After “Huh, I didn’t notice that before,” we can be sure that “Ah Ha” is soon to follow. It is a natural and delightful progression. Recognition and seeing invite us to a place of understanding and revelation. What a joy it is when these things swell up from within us! Like a fountain or a geyser, the realization bursts forth. We can find ourselves swept up by the new found knowledge. It is like someone turns on a light and we can finally see our surroundings in what was previously a darkened room. Illumination.
The magnitude of the “Ah Ha” can vary from a simple spark to a bolt of lightning. So too can be the significance; from amazing and trivial to a lasting and permanent game changer. Like the liminal space from which they come, “Ah Ha” moments are unscripted and unforced. You can’t manufacture them. They are intensely personal. No two people experience them in quite the same way or at quite the same time. “Ah Ha” is about making connections.
Recently, I spent the better part of a day installing the plumbing under a new sink. The replacement sink was a good two inches deeper which made all the old pipes and connections obsolete. It took me two trips to the local hardware store and a handful of supplies to make the necessary pipe connections between the sink and the wastewater pipe that came out of the wall. I was so proud of myself for figuring it all out. The water flowed down the drain without leaking, bolstering my foolish pride. Hey, I could have been a plumber!
A week later, I heard a shriek coming from the kitchen. With the urgency of general quarters aboard a naval vessel under attacked, our household admiral (a.k.a. my dear wife, Katie) called everyone to battle stations. The pipes under the sink gave way and bled fluid everywhere. The colossal mess expanded as the water rapidly flowed throughout the under sink cabinet and onto the floor. So much for being a plumber!
After we sopped up the chaos, I noticed something that I previously missed. I forgot to attach one of the compression rings onto the pipe. It was a wonder that the pipe held up for four days. Seeing my error, I began to understand what went wrong. Ah-Ha – all I needed to do was to tighten a simple ring and the connection would be strong enough to last.
Connections. Realization. Illumination. It seems like Ah-Ha moments are about linking things together in metaphorical space just as I was finally able to do in the physical space under my sink. When we make the proper connections ideas, actions, responses, and relationships can flow freely. Connections, in turn, might lead to additional insight. At least, it allows for a freedom of movement – a fluidity that has a rhythm and beautiful all of its own doing. No longer are we stuck. We can see a way to travel into the future with understanding.
In the cartoons, when a character has an “Ah-Ha” moment a little light bulb pops up. No more are we in the dark. A spark. An insight. Suddenly, it all makes sense. Thoughts and actions are now able to flow in a way that was previously unknown. Somehow the pipes are instantaneously connected allowing for things to flow rapidly. From a spiritual perspective, we can only describe such moments as divine gifts. Since we do not manufacture them; the insights come from beyond ourselves. To which we can only say, “thank you,” and delight in their advent.
Silent Prayer:
Find a comfortable place to sit. Set your phone or watch for seventeen minutes. Close your eyes. Breathe deeply. As thoughts come to your mind – push them aside. Now is not the time. Trust in God to hold your life without needing to control it with our thoughts or actions. At the end of your time – say a simple “thank you” or “Amen.” Tomorrow, we will build on this spiritual practice by adding more time. Consider the time spent in silent prayer as an Advent gift – an opportunity to enter into God’s shalom/peace.
Today’s Silent Prayer Goal – Seventeen minutes
If the challenge of seventeen minutes of silence seems to be just too much, an alternative might be to continue with seven or eight minutes of daily, prayerful silence for the remainder of this Advent season. The length of time spent in silent prayer is not as important as the practice itself so give yourself the permission to do it for as long as works for you.
Scripture: Philippians 1:8-11
8For God is my witness, how I long for all of you with the compassion of Christ Jesus. 9And this is my prayer, that your love may overflow more and more with knowledge and full insight 10to help you to determine what is best, so that in the day of Christ you may be pure and blameless, 11having produced the harvest of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God.
Thank you for reading the seventeenth blog of this Advent series. If it was meaningful to you, please feel free to like it below or share it with your friends. You may also leave a comment. Blessings on the journey as we head through this season of Advent together. In Christ, Walt.