Writings of a Beholder 🌿 6.2.23
A beholding practice to help you name the unnamed things
A Beholding Practice to Help You Name the Unnamed Things
Today marks the first Friday in June, and even though it’s consistently been well over 80 degrees here in central Indiana these past few weeks, the calendar still tells me that it’s spring. The first official day of the summer season falls on June 21st this year, making the turning of the seasons still weeks away.
But often, we feel the seasons shift due to a number of external and internal things, despite what the calendar tells us. Because although the calendar says it’s spring, it feels like summer with school being let out and the sun beating down all harsh and hot. The lack of rain and the growing greens and the smell of sprinklers and the sound of lawnmowers that are abuzz in my corner of the world sure do place me in a summer state of mind.
And much like the outside world, our souls hold their own seasons. We are complex human beings that hold a plethora of worlds, people, stories, and echoes of eternity inside of us. Even though the calendar says it’s spring, your soul may feel like it’s wandering around in the dead cold of winter, and that’s ok.
As a grounding practice, I’ve learned how to notice and name what season my soul is in. Because when we look through the lens of where our feet actually are, we’re better equipped to name what we need from God, ourselves, and other people.
We’re not going to cover how to name the season of our soul in today’s letter, but if you want to learn more about the different soul seasons and how to name the season your soul is in, you can check out this blog post I wrote and recorded and then come back to this letter once you feel ready: Discerning the Season of Your Soul
For the purpose of today’s letter, I want to share with you a partnering practice, if you will. A reflective, beholding practice that you can use to check in with the Holy Spirit and yourself once you’ve named what season your soul is in. I like to engage with this practice whenever I’m feeling out of balance, when I’m uncertain about the path before me, or if I’m just feeling the need to check in with myself and the Lord.
It’s a simple practice that includes just two short questions:
What is true for me in this season? (What am I noticing about myself? What people, places, things, activities, practices, etc. are life-giving or life-draining?)
Where is God in the midst of this season? (Where am I noticing the Spirit move? How is He speaking to me? How am I beholding Him with me in this season?)
Sometimes, I’ll hold these questions in my mind and offer them to the Lord during my morning walks as I pray and share with Him what’s weighing on my heart. Other times, I’ll write down my answers in list form on the pages of my journal as I prayerfully reflect on the season of life the Lord has me in.
I engaged with this beholding practice earlier this week, and want to share with you one thing that’s true for me in this season and where I’m beholding God in the midst of all of it.
One thing that’s true for me in this season is that like-minded communities and people make me feel very safe right now in a season where many different pieces of me are healing, changing, and even dying. I’m enjoying letting my guard down and letting myself be known in that space.
I’m beholding God in the peace that washes over me the more I let go of control and open myself to receive His leading in this season. I sense His presence with me, delighting in me, as I learn how to live into and be present to my right-now life; time spent in coffee shops with friends, mocktails with my husband as we sit by the fire, the way I love how the breeze sounds when it rustles through the leaves on our backyard tree. All of these sacred moments bring to me an awareness of God’s presence, and I’m leaning in, listening closely.
I find that when I’m overwhelmed or feeling directionless, it can be hard to make decisions and difficult to foster an open and honest conversation with God and others about how I’m feeling. Because sometimes, I don’t know how I feel or what I need until I take the time to reflect on where I am, what’s working, what’s not, and where God is in the midst of all of it.
Reflection is a powerful tool that opens our eyes wide in wonder to how the Spirit is moving and speaking. It shows us where God is, where we are, and how the Spirit is forming us in every season of our lives.
Today is the first Friday in June, and as I write this letter to you, I’m in a coffee shop. I’ve never really been one to work and write from coffee shops, being content to do both from home. But in this season, it’s working for me — life-giving for me. And I’m going to listen to that until it no longer fits.
I listened to an episode of The Next Right Thing podcast, hosted by Emily P. Freeman, recently titled A Spiritual Practice for The Hesitant. In it, she quotes Father Ronald Rolheiser, whose public lecture at Friends University in Wichita, Kansas she had the privilege of listening to.
He said,
“If you find yourself in a place where your practice no longer seems to be connecting, where you might even feel like you’re in the midst of a dark night, you want to feel and experience God’s presence, but you’re just not anymore, instead of thinking that you’ve been practicing your faith wrong or that your practices aren’t working, consider this. Perhaps your practice has worked. Perhaps your practices have done their job. They’ve brought you this far with God. But now maybe you’re entering into something new.”
So, friend, may we not shame ourselves for feeling lost, overwhelmed, or afraid. In fact, may we not shame ourselves for feeling. Instead, may we be gentle with ourselves as we learn to let go of what no longer fits so that we can name and receive what brings our souls life.
With you on the journey,
Celia
A Breath Prayer for Your Weekend
breathe in:
For everything.
breathe out:
There is a season.
(adapted from Ecclesiastes 3:1)
*if you’d like to learn more about the practice of breath prayer, check out this blog post I wrote titled, How to Use Breath Prayer.
Resources & Good Things to Pick Up
If you’d like to listen to Emily’s podcast episode which I quoted from above, you can do so here: A Spiritual Practice for The Hesitant
If you want to learn more about the different soul seasons and how to name the season your soul is in, you can check out this blog post I wrote and recorded and then come back to this letter once you feel ready: Discerning the Season of Your Soul
My friend and licensed spiritual director, Kari Bartkus, offers an 8-week journaling program for those who want to process their grief and trauma with God within the safety of blank journal pages. I’ve completed the program myself and can say confidently that it was incredibly impactful and healing: Journal Gently
Grab some breath prayer cards, a journal, and other contemplative resources from my Etsy shop: The Beholding Co.
Grab a copy of my Bible study, You Are Beloved: a 21-day study on how to root your identity in the love of God, over on Amazon. And if you’d like a free 3-day sample of the study, hit reply to this email and I’ll send it right over!
An Invitation to Pause & Reflect
A regular practice of reflection helps us recognize what’s going on beneath the surface of our souls so we can name it in the Lord’s presence. Because as we learn to name what we feel, what we need, and what we long for, we’re also learning to discern the Spirit’s sweet, gentle voice within our hearts and lives.
Take a few moments today or this weekend to journal or contemplate with the Holy Spirit the following question(s) or prompt(s):
What is true for me in this season? (What am I noticing about myself? What people, places, things, activities, practices, etc. are life-giving or life-draining?)
Where is God in the midst of this season? (Where am I noticing the Spirit move? How is He speaking to me? How am I beholding Him with me in this season?)
