Discipline

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Celebration of Discipline, disciple, discipline, enthusiasm, gifts from God, Hebrews, meditation, Peace, Richard Foster, spiritual practices, St. Paul, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

In the Letter to the Hebrews today (12:4-7, 11-15) we read a reflection on discipline. Paul is suggesting that discipline should be a cause for joy, not pain, and can be seen in the long run to bring “the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who are trained by it.” Paul speaks of discipline as an important part of parental training as well as a way to view the trials that come from God.

A long time ago I read a book entitled Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster that changed my view of the purpose and practice of the word. I certainly had learned the connection between “discipline” and “disciple” and understood that self-discipline is the way to discipleship but this book – just by its title and then by its content – moved spiritual practices from the realm of work to a place of enthusiasm and joy for me. To celebrate what it takes of day-to-day sitting in meditation or speaking kindness to others no matter our mood does not come naturally for most of us. If, however, we begin to think of these practices as gifts to us from God, the entire enterprise changes to one of celebration. And it doesn’t matter if every day is a new beginning of the process. I believe God offers us a clean slate with each sunrise.

So let us take St. Paul’s advice to “strengthen your drooping hands and your weak knees” and “make straight the paths of your feet” in order to “strive for peace with everyone and for that holiness without which no one will see the Lord..” And. remember that “with God everything is possible!”

Awake and Alive

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beautiful, conscious breathing, everyday activities, Fully Awake and Truly Alive, prayer, rest, Rev. Jane E. Vennard, simple, spiritual practices, summer read, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

We’re starting our summer book study next week at The Sophia Center with a book called Fully Awake and Truly Alive. Each time I try to tell someone the title of the book I have to find either the book itself or the flyer announcing the topic. It’s not that complicated but I’m always concerned about remembering it correctly. “Is it Truly Awake and Fully Alive or does Fully come before Truly,” I ask myself. And then there’s Awake and Alive to deal with. Is it possible to be awake before you’re alive or is it all a question of those demanding modifiers?

Regardless of whether I ever get it right, the book is a great summer read. It offers a new look at prayer and spiritual practices in a way that gives credence to the value of everyday activities like gardening, hiking and rest. Who thinks of resting as a spiritual practice? And yet the concept of Sabbath is foundational to much of religious tradition. Pair rest with conscious breathing and silence and the foundation grows even stronger. In other words, simple is beautiful. For those of us who are driven by work and the necessity of achievement, these are good reminders. Actually, even for those less inclined to feverish activity, the reminder to stop for a moment to breathe in the day may be an inestimable gift.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Will You Try?

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danger, discipline, exercise, heart, Jan Phillips, meditation, No Ordinary Time, safe, soul, spiritual practices, strength, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

This morning I have just spent my first hour preparing for session 2 of our 6-session study series on the book No Ordinary Time by Jan Phillips. The study grew out of response to Jan’s visit and our meaningful workshop with her in April. We have 19 women gathering to continue pondering the fact that our ordinary lives can truly be extraordinary if we allow them to be so. Our chapter heading for tomorrow is “Discipline” and it contains several possible spiritual practices. I thought it auspicious to choose one – a simple exercise that can be easily done – as a suggestion here. See what you think about the possibility of inserting this into your everyday routine.

Come into a comfortable seated position. Sit with the back flat, crown of the head lifted, shoulders relaxed, and chest open. Rest you hands in the lap or on the knees. Close your eyes, deepen the breath and release any thoughts from the mind. Gently repeat the following softly out loud or in your mind:

May I be safe from all danger. May I be held in the arms of God. May I be strong in spirit and body. May I be true to my heart and soul.

Repeat the phrases again, changing “May I” to “May you” while you think of a specific person, or a group of people, or of the whole planet. Finish with a few slow, deep breaths, feeling compassion, love,, and kindness flowing through your body. Take a moment or two before moving on with the rest of your day. (p. 38-9)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yielding

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centering prayer, Finding the On-Ramp to You Spiritual Life, Jan Phillips, journey, opportunities, resistance, spiritual path, spiritual practices, surrender, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, yield

In looking ahead to possibilities for the autumn “semester” at the Sophia Center, I began re-reading Finding the On-Ramp to Your Spiritual Life, a little book by Jan Phillips. The impetus came from two different conversations – one with Jan and another with a member of my Spiritual Practices Circle who is considering reading the book with a group in her Church. It’s a catchy title and the idea of using traffic signs as chapter titles was, it seems to me, quite an inspired idea. It’s part of Jan’s genius, I think, to see deep meaning in the connections that exist everywhere and use everyday experiences to mine deep truth. Think about all you could say about “STOP” or “DIVIDED HIGHWAY” or even “FALLING ROCKS AHEAD.” (Actually, that’s not a bad idea. What would you say about each of those things vis-à-vis your life?)

Last night I read the chapter entitled YIELD, which is a familiar concept to someone who learns the daily letting go in the practice of centering prayer. Here’s how Jan began that reflection.

The word yield has a variety of meanings. On the road, it means to surrender, to give way. In nature, it means to engender, to bear fruit. On the spiritual path, one leads to the other. Once we give up our notion of how life “should be,” we free ourselves to experience the lives that we do have.

Simple, right? But not easy, of course. Give it some time today as you drive or shop or interact with others…See how yielding is a better choice than resistance and bow to the opportunities that so often just show up to help us along on our journey.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Holy Week

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Christianity, devotion, Easter, Holy Week, prayer, solemn, spiritual practices, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Well, it seems that best-laid plans only work if the planner follows through. The set of quotes I promised you is sitting in my computer at my sister’s house, ready and willing to be sent to Mary Pat – had I but remembered to send them on their way!

So now we are in Holy Week, the most solemn week of the year in Christianity. I am so aware of diversity these days and edified by the spiritual practices of devoted individuals and groups that my hope is to widen the lens of my own devotion in the days leading to Easter. Won’t you join me in seeking some new thought or prayer at least once this week – as you also rest in the practices that you hold dear?

“Come Away”

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come away, courage, dancing, deep reflection, evil, fear, fearless, Hebrew Scriptures, Psalm 23, spiritual practices, stillness, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, Wisdom School

“Even though I walk in the dark valley, I fear no evil, for you are at my side. With your rod and your staff you give me courage.”

These words from Psalm 23, probably the best known of all the psalms in the Hebrew Scriptures, jumped out at me this morning. Then I read that Jesus called his apostles to come away from the crush of the crowds “to a deserted place” for some rest – most likely, for a chance to gain some clarity and reassess what was happening so as to refuel for the re-entry into the ministry that was theirs.

Having arrived in Stonington, Maine yesterday to the shared joy of being with a dozen colleagues whose presence I have enjoyed variously at different “wisdom schools” over the past ten years, I am aware of a similar call to “come away” for fearless and deep reflection on our call to meet the challenges in our country today. Our work will be rigorous and internal, but work it will surely be. Perhaps the outcome will be so subtle as to go undetected by “the crowds” but we will surely be more committed to our spiritual practices and more certain that there is a way forward, although its evolution may still be in seed, thereby impossible to comprehend.

This message itself may be similarly “impossible to comprehend” but I am reminded of a quote on a card that has been in my small treasure box for decades. It says: In the stillness is the dancing, and this morning, that is enough for me to know.

Practice

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benediction, consciousness, daily life, essential, lessons, Pablo Casals, piano, spiritual practices, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

I love listening to piano music, especially if it involves watching the person playing. The ability to do something different with each hand at the same time creating such beauty is a marvel to me. I took piano lessons once for about eight months when I was teaching school. I gave it up, thinking that my teacher, my colleague, could better spend her time with someone or something else because I could never find enough time for sufficient practice. Now I appreciate the skill even more than I did before those eight months when I was 31 years of age.

On Monday of this week I sat with a group of spiritual seekers to talk about our particular spiritual practices. We came to the conclusion that almost anything can fit that category, depending upon the motivation and consciousness with which it is performed. It’s the regular practice that is the key.

This morning I read a quote by Pablo Casals (1876-1973), a maestro who knew the value of practice, not only in order to play the piano, but also to live a full life. He said this: For the past eighty years I have started each day in the same manner. It is not a mechanical routine but something essential to my daily life. I go to the piano and play two preludes and fugues of Bach. I cannot think of doing otherwise. It is a sort of benediction on the house. But that is not its only meaning for me. It is a rediscovery of the world of which I have the joy of being a part. It fills me with awareness of the wonder of life, with a feeling of the incredible marvel of being a human being.

As I look out my window every morning (hoping each time I travel to find such a gift as well), I find a peace that comes to my eyes and my heart just to recognize that – even as the wind bends the branches of the tallest tree, even as last summer’s grass lies yellowish-brown or covered in snow on the ground, whether the sky is brilliant magenta or emptying its buckets of rain – I am here and the world goes on as it will, always turning and traveling its given course through our universe. Looking out and giving thanks has become my simplest, most essential spiritual practice. What is yours?

A Sturdy Vine

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bear fruit, branches, fidelity of purpose., grapevine, Jesus, John, lessons, spiritual practices, strength, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, vine

Each time I read about the vine and the branches in John’s gospel (15:1-8) I am reminded of the time I tried to dig up the old grapevine that sat in the middle of our yard. It was certainly older than I and we thought it was time for it to retire. It was one of the best spiritual practices I had ever engaged! We were both quite steadfast: me following the branches into the ground over days of digging and pulling until all merged into one, and the vine always one step ahead of me in tenaciousness. I ended finally by cutting it below ground level, blessing it for the lessons it had taught me of strength and fidelity of purpose.

This morning Jesus says he is the vine and we are the branches. He calls us to make our home in him to bear fruit. Those words offer me an image of warmth, being cradled as the nutrients for growth, the life force, the light of the sun and of God flow into me from the strong central core of my being, Christ. There can be no branch without that firm, steady center. Remain in me, Jesus says, as I remain in you. Together we will bear much fruit. With that promise I go forward into this sunny day.

Everybody, Sing!

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God, Jesus, joyful, martyr, saints, singing before the Lord, spiritual practices, St. Cecilia, St. Francis of Assisi, St. Marianne Cope, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Several years ago I watched a DVD about Church history where theologian Rev. Michael Himes made a statement that remains with me. He said that one of the reasons that Christianity has endured is the doctrine of the communion of saints. It is remarkable, he continued, that we are able to have “conversations” with people who lived in the 1300s, the first millennium and even the first century of the Christian era – as well as from our own time. That being true, we can find out what it has been like over the period of 2,000+ years for human beings like us to journey toward the God of Jesus Christ. The stories of “the great ones” are mixed in with some who are obscure but sometimes very engaging. And occasionally there is a named saint from a place close to us whether we live in Assisi in Italy (St. Francis) or Syracuse, NY/Molokai, Hawaii (St. Marianne Cope). Whether or not we are prone toward deep devotion to saints, I believe there is a sense of continuity in reflecting on their lives.

Today is the feast of St. Cecilia who lived in the 3rd century and was martyred in Rome for her faith, as were many people in that time of persecution. The stunning thing for those of us who are well aware of St. Cecilia as the patron of musicians is that very little is known of her although she is remembered as one of the most famous of the martyrs of her time. Perhaps that is because “singing before the Lord” is one of the most joyful of all spiritual practices. There will be many music festivals today at Christian churches and much fanfare as churches celebrate the feast of Christ the King this weekend. I, for one, am always grateful for good liturgical music (and any other good music as well…) and will sing my best at any opportunity today to give thanks for all the musical “saints” in my life!