What do I do to nurture my spiritual life?

It's hard to nurture. It's hard to slow down. It's hard to take care of your faith, your spirituality. It's hardest to take care of yourself. You blink & it's bedtime. You blink & you're at work. You blink & you're in the car. You blink & you're child minding. You blink and it's happening all over again. It's hard to realize these are excuses.

Dig Deeper.

I can say that I have begun to spend time in study and reflection on Saturday mornings, that I read the bible on a regular basis (like twice a week), and partake in conscientious prayer. I can say that as First Sundays Ministry Coordinator I spend time nurturing my spiritual life with research and inquiry. I can say that active participation in church committees is nurturing. I can say that regular church attendance and taking time to enjoy the company of family and friends provides my spiritual life with nurturing.

Dig Deeper.

I can say that I am planning to read the Bible on a daily basis, that I will reflect theologically using Johnson's Method on a weekly basis, and that I will prayer morning and night.

Why should I feel the need to quantify? Six of this, a dozen of that, four of the other.

They are not looking a recipe.

Dig Deeper.

I am learning. I am learning to consciously make time for prayer & study & reading the bible. I am slowly making time in my life for these things. I am learning to put my spiritual life and God before TV, before shopping, the computer, before idleness.

It takes motivation, discipline, enthusiasm.

I am also beginning to realize that everything cannot be answered by books. The answers to my nagging questions & my unexplainable need to act on God's voice are not in print. No one else can tell me what to do or say or think next. I suppose they can give guidance and give me stuff to think about, but nowhere will they ever say, "Hey you, Dinah THIS is what God wants you to do". They may recount what God called them to do and how they fulfilled this call from above. I tend to fall back on books. Surely, they will have the answers. They will tell me what to think. They will tell me how to answer the questions. They will tell me what to say to my discernment committee. They will make me look smart. They will fill me full of words. I think secretly I hide behind books. I don't try to answer questions because I don't have the knowledge. I always think I need to read more books--the right books.

Dig Deeper

I need to learn to remember to turn inwards. I will find the answers inside me. I simply need to listen to the Voice & Word of God. I need to be open to digging deeper