29 May (077) The Spirit in Spiritual Formation – Ally Cawthorn

We’re called to become more like Jesus. But does that mean we’re supposed to become more like a Middle-Eastern man?

When we become a Christian, we learn that the goal is to grow “more like Jesus.” As a young person, I used to wonder what that meant. I wasn’t very enthused by the thought that I should aim to become like someone other than myself!

So what does it look like to become spiritually mature? 

Spiritual growth is work of the Spirit and involves deep and thorough transformation. The Apostle Paul wrote to the church in Corinth, “if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” (2 Cor 5:17). 

But that doesn’t usually mean that God snaps his fingers and the work is done. Formation is a process outworked in conjunction with the Holy Spirit. In other words, we have an important role to play too. 

In this episode of the God Conversations podcast, Tania explores the process of spiritual formation and how we co-operate with the Spirit to make us new. Her guest is Ps Ally Cawthorn from Western Australia. Ally pastors a church with her husband and is the founding director of ‘The Immersion Academy’, a spiritual formation academy that seeks to reimagine ancient Christian formation practices for a contemporary context.

The episode covers:

• Ally’s story and how spiritual formation came to be a key part of her leadership journey.
• The goal of spiritual formation – to become our true selves. That involves letting go of false ways of being and removing the masks we often wear. The Spirit works to set us free from death-producing behaviours and become the person we’ve been created to be.
• The pathway of spiritual formation as individualised. While the goal is spiritual maturity, the pathway will look different for every person.
• Spiritual practices that facilitate the work of the Spirit – including contemplative practices such as slow-down prayer and slow reading of Scripture, journalling, silence and spiritual direction. 
• The way triggers in our behaviour such as anger, jealousy and anxiety can act as opportunities for reflection and growth.

In following Jesus and allowing the Spirit to work in us, we become more like true selves.

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Ally Cawthorn (D.Min, MA. Bib. Stud.) pastors Urban Church in Western Australia along with her husband. She is the Vice President of Australian Christian Churches (ACC), Western Australia and was elected as a member of the ACC National Executive in 2021. She is also the Founding Director of ‘The Immersion Academy’ (www.theimmersionacademy.com), a spiritual formation academy that seeks to reimagine ancient Christian formation practices for a contemporary, Pentecostal context. Ally is passionate about equipping believers to live a prophetic life and is seeing Christians experience a deeper relationship with God.