July 15 – Living a Mystical Life in the World

Gregg’s Reflection

I used to think mystical experiences were rare mountaintop moments—sacred events that happened far away from daily life. Over the years, I’ve learned that the real work of mysticism is integration: letting the awareness of God’s presence infuse everything from conversations to chores. Shortly after moving to Colorado full time, I remember one time driving home from church. All of a sudden, I felt a warming inside that made me aware of God’s presence and affirmed we were on the right path.

A mystical life doesn’t require withdrawing from the world but engaging it with new eyes. The same Spirit I’ve felt in silence and prayer is present in the checkout line, in the neighbor’s wave, in the eyes of our new puppy. 

These ordinary moments become sacraments when I remember they are charged with the presence of God.

Living a mystical life in the world means seeing everything as connected—God in me, God in you, God in all creation. This awareness calls forth compassion, patience, and a willingness to respond to the world’s needs from a place of deep centeredness. It’s about being rooted enough in God’s love to carry it into every interaction, letting union shape action.

Scripture

So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.

1 Corinthians 10:31

Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

Matthew 5:16

Ancient Quotes

We can do little things for God; I turn the cake that is frying on the pan for love of Him, and that done, if there is nothing else to call me, I prostrate myself in worship before Him, who has given me grace to work; afterwards I rise happier than a king.

Brother Lawrence, The Practice of the Presence of God, 4th Conversation

The Lord walks among the pots and pans.

Teresa of Ávila, The Book of Foundations, Ch. 5

Modern Quotes

The spiritual journey is not a career or a success story. It is a series of small humiliations of the false self that become, over time, the freeing of the true self in God.

Thomas Keating, Invitation to Love, p. 74

The path of the mystics is not about isolation, but integration. It’s seeing the extraordinary in the ordinary, the miracle in every mundane moment.

James Finley, Living School teaching

Far from being withdrawn from the world or indifferent to the suffering that goes on in it, the mystic is uniquely motivated and qualified to respond to social and economic injustices.

Richard Rohr, CAC Morning Devotion, 7/16/20

Journaling Prompts

• Where have you recently experienced God’s presence in an ordinary moment?
  
  
• How might you integrate contemplation into your daily routines?
  
  
• What would it look like for your relationships and work to be shaped by the awareness of God in all things?

Too may times, our experience of God is mediated by our church, our pastors or priests, yet it does not have to be. Do you not yearn for a direct experience of God? One that lets you know the lived truth that God is ever present in the present moment when we have eyes to see.

👉 Go deeper into this week’s theme:
Read the full Week 28 Reflection: Mysticism