The sun is just up over the horizon, the house is quiet, the only noise the hum of the refrigerator. Outside is a different thing.
Birds of countless varieties are moving and chattering; calling out their finds of bugs, worms, seeds.
Beads of dew on blades of grass catching new light as if a thousand diamonds grace the ground.
All is quiet for a moment; a hush of new day awareness.
A mockingbird begins its litany of imitations with the loudest voice in the yard and the chorus begins anew.
A hummingbird swoops into view, hovers near the lemon tree where the fragrance of the tree draws in search of a blossom to dip into to.
This moment is enough.
What does that even mean?
In a culture that looks for the next best thing, seeks more than what is and uses “never” to pair with enough, it’s hard to imagine that something that simple and quiet can be called enough.
And yet, it’s moments like this our soul finds satisfaction.
How can we capture moments? How do we learn to see them in the first place?
Practice. It’s possible to learn to see, learn to hear. Jesus said let them who have eyes to see, see. Let them who have ears to hear, hear. That seems to me to be an invitation to ask for that to be true for me. For each of us.
Some call it mindfulness. Some use the phrase living with intention.
I call it Living in Tandem.
Living in Tandem with the One who offers the gift of each moment. It’s learning to live aware. Aware of subtlety. Aware of the expanse hidden in a seed.
Aware of His abiding Presence.
One of the greatest tools I have come across for developing this awareness of God’s Presence is the little book Practicing the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence.
Brother Lawrence was a Carmelite monk in 17th century Paris. Before he joined the monastery he served in the army because he was so poor he knew he would be fed and clothed in turn for his serving. While in the army in the dead of winter, he saw a tree which was of course without leaves or fruit. He realized the tree as a symbol of hope for new life. It was at that moment “first flashed in upon my soul the fact of God”. This point of conversion led him to eventually join the Carmelite monastery in Paris.
Brother Lawrence was a simple man without advanced learning yet his simple awareness of God’s abiding Presence was noticed by all who encountered him. We have Abbe de Beaufort to thank for having conversations with Brother Lawrence and writing them down for us to be able to glean for our own spiritual growth. If you have not yet read this thin book I highly recommend you do.
Developing awareness of God is a life long practice. And yet God wants to be found by us, to have our hearts turned toward Him, to learn to trust Him.
What is enough? You are. As you are. Because if you love Christ and are on the journey with Him, He lives in you. See? You actually are MORE than enough.
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