Today kicked off our second week in Israel. We transitioned from touring the historical and Biblical sites of Israel to the spiritual formation portion of the trip. The goal is to practice spiritual disciplines so our disciplines become habits, which in turn, become a lifestyle (Dr. Dave Sanders). Today we practiced three spiritual disciplines: a) a guided Scripture reading (Lectio Devina), b) the Breathing Prayer, and c) the Daily Examen.
A critical part of the Daily Examen is to identify the elements of the day (and in our case, the week) for which we were most grateful. For me, that was an easy one to answer. I am most grateful for our Israeli tour guide: Shmulik Eitan.
This guy is a hidden gem and our entire group has come to adore him. He is kind and funny. He is compassionate and thorough. He seems almost destined to do this job; he does it that well. And, he loves his mom. My personal experience has told me the real good ones adore their mother!
Who is the hidden gem in your life? Have you thanked that person lately? Maybe today should be the day!
"When I started to count my blessings, my whole life turned around." -Willie Nelson