What comes to mind when you hear the word "pilgrimage"? Trekking your way over rugged terrain to reach a shrine? Traveling thousands of miles to meet up with thousands of other pilgrims at a particular time of year? Perhaps. But what if any time you stepped out of your zone of familiarity could become a spiritual experience? Here are some real life examples:
Happening onto a painting at the Musée d'Orsay that touches something buried deep inside you and leaves you filled and wanting more at the same time.
Wandering the streets of a medieval Italian town and stumbling across a secluded garden that feels like it was reserved for you.
Coming across a serene, blue glacier in the most utter silence you've ever heard, with not another soul in sight.
Sitting surrounded by the world's most beautiful stained glass and wishing you could know the king who commissioned it as an act of worship.
Sitting at a table with new friends and wondering how you could possibly have been there for three hours.
Climbing an extinct volcano in New Zealand and appreciating the challenge of the climb as much as the vistas from the summit.
A conversation with a stranger whose kindness cuts through the outer crust of your heart. You come to find out that part of his name means "peace".
Marveling at the mysteries of a lost civilization that left behind the glorious ruins where you now stand.
Being invited to share the meager rations of a refugee family who has lost everything, destroying and rebuilding your notions of hospitality and humility.
All of these, which I have experienced first hand, make the term "sightseeing" sound so mundane, so small. When you step outside to experience something or some place new -- even if it is one of the most touristy spots on the planet -- there are surely divinely orchestrated moments waiting for you.
Especially if you're open to them.
They can be little serendipities, or they can be moments of transcendence that alter your understanding of God.
We're planning a framework for late spring where such moments are sure to find you. All you have to do is show up.
Want to know more? Click here.