5 | stingray bay to shelley beach / kuurn naa mullin | peek whurrong country #Lent 2023

‘I am the Alpha and Omega,’ says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty. (Revelation 1:8)

About a year and a half ago, I was listening to a conversation on Radio National. An Aboriginal woman was explaining the Indigenous preference for the word ‘Everywhen’, in place of the term ‘Dreamtime.’ She explained Everywhen as an Indigenous concept of time where past, present and future are interconnected. It resonated deeply with me and, over the last year and a bit, I’ve enjoyed looking at things through the lens of Everywhen.

Playing with this idea brought to mind my understanding that all religious and spiritual practices have at their core a fundamental truth of the interconnectivity of all life. And I reckon I’ve known that truth, firstly through childbirth, but also because sometimes when I’m walking along the rugged coastline on the unceded lands of the Eastern Maar Nation, I glimpse the majesty of the Creator in the towering rock cliffs.

I sense the Way in the wild waves crashing around me. I delight in the Light sparkling on the playful waves or breaking through cloud banks and beaming down into the ocean. I feel Spirit in the stormy gales or in the summer sea breezes that blow my worries away. And I give joyful thanks for the One who includes all that can be: Alpha and Omega. Ω

What is this? Lent is the 40 days, excluding Sundays, before Easter. Traditionally it is a time of reflection and pilgrimage. To help you on this journey, Sanctuary has put together daily stories and images from people in the congregation which are focused on God in this place. Why this theme? Read this! #Lent2023. Our Spiritual Geography © Sanctuary, 2023. Sanctuary is based on Peek Whurrong country. Full acknowledgement of country here.