Starter Prayer: Deep peace of the flowing air to you, which fans your face on a sultry day, the air which you breathe deeply, rhythmically, which imparts to you energy, consciousness, life. Deep peace of the flowing air to you!

Focus Phrase: Honoring the Wind

Scripture Reading: Psalm 104:3-4

Optional Read-along: Water, Wind, Earth and Fire pp. 139b-140a (Conclusion, Section: Honoring the Four Elements, Wind)

Spiritual Direction:

During our journey we celebrated the metaphor of air or wind and explored new ways to understand our experience of God in terms of air: as life-breath, as inspiration, as enlivener, as directional guide, as powerful force, or as the current that supports flight.

Today, we enter into the first of a 5-part guided prayer.

For reflection: How has God been speaking to you or appearing to you in the form of wind over these past six weeks? What experiences of wind do you cherish?

For prayer practice: Make yourself comfortable near the altar space you created yesterday. Relax in your seat. Feel your feet beneath the ground. Breathe deeply, and spend some time in silence. 
     Begin by facing east, the place of the rising sun, of morning, of new beginnings, and the season of springtime.
     Become conscious of the element of wind: breathe in its gifts of air. Remember that the word for breath and spirit is the same in Hebrew– ruach. Imagine the breath of God breathing into you at the very moment of your creation. Welcome God’s life-giving breath into your life. See the dawn of creation, the birds and the winged creatures flying across the morning sky. Join them for a moment in their song, recognizing that air sustains our voices. 
     Notice where in your body you feel the gifts of air, breath, lightness, and the invitation to express your voice.
     Ponder where in your life you feel the gift of air. Where are you being invited to greater flights of possibility? What song are you being called to sing?
     With the psalmist say: “You ride on the wings of the wind” (Psalm 104)

Be encouraged in your practice,
Katie Martinez

Endnotes

• For daily texts with the Focus Word, Starter Prayer and link to these daily posts, text the word “journey” to 970-500-0970.
• Are you receiving the weekly guide every Sunday via email? Register here.
• Join the Orange Dots of Hope Facebook Group for spiritual conversations on the journey.

This daily devotion is part of the Summer Growth Journey: Learning to Pray with Nature with Crossroads Church. Many of us are also reading through Water, Wind, Earth & Fire: The Christian Practice of Praying with the Elements by Christine Valters Paintner. To purchase a copy, or for more information, email us at [email protected].