How can a new habit help you see your life through a spiritual lens? I can share a positive habit that increases the health of my soul.
Years ago, I was convinced to contribute devotions to Guideposts’ popular annual devotional book, Daily Guideposts (now called Walking in Grace). Fact was, I’d never written one. My editor said, “Just tell a little story, an observation from your daily life, which gave you a spiritual insight or just made you feel good or lifted you up when you felt down. Make a habit of it.”
Small, Inspiring Moments
So, I did and based my devotions of these little observations and stories. Something truly remarkable happened. I found myself not just finding these small, inspiring moments but increasingly I viewed the events of my daily life from an enriching spiritual perspective. God was in the details!
I’ve since written hundreds of devotions for Guideposts. Yet the real benefit has come from the habit of writing down one of these moments, these insights, every day. Most don’t turn into devotions but that doesn’t matter. It’s the habit of writing just a few lines about a special moment in my day that is the spiritual payoff. The effect is cumulative…no, magical. The more I record these moments the more of them I recognize as I go through life. They water the garden of the soul.
“Thanks for Saying Hello”
I set aside time near the end of my day to practice this. Only a few minutes and a couple of lines. The message is for me. Today, for instance, while I was walking Gracie on a busy Manhattan street, she suddenly tugged me over to a stoop where a woman sat forlornly looking like she hadn’t a friend in the world. I hadn’t even noticed this person amid the sidewalk throng, but Gracie had. She snuggled up to the woman, all 70 golden pounds of her, curling like a puppy, and the woman beamed. “Thanks for saying hello, baby.” I had seen an angel in action! And maybe next time it would be me who stops and says hello.
I promise you, if you develop this simple spiritual habit of writing down that one moment in your day when you saw God in the details you will feel enriched and that enrichment will only grow.
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