My newsletter exists to spread the idea of a loving spirit to readers each Tuesday morning.
Each week, I find inspiration from secular and/or sacred texts and weave a personal essay aimed at revealing a loving spirit at work in the universe. Each post concludes with a prayer and some self-enrichment journal prompts.
Reflection:
“But when you ask for something, you must have faith and not doubt. Anyone who doubts is like an ocean wave tossed around in a storm.” James 1.6 (CEV)
I am coming out of a brief season when I was a Doubting Thomas, questioning the legitimacy of religion and the necessity of faith. This came at a bad time as I was deeply rooted in my church home and working as a Christian writer.
As my frustration with Christians increased, largely related to the political scene in America, I continued many of my spiritual practices, all while spiraling into doubting the existence of a higher power. After consulting with a trusted spiritual adviser, I dissected my doubts and weighed available evidence and support for faith and religion.
While I continued to mentally pursue that doubt, which was logically appropriate, I could not ignore that I do recognize occurrences of love in action, I do pray to an almighty creator, and I am a conduit for a divine loving spirit. There are glittery threads of divinity sprinkled throughout this earth and its humanity.
I have always expressed this as a Christian. The familiarity of the sacred practices connects us to the generations before us, who performed the same rituals and recited the same prayers. It is this legacy that continues to appeal to me. Keeping these traditions alive keeps us connected to something unseen and faraway.
My religion taught me that all of us sharing this earth are divinely made, worthy of love, that all deserve our reverence. For me, this message is too important to let go of. I hold onto faith because it is a beautiful way to live when we consider every person we meet and every creature we encounter are sacred gifts from a loving creator.
I invite you to let go of doubt by experiencing the divine in your daily life. Recognize the spirit in nature, through literature, by seeing the image of love in the face of another.
This wasn’t my first time living through doubt, being tossed in the ocean waves. The nice thing is I am always reminded of my heart’s home and called back to once again rest in faith.
Journal prompts:
Remember a time when you were in a season of doubt. Were you doubting your faith? Yourself? Someone who you love? Write about the circumstances that lead up to this season. Did the season pass? How?
Write about what would happen to have that doubt cleared from your mind. Does believing in a higher power, yourself, your relationships help your quality of life.
I invite you to pray with me . . .
Prayer: Oh Holy One, thank You for remaining steadfast while my faith is sometimes frail. I look to you with reverence for your endless loving presence. As I go about my day, I shall pause to welcome Your love into my heart and mind. Amen.
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