Christian Introspection

Believing in anything at all about theology or ethics because of having a specific introspective experience other than that one is having that mental experience is irrational, but this does not mean there is nothing to gain from engaging in intentional introspection in light of one's commitment to Christianity.  This is especially important due to the extensive changes a sincere Christian might have to make regarding various aspects of their lives.  After all, it is pointless and stupid to commit to a worldview (and commitment is not the same as belief) without sincerity, and sincerity often comes with a desire to know oneself and reflect carefully on one's priorities and worldview.

There are two general reasons why a Christian would dwell inwardly when it comes to their spiritual status.  In most cases, either they want to bask in gratefulness for their worldview and savor it or they want to remember how self-destructive they might be if it was not for Christianity.  The first is triumphant and celebratory, and the second is far more sobering, but both can be deep, comforting ways of evaluating oneself in light of reason and Christian theology.  Given enough time, almost any Christian with more than minor sincerity will experience both of these kinds of spiritual introspection.

It takes great rationality, clarity, intentionality, and sometimes bravery to be entirely transparent to oneself about one's own motivations and ideological stances.  For new or established Christians, any of these things might be heavily involved in reflecting on what the personal stakes of Christianity are.  There is no such thing as a broad worldview held out of genuine interest or concern for truth that will not impact how a person lives, and Christianity is no different than any other philosophy in this regard.  People who have been Christians for varying lengths of time will always have this truth to explore, understand, and revisit.

Christian introspection is not the kind of mysticism that is sometimes associated with the concept of spiritual self-awareness.  It is instead a philosophically and personally deep task of gazing inward and grasping the ways that a person's life has been affected by commitment to Christianity--not necessarily the ways other people have reacted to that commitment, but how someone is directly impacted with or without the social relationships that are inevitably experienced differently, privately or outwardly, due to embracing Christianity.  Far from pointless thinking or belief in any idea at all based on emotional experiences with God's presence that cannot be epistemologically confirmed as legitimate, Christian introspection is about understanding one's psychological life as a Christian.