Friday, April 26, 2013

Spiritual Muscle Memory


We have the ability to train our bodies to move in precise, exact ways without even thinking about it.  Basketball players spend hours practicing foul shots in order to be able to make the shot during the game.  Violinists have to put their fingers on the exact right places on the neck of the instrument, and trombonists must position the slides on their instruments in the exact right place in order to play the note on pitch.  Jazz legend Jaco Pastorius did the same thing with his bass guitar, which was specially adapted for this purpose.  Good typists know exactly where each letter is on the keyboard without even thinking about it.

This skill is called “muscle memory:” the development of a procedural memory that comes through repetition.  Eventually, it becomes second nature, and you’re able to move your fingers or legs in a precise way without even being aware that you are doing it.

The key to developing muscle memory is repetition.  You do the same thing over and over again until you’re sick of it.  And if what you’re trying to do is play the right note on a violin, everyone within hearing distance might also get sick of it as well!  Eventually, with enough time and practice, “muscle memory” kicks in.  On demand, you can play a D flat on the trombone. Your arms automatically give the ball exactly the right push to make the basket.  You don’t even think about which finger you’re using to press “T” on the keyboard.  It doesn’t happen overnight.  But with enough patience and persistence, you develop muscle memory.

What is true for our physical muscles is also true for our spiritual muscles.  Over time and with practice, our spirits are able to develop seemingly-automatic patterns.  Then, when a particular challenge comes our way, our spirits are properly prepared to turn to the resources that God provides for us at such times.  I have seen people far-gone into dementia spring to spiritual alertness when they heard the words of institution of the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper.  A family who recently experienced a devastating loss found great comfort by repeating the Lord’s Prayer.  Many people have told me about the comfort they find during times of need or of loneliness through the old familiar hymns that they sang for years.  These are some people who reaped the benefits of spiritual muscle memory, because their spirits effortlessly found comfort and guidance when they needed it.

Ritual and tradition play an important part in our lives, because they are the ways that we develop spiritual muscle memory, which we can rely upon when we need it.  Our spiritual habits, from the familiar liturgy of Sunday worship to the regular routine of daily personal devotionals, help to train us so that it becomes easier and easier to recognize and respond to God’s leading.

How’s your spiritual muscle memory?