Have you visited the headwaters of your defining dream? Have you made an inner pilgrimage to the birthplace of the vision that shapes your intentions?
It’s not an easy hike. Sometimes you come across dams you’ve built to block to flow of your own calling. Sometimes you encounter a culvert of pollutants you’ve allowed to empty into your passion.
But eventually you make it back to the simple source. A wellspring of clear water bubbling up from your soul-dirt... The Spirit flowing from your deep places...
Your family, your friends, your community need the living water that is meant to flow from you. You’re an integral part of a relational ecosystem.
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5 comments:
You’ve loaded a small paragraph with a wealth of ideas!
I do think the headwaters flow from the moment we surrendered to God personally. Or it could be said that the headwaters flow as we live in the moment of surrender... I’d also add that it is probably not necessary for a person to immediately realize the connection between the birth of her dream and her givenness to Creator; it could take decades.
You make a good point about the present being the only moment where we can connect/reconnect with the wellspring of personal faith. I’m with you on that. The reason I keep going back to chronological language is that I’ve seen, heard, felt, chosen, rejected, embraced, comprehended, surrendered, discovered, created... important things in my past. Some were rivulets pointing back to the headwaters - some were right there at the source. I want to not forget them. I want to honor their memory and continue to learn from them, even the unpleasant ones.
“Then, perhaps, it's not a matter of going somewhere but believing you are there.” That sentence made me smile and say woh... I think there’s something very true about it. In my mind, though, it (being present to the present, and present to Presence) occurs in the paradox of properly honoring the past and the future.
The pains in our past will continue to haunt us and be those "blocks to flow" if we don't achknowledge them, grieve them then and only then can we move past them instead of dwelling on them. I know at least this is true of me. I tried to stay in the moment, keep my eyes forward not looking back because I knew that when I did I would have to achknowledge the power the hurts in my past had on me. Thankfully with the Spirit's help the trip was not as black as I had feared and now I can look over my shoulder achknowledge what was and not feel afraid of the hold that once was there. I still struggle with letting myself freely visit the headwaters though, I keep feeling the need to justify why I am where I am now instead of where I perhaps should be. A true work in progress...
KRG
Alex and KRG, thank you for enriching this blog with your interaction. Your ability (and willingness) to dig into the nuances of these topics causes the conversation to bloom. You’ve given me a lot to think about (and for me, that’s a lovely gift!).
The past is a powerful companion...
It’s enlightening to remember that Presence transcends the present. Returning to the river metaphor, Presence touches its entire flow -- what’s been, what is, what might be... This relates, I think, to Alex’s ideas about resurrection: the transforming of our relationship to past losses (and successes). It creates a framework of hope for engaging the rapids we see ahead. And Presence creates the possibility of joy in the current...
What's all this silly talk about headwaiters? The only "flowing" that I want to see from a headwaiter is them getting me seated at a decent table in a timely manner and making sure the food is hot when it lands in front of me!
There's none of this theological mumbo jumbo you guys are coming up with associated with a good headwaiter... just the basics... being in the hands of a capable person who cares about my immediate needs at the present time.
The only "pilgrimage" I think we should be talking about in the context of headwaiters is the one back to the kitchen... to see what's taking the Head Chef so damn long to get my order out!!
Dear Ms. Rosanadana,
What's this? You never call, you never write, and now you want to rip into my friends and me? Not cool.
I'll give you this, though: your Demanding & Impatient Consumer persona is a graphic metaphor of the Evangelical church in the U.S. So thanks for the illustration, baby.
Yours Snidely,
SB
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