Perhaps it’s due to my Celtic heritage that I’m attuned to moments like this. Celtic Christians recognize “thin places,” places in the landscape where the veil between heaven and earth is thin. Boundaries figure strongly in thin places; boundaries between sea and shore, forest and field, highlands and lowlands, transitional spaces. Are there also “thin places” in time? Moments of transition when the presence of the Divine comes to awareness more easily?

Without attunement, thin places in time and space appear quite ordinary. We may easily miss them and the opportunity for Divine inspiration they may afford. We may miss them by being in a rush or by running late. We may miss them by keeping to well-traveled ways. We may miss them by thinking we’ve “been there; done that.” Here’s a question to consider: How do we become aware of “thin places,” sacred spaces and moments within the ordinary landscape and in everyday life?

Jesus spoke about the closeness of His presence: “I stand at the door and knock.” Just the other side of a thin place. “For anyone who opens the door I will come in....” What an amazing thought it is to realize that the omnipresent God, who can be everywhere, could also be absent from my space, just because I’m not paying attention enough to open the door. And how equally amazing it is to realize how easily we can allow that Presence to flow into our space and time through the “thin places.”

—Glenn Sackett

Click here to find links to more inspirational messages at the bottom of our Spiritual Growth page.