This is part of an ongoing series during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic. To engage further in the #QuarantineSoulCare series, click here.
When Jesus’ presence seems absent in the midst of my pain, I find that canned spiritual answers and my usual spiritual disciplines, things that once helped me feel connected to him, no longer work. So one day, I try a new spiritual practice, something I read about in a book. Each morning, I stretch out on the floor of my closet, lie there quietly, and will myself to stop panicking. … I find that instead of being still, I end up trying really freaking hard to be grateful and peaceful and present. Mostly, I feel like the bull and God’s presence is the china shop. […]
After a few more attempts at “the closet floor,” I realize it’s not cutting it. So I decide to meet with a spiritual director.
“You’d be surprised at how different everyone’s experience of God’s presence is,” she says. “But the thread I see through them all, the common theme, is this: grace. Anytime we experience God’s presence, it’s never because we did anything. It’s because God’s grace opens up the veil.” […]
We must attend to and be open to God’s presence, certainly. If we ignore him, … we’ll miss out on the benefits, treasures, and spiritual blessings granted to us in Jesus. But here’s the point: God’s grace greets and transforms us, whether or not we deserve it.
May you experience today the grace of God opening the veil to greet and transform you. #quarantinesoulcare Click To TweetGod guards you from every evil,
he guards your very life.
He guards you when you leave and when you return,
he guards you now, he guards you always.
–Psalm 121:7-8, The Message
Today’s reading was taken from The Louder Song by Aubrey Sampson.
