Spirituality for Your Workday

Published: 01/26/2010 01:15 PM

Spirituality can be defined in a lot of different ways. One way is to say that being spiritual is being connected to God. Another way is to say that being spiritual is being grounded in the depths of your soul or of who you are. Kind of like breathing then, spirituality is about pausing in a present moment to realize that you are alive and blessed.

Jesus did this in his life by going alone on a mountain to pray. Mountains are often revered as holy places because of the immediacy and beauty of nature. But there wasn't anything particularly holy about the mountains Jesus would climb. Spending time alone or in quiet doesn't necessarily have to be a holy or spiritual act either.

But for Jesus, I think it was a time to push away the aches of his past and the desires of the future... and just be alive and in God's presence. He breathed, knowing he was breathing in the spirit of God. He listened for the still, small voice rising from the depths of creation. He set aside the yearnings of his body to be attentive to the will of God.

We can experience this kind of present moment prayer in our daily life by doing just a couple of practices.

First, stop whatever you are doing, find a comfortable place to sit, stand, or lie down, and begin to breathe. Part of this process is letting your body quiet down for a moment. As you breathe, imagine that you are breathing in the goodness of God.

Second, think or envision those things of your past that may be nagging at you. It could be a recent fight with a friend or spouse. It could be some guilt or anger over what someone said to you. It could be some memory that is weighing on your heart. As you think about these things, offer them to God.

Next, think about the things of the future weighing on you. Deadlines, projects, and impending meetings may top the list. You could be dreading a conversation with a friend. You might even be worrying about paying bills or running errands. Again, as you think about these things, offer them quietly and gently to God.

Third, with past and future offered to God, sit in silence and be. Pay attention to your breathing. Pay attention to what you see around you. Be aware of where you are, what you feel. Be aware of how alive you are.

When the time is right, you might recite the Lord's Prayer, paying special attention to those many verbs that are all present tense. "Give me this day my daily bread." "Forgive me..." "Lead me not..."

As you close your moment of quiet and stillness, just give thanks to God in whatever words you can muster.

This is a practice you could do in the middle of your workday, maybe to refresh you and refocus you on the tasks you have ahead of you.

Let me know if you try this and how it was helpful for you in the comments below.

- Rev. Nathan