Have you ever noticed something that instantly captures your attention—a phrase in a book, a striking image, an unexpected sound, or a moment in nature that makes you pause? That "shimmering" sensation might be more than coincidence; it could be an invitation to a deeper spiritual experience.
Drawing inspiration from Christine Valters Painter's book "Lectio Divina: The Sacred Art," I share a transformative practice that expands the ancient tradition of sacred reading into our multisensory daily lives. Lectio Divina traditionally involves allowing a word or phrase from sacred text to stand out—to "shimmer"—and become a focal point for meditation. But this approach extends beautifully beyond reading to visual experiences (Visio Divina), sounds (Audio Divina), and encounters with nature.
What makes this practice revolutionary is its embrace of both the beautiful and the challenging. That loud motorcycle disrupting your peace? The traffic jam making you late? These frustrations can become unexpected gateways to spiritual insight when approached with curiosity rather than resistance. I share my own experience with neighborhood noise disturbances and how viewing them through this contemplative lens offers new possibilities for processing difficult or annoying experiences and emotions.
The beauty of this practice lies in its simplicity and accessibility. You don't need special training, equipment, or even much time—just one to five minutes daily of noticing what shimmers at you and asking, "What is here for me?" This can happen during your commute, while washing dishes, or walking through your neighborhood. Sacred texts can come from any tradition that speaks to you, or even from poetry that feels meaningful.
Try this simple practice for the next seven days: Notice what shimmers at you daily—whether it feels good or not—and spend a few moments in contemplation with it. I'd love to hear how it goes!
Contact me through WelcomingGod.com, where you can also sign up for our newsletter to receive a free companion ebook to the first season of this podcast.
Music by Song Channel Music. Listen at SongChannelMusic.com
Go to WelcomingGod.com to subscribe to our email newsletter and receive updates about all things Welcoming God.
Episode Transcript
Hey everyone, sarah here, just to let you know.
Sometimes I do use swear wordsin these episodes and we may at
times discuss adult content.
In case you happen to belistening around, little ones or
people that won't appreciatethat.
Thanks so much for listeningand let's get right into it.
Hi, and thanks for joining meon Welcoming God.
(00:28):
Hey everyone, sarah, here.
Today I'm going to share withyou a practice that has inspired
me from a book I've read thissummer called Lectio Divina the
(00:51):
Sacred Art from ChristineWalters Painter.
This book is about LectioDivina, which is a sacred
process of reading a sacred textand then meditating on that
text and allowing a word orphrase from that text to stand
(01:14):
out at you, and Christine callsit shimmer.
Something that shimmers at you,it's saying me, me, me, over
here.
It could be one word from ashort verse of sacred text, or
it could be a sentence or two.
So just opening up, being awareof what is shimmering in that
(01:37):
sacred text for you and thensitting with that and allowing
whatever images or thoughts orfeelings come up from that text
that's shimmering at you.
What invitation may be comingthrough that text?
That's shimmering at you.
(01:59):
Letting go of the text and justallowing yourself to sit and be
in the sacredness of thisprayer, of Lectio Divina and
what it has brought for you ordone for you in that moment.
So further on in the book shebrings in other ways to practice
(02:20):
Lectio Divina.
She calls it Visio Divina,where we are visually looking at
, per se, a piece of art orsomething that shimmers at us
visually.
Is it a piece of art?
Is it an animal?
Is it a piece of furniture?
I mean, maybe it's food?
(02:43):
So something visually thatshimmers at you, that stands out
and is speaking to you.
She also refers to audio divina, something that we hear that
stands out to us and goes, oh,that right there.
And you know out to us and goes, ooh, oh, that right there.
(03:03):
And you know she does in thebook at times encourage us to
not shy away from things thatdon't feel good.
So sometimes we're reading atext or we may see something or
hear something that reallybothers us.
What would it be like to beable to sit with that?
For instance, I know in theneighborhood that I live in
sometimes there are really loudcars or motorcycles that rev
(03:28):
their engines as they go rightdown the street at any time of
the day or night, and I feelpretty angry about that, to be
quite honest, because I don'tlike it.
Pretty angry about that, to bequite honest, because I don't
like it.
However, in this moment, I'mrealizing huh, what would it be
(03:51):
like to just meditate on thememory of that sound and just
really see what's there for me,like, is there something there
for me that I could understandmore of, that I could offer up
to God, that I could receivesome invitation about?
That would support me toprocess this anger that I feel
when I hear this loud sound thatI'm not expecting and I don't
(04:11):
want to hear.
So it's kind of cool.
It's not always looking for,like, the things that are
feeling good all the time, butit's looking at something that
is standing out to us andallowing that to become a prayer
, and I think that's reallypowerful and beautiful.
(04:31):
So there's Visio Divina, there'sAudio Divina, and then she
talks about nature-inspiredDivina, which I love.
So have you ever been in natureand you see something that just
takes your breath away or makesyou stop in the moment and go
oh, look, those are such specialmoments.
(04:56):
So what I am inviting us all todo this next week is practice
some form of this Divina,whether it is finding a short
sacred text.
It could be from any of thesacred books of the religions of
(05:18):
the world.
It could be, you know, writerslike Rumi, native American
writers, spiritual writers.
It could be I mean reallyanything poetry.
It could be anything that feelssacred to you.
You could pick a sacred text.
You could also pick some kindof imagery and a piece of
(05:43):
artwork a beautiful piece offurniture, a beautiful plate of
food, something that strikes youvisually.
You could do audio, davina andgo with a sound.
Is it the sound of a babycooing?
Is it the sound of birdschirping?
(06:04):
Is it the sound of a loud-asstruck going by the street that
you really don't like?
What sound shimmers or standsout to you?
Okay, it could be in nature.
It could be a sight in naturewater flowing, the sound of
water, a beautiful bird or othertype of animal in nature, a
(06:29):
leaf on the ground that's turnedcolors, a rock with moss
covering it, whatever shimmersat you in nature.
Whatever shimmers at you innature, how will you take just
(06:51):
even five minutes every day forthe next seven days and practice
some form of these divinaprayers?
And it can be that quick.
It could even be one minute, ifyou just feel like I can't add
anything else to my plate.
Maybe it is while you'rewashing the dishes, or you're
(07:11):
folding laundry, or you'remaking the bed, or you're on
your way to work and you justallow yourself the grace in
those moments not to you know,if you're heading to work and
you're traveling or you'redriving.
We're not going into ameditative state, but you can
still just be aware, open up towhat's shimmering at you on your
commute and just be present asyou're driving.
(07:33):
You're, of course, driving andnoticing everything you're doing
, driving, but you can stillnotice like, oh, that car in
front of me, I love that color.
Oh, there's something about theflow of traffic right now
that's feeling really good to me.
Or oh, this traffic is reallycausing me to feel some anger or
frustration, anxiety, justnoticing those things in that
(07:56):
moment as a sacred prayer.
What is here for me?
What can I receive from this?
So, as Christine calls itshimmering that's her
terminology for this practicewe're looking for something
that's shimmering at us, whether, honestly, it feels good or not
(08:17):
, and then it's our willingnessto say you know, I'm going to
spend a little time with thatI'm just going to see what's
here for me.
So I'm excited to hear abouthow this practice goes for you,
and you can get in touch with meand let me know through the
website.
Just go to welcominggodcom,scroll all the way down to the
(08:38):
bottom of the Get In Touchsection and send me an email.
Let me know how this practiceis going for you, what you like
about it, what's challenging.
Do you have any questions?
Not that I'm an expert, butmaybe I could support you in
some way.
And also you can getChristine's book Lectio Divina.
(08:59):
I'll put the link in the shownotes.
Remember as well that you canget the free Welcoming God
e-book by going towelcominggodcom and signing up
for our email newsletter, andthat e-book is a companion to
the first season of theWelcoming God podcast, so you'll
receive that after you sign upfor the email newsletter.
(09:22):
It'll come in through youremails.
So head on over towelcominggodcom and sign up for
the email newsletter.
Get your free ebook today,right now.
And thank you so much forlistening.
Have a beautiful day and noticewhat's shimmering for you today
.
(09:45):
Hey everyone, sarah Haeckel herefrom Welcoming God, a podcast
for spiritual seekers.
This is a legal disclaimer tosay that this podcast is not a
substitute for therapy orprofessional help.
I am not a trained therapist.
I also have not studiedtheology in a formal setting.
(10:06):
This podcast is purely foreducational, inspirational
purposes, to share the goodnessof welcoming God back into my
life and all of the things thatI'm learning on this journey.
So thank you for joining mehere and of welcoming god.
(10:41):
Please subscribe to thispodcast wherever you listen, and
consider leaving us a review,as it helps more people find and
benefit from this show.
Music by Song Channel Music.
You can listen and hear more atsongchannelmusiccom.
Until we meet again, aloha nuiloa, take care and God bless,
(11:10):
thank you.
Popular Podcasts
Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang
Ding dong! Join your culture consultants, Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang, on an unforgettable journey into the beating heart of CULTURE. Alongside sizzling special guests, they GET INTO the hottest pop-culture moments of the day and the formative cultural experiences that turned them into Culturistas. Produced by the Big Money Players Network and iHeartRadio.
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by Audiochuck Media Company.
The Brothers Ortiz
The Brothers Ortiz is the story of two brothers–both successful, but in very different ways. Gabe Ortiz becomes a third-highest ranking officer in all of Texas while his younger brother Larry climbs the ranks in Puro Tango Blast, a notorious Texas Prison gang. Gabe doesn’t know all the details of his brother’s nefarious dealings, and he’s made a point not to ask, to protect their relationship. But when Larry is murdered during a home invasion in a rented beach house, Gabe has no choice but to look into what happened that night. To solve Larry’s murder, Gabe, and the whole Ortiz family, must ask each other tough questions.