59. The Noble Pursuit of Being Ordinary

What if the goal today isn't to make your life extraordinary?

What if it's to learn how to see the extraordinary gift hidden inside the ordinary?

In this reflection on Psalm 104, John Ortberg explores how modern life has changed the way we see the world around us. We know more than ever about how nature works, yet we may have lost something along the way: our ability to experience creation as filled with meaning, wonder, and the presence of God.

Drawing on Charles Taylor and Dallas Willard, John invites us to recover the eyes of "saints, poets, and artists" and rediscover what Willard called "the well-kept secret of the ordinary."

Birds sing.

Trees grow.

Wild animals drink.

Leviathan frolics.

People go to work.

And apparently God really likes hyraxes.

Psalm 104 invites us to look again and recognize that ordinary creation is overflowing with the generosity, creativity, and goodness of God.

In this episode:

• Psalm 104 and the wonder of creation
• Charles Taylor and the "immanent frame"
• Recovering the enchantment of reality
• Dallas Willard and the secret of ordinary life
• Why God made the hyrax
• Seeing creation as more than something to use
• The love-letter analogy
• Receiving your life as a gift
• Finding God in everyday moments

Scriptures:

• Psalm 104
• Genesis 1:26–27

#Psalm104 #JohnOrtberg #DallasWillard #CharlesTaylor #Psalms #Creation #SpiritualFormation #ChristianFaith #BibleStudy #Wonder

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Music Credits:
Vikersund by RØRE - MB01V0UASAACPKE
Alta by RØRE - MB01IWZVJASGKHF

00:00 Make It an Ordinary Day
 00:27 Recovering the Eyes of the Psalmist
 01:06 Psalm 104 Begins
 02:17 Charles Taylor & the Loss of Enchantment
 02:51 Dallas Willard's Secret of the Ordinary
 03:28 Listen to the Birds Sing
 03:51 Rediscovering an Ordinary Gift
 04:13 All Creatures Are God's Creatures
 04:56 Meet the Hyrax
 05:49 Why Did God Make Hyraxes?
 06:14 We've Forgotten How to See
 06:50 The Love Letter Illustration
 07:18 You're Missing the Words
 07:40 Creation Is Filled With Meaning
 08:06 Every Leaf Is Charged With God's Presence
 08:31 Go Outside and Actually Look
 08:42 Why Did God Make Leviathan?
 09:08 The Gratuitous Goodness of God
 09:54 God Rejoices in His Creation
 10:16 The Gift of Being Ordinary
 10:53 Receive Your Life as a Gift
 11:15 Give the Gift of Life to Others
 11:36 Make It an Ordinary Day