Walking with God

Walking with God Guide

Today we’re going to invite you to go on a walk as a way of being present to creation and to the God in whom we live and move and have our being. This walk will be about 30 minutes including some journaling time afterwards.

Given the context of this day is about faith in daily life, notice what it is significant for you at the moment…
· A direction for something specific in your life…
· Are there things you need to let go of?
· Is there something you’re struggling with?
· Whatever feels most resonant, reflect on that
You were asked to take notice of one of the stories in Luke. Try to keep that story with you.

Now, find a threshold to mark the beginning of this walk. It can be a doorway, a stick on the floor, an imaginary threshold. Just something to intentionally step over or through to begin this walk. Take a minute to do that now…
Step over your threshold.
From now on, assume everything you notice until the end of your walk, is important, meaningful, sacred. Be curious. Pay attention. Both to the outside world, using all your senses, and to your inner experience. This is an opportunity to wander, to follow what catches your attention. A time for sauntering, rather than marching around. You might want to stop at times, and move at others. Just go with your intuition.

Now… begin to walk.
Become aware of the places you are walking through with all your senses: What can you see
– Plants, other humans, other animals, the weather? …What are the sounds you can hear?
… What can you smell? …
As you’re noticing the landscape outside you, also pay attention to your inner landscape. What is being stirred up inside you as you wander, or stop and sit? What emotions, thoughts, memories, bodily sensations, are going on in you? Pay attention to them with the same curiosity as you are the outer landscape. If people and life events come to your mind, wonder about their significance… Is there anything in particular that lingers with you that you might like to talk to God about…as one friend speaks to another…?
Without trying too hard, keep paying attention to both what you’re noticing outside, and how you’re feeling in response to it inside. Just notice what comes into your imagination when you hear this next question, and trust whatever emerges: thoughts, images, feelings … be curious and welcoming. How is God present on this walk with you today? Where have you noticed or seen or felt God around you?
When you feel ready to end your walk, and are back at your threshold…. Now, cross back over your threshold with the conscious intention to end the walk.
You might like to give thanks for the time you’ve spent. Is there something particular you are feeling grateful for right now?
It is often useful to spend a little time journaling about what happened on your walk, harvesting any experiences that seemed to be meaningful. The following questions might help you to do that: ·
· What caught your attention? …
· What feelings, thoughts, or memories did they stir up in you in response? …
· What might God have been speaking to you through these? …
We are going to end your walk with God by praying as we did at the beginning of the day. Try to hold the thoughts you have had as we do…