Interestingly, the spirit is like a plant. Two organisms, one invisible, the other invisible, and yet they are very similar to each other.
They are very similar to each other in terms of growth or development, particularly in the obstacles to their development.
A plant grows or develops with the help of sunlight, soil, freedom from predators, adjustment to the climate, and the help of humans.
So also similar factors help in the development of the human spirit.
This article looks at the obstacles to spiritual development. You can develop spiritually faster if these obstacles are overcome or removed in your life.
A plant needs sunlight. This is very basic for their growth. It cannot be kept indoors most of the time, unlike animals and humans. Similarly, the human spirit needs sunlight from God’s Word.
The Scriptures say that the Word of God is a light for the path of the righteous. The sun not only gives light, it also emits heat and warmth. God’s Word also warms the hearts of spiritual people.
Not exposing the spiritual person to the Word of God is the number one obstacle to spiritual development. This exposure, like exposure of the plant to sunlight, must be done on a daily basis.
Second, plants need soil to thrive. Today we know that there are plants that are no longer planted in the ground. Some species of plants just hang in the air. Other types grow in water or some kind of liquid. But even these grow above the ground and feed on substances that are naturally found in the soil, such as nitrogen.
Similarly, human spirits need the spiritual ground, the events that happen in their lives around them. They move in the midst of world events. Even the most confined hermit or monk is surrounded by air, vegetation, buildings, electromagnetic waves that make information about the events around him available at the touch of an electronic device. These events stimulate the spiritual person to continue living, to pursue spiritual growth. After all, you develop spiritually to benefit others. The human spirit that lives only for itself is drier than the driest of deserts.
The life of Thomas Merton helps us reflect on the idea of spiritual soil. He was a Trappist monk, a member of one of the strictest orders in the Church. And yet he did not live only for himself. He thought about the world around him and wrote about the many things he observed around him. Because of this, he developed spiritually faster than his brother monks and left us a lot of spiritual food.
The second obstacle to spiritual development is forgetting the world around us, forgetting that is like pulling a plant out of the ground.
Third, a plant must adapt to an appropriate climate. There are some plants, like bananas, that cannot grow in cold places where snow is abundant. Other plants cannot grow well in hot climates, such as apples.
Similarly, human spirits need the right spiritual climate for their development. There were two periods in the history of the Christian Church in which saints abounded: the first centuries in which there were persecutions and the Middle Ages in which Christian learning flourished in Europe.
The third obstacle to spiritual development is an inappropriate spiritual climate. When most people turn to material comforts as a way of life, their spiritual development is stifled by the things around them. But when more and more people react against materialism, further spiritual development is inevitable.
Fourth, plants can be stunted in their development by predators – humans, animals, or similar plants. Some humans cut plants indiscriminately. Animals graze on plants. Other plants that grow faster and therefore consume more nutrients from the soil, can grow very close to less fortunate plants, stunting their growth.
Similarly, there are spiritual predators, spirits who envy and frustrate our human spiritual development. The apostle Paul warns us that our true enemies are the spirits that roam this world. They also hinder our spiritual development. They are the fourth obstacle to spiritual development.
Fifth, plants cared for by a human gardener develop faster and better. Wild plants develop. But the plants in a garden cared for by a human being develop more.
Similarly, human spirits who have good spiritual directors develop faster and better. We now have spiritual coaches who guide others on their spiritual path. Some of these coaches are good, some not so good. The fifth obstacle to spiritual development is the lack of a good spiritual director or coach.
These are the obstacles to spiritual development: 1) lack of daily exposure to God’s Word; 2) forgetting the events around us; 3) inappropriate spiritual climate; 4) spiritual predators, spirits that envy and frustrate our human spiritual development; 5) lack of a good spiritual director or coach.
It is now up to you to discern which of these obstacles are most effectively hindering your spiritual development. Then look for ways to remove or minimize these obstacles.