Celtic Spiritual Exercises

Blessing Each Moment

In the Celtic tradition, one of the practices that aids in loving attention to daily life is blessing. Blessings are prayers celebrating the ordinary tasks of the day. There is a beautiful book of Scottish blessings called the Carmina Gadelica, collected by Andrew Carmichael in the 19th century in Scotland’s Outer Hebrides. It is filled with blessings of the day’s unfolding.

Blessing is an act of acknowledging the gifts and graces already present and offering gratitude to God for them. All the mundane activities of the day are opportunities to witness grace at work. 

In daily life
We can begin to see the everyday things of our lives as openings into the depths of the world. The steam rising from my coffee, the bird singing from a tree branch outside my window, the doorbell announcing a friend’s arrival, the meal that nourishes my body for service all bring me closer to God’s grace. Consider writing a blessing of gratitude for each of the ordinary things that sustain you during the day. 

Scripture meditation
God said, “This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the clouds, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth.”
—Genesis 9:12–13

Prayer

Open my eyes that I may see

The Presence that is all about me.

Open my ears that I may hear

The voice that is quiet yet ever near.

Open my heart that I may feel

The love of my God close and real.

Open each sense, make me aware

Of the Power and Peace always there.