To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven.

— Ecclesiastes 3:1

Greetings, Inspired Seekers:

Have you looked out of your window recently? The world looks different. The flowers and their bright summer colors are fading and the leaves are dropping upon the earth as she shifts into a carpet of brown beneath our feet. Yes, things look different.

And in that difference lies change — change brought about by nature letting go of the past and allowing a new future to blossom. How often do we struggle to do what occurs seasonally in nature? And why does it take so long for us to learn from our surroundings?

Perhaps we need to be more in tune with our surroundings in order to be a part of the naturally changing world. Could it be that we are so caught up in our own self-centered universe that the changes around us are masked by our own personal plowing ahead?

When I am most open, most thoughtful, and when the possibilities really flow through me are those times when I am by water. Lake, beach, pond, stream, ocean … it does not matter. I listen differently. I see differently. I experience differently. I know this. And yet, I struggle to make the space for those places in my daily life.

Spiritual leaders and mystics from all traditions understood the ways of contemplative time with nature; they felt the changes of the seasons rather than simply thinking through them. The essence of the spirit is an internal experience rather than an intellectual exercise.

So, this month, my prayer for you is that you take the time — claim the time — to seek out those places that help you see and feel and hear differently from today. Maybe you don’t have an ocean to sit beside, but autumn leaves can be seen swirling around all of us — if we make the space to look and listen.

Grace-Fully Yours,
Reverend Deborah

Monthly Affirmation: Today I see and hear and experience the world differently. I am open to the new visions that present themselves to me and I explore them.

The Reverend Dr. Deborah Darlington supports people of all beliefs to explore the possibilities presented during changing times. Give her a call at 215 260 1611 or email her at GraceMatters@TheSpaceForGrace.com and become the change you are meant to be.