Awareness

We search for God in many ways. Through our sculptures and our scriptures. Through our pictures and our prayers. Through our writing and our worship. And through them He reaches for us. Our search for God and His search for us meet at windows in our everyday experience…In a sense, it is something like spiritual disciplines for the spiritually undisciplined. In another sense, it is the most rigorous of disciplines – the discipline of awareness.
Ken Gire

The Psalmist prayed, “Show me the wonders of your great love” (Psalm 17:5). When I read the prayer and reflect for a moment, I realize that God has shown His great love to me in so many ways, in so many places on so many occasions. But, do I possess the discipline that Ken Gire describes as “awareness”? God demonstrates His love toward me every day. Sometimes I move through the day relatively “unaware” of the many expressions of God’s love. More and more I am convinced that “awareness” is a spiritual discipline. I must cultivate my willingness to see what God reveals. I must be willing to acknowledge His work in my life and in the world around me. And I must be willing to combat the distractions of life that threaten my awareness.