Tuesday,July 11,2023
Hello everyone
With our holidays approaching I have given some thought to the spiritual practices that sustain me not just during my holidays but throughout the year. Maybe some of them would be helpful for you as well.
Prayer is powerful to settle my mind – indeed it is my most common spiritual practice. I pray daily – often late at night and first thing in the morning. I tend to repeat the names of God and while doing so bring to mind people and concerns about what is happening in the church, in my own life or in the lives of my family. I try to remember to include giving thanks for the beauty of life and the many good things that happen each day
Exercise is crucial – I admit I don’t do it regularly enough, but a brisk walk, a bicycle ride – anything that gets the heart pumping helps to settle my mind and gives me a sense of peace. Exercise in that sense is good rest for the mind while at the same time good for the body itself. I need to exercise more right now. I am in a time where busyness has squeezed out exercise and when that happens, I struggle more.
Spontaneous laughter – yes it sounds strange but it is a powerful spiritual practice. To decide to laugh loud and long – for at least 15 seconds is therapeutic and spiritually nourishing. It makes me think differently. It helps to break patterns of thinking that are hard to shake. It helps to see the joy there is in the world around. To laugh is to be filled with hope.
Sitting beside water, gliding on top of water, listening to the sounds of water – I talked about this last week so will not expand on it further, other than to say I deeply value water time.
Conversations with my best friend Barbara. Often my most favourite part of the day is talking to Barb. We are good conversationalists with each other. These conversations cross a wide variety of topics and are deeply nurturing. We are social beings and having a good friend to talk to is a deeply spiritual experience
Reading scripture – for me particularly the Psalms. I am drawn to them because of the honest emotions the psalmists betray. They call a spade a spade. They express anger, hurt, disappointment, frustration, betrayal – all in no uncertain terms. Helpful for me is that the psalms are complaints to God. They are not meant as letters to the people they are complaining about – no, they are personal letters to God, letting it all go. As such they invite me to let go of my emotions as well, to recognize its not all about me – they invite me into a posture of humility and yes even grace – the grace that God listens, that God responds, that God is present – ‘The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want’
And finally music. I am not a musician. I can’t sing very well. I can’t play an instrument - but music is still powerful in my life. Music truly is a universal language. It is a carrier of our hopes and dreams, our pains and frustrations, our joys and our disappointments. Music can lift us up. I have to admit I am a product of a church going family and the old hymns and gospel songs from years ago are often the ones that come to mind when I need music. When I sing in my own head, it sounds beautiful. It only sounds terrible when I give voice to it and others can hear 😊
These are the spiritual disciplines I lean on. They help to ground me, to center me. They help me to get over myself – to let go and to be able to breathe more deeply. They help me to get unstuck when I am locked onto something. They make me laugh at myself. They give me moments of grace. They help me to see God – to sense the power of love that holds me tight. That same power of love holds you just as tight. Thanks be to God
Take care everyone. I won’t be writing these emails until after I return on August 14.
Marty