Coming Home
In a technology-driven society, an irony exists that the more “networked” we become in our digitized universe, the less connected and grounded we may feel. A virtual reality lacks the band-width for creating a deep sense of belonging to a specific time, place, and people. Our reach may be global, but there is a deep yearning within for identity and belonging to a local, geographic, face-to-face community where we know and are known, see and are seen, love and are loved — a place where we call home.
The gift of belonging is experienced when we settle into our own souls regardless of the outward circumstances that swirl about our existence. Belonging is about coming home to self, to God and to living in community. For me, spiritual direction is one way that I am able to do just that. Tending to the soul is tending to the Divine Spirit within. The more I am able to strip away the façade of false self and get to the tender heart of true self, the more at ease I am being a hospitable place for God to dwell within me as I dwell within God, ultimately resulting in an outward movement into the world.
We are hard-wired to belong to one another in this world. God created humanity in community and in concert with the surrounding world, to live in relationship to God and each other. When that sense of belonging and being at home is removed, we begin to flounder, to lose our rootedness, our sense of identity. As we seek those places of belonging, we find the practices and rhythms of life that encourage us to come home to self, to God and to others, bringing us into “our own land,” as the prophet Ezekiel says.
The ways we practice belonging and coming home to each other, to God and to ourselves are varied, and deserve exploration. The next three Journal posts will explore each of these areas of belonging.
In the meantime, if you want to begin your own exploration of your places of belonging, and home-coming, I’d love to schedule a time to sit with you in spiritual direction. Send me a message at the e-mail link above to find out more.
