Simple Presence

Emptying to receive, simplifying to know what is most important.....when I read these words they are like a breath of fresh air, a refreshing invitation, drawing me out of a stifling life of filling myself with every thought, feeling and experience available (however good these may be). We are raised in a culture (both church and secular) that believes that more is the way. More education, more activity, more people in church, more accumulation of this and that. Often our ministries are also overstuffed with good things. All this stuff can lead us deeper into confusion and complexity, into drivenness, however zealous we are to serve God.

Many evangelical Christians have not heard of the word "apophatic", although we may at a deep level yearn for something as a counterpoint to the "kataphatic" spirituality that we are familiar with. Apophatic is a way of knowing God by way of unknowing (as the author of the Cloud of Unknowing states). Evagruis Ponticus, an early church Father, says: "Blessed are those who have reached infinite ignorance". This is not to say that we become anti-intellectual in our approach to faith. It merely invites us to another way of knowing that will balance an overly grasping cerebral, and often judgmental way of believing. I like to think of this as a humbling reminder of the mystery of God, who can never be fully grasped by our finite minds.

I must say that all this is also fairly new to me, being a very left brained person myself. I love to analyze, to think about things, and derive great pleasure from figuring things out. Of course if I am honest with myself, at the root of it all is the 'power' one feels at being in 'control'. The practice of simple, gentle presence is an antidote for this stubborn streak in myself.

Some ways to be present to life just as it is: just stop and listen to the sounds around you (of nature, of family, of office, of traffic). There is nothing to do with this listening except to listen. Perhaps notice the silence that is underneath all the sound. Rest in that silence for a moment. Perhaps there is much inner noise. Listen to it too, without trying to push it out. Shift your focus to people. See them as they are and appreciate them, without needing to change them. Gently focus on yourself. Be aware of a simple thing like your breathing. Or be aware of each part of your body in turn from the top of the head right down to the toes. Be aware of the feelings that are part of you, often just below the surface. Notice all these without the need to analyze. Analyzing gets in the way of seeing what is really there. The goal is not to judge or change anything. The goal is to simple observe and be aware. This opens up our awareness of God who is all around us and the Spirit who lives within us.

May the practice of simple presence draw us into God's peace that passes all understanding.