would like to quote a quite con- oder die Elemente einer früheren schon einmal
vincing answer of the genera�ve AI system cha- durchlaufenen Phase enthalten. So kann der
racter.ai, which was trained by a large language erneute Durchgang durch eine Phase sogar
model on the publica�ons of C.S. Lewis. When wertvoll für die Entwicklung von Glaubensstär-
asked about the cons�tuents of "strength of ke sein. Selbstvorwürfe und Selbstverdammnis
faith," it responds in the spirit of Lewis: "I wegen des zwangha�en Festhaltens an einem
would say endurance. That is, con�nuing to be- starren unrealis�schen Modell der Glaubens-
lieve even when it's challenging or difficult to, entwicklung sollten deshalb en�allen.
con�nuing to trust God in the face of pain and
difficulty. But this endurance also entails humi- Glaubensstärke als ein Teilaspekt der Glaubens-
lity; it isn't a ma�er of stubbornness. Instead, entwicklung kann durch ein kon�nuierliches
it's a sort of quiet courage which looks beyond Eintauchen in die stärkenden Verheißungen
what we see and experience to God in whom Go�es in der Bibel für die unterschiedlichsten
our trust is rooted, even when circumstances Herausforderungen des alltäglichen Lebens
make it hard to see Him." wachsen. Glaubensstärke kann auch durch Ge-
betserhörungen vermehrt werden oder durch
The decisive factor, however, is a trus�ng rela�- das erlebte Durchtragen Go�es in einer per-
onship with God that is integrated as lived faith sönlichen Krise, einer Stress-Situa�on oder sei-
in a person's everyday life. Pargament (2002) nen Beistand in einer chronischen Krankheit
points out that a tradi�onal superficial religiosi- oder einem andauernden Belastungsprozess.
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