God's Calling ~ New Month

 

A brand-new month.  Pumpkin-spice is everywhere now.  Some of you are seeing the leaves change colors in a spectacular fireworks-like display.  Others, like me, are trying to notice the shades of green shifting subtly on the plants around us…waiting for the humidity to exit.  Every new month is a new beginning.  It is a reminder of the truth that Jon Acuff describes as, “Today is brand new and tomorrow is too.”

 

With a new month, we have a chance to take a step toward embracing and embodying, exploring and experiencing our curiosities and fascinations.  Not all of them, but I do pray one of them will be offered your holy energy this month.  You may want to select one that has less fears surrounding it, even if it isn’t your top curiosity.  Or you may want to swing for the fences and go for that top fascination, even with its honest fears. 

 

I suggest you plan and think today about a process.  For example, if in October, I am going to explore my calling, curiosity, fascination with photography, I might ~ put in my calendar three or four days this month I am going to pick up my camera and go.  Then, I might identify the three or four places close-by where I am going to take my camera.  The week before my “date” with the camera, I might go out on the web and look at photos or glance at the latest copy of Photography magazine to inspire.  Finally, when the day comes, I need to be careful not to let an emergency – internal or external – cause me to abandon my exploration of this calling. 

 

To be sure, at each step above, I will remind myself, “This isn’t about perfection.”  My date with the camera isn’t about capturing an Ansel Adams like picture that will make me wildly successful.  This first step is about showing up.  God can’t work with us when we don’t show up.  Life is about participation, paying attention, getting out there, and being part of what God is up to in this world.  Yes, photographs are part of that, because they remind me how beautiful the world is, even as news reports tell me about the brokenness. 

 

Prayer: God help me right now schedule time for the soul sperlunking I long to do.  Enliven and enlarge my imagination to travel the road toward bringing my curiosities off the page into this world.  Thank you, O God, for this month of October where we can each let our light shine…let them shine…let them shine in beautiful and blessed ways for You.  Alleluia and Amen.