Noticing & Naming

What directs our days? What gives each one of them purpose?

One recent night when I tucked my ten-year-old into bed and gave him a kiss on his forehead, I thought to myself, How many mothers throughout all of history have done the same thing? And it all passes.

Maybe because of the milestone of being a mom for a decade, world events, the experience of disease in my family’s life, or the memory of loved ones who have passed—and because of the Holy Spirit in it all—I have been taking to heart that our days are numbered and that I desire to live for something, Someone important with the ones I’m given.

In a world that idolizes many things and on high changing rotation, how can we keep our minds, hearts, and focus set on what really matters?

I’ll propose a couple of words to set our posture, in particular order: attentiveness and practice.

Attentiveness to God in our midst is our mission as Christians. We profess Emmanuel, God with us. That means he was and is and will be with us. God came into history in the person of Jesus and promised to be with us always, until the end of the age.

We profess it—do we believe it? Do we act on it by seeking to see how God with us?

As I sat with this reality that God is always present to us, I started to name ways I see God and how that enlivens mission and purpose. It turned into a little litany:

Maker of wildflowers and sunrises, we live for you.

Holder of quiet and Author of words, we live for you.

Sculptor of humans and mountains, we live for you.

Healer of broken hearts and bodies, we live for you.

Unifier and Peacemaker, we live for you.

Power in humility, we live for you.

Generous Love, we live for you.

Patient Gardener of souls, we live for you.

Creator of play, we live for you.

Gracious Light in darkness, we live for you.

Giver of your very Self, we live for you.

Strength in our weariness, we live for you.

Consoler of our sadness, we live for you.

Authentic Goodness, we live for you.

Hope in the mess, we live for you.

Unexpected Mercy, we live for you.

Impossible Joy, we live for you.

Do you relate to or see God in your life in any of these? Where can you be attentive to God with you?

I named attentiveness to God’s presence first, because the encounter with our living God is what stirs our souls toward something more. And once we have found him, then it is up to us (with much grace from God and community sure helps) to create practices or disciplines that help us abide with God.

We need to cultivate practices so goodness can take root in our lives. We are distractible and the world can be so very distracting. Disciplines that keep us disposed toward God are true sources of peace and encouragement for our day-to-day.

A few practical disciplines to consider:

We can (and should) strive to be good stewards of all God gives us, and also we are not called to become anxious or let anxiety gnaw away at us. We work and then we entrust all to God.

Can any of you by worrying add a single moment to your life-span? Why are you anxious about clothes? Learn from the way the wild flowers grow. They do not work or spin. But I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was clothed like one of them. If God so clothes the grass of the field, which grows today and is thrown into the oven tomorrow, will he not much more provide for you, O you of little faith?… Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself. (Matthew 6: 27-30, 34)

Have aspirations (short prayers) at the ready. They are powerful and sometimes, despite our best planning, our planned prayer time gets cut short. Some aspirations we can shoot up to heaven like arrows during the day include:

The Lord is my strength and my song.

Lord, I love you.

Jesus, I trust in you.

Jesus, I surrender myself to you. Take care of everything.

Lord, help me.

Notice beauty breaking in. We can get stuck in ruts, set in motion on the treadmill of life, and easily turned in on ourselves.

When we intentionally notice and seek out beauty—the sunrise or sunset, the sound of birds, a striking piece of art or music, the contours of a loved ones face, the smell of our favorite meal—we dispose ourselves to gratitude and praise.

We remember we have a Creator and he is good.

Sometimes we get this stir to live for more, a zeal to do something great like the Saints. It’s a beautiful thing that God animates our souls in such a way.

And then we might look around and become discouraged, because our life doesn’t look so exciting or really very holy.

But it is not for us to be discouraged—discouragement is not from God—it is for us to take heart and stay attentive, stay awake. Because our God is so good that he desires to come right into all of these spaces and places that we think he wouldn’t.

He is God of humble mangers, beautiful weeds in sidewalk cracks, hope in brokenness, sanctity in cooking dinner.

So, together, let’s take time to notice and name all these places we find our God and to renew our faith that he is a God worth living for, today and each day of our lives.

Need a Christmas gift for your godchild, grandchild, or other little one in your life? Give your sweet one a copy of my new children’s picture book, The Restless Grain: A Tale of Hope. Paperback available on Amazon.