I’m a tea lover. I wake up craving a warm drink to wrap my fingers around and many times throughout the day I’m standing over a cup of recently boiled-water adding honey to its leaves. Sweet interludes to my mundanity.
But better than my morning chai, is a practice I’ve picked up that’s become a way of breathing.
Adoration. Inhaling His Word and exhaling praise.
(For a longer description about why telling God what’s so great about God is a necessity in my daily, check out “Why I Adore.” For some practicals of adoration, read Showing Up.)
In short, this corner booth of my blog has been designated as a canvas for my daily adoration and a hope to invite others to join in what He’s using to alter my heart-chemistry.
The Psalmist says “And I will look up” and I say yes. When, even just for a moment, I take my eyes off me and let them gaze deeply into Him, life looks different. Diapers, soapy dish water and a conflict with a friend all are afforded new perspective when I tell Him who He is, when I tell my heart who He is.
So I look up.
I take a passage of scripture that speaks a truth about God (or I use this book as a guide) and I repeat those words back to Him. God, you are my strong tower. I praise you for being my strong tower. I let my mind linger and clear a space in my heart to receive. He writes back, and reminds me of the times where I’ve seen this very truth activated in my own life. I praise Him some more for that reminder. I wait, listen. Pray back. Speak back. Sing back. Write back. All to the God who is, on this particular day, especially, my strong tower.
When I look up, I see up. I see the beauty of this Man I barely know when I set my heart to adore a part of Him that His Book tells me about.
What started as my day’s ignition, has become a sort of survival. Peeling carrots over an already-stained page out of Psalms, I adore Him instead of despising me. As I blow-dry my hair, my thoughts linger on His beauty, not on my lack.
Beholding. I’m learning to behold something other than myself, craving the One I’ve been beholding, because how could I not? Enough glances towards this Man and words overflowing from those looks and I’m starting to believe He is who He says He is. In my daily, for my daily life.
So I invite you to join me in looking up, in adoring. In participating in something that is better than my morning chai — and that says a lot.
Here I will write my wanderings around His whispers. I will adore. And should you choose to join me, please add your adorations to the string of my adorations (in written comment or in your heart) and we’ll fill this space with praise.
And in between looking up, we might catch a glimpse back at ourselves and see a countenance change.
Because you become what you behold.
