Praying with a Painting: The leaves of autumn

At this time of the year, I love thinking about spending time in the upper Midwest, when the color of trees rival those in New England. I sense a crisp feeling in the air and take in the slanted sunlight while enjoying the crunch of a Honeycrisp apple. How good is God!

Whether or not we’re surrounded with beauty in our physical setting, we can take a mini-retreat and pray with this lovely painting by my dad using the practice of visio divina (sacred seeing).

• Start by welcoming God to join you in this practice through his Spirit. Ask him to help you calm your mind and your heart to receive him.
• Gaze at the painting for a few moments, slowly and with care. Notice what your eye settles on, spending a few moments there. What captures your attention?
• As you interact with the painting, ask God to speak to you. Might he be whispering to you in his still, small voice? Sending you a refrain of a song? A text from Scripture?
• Respond to God through prayers of praise, adoration, intercession, petition, and so on. You may have moved away from the images in the painting, or not. That’s fine – follow the Spirit. Rest in God’s presence, giving thanks for his love and light.
• As you draw the exercise to a close, you might want to note in a journal any insights you received or impressions you had.