081 | The Practice of Noticing
As I move through this year that I’m claiming for rest, renewal, and discernment, I’ve been embracing a deceptively simple spiritual practice—the practice of noticing.
Often it is noticing simple pleasures—
the feeling of my favorite pens on thick paper,
watching the birds at the feeders,
delighting in my husband’s humor,
the sweet snuggles of our seven-year old,
the beauty of the day or a moment,
conversation with friends and neighbors,
the first sip of coffee in the quiet of the early morning.
Other times it is noticing what is happening within me—
the shedding of layers of old ways of thinking and being,
the shedding of old stories about myself that don’t ring true anymore,
the way what I want and don’t want for my life/our family’s life is coming into clearer focus,
how good it feels to have a slower pace of life,
my growing ability to catch a pattern of unkind or unfruitful self-talk earlier and replace it with self-compassion and grace,
that my energy is returning little by little as I create more space for myself and what refreshes.
I say the practice of noticing is deceptively simple because it is not difficult but can have tremendous power. It is the first move toward gratitude. It is the first move toward change. Without that moment that causes us to pause, look more closely and see more fully, we can miss the ways God’s Spirit is moving and working in us and in the world.
What have you noticed lately that was a source of simple pleasure or delight?
What are noticing within or about yourself recently? If it is something that might spark self-judgment or criticism, pause a moment and remind yourself to observe or name what you’re noticing with gentleness and self-compassion.
How might you move through this weekend with a spirit of attentiveness—ready to notice simple gifts or the moving of God’s Spirit?
