Wholey & Holy You

Each year, many of us struggle to choose a Lenten practice. What to give up? What to add? What will draw us closer to holiness? To living life with the Spirit? To God? Six weeks seems like a perfect opportunity to make our core self, our spirituality a priority. If we intentionally examine and use the other areas of our life to inform our choices on how to grow in our spiritual life, we will see that as we grow in HOLINESS, we can also grow in WHOLENESS and wellness of body, mind, and spirit.

In the fields of Wellness and Psychology, a model of wellness often used is the Wellness Wheel. It illustrates the importance and interconnectedness of different areas of life in creating a well-rounded and balanced lifestyle. The Wellness Wheel helps practitioners and clients conceptualize that all areas of life are interconnected and crucial to well-being of body, mind, and spirit. The Wholely & Holy You Wheel has the center as Spirituality. People all around the world desire and seek that truth that stands in awe and hope to engage with the Sacred, the Divine. Many studies show that those with a healthy and thriving spiritual life function very well in all areas of their life ( Report). Surrounding the spirituality center around the wheel are the other areas that are affected by and in turn affect the center: Psychological & Emotional, Physical Movement, Environmental, Financial, Rest & Play, Nutrition, Social & Community, and Intellectual.

In previous years of Lent, many of us have only focused on the center spirituality aspect when choosing Prayer, Fasting, and Almsgiving practices. That focus is helpful, but sometimes we may pick practices that are enriching for the 40 days, but are not sustainable or fruitful after Lent. Often we ignore the aspects of our life that are really getting in the way of our spiritual growth, of holiness and wholeness. So this year for Lent, try a new approach: become aware of how each of the areas of your life either help or hinder that center piece, your spirituality. In doing so you will see greater wholeness and unified sustainable growth of body, mind, and spirit both during and after Lent.

We were made to be integrated beings – if we truly want to be who we were made to be and live connected to the Spirit, we must examine all the areas and how they affect that spirit and our holiness and relationship with God. For when we focus on WHOLENESS, we will grow in HOLINESS.

These days leading up to Lent, spend time noticing how each area truly affects the Spirit in your life.

· Which area brings you peace, joy, and love? What are you doing or experiencing that leads to holiness and intimacy with God? How can you increase or add to those parts of your life during Lent so as to grow?

· What is distracting you from God? What is getting in the way of virtue and living life connected to the Spirit? Perhaps this is where to focus your fasting for these 6 weeks.

Each week during Lent, I will continue to offer reflections on the Wholey & Holy You Wheel and ways we can use each area to enrich that core part of ourselves. We will begin to see more clearly how every area of our life was created to be interconnected and integrated. And as we do so, we will more clearly understand the truth of who we were made to be – Holy and Whole in body, mind, and spirit.