Last night while I was cleaning up the basement and getting things ready for my sabbatical I came across a folder filled with Wednesday Wonderings that I wrote a very long time ago. It occurred to me that I started this venture about 10 years ago. 5 years in my previous pastoral charge and now almost 5 years here. That is a lot of writing!! As I re-read some of the older posts I realized how far I have come in these communications.
In the beginning they were very short and very specific to things happening in the life of the congregation and they have grown into more spiritual reflections, musings about faith and life.
Some weeks when I sit at the computer I am uncertain what will appear on the page as I begin to type.
Other weeks I know exactly what I want to say.
Some weeks I wonder “ what can I possibly have left to say?”
But something always surfaces as the Spirit moves. Connecting with all of you in this way has certainly been a powerful spiritual experience for me and has ignited some interesting and transforming conversations.
Ways That Work For Me
Yesterday morning I visited with a young gentleman who is going through some very difficult times in his life and is searching spiritually. We spent about an hour together and during that time we talked about different ways to connect with divine energy. I invited him to think about those spaces that work for him and then to practice entering that space. I shared with him some of the ways that work for me –
drumming,- knitting,
- walking,
- meditation.
Then, as I started to work on my wonderings for this week I realized that this is actually one of the most consistent of my spiritual practices. When I sit down, I always take a moment to breathe deeply. I clear my mind, as best I can, and focus on being open to whatever comes my way. After a few moments in silence I begin some free-writing ( which simply means writing whatever comes into my mind) and then I stop. I do some more deep breathing then read what I have written. From that I move into the space of sharing, in a more constructive manner, what I have created. This is something I have been doing now for almost 10 years and it grounds me.
Listen to the Silence
Kahlil Gibran writes
“My soul counselled me and charged me to listen for voices that rise neither from the tongue or the throat. Before that day, I heard but dully and naught save clamour and loud cries came to my ears. But now I have learned to listen to silence, to hear its choirs singing the songs of the ages, chanting the hymns of space, and disclosing the secrets of eternity.”
And the Psalmist writes
“Be still and know that I am God”
In this journey we call life, taking the time to connect with the divine energy is essential. Yet it is one of the things that we often put on the back burner. We get caught up in the day to day routines and life gets busy. Perhaps things are going great and we don’t feel the need to step aside; or perhaps life is not great and we are so consumed with just keeping it together that we don’t make time.
What I have noticed is that the weeks when I have not taken the time to reconnect with divine, when the busyness consumes me, it is those weeks that I am least productive, unfocused and less engaged in the world around me. So I invite you, this morning, to stop whatever you are doing; breathe deeply; be still; and allow the presence of Divine to invade your soul. Listen to the silence and hear the choirs singing the songs of the ages.
Blessings
Valerie
© 2016 Rev. Valerie Peyton Kingsbury. All Rights Reserved
I agree with your views that divine energy is essential .I like to add that for me ,when my mind is racing with problems of the day or it is hard to focus . Prayer helps by giving the problems over to God ,asking him to take it from me. Then and only then can I reach out to that inner piece that silence brings .