Spiritual Disciplines

This week has been absolutely beautiful. I have so enjoyed sitting with the windows open and listening to the wind chimes. Not sure if its the best thing for my allergies but oh well :) Lately I've been really trying to stop and just enjoy God's beauty. We are so busy sometimes and forget to just stop and take in the surroundings. Over the past few weeks I have been learning about the spiritual disciplines through a class at Trinity. We are using a book called the "Spiritual Disciplines Handbook" by Adele Ahlberg Calhoun. There are so many disciplines that quite frankly it's overwhelming. A few in particular have struck a cord with me. It has been an amazing journey so far and am sad that it is winding down in a few weeks. However I am excited to start our girls group with Carly, Megan, Christina, and Malloree this summer. Before this class, I had heard of the different disciplines at church but was struggling to know where to begin.

Out of all of them, I find myself drawn to creating silence, contemplation, and simplicity in my daily life. All of these things are such a challenge because I don't know when to slow down sometimes. Since I have put these into practice I find myself slowing down more and taking notice of the simple things that God has placed before me. One of the things I have been doing lately is turning the TV off. I am really bad about being in the house and keeping it on just to fill the silence. We hear noise all day long and to face silence can be rather unnerving. I am finding that I like the silence and I can hear my own thoughts better when I'm not distracted by senseless noise.

Simplicity ...what is that? To try and simplify my life feels like a lost cause sometimes. One way to simplify is to stop saying yes all of the time. I have said yes a lot over the past few months and now my schedule is a little packed. I love everything I'm committed to, but I've realized that I can't give my entire self to each of these things like I should. I am a quote/verse person and one of the quotes I read said "If you want to be spiritually healthy, you must ruthlessly eliminate hurry from you life"-Dr. Siang Tan. So true!

Here are some other ways to simplify. These are from a list we received and is a good place to start! Some of my favorites.

1.)Buy things for there usefulness and not for there status.
2.)Reject anything that is producing an addiction in you.
3.)Give things away!! Make it a habit :)
4.)Enjoy things without owning them. Go to the library and check out a book instead of purchasing one. Spend the day at a local park
5.)Let your yes be yes and your no be no!! Don't use words to impress. Be honest and straight forward with your speech.
6.)Shun anything that keeps you from seeking first the Kingdom of God

This weekend has been a weekend where I have not been on anyone's schedule but my own. Surprisingly I accomplished a lot on my to do list. I cleaned the house, went for walk with Bella, made a yummy lunch on Saturday, and started reading Redeeming Love for the second time. Such a great book! I have a life time to learn these disciplines but I am in no hurry and God has all the time in the world. That is so refreshing.


Bella watching the squirrels.