Spiral: Circling Around a Central Point

Silence is praise to you
Zion-dwelling God,
And also obedience.
You hear the prayer in it all. (Psalm 65:1 The Message)

Happy New Year! I love saying that this time of year, because you probably think I can’t read a calendar. But in the realm of the church calendar, it is the greeting to expect. The liturgical year begins with Advent.

We often associate Advent with counting down the days until Christmas. Many novelty and craft stores offer Advent calendars with pockets for notes or miniature doors with chocolate candy behind them. (I used to get the candy ones for our boys. Last year they agreed that they might be a little too old, seeing that they are in their mid-twenties. And they admitted the chocolates weren’t that tasty.) So we put a tradition to rest.

As a family, each year our Advent observances would vary. We had a wreath with the traditional purple, pink and white candles. One year, I bought a wrought iron candelabra for our Advent centerpiece. And a couple years ago, I spied this wooden spiral wreath crafted by a young man in Canada,which I would have purchased, except my husband thought he could replicate it. I agreed to give him the pleasure of crafting one for our family.

I don’t know why, but the spiral design intrigues me. It evokes movement. The spiral reminds me of a path that leads me along on a journey. A journey that looks like shepherds, flocks, angels and kings and a holy family. A holy family that invites me to take the pilgrimage to the interior landscape of my soul.

My soul being the place that longs for connections. Connections that intertwine present day expectations with memories of the past. The past cries out for me to hope into the future. Life can spiral out of control, yet the spiral circles around to the central point.

The central point being: What will I center my Christmas desires around this year? Will I embrace the silence or scramble to recreate outgrown traditions? Will I rush to make rash judgments about others or will I walk in joyful obedience to love others? Will I see both silence and obedience as forms of prayer? To be honest I will weave in and out of these questions on a daily basis.

The spiral reminds me that I don’t have to waver, there is a path that leads to joy-filled days. (See Psalm 16:11) The spiral reminds me that God’s grace surrounds me every moment, clearing away the debris of sin and ushering in His mercy and peace and forgiveness.

How does your life spiral these days: frantically veering out of control or joyfully twirling in the presence of God? What connections are you making with the past, present and future as we behold the coming of the King?

Posted on December 1, 2015 by kelrohlf 5

Let the Advent{ures} Begin

Sometimes the Advent season starts the Sunday after Thanksgiving. After checking the liturgical calendar, I discovered that Advent will not officially start until December 2nd this year.

So I have an extra week to prepare for Advent and so do you.

In the meantime, I am setting my heart on pilgrimage.

Our destination is Bethlehem . . . the birth place of Jesus. How will we get there? What will we experience on the way? Who will we become as we journey once again through this sacred narrative?

Come, let’s visit this familiar story with open hearts.

Posted on November 26, 2012November 15, 2013 by kelrohlf 4

Recall: To Bring Back to Mind

Blessed are those whose strength is in you, whose hearts are set on pilgrimage.

Psalm 84:5 NIV

With the 31 Day Challenge completed, I continue on this journey to seek God as we approach the season of Advent. I am preparing provisions, spending time in solitude and recalling the goodness of God in the land of the living.

As we close in on the end of this year, my mind returns to this time last year. It always amazes me how much can change over twelve months. Last year this time, I was putting the finishing touches on a dream. I was in a flurry of activity. Finishing papers and studying for finals to complete my bachelor’s degree in English. Editing and formatting two books. The first being, a collection of poems, prose and art pieces published for Bellerive,the literary publication of Pierre Laclede Honors College. The second, my own self-published collection of devotions: Defining Moments: Overflowing with Living Words. To recall the vast array of accomplishments humbles me, because truly without God’s strength, I would never have dreamed of completing a degree and a book in the same year. (And not to mention that I still prepared and celebrated the holidays with gusto.)

This year has been a year of rest. A year of saying no to good things, in order to nestle into God’s goodness and wait. To taste and see that God is good in the midst of hard things. He carries us through in ways we never could imagine.

This time of year brings to mind the munificent provisions that have been bestowed upon us. God sees beforehand every single thing that we need. He knows exactly what will be best for us, even if we can’t see it for ourselves.

As we celebrate this season with gratitude, may the blessings of God restore your hope, peace and joy!

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