Recently, I finished reading “Finding Water” by Julia Cameron, a book that takes one on a twelve week journey during which they explore their inner artist, their community network, and cultivate practices to nourish your inner artist. Cameron often links art to something that transcends ourselves, which some may refer to as God, a higher power, etc. As a dabbling musician and artist, I very much enjoyed this book and some of the practices that Julia Cameron introduced have become foundations in my daily practice.
“Finding Water”, however has got me questioning how I seek spiritual nourishment, in particular how am I experiencing nourishment during these times of Covid-19? My answer to this question was well not really…. I am tied to a local congregation with whom I have followed only services over the past few months. However, our congregation has recentyl resumed meeting (something that I am not comfortable attending at this time) and the quality of streaming has left much to be desired, leaving me spiritually deprived. The question is what to do about this. I do care about my local congergation a great deal and while I have decided to step back from things, stepping back does give me room to explore differently. I can seek out different material. I also wonder about leading a book study online for the congregation I’m a member of, so that I can better engage in a spiritual community. Sometimes finding nourishment is just a matter of small adjustments and not a big transition. It is a matter of find a little freedom to listen to your heart and seek the Divine calling within it. As Christians we are not on our own, God is always with us. Nor can we go it alone because the path of discipleship is in community with our fellows, and for that I am truly thankful!
Passion
I have been away for a while for a while, for several reasons. I went back to school to study education, and I have been trying to more clearly find my calling. In this time of Pentecost in the Christian Church the symbol is fire, the colour red, the descriptors passion, fuel, the Holy Spirit, Pneuma, Ruah. At this time I am trying to find these things. In a Covid-19 world where we are working at home, surrounded by our families, but restricted in seeing our friends, I suspect we are also trying to find our passion, our fuel on the journey, the Holy Spirit within us, and the spark of life within each of us. With the move to online services in many areas, we may be spiritually malnourished, or have a different diet than what we are accustomed to. Worship has become less about community and togetherness, and more about separation and technology. On some days this reminds me of the Babylonian exile, and “how can we sing in a strange land”… I do not have any answer. I do wonder if we continue seeking, if we will find our way through?
Happy Easter
May you find hope, may you find peace, may you find joy, and may you find light.
Happy Resurrection!
Wait
“It has finished”. Now we must wait. All we can do is wait. Hope for carity, hope for vision, hope for light.
Good Friday Reading
Isaiah 53:3-7
“He was despised and rejected by men,
a man of sorrowws and acquainted with grief;
and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised,
and we esteemed him not.”