Sometimes Crazy Works

Some of the stories I tell about my journey make me think "Wow, people must think I am a little bit crazy."  I might have cared when I was younger, but now I know that "the crazy" is what makes me sane.  It's because I believe that many thoughts that come to me are Spirit* inspired.
One example is that when spiritual direction is something I was seeking, I was recommended to find someone using an international directory.  I followed the sites cues on how to narrow my search but it was still too wide and daunting.  So I went the crazy route.  I know that it wasn't the rational way, I can only say that I am a bird nerd and God often speaks to me through nature.  What I did is I narrowed my search by adding "bird" to the criteria.  Where it led me is to someone who had this word as part of their email address.  It turned out that this person was exactly the right person for me.
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Now for the reflective questions which you can journal about or if you'd like to share your story, I'd love to hear from you and the community would love to hear from you!  Your comment could have a major impact on someone else; most likely it will be just the right thing at the right time for one of the readers. For me, God* wanted me to know that helping even just one person is wonderfully impactful.

Reflective questions:
1. Do you have a similar story, a "crazy" story?

2.  What does God* want you to know about this (ask directly, God, what do you want me to know?)

* I use the term God as a universal term.  You may decide that Great Spirit, Allah, Higher Power, etc. better suits you today.  It is not for me to decide. 

What’s Your Story’s Image?

I had a corporate career for about 17 years.  For the last several I kept saying, “just three more years that I need to work in this field, just three more years.”  And saying that every year meant that I kept pro-longing my desires and an attention to my life.  Leaving the field was a long journey, but one that included people and ideas and signs that I was not to stay stuck.  Eventually I did leave that field but by that time my attention to me was not where it needed to be.  I had neglected myself.

Fortunately I fell into spiritual direction**.  For at least two years I met with a spiritual director who taught me how to pray.  At one of those meetings she suggested that in my prayer time I think of an image of where I was at the moment.  That image that I began to carry with me was an unattended, weedy garden.  It was a starting place***. 

Reflective questions:

1.  What image do you conjure when you consider your life at this moment?

2.  What does God* want you to know about this image? 

* I use the term God as a universal term.  You may decide that Great Spirit, Allah, Higher Power, etc. better suits you for today.  It is not for me to decide.

**For more information about spiritual direction or to find a spiritual director, check out Spiritual Directors International at www.sdi.org

***One place it led me was to a book by Harriet Crosby called A Well-Watered Garden, A Gardener's Guide to Spirituality.  I have been using it for years and it has moved me to an image of a robust well-maintained garden that needs attention, with God's help and my best interest in mind, to individual areas from time to time.