What is God Stirring in You this Season?
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An innocent little email churned a great thought the other day. Catching up with a friend, I asked her what spiritual practice the Lord had been stirring in her life lately. Her answer surprised me,
“I'm delighting in the beauty of Scotland as a spiritual practice. :-) What a gift to be back in the UK again.”
The Lord brought her and her husband back to Scotland reigniting a passion from their early years of marriage. They were reveling in his plan.
Her answer captivated me because it was so unusual. Immediately, I began imagining green Scotland pastures, quaint towns, and miles and miles of coastline. Scotland has been on my bucket list for a long time. I bet there could be a lifetime of spiritual growth in observing its beauty.
It got me thinking about what God has been stirring in my life over the last few months. Looking back, what I saw was different than I might have labeled a “leading of the Lord” a few years ago. My “God-Stirring” started six months ago with Richard Foster’s new book, Learning Humility, his year-long journal exploring this characteristic of God so opposite from our culture and human bent.
It was a fantastic, inspiring study. But the most intriguing thing for me was how he positioned the months of the year according to the Native American Calendar and its monthly focus on a fruit of the Spirit.
Richard lives out west and has some Native American heritage of his own. I was fascinated as throughout the book he shared the history, customs, and faith elements of the Native American people.
I was still chewing on those components when the book was done, and I haven’t been able to let go of it since. It tugged on a thread God has been weaving in my life for a long time. And reminded me of watching a hoop dance demonstration on a visit to Mount Rushmore two summers ago.
I have always had a sense that Native American people have a connection to God in creation more powerful than those of us of European descent. There, watching a 30-year-old woman swirl, up to 20 hula hoops on every part of her body, tears filled my eyes. This was more than a hobby. The things that would cause this woman to give endless hours to the perfection of this demonstration were more than physical. This was her expression of life and of God that I longed to understand more fully. I couldn’t share my feelings. They would sound strange to the others in my group. God was doing something unique in me for his purposes. So, I tucked them away with a prayer for God to show me more in the future.
At the same time, as I gathered testimonials for my book, I was directed to the author of the newly published First Nations Native American New Testament. Emailing, and then talking on the phone with Terry Wildman, from Colorado, he told me that he was going to be speaking in West Michigan this summer. A few weeks ago, my husband and I were privileged to attend the Salem Methodist Indian Mission Church.
It was powerful to hear scriptures read from the First Nations Version and participate in the Native American service. They are people connected to body, mind, and spirit. Participating in the service it struck me how they led us during the singing to turn north, south, east, and west as the lyrics flowed from one line to the next. How often I have longed to love God with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength. Here, were a people doing it.
I was riveted by the words of the Native American translation as they referred to Jesus by his Native American name, “Creator Sets Free” and God the Father as “the Great Spirit”. I could have chewed on the intricacies of the few verses Terry shared for days.
Noticing this stirring of God to dig deeper into Native American faith and culture, I’m elated at what God is doing and, yet, afraid to walk into this foreign area where no one in my circle, that I know of, has ever walked before. Even carrying the First Nations New Testament and reading the passage we were studying from that translation in our small group felt like a risk. Teetering outside my church’s comfort zone, what would people say about me? Knowing there are Native American practices that have been pagan, it would be easier to slam the door shut and run the other way.
Not understanding where this is going, why God is taking me here, or being able to see the path all the way down the road, there’s a hint of fear that this might be dangerous. What if this isn’t God at all but just me, getting misled onto a path he never ordained?
Yet, God hasn’t given us a spirit of fear. And when I look back over my life, I see other doors like this one. Doors outside of my comfort zone, taking me into scary, unchartered territory. And then, I see the blessings that came as I held God’s hand and trusted.
Life with God is an adventure. As I read scripture, and observe my life and others, I see a long history of God opening new doors and assuring his children that He is with them. We could hold back. Stay where we have been, where we feel most safe. But is that how he calls us to live?
Here finishing the first month of our new season of Fall, it’s such a great time to pause, prayerfully look at our lives, and answer this question, “How do I see God stirring in my life lately?”
Go, even if it’s unchartered territory, and a little scary. You can trust him. It’s going to be fantastic!
~ Lori