Praying in Nature

sharonseal9

4 days ago

1 min read

Our afternoon of praying in nature was set within a beautiful garden in Ockham.....

As we gathered it was noticeable that the scorching summer had taken it's toll on nature, but despite the evidence of this God was to surprise many of us, by what we saw and sensed as we reflected and walked around the vast garden.

We began with a verse from Psalm 116:7

'Return to your rest, my soul, for the Lord has been good to you'

As we walked, sat and prayed......we were encouraged to notice the colours, the shapes, the textures and the sounds. To notice something that we had not seen when we first arrived. Creation does not rush. A flower does not struggle to become a flower. A tree grows slowly, season by season. And so, God was inviting us, to step out of striving and simply be present.

As we walked, we didn't only look for what was beautiful. We noticed what was imperfect, damaged, dying or struggling. God is not only present in the blossom. God is present in the whole of creation, in growth and decay, in beginnings and endings, in abundance and barrenness.

I wonder whether that has something to say about our own lives........

Some questions that helped us as we sat and prayed were:

What am I receiving?

What am I receiving from this place?

What am I receiving from God?

Here are some photos of our time in the garden......