Everyday I lean a little further into the realm of knowing. Let’s pick that apart for a minute. What is the realm of knowing? My definition is “the unseen dimension in which our souls gather and store spiritual experiences that language cannot describe or communicate.”
Have you ever said “I just know”… there is no scientific, quantifiable, or systemized explanation…just simply a deep knowing about something/someone? That’s the closest explanation my limited lexicon can offer. There is this visceral stirring within my soul that brings me one step closer to contentment every second of every day. Sometimes I have an experience that really gives me a huge push further into this realm of knowing. I recently had one of those while my husband and I were vacationing in Grand Junction, Michigan.
I was introduced to Getaway.house (listed above in Gina’s favorite thing) by an angel and friend (you know who you are, thank you). We spent 5 days in a 140 square foot cabin with limited resources, only the essentials, btw internet access is not considered an essential. We had a small shelter, bed, toilet, shower, mini fridge, 2 burner stove top, and sink. There was also a fire pit, 2 chairs and picnic table outside our cabin. The stand out feature of these cabins is the huge 6’x6’ window next to the bed facing out into the woods.
The cabin was set in a rustic area in which we woke up every morning watching deer graze, squirrels chase, and birds peck. The only sound you could hear was the wind whistling through the trees or snow falling off branches. It was magic and I told my husband on many occasions “I could live like this”…not only could I live like that but I have a tugging on my heart to pursue it.
I have to really analyze what it is that I am being drawn to pursue. I don’t think the pursuit is for a 140 sq ft cabin or to watch deer graze…the pursuit is inner peace. So how do you pursue inner peace? Well, let’s analyze that for a minute. Whether you are pursuing inner peace or peace on earth, the one and only thing that is essential to do so is alignment. Provided I am aligned with peace, the pursuit is already in motion.
Align
verb: to arrange in a straight line; adjust according to a line.
For me to be aligned with peace I must stay on the straight line leading to it. This is where my blinders and boundaries are essential. It’s so easy to be distracted by the millions of things around me. Much like a distracted driver, if you don’t bring your attention back to the road, you veer off, putting yourself and others at serious risk.
Wearing my hypothetical blinders allows me to focus only on what is in front of me. That does not mean that everything in front of me is easy but it allows me to only fight the battles that lie ahead rather than wasting precious energy on battles that don’t bring me closer to the goal.
Boundaries are harder to explain, it reminds me of the scene in “Dirty Dancing” where Swayze’s character is teaching Grey’s character how to dance. She kept running into him, stepping on his toes, and throwing off their tempo. He tells her while drawing imaginary circles between them “This is your dance space, this my dance space. I don’t go into yours, you don’t come into mine”. Swayze was establishing boundaries so that they weren’t getting in the way of one another as they pursued their common goal.
Blinders allow me to keep my eye on the end goal, boundaries ensures that the only stops I make along the way are the essential ones.
The limited resources at the cabin also reminded me of how little we need for survival, not just survival, but contentment. Although there are a lot of conveniences offered by all these nonessentials there is also a lot of responsibility attached to them. The weight of added responsibility can be debilitating. When long distance hikers begin their hikes it’s not long before they go looking through their packs to see what truly is essential and what isn’t, every ounce counts. They need to lighten up their load because they know they won’t have the ability to make it all the way with any extra weight.
The extra weight of responsibility unnecessary in my pursuit of inner peace needs to be sifted through. Extra long work weeks, unfulfilling social obligations, new technology, new fashion, new cars…the list goes on and on. When you begin to remove all the unnecessary stuff in your life you are able to reclaim time. You don’t have to work as many hours because you’re not spending extra money on “stuff”. You’re spending less time cleaning and organizing because there is less to clean and organize.
So, my pursuit is not a 140 sq. Ft cabin in the woods where I watch deer graze, my pursuit is being more connected with my family and doing my best to impact this world in the short time I’m here.
Here is my prayer for you and for me…
Lord, Thank You for all the blessings in our lives. Please forgive us for pursuing anything other than what You have created us for. Please Lord, allow the Holy Spirit to act as a guide in our pursuits. Help us Lord, to focus on what is most important and give us the strength to keep away what is not. Father, magnify our strengths and minimize our weaknesses. Shelter us in Your loving arms. Allow us to feel Your presence in our pursuits. Armor us as we defeat the enemy. In Jesus’s name I pray, Amen
Now, go get ‘em tiger
Xoxo,
Gina
