Day 7 - Embodiment & the Bible

“When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long.” (Psalm 32:3, NLT)

“You feed them from the abundance of your own house, letting them drink from your river of delights.” (Psalm 36:8, NLT)

“Instead, I have calmed and quieted myself, like a weaned child who no longer cries for its mother’s milk. Yes, like a weaned child is my soul within me.” (Psalm 131:2, NLT)

“He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams. He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to his name.” (Psalm 23:2-3, NLT)

“You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever.” (Psalm 16:11, NLT)

As we come to end of our time together, I wonder what you notice in your body today, and how that might be different from what you noticed in your body on day 1. Spend time reflecting through the following questions, simply slowing down to notice anything that has been shifting or stirring within.

In what ways have you brought God’s compassion with you through these devotionals?

In what ways would you like to ask for God’s compassion to enter in and reshape how you received these devotionals?

How have the psalmists’ embodied cries invited you to tune in with your own embodiment?

In what ways does it still feel uncomfortable to connect with your body?

How do the psalmists’ voices stir a longing within you to be more connected with your mind, body, and soul?

In what ways might you incorporate connecting with your mind, body, and soul in future devotionals?

As we land the plane here, I’d love to leave you with one last set of verses that cover everything from internal anguish to deeply settled peace.

I love seeing verses that give voice to the psalmists’ internal growls and roars, Hebrew words that are sometimes softened in our English translations to words like “groan.” The psalmists were not just tapping into their “thinking brain,” the part of their brain that knows verbal language, but also, something deeper. As they connected with their bodies, they connected with the whole of who God created, giving voice to what was happening from depths that don’t always feel intelligible to us, but still have something to say. I wonder, have you ever heard any part of you growling or roaring within? If so, what would it be like to voice to this pain?

Alongside these verses, I’ll leave you with some of my favorite verses that over the years have brought a sense of peace that runs far deeper than my thinking brain, down to the core of my gut, lulling me into sweetly deep exhales and restorative rest. I share these not as platitudes or to bypass pain, but to stitch together ancient expressions of all the things our bodies carry, ancient expressions that we can continue to learn from today.

As you continue on with your days beyond these devotionals, my hope is that you will take curiosity with you—curiosity about just how deeply we experience both distress and peace in our bodies, listening in for the ways your body might be communicating these things, knowing you can always join with these ancient voices in cries of pain and songs of praise to God, who is able to hold and understand all that stirs within the depths of our bodies, minds, and souls.

Thank you for walking with me.