Seeking Renewal

Vernon Marsh on a Springtime Morning

As I sit by the Vernon marsh soaking up the morning sun, a soft haze covers the marsh as remnants of this morning's fog remain.

I hear all the familiar birds and waterfowl, and my spirit is calmed.

I come here for this.


We need to deliberately seek peace for the renewal of our spirit.

Our chaotic lives leave little time for the peace our spirit needs. We need to learn how to nourish ourselves in body and spirit.

Just as our bodies need calories and vitamins to thrive, so does our spirit need to be fed.

We must seek ways of spiritual nourishment in order to feed our spirit. This may be as simple as finding time to be still. It may seem difficult to find time for a spiritual practice, but without feeding our spirit, we are running on 'empty'.

Nourishing practices of prayer, meditation, and yoga allow our focus to turn inward, while freeing tension and stress from the body.

This, in turn, allows the spiritual 'body' to rejuvenate. Oftentimes, as we actively release tension from our bodies, we free our minds to seek higher thoughts.

In other words, we let go of the ways of the world and open our hearts and minds to the healing the spirit provides.

Sometimes this practice will result in a great revelation -- that "ah-HA!" moment. The nudging the spirit was trying to use to get our attention had been blocked by busyness and tension, and can now find its way into our conscious mind.

Burr Oak at Waterville Prairie

 
When we open our hearts and minds in a spiritual practice, we are free to receive messages our physical body has been trying to tell us, too.

And when we open ourselves to just 'being', we are free to receive messages from the Holy Spirit who whispers to our soul.

That still, small voice cannot be heard above the distractions of this world.


So, take time to be still. Quiet the mind, rest the body, and open your heart to seeking renewal.

This can be as simple as finding a quiet place, away from the demands of life and and our endless to-do lists.

Late Autumn Blooms at Retzer Nature Ctr.

I like to escape into nature, where I find peace and a purpose far beyond the busyness of our human lives. Here, the simple purpose is life, and living. And I celebrate that!

Wherever you go to seek quiet and peace, even if it's in your closet (trust me, there have been times when that's the only place I could find). Try to make seeking peace a practice. Here are some simple steps to guide you.

When you rest and meditate, pray that God's white light will surround you and protect you. Bask in the feeling of comfort and love. Breathe deeply, and gently, to connect with your inner self. Connect with your breath, consciously breathing out the stress.

Use this time to pray for healing, allowing yourself the honor of praying for yourself.

Pray for others who have great need, and in your earnestness, seek the comfort and counsel of the One who can guide us through the difficult and often tumultuous waters of this life.

Give thanks for the life and breath we breathe, for this moment of peace, and for the beauty in the world. It's there, if we take the time to look.

My first tulip!

A bird's song, an opening flower; the smile of a friend. New life all around us. Celebrate with joy, and you will be fulfilled, and ready to face whatever life brings your way.

A New Way of Thinking

Does the New Year greet you with trepidation or elation? Are you happily making out new to-do lists and setting goals?

I have not made any resolutions. “I resolve to….” Is such a power struggle, deep within my psyche. I’m done with the disappointment of not living up to my own expectations.

So I’ve decided to work from the inside out, and design my year from a spiritual perspective. I have this feeling that if I align my inner self with God and His purpose for me, then everything else will fall into place.

Sound too simple? Ah, yes, but it is the simplicity that makes it work! I am empowered by forces that are much more powerful than my own free will. You know how it feels when everything just falls into place, when you are purposefully following the path that was meant for you? It’s effortless, right? And we wonder, how can this be so easy?

Well, that’s how I feel about this change in my thinking. My drive is not to be focused on losing that next pound or logging how much I exercised today. Instead, I am taking a spiritual approach, and checking in with my inner self to set my focus.

Does this make you wonder what I"m talking about, or question how this will be accomplished?  Let’s back this story up just a bit to shed some light on what I mean.

I’ve spent my whole life allowing my thoughts to be controlled by my emotions. Believing fully in my feelings, but not trusting my inner guidance. In other words, listening to my head instead of my heart. But it goes deeper than that. 

I believe in the power of our inner spirit. It’s really who we are anyway. This covering of flesh and bone serves us well to navigate our earthly lives, but our spirit is strong inside of us, whether our bodies are working the way they should or not.

It takes effort to slow down our whirlwind lives and shift our focus to our inner selves, but it is time well spent. This calm can be achieved through the practice of various breathing techniques, as well as through meditation and yoga.

Anytime we can block out the busyness of the world around us, and send our focus inward, we begin to connect with our inner spirit. Breath work is an easy and pleasant way to calm our bodies and our thoughts, and starts us on the path of our inner journey.

Once we find what soothes us, whether it is calm music, a yoga practice, or a walk in nature, we can use this time to connect with our inner being. It should feel relaxed, and not forced.  There is no fear in facing your true inner self.

When you have created calmness away from the outside world, you may begin to focus on whatever may be your most prevalent emotion or thought. By the guidance of your inner spirit, you may solve your problem, or not. But you will certainly gain some insight.

Hopefully, you will come away with the realization that what matters most is seeking your own inner peace. We have so little control over what the rest of the world is doing. We only have control over how we respond to the myriad stimuli around us.

As we learn to trust our inner guidance, our thoughts and actions will reflect our beliefs as we honor our inmost selves. 

By regularly practicing this focus on our inner journey, we begin to more quickly connect with our inner power. We become familiar with the inclinations of our true self, and respond to the tugging of our spirit when we need to make a decision. In short, we learn to trust ourselves.

I’ve spent the last couple of years meeting my inner self for long walks in the woods, and learning to shift my focus inward when I need to evaluate my outward situation. By learning to trust myself, I find I feel more confident and self-assured. 

Even though I’ve made the switch from allowing my circumstances to control the outcome of any given situation, it was a revelation for me to realize a new outlook for my new year. An epiphany, if you like.

No longer will I rely on my strong self-will - which crumbles at the sight of chocolate! I will use the strength of my inner being as my compass, to guide me to make right choices, and to steer me into the wellness I’ve dreamed about for years.

By nourishing my inner spirit, and giving my body the rest it needs along with the healthy foods I already eat, I know my goals will be obtained. Yes, goals. This is a new word for me. I’m more of a “let’s see what happens” kind of girl. But this year, I am setting goals, milestones that will further my cause of wellness. Perhaps this starts with de-cluttering, and in fact I have already begun to purge what is unnecessary.

But even more than what I achieve in my physical world, my emphasis and focus will be to keep in constant connection with my inner world. After all, I am the only person I am going to spend my whole life with.

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For those of you who waited to see our Christmas tree decorated for the holidays, here is a photo. I’ve made all our holiday visitors make a guess as to how many ornaments they think are on the tree. Now I have to take them all down and count them!

 Happy Holidays!

Seeking Inner Peace

We live in a world of whim. What we think we desperately need to get us through the day will change in a matter of minutes. The things we desire to purchase will bring us only momentary satisfaction.

What we really need is inner peace, and that can be hard to find. I wish it were as simple as a shopping trip to a nearby store. But it’s not. It takes work. It takes focusing our thoughts away from our troubles and putting our eyes on the One who can truly offer us peace.

 

The pathway to finding peace is different for each one of us. There are many meditative arts that calm the mind and soothe the spirit. From my own experience, I find yoga to be very relaxing and invigorating. My focus is on my breath, breathing in and out, being conscious of how my body responds to that breath, the rise and fall of the abdomen, the fresh oxygen coursing through my bloodstream. Just breathe. There, now don’t you feel better already?

Walks in nature make me feel lighthearted. No matter how cold it is, I find myself walking along with a silly smile on my face. All is forgotten except for the next step, one foot placed in front of the next, watching, observing, and enjoying my surroundings.

Perhaps what both of these activities have in common is concentration. During yoga, while I focus on form and balance, the emphasis is on my breath. No outside thoughts are allowed to interfere. It’s just me and my body, and the concentration of energy within myself.

When I am hiking in nature, the world of buildings and roads is left far behind. My focus is on the natural world and the beauty to be found in all seasons. When I am in nature, my alertness to my surroundings focuses my concentration. I am observant of the surface on which I walk as well as the nearby terrain and surroundings landscape. Perhaps this focus takes my mind off of everyday problems, because I seldom worry when I am out in nature. And if a concern comes to mind for someone, I simply pray and give that concern to the powers of the universe.

Each of us needs to find our source of peace and contentment. We need to shut off the video screens of our electronics and reconnect with the natural world outside of and within ourselves. The true inner peace we seek begins with knowing ourselves intimately, and learning to trust our judgment in the choices we make.

"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."  John 14:27