photos and writings by Elaine Breckenridge
This afternoon, I admired our young birch tree as it has now developed more yellow leaves than green leaves. A few leaves have fallen as well. We have had high winds today and there are more leaves in our backyard that have been on the move. I am reminded of two verses written in a poem by Edward Hays, in his book, Prayers for a Planetary Pilgrim.
Brisk is the breeze of autumn tide
which sweeps in its path
crowds of leaves from countless trees,
collecting them in amber-colored communities
to share bright memories of the summer sun.
“Dust we are and to dust we shall return,”
sing orange-brown leaves,
as they circle-dance and cluster
in colonies of the dead.
I have not always admired autumn. While all of the seasons include elements of change; autumn has often brought me bouts of sadness and depression. I could never articulate why, until I read this, “Autumn speaks of connection and yearning, wisdom and aging, transformation and surrender, emerging shadows, and most of all, mystery.” The Circle of Life, Joyce Rupp & Macrina Wiederkehr.
I used to resist this season of transition, with its yearning, aging, surrender and mystery. I did not like watching the leaves fall to the ground, knowing that I would not see new green leaves for months. It reminded me of my own aging and my difficulty in facing my shadow. Mystery was not appealing. Then, studying transition, I learned, “All human transition follows a natural process of disorientation and reorientation that marks the turning points on the path of growth.” Transition: Making Sense of Life’s Changes, William Bridges.
There you have it. I do not like the feeling of disorientation! I like to know where things are, where I am, and where everyone else is. Obviously, I have a hard time with moving. There is always that moment when trying to settle into a new place, I cannot find what I need when I need it. Yes, autumn is a metaphor for my own fear of change and of course powerlessness. This fear began to add more stress to my already stretched life. I was invited to dig deeper when I read,
“Autumn invites us to let go, to yield…. yes, to die. We are encouraged to let things move in our lives. Let them flow on into some new life form just as the earth is modeling these changes for us.” The Circle of Life
The earth is modeling these changes for us. I took that to heart and turned to Mother Nature as my mentor. I began to follow the tides. Living on Camano Island in Washington state is an island governed by the tides. It has taught me about the reality of transition and change. While I know that every six hours the landscape will look different, when it happens, it is both familiar and strange at the same time. Just when I think I know what to expect with the changing tide—surprise! Whether low tide or high tide, every day here on Camano Island, the land and the water look different. Sometimes there are logs to climb over or paths washed out. I am learning to take it in my stride.
Watching and breathing with the rhythm of the tides and noticing how often the landscape changes has become an icon into understanding the movement of the Spirit in my life. Whether it is the energy and growth of the incoming flood tide or the waning and diminishment of the outgoing ebb tide—I am seeing that the Eternal Spirit is like the changing tides and is constantly inviting me to ride its ebb and flow. She has taught me to accept that life and my life are in a constant rhythm of change. She is inviting me to drop my expectations about what the landscape of my life should look like. She has taught me about the importance of acceptance, non-attachment, and surrendering to “what is.”
Thanks to being schooled by the tides, I am no longer sad to see the coming of autumn. In fact, I like the slow transition of the season of “fall color.” The Creator gave us a gift in the colors of fall, splashing around such beauty before the trees are left with naked branches! Naked branches reveal aspects of the landscape we may have never noticed before. I am grateful for the gift of fresh eyes and an open heart to appreciate autumn. I give thanks to God for leading me to bless all that is. And so, I pray,
Blessed are you autumn,
with your flair for drama
you call to the poet in our hearts,
“Return to the earth, become good soil
wait for new seeds.”
Blessed are you autumn
season of unpredictability.
You inspire us to be flexible
to learn from our shifting moods.
Blessed are you, autumn
season of surrender
you teach us the wisdom of letting go
as you draw us into new ways of life.
–The Circle of Life, Joyce Rupp & Macrina Wiederkehr
As autumn draws us into new ways of life, perhaps, embracing autumn and transition means re-learning how to let go into a fall with the curiosity and wonder of a child.
Set your intentions and gear up your heart for this season of gratitude with Christine Sine and Lilly Lewin! Explore ideas of gratitude, enjoy handouts and 4 video modules, an origami box tutorial, and more! This retreat is formatted as an online course so you have 180 days of access to work through the retreat at your own pace.
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by Laurie Klein
My love, to loving God above,
captures me in the round of love.
—Luci Shaw
HE NEVER SAW IT FALL. There was no warning. No sound. No telltale chafe of metal over his knuckle. Unbeknownst to us—perhaps while raking garden refuse into a waist-high pile—my husband’s wedding ring slid from his finger. In that moment, one of our vow’s gleaming emblems vanished.
Time passed. Rain fell. His ring finger still bare, the tan line faded. And month by month, the ragged heap decomposed.
A few years later while harvesting the rich loam, his shovel clinked: Compost surrendered gold. Finding the ring at ground level beneath that crumbly mound bowled us over. Wonderstruck, he slipped his finger inside the band—still intact, a shape without end, albeit tarnished.
“A circle is a line that took a walk,” someone once said, “and returned home.”
Mathematically speaking
Every imagined point on a circle lies equidistant from the center: silent perfection, uninterrupted. That simple image reflects God’s work from the beginning, when “[The Creator] . . . inscribed a circle on the face of the waters at the boundary between light and darkness” (Job 26:10 ESV).
In later centuries Celtic Christians sometimes surrounded their stone churches with crosses, as if to guard sanctuary, a place hemmed in by the love of Christ. Resisting the forces of darkness, Irish worshippers also composed encircling prayers: loricas (acknowledging the shield of God’s encompassing presence) and caims (invoking divine protection on all sides). Some believers even turned clockwise while praying, simultaneously honoring the sun’s path and visualizing divine provision vast as the compass points.
What goes around . . .
Circles also have a dark side. Recently during an argument with the Almighty, I thought about Moses, barefoot, at the burning bush. Afraid to help the Hebrew slaves escape Egypt, Moses verbally sparred several rounds with God, piling one lame excuse atop another. Those same people, later miraculously released, muddled and looped through the wilderness for the next forty years.
Was I caught in a cycle of fear and complaint? Would noting actual circles within my surroundings reanimate ancient lessons of faith? Perhaps I’d glimpse joy, a metaphorical glint of gold hidden within seeming darkness, dross, and debris.
The child within
Today, an annual global observance beckons the child in us all. On November 2 participants celebrate circles: buttons and wheels, crowns and dials; wreaths, clock faces, labyrinths, gears; bubbles and bird nests; wells, snickerdoodles, marbles, bowls; portholes, rosaries, Frisbees, coins.
Luci Shaw wrote, “Beyond these circles I can see / the circle of eternity.”
Whether we whirl or eddy, at our most alive we orbit Christ “in whom all things hold together” (Col. 1:17). Habitual actions offer more opportunities. In the act of a moment—commonplace, yet personal—we embody or even complete circles, each time we . . .
- latch an anklet
- cinch a belt
- thread a hoop through a pierced ear
- clasp a necklace
- button a collar
- tie a trusty Windsor knot
- fasten a bracelet
- buckle a watchband
- twist a ring back into place
Surrounded!
On any given day (and each one is given), ankles, waists, ears, necks, wrists, or fingers are embraced. The body itself might become a prayer. What words of blessing might we speak (or sing) while we carry out a familiar move?
Single or married, we know as the bride of Christ our fingers already bear the invisible imprint of God’s ring—a mark perhaps lost for a time when we were ardently sought in the darkness, then returned. To God. And to one another.
Like the line that took a walk, we are lovingly spliced back into the circle.
Listen: “Circle Me, Lord,” from A Thin Silence, by Jeff Johnson
Listen: Absorb this beautiful song, “Circle Me, Oh Lord,” from Amazing Grace: Celtic Hymns and Blessings, by David Huntsinger
Ponder: Read Rilke’s poem, “Widening Circles” (scroll down to fourth audio selection).
Savor: Admire these breathtaking curves throughout the famous basilica, Sagrada Familia, symbol of Barcelona, Spain (under construction since 1882, projected completion, 2026). BEGIN AT TIME STAMP 2:40.
Create: Take a gentle walk with a camera. Pause in a spot that compels your eye and spirit. Prayerfully “receive” (rather than “take”) four separate pictures, shifting a quarter turn for each shot. Do you sense an insight or invitation? How will you respond?
Listen to the Green, Luci Shaw
Photo by Dustin Humes on Unsplash
Embark on this healing journey with Christine Sine, Lilly Lewin, and Bethany Dearborn Hiser with the Time to Heal Online Course. Each session is lead by one of our instructors and allows you 180 days of access for only $39.99. The goal of this course is to provide time, space, and tools to work toward healing.
Today is All Saint’s Day and tomorrow is Looking for Circles Day, two days that on the surface have nothing in common, but when we look closely are intimately related.
God creates in circles. They are everywhere–from the patterns on our fingerprints, raindrops, snowflakes, petals and flowers, to the orbs of the sun and the moon and the earth itself. Then there are the circles of days and nights, of seasons, and of life too. And in our faith, there is the circle of God’s love embracing us and of God’s presence in us and in all of creation. Then I imagine the circle of all the witnesses whose lives we celebrate on All Saint’s Day standing in an incredible circle of support and love around each and every one of us.
Part of my love for circles comes from my attraction to Celtic Christian spirituality and especially the Celtic cross with the circle at its center. I have quite a collection of Celtic crosses including one large wooden cross whose pattern I sometimes trace my finger around in the same way I use a labyrinth.
I am also drawn to the circling prayers that were so much a part of their spirituality and have written a number in the past, several of which feature on our Celtic prayer cards.
My first rock painting was of a Celtic cross too and I still love to create Celtic crosses on pieces of rock I find on the various beaches we visit. My first painting began with one of the patterns from a book on Celtic art, then I decided to get more adventurous and paint a Celtic cross – not an easy exercise but one that I thoroughly enjoyed. I heartily recommend it to you.
The cross sat on my desk for a number of months and I used it each morning as a focus for reflection. I added words that exemplified what the cross of Christ means to me. I started with love, joy, peace and grace, but this morning added mercy, and forgiveness. Eventually the area around the cross became so crowded that I relegated it to my box of rock art.
My cross is nowhere near perfect, and the ones I have created since are just as imperfect, but as I gazed at my photo of this cross again this morning I realized how fitting that was. After all, my view of the cross, its power, its pain and its beauty is nowhere near perfect either. I keep discovering new depths of meaning and purpose in it. I keep unveiling new ways in which I need to bow before it and absorb its messages for my life and for the world in which I live.
This year I did not create another piece of Celtic rock art. Instead I created a circle of candles around my sacred space/office area. This is my new way of celebrating both All Saints Day and Looking for Circles Day. Not surprisingly my reflections led to the writing of another prayer/poem.
Today I sit in God’s circle of light,
Breathing in, breathing out.
Today I sit in God’s circle of light
Light behind, light before, light circling all around.
Today I sit in God’s circle of light
With all the people of the world.
Loved, comforted, cared for,
On the journey to being made whole.
What is your response?
As you celebrate All Saints Day today, spend time thinking about that enormous circle of witnesses that surrounds you, encouraging you, supporting you and standing with you in good times and in bad. Now imagine that circle of God’s love extending out from this circle of witnesses, into your life and around all the people of the world. Perhaps like me, you would like to create your own circle of light, or otherwise draw a circle on a piece of paper and run your finger around it as you recite a circling prayer as a reminder that you are indeed embraced by God’s circle of light and love–not alone, but together with all the people of the world.
top photo from Unsplash
Join Christine Sine and Tom Sine on Wednesday, November 10th at 9am PDT (check my timezone) for our next FB Live! Can’t make it? No worries–we upload the sessions on our youtube channel so you can still enjoy the lively discussions and interesting topics discussed. And catch us live for the next session–happening here every other Wednesday!
A contemplative service with music in the spirit of Taize. Carrie Grace Littauer, prayer leader, with music by Kester Limner and Andy Myers.
Permission to podcast/stream the music in this service obtained from One License with license #A-710-756 with additional notes below:
“Kristus Din Ande (Jesus, Your Spirit in Us) — Taizé Song” Copyright and all rights reserved by GIA/Les Presses de Taizé
“The Law of God is Love — simple arrangement” By Kester Limner, shared under the Creative Commons License, Attribution (CC-BY)
“God is Forgiveness — Taizé Song’ Copyright and all rights reserved by GIA/Les Presses de Taizé
“Kyrie” Music and Text by Kester Limner, shared under the Creative Commons License, Attribution (CC-BY)
“O the Deep, Deep Love of Jesus” Public domain hymn, arrangement by Kester Limner, shared under the Creative Commons License, Attribution (CC-BY)
Thank you for praying with us! www.saintandrewsseattle.org
When I was a child Guy Fawkes night on 5th November was the big fireworks thing. Halloween was not really on the radar at all in the UK. When I started going to church I got introduced to the “Festival of Lights” children’s parties on 31st October, but it was still not a big deal really. Then when I moved to Belfast in 1996 I met Halloween in a big way. The road outside my house exploded with fireworks as soon as it got dark on 31st October and kept going for hours. We had only arrived three weeks earlier and wondered what we had let ourselves in for! There the Baptist church saw it as just a thing, though it was very much just an overload of fireworks.
On returning to England three years later Halloween had grown and “trick or treating” was becoming a thing. The charismatic, evangelical churches were saying Halloween was wrong, evil, satanic, demonic, etc. Then I joined YWAM and lived in a community house filled with mainly American evangelical Christian families and was introduced to a different take of Halloween, where children were encouraged to dress up as scary creatures, garner sweets from strangers and see it all as a big thing. Without this introduction twenty years earlier my reaction to Lily Lewin’s post FreerangeFriday: Halloween Candy Prayers would have been that she was not a “proper” Christian. Knowing Lilly as I do, I know she definitely is a Proper Christian with capital P and C. 🙂
This got me thinking of how we box and judge other things and other people without taking time out to know the heart behind them; “signed and sealed” as either good or bad. This led me to Matthew 7:1&2 where Jesus says “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged ...”, which I thought I would look at in context. In the preceding verses, Jesus says that God cares for us so much that we are not to worry about anything. ANYTHING!! Then he goes on to say not to judge. Coincidence?
My suspicion is that God knows we judge because we worry about things, about how we’ll be perceived, whether we’ll “get into heaven”, be “good” witnesses, etc, etc. We think we’re looking at others to “help” them but actually, we’re also looking and judging ourselves. Jesus says “in the same way you judge others you will be judged”. Many sermons talk about it being God who judges us by the standards we judge others, but I think Jesus might just be saying that in the way we box and judge others so we are boxing and judging ourselves. And living in fear because of that.
As Christianity swept through Europe and into Britain many early Celtic Christians saw the pagan practices of the people of the lands they were engaging in. They were not afraid of what was going on or how they would be judged. They also did not judge the people but showed that they were “missing the mark” [which is what the word sin really means] then showed how to adapt what they were doing to show Jesus in all fullness.
So for me this Halloween I am going to use it as a time to see where I am judgemental, where I miss the mark, and work out how I can change myself rather than looking outwards judging and trying to change my fellow human beings–whether professing Christians or not.
A Festival of Light for myself that will sparkle out to those around me rather than the darkness of judgment.
Photo by Maddy Baker on Unsplash
Join Christine Sine and Lilly Lewin on Saturday, November 20th 9:30-12:30 PST (check my timezone) for an interactive, multi-sensory, creative retreat focused on the WONDER OF ADVENT! This retreat will be LIVE via zoom, but if you are unable to join live, you can sign up to watch the recording and participate later! Come with a creative heart, be inspired, have fun, and reconnect with the WONDER of the season.
It is amazing to me that the calendar is flipping to November next week. This year has flown by! While my emotions are still stuck somewhere back in August, I’ve started thinking about how to celebrate the upcoming season of Advent and Christmas. How do I want this year to be different from past years? How do I need to take time to prepare Him room?
I love Isaiah 40!
ISAIAH 40: 1-5 THE MESSAGE
“Comfort, oh comfort my people,” says your God. “Speak softly and tenderly to Jerusalem, but also make it very clear , That she has served her sentence, that her sin is taken care of—forgiven!She’s been punished enough and more than enough, and now it’s over and done with.”
Thunder in the desert! “Prepare for God’s arrival! Make the road straight and smooth,
a highway fit for our God. Fill in the valleys, level off the hills, Smooth out the ruts, clear out the rocks. Then God’s bright glory will shine and everyone will see it. Yes. Just as God has said.”
Take time to read this passage in other translations.
What do you notice? What inspires you? What brings you hope?
How do you want to prepare your heart for the arrival of Jesus this year?
What are the things that you might want to do differently this year than in years past?
What barriers do you see that might need moving out of your way so you can celebrate the arrival of Jesus?
What are the rocks blocking your way?
What do you see that needs to be made smooth in your life, so you can celebrate a peaceful Advent and Christmas Season?
Take some time to journal about this. Take time to discuss this with your family, housemates, etc
Do you need to clear things off your calendar?
Do you need to make more space for quiet, for play, for time in nature?
Remove the Rocks! Prepare the Way!
Consider what truly fills you with joy and wonder in the Advent and Christmas Season: Take time to ponder this. Take time to journal and discuss it with friends and family. Then, make sure you include these things in your plan for this Season.
Find some advent candles
Last year many of our traditions got upended due to the pandemic. Maybe you missed something that you’d like to recapture this year. Maybe you found some new ways to celebrate the season that you’d like to continue. What were your memories from last year? What do you need to keep? What do you need to clear away? Talk to Jesus about this!
Last year, my good friend Joanna Cummings started a new business called A Sacred Home. As a Children and Family Minister, Joanna wanted to help people of all ages engage God at home around the table and in the midst of everyday life.
a sacred home advent box
Joanna designed a Box for Advent and has a new box launching this week called Everyday Faith. Both of these boxes include hands-on practices, crafts, candles, and creative discussion questions to help families, friends, and housemates draw closer to Jesus. A Sacred Home Box would make a great Christmas gift to share with a neighbor or family member too! And while designed with kids in mind, many adults without kids at home loved creating and experiencing the Advent Box last year!
Everyday Faith Box
There are MANY RESOURCES at godspacelight.com for Advent and Christmas.
Advent Prayer Station
And finally, at my website, freerangeworship.com, we have prayer station based Sacred Spaces that you can create for and with your church communities, youth group, and even for your neighborhoods. Sacred Spaces, like the ADVENT WAITING and CELEBRATING the INCARNATION for Christmas, are great ways to reach out to neighbors and friends who might not go to a regular church service but would like to experience the story of the birth of Jesus using all their senses! Sacred Spaces are creative, interactive, and for all ages! If you know Montessori schools, I like to call Sacred Space prayer experiences Montessori Church!
PREPARE YOUR HEART!
This weekend, take some time to clear out the rocks, smooth out the path…go out and take a walk and pick up a rock to remind you to get your heart ready for the arrival of Jesus!
©lillylewin and freerangeworship.com
Bundle and save on our updated and new resources for Lean Toward the Light This Advent & Christmas! Choose from several bundle versions, conveniently available either to ship to you or download.
art and thoughts by Keren Dibbens-Wyatt
Autumn is my favourite season. I am grateful for the slowing down of nature that mirrors my own, the slight chill in the wind that freshens everything, the leaves that die dancing, knowing they will become the nutrients that feed Spring.
But mostly I am grateful for the change in colours. For someone housebound who views most of the alterations of time through windows, and in the changing light, it is the softness of hues which ease my heart. Spring and Summer can be too brash for me, showing off their bright greens and zesty life. When you spend most of your life struggling with a dearth of strength and energy, these seasons bursting with the things you lack can feel hard.
Instead, I prefer the burnishing of nature, as though all has been polished to bring out its true value and the deep shine that was there all along beneath the vibrancy. As an artist too, it is the soft, sweet light of chestnut and mist that enthrall me. I am inspired more at this time of year than ever, knowing that the world is finally in tune with my own dozy, curled up slowness. I don’t feel like playing catch up or pretending that I am more than I can be at this time of year. Everything can just hold up and take a breath. For this I am grateful.
Contemplation isn’t limited to one season, of course, but there seems to be a richness of harvest this time of year that speaks more to my listening heart and my artist’s imagination. Perhaps, like one of my favourite subjects to draw and paint, I am hoarding up treasure for the long, cold months ahead. The squirrel St Francis spoke of knew that gathering sacred things was a holy endeavour, and that everything imparts God’s grace.
It’s here! As promised, Gearing Up for a Season of Gratitude is now available as an online course! Inspired by the celebrations of Canadian Thanksgiving at the beginning of October and American Thanksgiving at the end of November, we designate October and November as gratitude months on Godspace Light. Lilly Lewin and Christine Sine will encourage you to get ready by providing a collaborative retreat process that will help us enter this season of gratitude with joy and delight in our hearts. This course provides a fun process of interaction, creativity, and reflection.
How do we approach the world with gratitude and delight even in the midst of the most challenging situations? What if gratitude is more than an emotion? What can we do to bring more gratitude into our daily lives? These are some of the questions we grapple with as we look ahead to the changing seasons. What are your questions about gratitude? Join us and explore them in this interactive mini-retreat “Gearing up for a Season of Gratitude”.
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