Spiritual Practice

This post was shared originally on the Exploring Sainthood blog (which no longer exists).  In this time of uncertainty and fear, spiritual practices can sustain us.  If you're not a religious person and the word "spiritual" doesn't feel right to you, think of this as deep and grounding self-care.  Use what works for you and leave the rest.

I'm hoping to write a part 2 for this soon, sharing more ideas and the kinds of spiritual practice I'm engaging in right now.

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As I’ve mentioned before, one the blessings of attending a Unitarian Universalist church this last year has been the opportunity to get a broader perspective. The most interesting part is that I’m learning that my previously narrow views of what it meant to be Mormon and do things the Mormon way might not have been completely accurate.

One of the responsibilities of membership at Unity Church-Unitarian is this:

Cultivate a spiritual practice.  Attend to your spiritual/personal development.

Reading that, my Mormon brain says the Sunday School answers: Pray, fast, read the scriptures, go to church, listen to or read conference talks.

I remember being told that the law of Moses was so detailed because that is what the people needed to be constantly reminded of God. For many people then and now, religious rules sometimes morph into rules for rule's sake, a checklist against which to judge our righteousness or that of another. People obey, but do they really bring their focus and awareness back to God, or do they just check it off the list of things to do that day? I know that for me, the rules were just rules. It didn’t help me build my relationship with God.

I had misunderstood Mormon spiritual practice to be something you did to get you ready to face the world, instead of a way of being and moving in the world.

What I’m learning is that spiritual practice is not so much what as it is how. It is being present, and open to our own growth and to the workings of the spirit.

Here are some wonderful quotes that helped me understand more about the purpose of spiritual practices:

A spiritual practice is any regular and intentional activity that establishes, develops, and nourishes a personal relationship with the Divine in which we allow ourselves to be transformed. http://spiritualpractice.ca/what/what-2/

They are an invitation to broaden, deepen and open our awareness to God’s presence in our everyday lives. http://sacredscreaming.blogspot.com/2010/02/40-spiritual-practices-for-lent.html

Instead of adding one more thing, what practices are you already doing? What would it mean for you to do these with “greater intentionality, awareness, respect, care, and reflection”?
http://aprilyamasaki.com/2013/05/31/on-not-adding-spiritual-practice-to-your-to-do-list/

I’m not a huge fan of Mars Hill, but I think they are dead center on target with this:

Think of it as keeping your ears open, in ways and in places and in times of the day when before you wouldn’t have thought to listen. Think of it as tuning yourself to recognize God’s voice, as becoming someone who regularly, intentionally hears.

Spiritual practices are exactly what their name suggests; they’re ways to be deliberate about matters of the soul. A spiritual practice is a tool for becoming aware of God within the normalcy of life—it injects the sacred into elements that could otherwise seem just everyday. So in applying spiritual practices, we find that the lines can be blurred between those things spiritual and what is secular.
http://marshill.org/teaching-resources/spiritual-practices/

I decided to dig a little more and see what things might count as spiritual practice. And I decided not to limit it to things I found on Mormon or UU related sites.

In addition to the lists included in the links above, you can learn more about all the possibilities involved in spiritual practice  here, here, here, and here. The first is a pretty broad list. I love it because it shows me just how broad this spiritual practice can be. I also found this series of blogs to be very helpful in understanding spiritual practice.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/spiritual-wisdom-secular-times/201107/advancing-the-spiritual-path-1-spiritual-skills
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/spiritual-wisdom-secular-times/201108/advancing-the-spiritual-path-2-religious-spiritual
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/spiritual-wisdom-secular-times/201108/advancing-the-spiritual-path-3-secular-spiritual
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/spiritual-wisdom-secular-times/201108/compassion-in-action-ways-giving

One of the things that I’ve found really fascinating about my UU church is the way they talk about parenting and religious education. My previous experiences led me to believe that parents need spiritual practice (the Sunday School List above) so that they can teach their children the right things. There is certainly nothing wrong with that, but my UU congregation acknowledges that the care and teaching of children is in and of itself a spiritual practice, and we stand with those for whom it is their primary spiritual practice. I find that very beautiful and empowering.

My own list of spiritual practices has grown this year beyond the Sunday School list. And that’s good, because my previous understanding of those practices just wasn’t helping me experience the Divine everyday. Many of these things I have done for years, but often, I didn’t realize how important they were for me and my spiritual development.

Music:  Listening, Singing, Making Music with Others

Music has always been my anchor to spirituality. When everything else was a mess, music still taught me truth and brought me peace. Music has also been the place where I first learn important truths that I can then bring to other areas of my life. Music opens my heart to God and to the people I create music with and for.

In January, I began doing Hymn of the Day posts on Facebook. As I searched for information to post about the hymns and for recordings that I liked and wanted to share, it made me focus on the spiritual things. These hymn of the day posts, especially the Sunday ones where I invite everyone to share something, have brought me closer to friends from a variety of religious backgrounds and created a place where we can openly share with others.

Tai Chi and Qigong

Tai Chi and Qigong have been life-changing for me in many ways. But most importantly, I’ve had experiences that have helped me understand some of the things about Mormonism that I didn’t really get or connect with. I’ve had major epiphanies while doing Tai Chi and Qigong, or while pondering the principles I’ve learned in my classes.

Dance

Like Tai Chi and movement forms of Qigong, dance allows me to experience deep things on a physical level. I have never been and will never be a good dancer, but that doesn’t matter. When I turn on the music and let my body respond to it, I find freedom and peace and connection with the world around me.

Teaching

I teach music and Tai Chi, but I thought that this was important enough to count as a separate practice. Teaching is one of my purposes or callings. It is bigger and more important than what I teach. It is who I am at my core. When I am prepared, centered, and listening to what my students really need, I am doing spiritual work.

Nature

Just being outside and being attentive to the world around me is spiritual practice. Since purchasing my first smart phone, I’ve also started stopping to take pictures of beautiful things. Sometimes it’s a flower, or clouds, or the way the sun creates beauty in a morning or evening sky.  I’m not a photographer. I can’t always capture the beauty that I see, but sometimes what the camera sees is even more beautiful.  Finding beauty and taking the time to really enjoy it is a spiritual practice.

Words: Listening

I’ve started listening to sermons (and sometimes other podcasts) as part of my daily practice. It’s 15-20 minutes of my morning routine (or a lot longer if I have time and don’t want to do other things yet) where I get to listen and learn and think deeply about spiritual matters. I’ve also started listening while I cook, clean, do mending, and fold laundry. It has turned those daily repetitive tasks into sacred time.

Words:  Writing

Each morning before my sermon and sewing devotional, I hand-write 3 pages. Often it’s just brain dump, a list of things I need to do, or a review of things I did the day before. But sometimes it’s deep and exploratory. It began as part of a group that was working on The Artist’s Way program. I didn’t keep up with the group and complete the program, but this part stuck, and I’m glad it did.

My writing as spiritual practice also sometimes includes poetry, novels, short stories, doctrinal explorations that become part of my journals, and of course blogs. Telling my story is also part of my spiritual practice. I love this article on story telling as spiritual practice.

Words:  Memorizing Poetry

This is one that I would like to spend more time with. I’ve memorized a few poems this summer because I love them. They have become my anchors and I’ve used them almost like prayers, reminding who I am and what I want.

Words: Reading

I’ve always been a reader and my collection is very eclectic. On more than one occasion, I’ve had people look at my bookshelves, get puzzled looks on their faces, and ask if I’ve really read all those books.  I learn from exploring vast and diverse sources and then letting the truth bubble to the surface. So yes, Eckhart Tolle, Jimmy Carter, the Dalai Lama, Mother Teresa, Mary Baker Eddy, and Gordon B. Hinckley all share space on my religion shelves.

You might notice that most of the Sunday School list (prayer, reading my scriptures, fasting, etc.) isn’t listed here. It’s not that those things never happen. They do. But I’m exploring new ways of looking at them and I’m not sure where I stand with them just yet. Prior to this exploration of other spiritual practices, I don’t think I realized just how rich my life was with spiritual practices even though I’m not doing so well with the Mormon ones. And for now, I’m OK with that. If I am seeing the sacred in everyday things, becoming more aware of God’s presence in my life, and opening myself to revelation, then I am doing that which is most needful.