February Patchwork

Stitched together tidbits of a spiritual life

Sometimes we can only pay attention to the tiny details. We can’t grasp the whole project. We can’t see all that God is doing but only this tiny little slice of what is right before our feet.

I’m thinking about all of these tiny little wonders make up a life full of awe. Because we can’t always hold onto the vastness of it all. Sometimes we can only catch a glimpse of something wonderful and in a world broken apart by war and hate, we need more space for delight.

Photo by satheeshkumar ram on Unsplash

Here are some details that I’m cherishing this month.

My spiritual director has been encouraging me for months to journal. I’ve done it in fits and spurts but there has been more space and time in my heart this Lent to actually put pen to paper with greater attention. I’m reaching for my journal more ad finding that there is some release that comes with putting my stresses and worries down on paper. I truly feel freer.

Though it was been on my bookshelf for some time, I’ve been waiting for the right moment to pull out Ross Gay’s The Book of Delights. This is that season. I need more joy. I need to see every detail of it.

I am looking for more delight and am relishing in these beautiful short essays that I cherish by the spoonful. I don’t read more than one at a time to allow each tiny illustration to take root in my soul. If you’re not yet ready to pick up the book, listen to this wonderful podcast where I was introduced to this practice of observing daily delight.

A few days before that Sunday you might have heard the transfiguration story again after hearing it only two weeks before, I was on a mountain top in the Austrian Alips with my children marveling at how beautiful the world can be. As the story goes, we want to hold on to those moments. We cling to them and Jesus insists we shouldn’t but I don’t know. There needs to be more beauty in the world and sometimes it is good to want to savor that bliss that comes from such glory.

Sometimes my directees want help finding a practice for this moment. Sometimes though the conversation we share, God makes it clear what that thing should be. Other times, I follow up with an email offering some ideas to try which led me to wonder recently about centering prayer. It’s something I haven’t practiced for years but as I shared it with her, I’m finding my heart and mind returning to this simple practice again.

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What details are you focused on right now? Where is God calling your attention? How are you finding your center? What is growing in you as the calendar turns into March?

If you are interested in spiritual direction and are interested in a first conversation with me, please reach out or go ahead and book an appointment here. I am currently welcoming new directees and would be delighted to explore the holy threads of this life with you.