Enliven Your Daysনমুনা

Enlivening Your Days

Mystery and paradox. Those are two things that people — perhaps especially in our Western culture — aren’t too comfortable with. And yet, that’s exactly what Laura Sallade seeks to create in her artwork. Her pieces call viewers to embrace the beauty of mystery and, in a way, better appreciate the unknowable depth of God’s wisdom and love.

Today, Laura is sharing the habits that help her cultivate closeness with Jesus.

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In the morning, I roll out of bed about an hour before my husband and come downstairs to make a cup of pour-over coffee. I leave most of the lights off except for a reading lamp that arches over our couch.

I spend this time praying, meditating, journaling, and reading my Bible. I try to stay present, deciding which practice I should lead with each morning.

Sometimes, I need the physical act of writing out my prayers to keep me focused, and sometimes, the act of writing my prayers becomes too much of a task to check off my list, so I oscillate between that and meditative prayer.

While reading the Word, I usually choose a few verses to read over several times, and the Holy Spirit will often press certain words or phrases on my heart, centering and enlivening me for the day ahead and revealing what he is teaching me in this unique season of my life.

When my husband comes downstairs, we have some time in the Word and prayer together. Sometimes, we go through a gospel, an epistle, or a book in the Old Testament, reading chronologically a few verses or a chapter at a time. We discuss what we’ve read and then pray together before we start our separate work days. This routine is not always kept perfectly, and I don’t think it’s particularly original, but it’s what has been the most beneficial to me in my walk with God.

—Laura Sallade, nationally commissioned artist, as told to Rapt Interviews

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