Invitation to The Well

I know it has been a minute since you’ve seen or heard anything from us here at Salt and Clay. We are breaking the silence, waking up from a hibernation of sorts. 

There have been a lot of big life changes for those of us who have been the stewards of this little ministry. The details aren’t for public display, but let’s just say that for me it has felt, like a season of wintering. A pulling back, nestling in, and allowing time to bring its own kind of healing. It’s a reminder that a time of dormancy and deep rest is essential to all living things. 

In the winter, the visible signs of life are bleak. I live in Northern California, a place known for wine, and in winter, the vineyards are just bare stumps of dark wood. But there is a sort of beauty about the vines in winter, exposed, and naked, not producing anything. Despite all appearances, nature is not dead in winter. It has gone underground to renew itself and prepare for spring. Below the surface, there is activity: slow, private, and not flashy. There is a quiet, a sort of hush of the earth. For us, for me, this is an opportunity to see ourselves with more clarity, to see the very ground of our being.

There is an in-between time as winter loosens its grip and spring is given permission to rise from the dark earth, and then, without any fanfare, tender green shoots begin to emerge, creating a lush green blanket like a harbinger of hope.

It has been in this in-between season that I’ve sensed God’s prompting, an invitation to begin cultivating the ground again, to loosen up the hard soil and to plant some seeds. One of the ways that we want to do this is through providing an audio recording each day where you can hear God’s Word spoken over you. It’s an invitation to relax into God’s presence for just a few moments before the busyness and to-do’s crowd into your day.

These readings of the Scriptures follow a pattern called Lectio Divina. This is an approach to the Scriptures that sets us up to listen for the Word of God spoken to us in the present moment. The practice of Lectio Divina is rooted in the belief that through the presence of the Holy Spirit, the Scriptures are indeed alive and active as we engage them for spiritual transformation. As we make ourselves open and available to God through this practice, the Scriptures will penetrate to our very depths. In these moments, as we yield ourselves to God’s Spirit, He will invite us into our next steps with Him or bring a healing grace to our soul. 

I’m convinced that in carving out a little time each day to quiet and still ourselves, we are tending to our soul. Parker Palmer, in his book Let Your Life Speak, gives a compelling metaphor for the soul, submitting that the soul is like a wild animal, both resilient and shy. 

“If we want to see a wild animal,” Palmer writes, “the last thing we should do is go crashing through the wood, shouting for the creature to come out. But if we are willing to walk quietly into the woods and sit silently for an hour or two at the base of a tree, the creature we’re waiting for may well emerge.”

So as we begin together, I hope to offer you some companionship and hold space for you as you consider the current season of your inner life. Wherever you find yourself, may you know that you’re invited and that God is waiting to meet with you, longing to fill all of the places that need to be tended by Him, the Great Shepherd of your soul. 

However you found us, we’re glad you’re here and you are welcome.

The Well Starts Monday, April 21st on Instagram, Facebook or YouTube

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