Remembering
“The
heart of most spiritual practice is simply this: Remember. Remember
who you are. Remember what you love. Remember what is sacred.
Remember what is true. Remember that you will die, and that this day
is a gift. Remember how you wish to live.”
Wayne
Muller (How Then Shall We Live)
People
around here like to say, “That's just how I was raised,” and in
the next breath, “I'm a God-fearing Christian.” I'm always on
high-alert when I hear these two statements come together. They
sometimes contain undertones of exclusivity, misogyny, racism,
homophobia and antisemitism, not one of which has any relevance to
being a “God-fearing” person of any sort. On the other hand,
those words might mean, “I was taught to be non-judgmental,
generous, compassionate and fair minded.” Remembering who you are
sometimes needs tweaking, sometimes a major overhaul. Sometimes, “how
you were raised,” flies straight in the face of being a person with
a spiritual orientation to the world.
Remembering
what is sacred is critical to the spiritual life—because everything
is sacred, from your first cup of coffee, 'til you turn off the
lights, including the dreams that visit your sleep. It's a sacred
world, and you yourself are holy. Remembering this moment-to-moment
is what it means to live in right relationship to Spirit. Not just
what you hear in worship on Sabbath, not just the scriptures you
read, not just your prayers and meditations, but everything, every
minute, every encounter—precious gifts to be received with
reverence and gratitude. Today, practice remembering.
In
the Spirit,
Jane
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