A Spiritual Mantra

It was eleven years ago that I traded the pulpit for the tractor in a move to retirement on a farm.  It was a time when I realized that I had more memory of days past than I could reasonably see on the horizon of the future.  There would be memories to make, but the years were far more limited than they were back in the days when the future was unlimited.  One of the things which happened early on was the giving of a word.  I know some folks who ask God at the beginning of each year for a word to give them guidance through the new year.  I did not ask, but was given one anyway.  "Pay Attention" was the word I heard.    

I have come to understand that it was a Word from God.  It is as much His Word to me as any Word I might read in the Sacred Word.  When we come to see the reality of our days really being numbered, it becomes a Word which can have sweeping life changing power.  The Word became a reminder that each day is precious, it is not to be wasted, and is an opportunity to experience the holy presence of the Creator God.  As the Word settled into my spirit, I found myself living with expectation of some awareness of presence in the mundane.     

He truly became the God Who was there, out there, and maybe even here.  Even as the dirt under my feet became holy ground so did every moment become a moment filled with the possibility of divine revelation.  Being careless with the day being given was a sure way to miss what was being revealed and spoken all around me.  When our days are numbered and we know it, we do not want to miss a single one of those holy moments.  "Pay Attention."