We are never alone…
Welcome to the latest newsletter from The Distant Spire.
I hope you enjoy Footprints a track from my first album Transcendental Horizons. Recorded in my home studio, it features solo acoustic guitar with the soothing sound of the ocean and ambient textures created with electric guitar.
About the inspiration
I was a twenty year old newly baptised christian working in a factory making ammunition boxes, when I became friends with a work colleague who was adopted and had grown up in a Salvation Army family. He wasn’t a practising christian and he used to mock my faith (but in the nicest way possible). He did end up coming to church at my invitation once but he wasn’t swayed in his views. He approached me one day at work and gave me a poem written on rice paper. I had never seen rice paper or the poem before but as I read it the simplicity, beauty, and meaning touched me profoundly:
Footprints in the Sand
One night I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord. Many scenes from my life flashed across the sky. In each scene I noticed footprints in the sand. Sometimes there were two sets of footprints, other times there were one set of footprints.
This bothered me because I noticed that during the low periods of my life, when I was suffering from anguish, sorrow or defeat, I could see only one set of footprints.
So I said to the Lord, "You promised me Lord, that if I followed you, you would walk with me always. But I have noticed that during the most trying periods of my life there have only been one set of footprints in the sand.
Why, when I needed you most, you have not been there for me?"
The Lord replied,"The times when you have seen only one set of footprints, is when I carried you."
I was struck immediately with a ‘that’s me’ moment. With all of life’s challenges, trials, disappointments, especially as a child and wondering where God was, I realised that He was there with me. I thought to myself, “So that’s what that strange comforting feeling was when I was in the depths of despair?”. I remember this poem and its message from time to time especially when God feels distant. We should be encouraged and assured that He will never leave us or forsake us, no matter what challenges, trials and desolations assail us in this life.
About the process
In music the concepts of space and ‘busyness’ are commonly used to describe the arrangement and instrumentation of a song. Some genres are busy, some are minimal, some are shades of both and can be very dynamic. The tendency is sometimes to go for filling every space.
This also applies to our lives; apart from the non-negotiable and necessary tasks of life, it is easy to fill every space with screen time, entertainment and what a Benedictine monk described to me as low quality activity. It takes an intentional effort, restraint, and discipline to stop and let God fill the silence and the downtime. I have attempted to achieve this effect with Footprints, albeit with ambience not silence, or musical space – otherwise it wouldn’t be music right? The arrangement is sparse and minimal, encouraging you to slow down, tune in and wait. Let God fill the spaces as you listen and reflect on how he carries us, by His grace, through the difficulties and trials of life.
Where Else Can I Listen?
My music is available through the links below. I invite you to listen and subscribe to The Distant Spire for regular updates of music for meditation.
I recommend headphones or full range speakers both for listening quality and to provide some isolation from the noise and business so you can more easily enter into a quiet time with the Lord.
Some Additional Notes
I’m still making my way through The Interior Castle by St Teresa of Avila. I am a slow reader and taking notes, as I want to retain as much as I can. I will be going on a pilgrimage which will include visiting the city of Avila later this year so it is especially important for me to have a connection with her writings. I have already been challenged by her deep humility.
I highly recommend Emily G for her series of posts with a chapter by chapter commentary.
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God bless you and keep you,
D.A SigleyThe Distant Spire
Footnotes and Resources
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