Glimpses of God - Day Twenty-One

So... When I was younger, way back when, I shared with a Spiritual Director that I was not happy with the direction I had been given by leaders in my youth that I should have a 'quiet time' every day that involved reading a bit of the Bible and sitting in silence for a while and then praying. I had no problem with the bit of the bible, or the praying, but the silence was a thing. I really didn't like it.

That Spiritual Director gave me a huge gift that day. She said, "then don't" - she went on to give me permission to play my guitar, sing, dance, laugh, and generally be as noisy as I wished in my prayer time. She allowed me to be me.

Thanks to that, and many other conversations and encounters I have had since then, I remain convinced that prayer is multi-faceted, it is more diverse, and creative, and dynamic, than we can ever imagine. Perhaps another time I will write about my journey of discovering the wonder and delight of silence, contemplation, meditation, and silence. Today, however, I want to give a shout-out to the liberation of discovering noisy prayer and the way in which we can discover our connection with the Divine, our glimpses of God, in whatever way suits how God made us.

Thanks be to God. Amen.

Psalm 149.1-3

Praise the Lord!
Sing to the Lord a new song,
   his praise in the assembly of the faithful.
Let Israel be glad in its Maker;
   let the children of Zion rejoice in their King.
Let them praise his name with dancing,
   making melody to him with tambourine and lyre.