If your heart is hungry for a more vibrant spiritual life, I encourage you to come on a journey with me.
The first building block of a vibrant spirituality for our time is the place each of us calls home. However, far away from home we may wander, either literally or metaphorically, we still call out to God.”
Anne Rowthorn
Written in short chapters which focus on aspects of life, Your Daily Life Is Your Temple by Anne Rowthorn explores how spirituality is nourished whenever we tune our inner radar to look and listen for meaning in the everyday. My eyes were opened to see the Source of all Good in front of me and I found myself challenged to see the extraordinary in what we might otherwise call ordinary. Our very typical, mundane life – is not.
I have noticed it can be difficult to find a religion or philosophy that fulfills our personal need for purpose and meaning. Many people actually find themselves walking a path of faith but lose patience searching for a church that nourishes their spirituality. While Church is certainly one source that enriches our spirituality in terms of fellowship, service, education and liturgy, what happens when you leave the building? This book literally steps into ordinary life to see the spiritual beauty within.
Can spirituality show up in the warm smile of a stranger or someone paying it forward in the Starbucks coffee line? Reading this book compelled me to open my eyes to see how my understanding of people, cultures & traditions, friendship, money, hospitality, loving the earth, forgiveness, justice, and perception shapes me. I have no doubt the contents of this book can do the same for us. Over the next few weeks, we will explore its pages together, beginning with Chapter 1.
Chapter 1: A Place Called Home
Rowthorn describes “Home” as a tradition that forms the spiritual foundation you draw on throughout life, especially in times of uncertainty or struggle. It could be the familiar nature of Sunday worship and comfort found in the Lord’s Prayer. While reading I reflected on how and why something as simple as finding the pickle on the Christmas tree every year means so much to me – how love of family has created such deep, solid roots in my life.
Throughout this chapter, Rowthorn draws on the tradition of a friend who eagerly looks forward to celebrating the Seder (a Jewish ritual service and ceremonial dinner for the first night or first two nights of Passover) with her family every year, though she is uncertain if she believes in God. For Sarah, it’s about identity and connecting with family, or to put it another way, Sarah’s spiritual home is made manifest through celebrating the Seder together.
We all need the anchor “home” provides; it is part of our identify. Rowthorn describes this anchor by saying, “The first building block of a vibrant spirituality for our time is the place each of us calls home. However, far away from home we may wander, either literally or metaphorically, we still call out to God.”
Whether you purchase Your Daily Life Is Your Temple or just read along as I offer a snapshot of the chapters, I hope you allow yourself to see and embrace this experience as a meditative one, not really as a “how to.” I sincerely believe reflecting on your own “home” is worth exploring because after all, you’re responsible for feeding your spiritual life with nourishment that keeps it thriving. Everybody needs a place called home.
Questions for Reflection:
- What childhood places, traditions or experiences hold meaning for you?
- Would you consider your home to be rooted in spiritual traditions?
- What and/or where are your spiritual home(s)?