Stars. I’ve been drawn to these wondrous luminosities in the vast cosmos since I was a small child. The Christmas story of the Magi following a star’s path remains a cherished inspiration. Those travelers of the heart trusted what stirred within them as they studied the night sky, a knowledge eventually leading them to the divine Light.
The North Star in the Milky Way Galaxy is well known for guiding people in need of finding their way. This directional assistant named Polaris can be located in the Northern Hemisphere’s sky. Astronomers tell us that finding the North Star “is easy on any clear night. Just find the Big Dipper. The two stars on the end of the Dipper’s “cup” point the way to Polaris, which is the tip of the handle of the Little Dipper, or the tail of the little bear in the constellation Ursa Minor.” This faithful light has a long history of guidance—assisting many a sailor on vast seas, fearful slaves running for their lives at night, indigenous groups traveling in deserts, and lost hikers searching for the path leading toward home base.
We each have a North Star within us, the presence of the Spirit’s guiding light. Like people of old who trusted they could find their way if they found this steady star in the sky, so we can find our way if we trust our inner Light. As 2023 opens, I wonder in what direction your heart’s North Star is leading you—perhaps guiding you deeper into the abyss of your being where the truest Love resides; possibly pointing to a way through an accumulated grief from too many loved ones departing; maybe leading toward an open road where you can reach out to people longing for peace or the basic necessities of life, where you can be a north star for children who’ve wandered into drug addiction, elderly spouses no longer recognizing a life partner, friends seriously ill, or those losing belief in a positive future.
On January 1st of last year, I wrote in my journal:
Always there is the Star beckoning, lighting the way, urging a journey further into the heart; if unsure of where the path leads, trust the movement, confident of bearing a gift worthy of the giving; share with full confidence a love meant to make a home in the life of another who waits—not a Babe of long ago but a human heart where the Spirit now resides within every created being. Go forth, follow this guiding Light leading the way. Carry the gift. Let the intuitive self follow the North Star on the journey called “life” and enter into a trusted peacefulness.
As we begin 2023, the troubled world situation has not changed, nor have the difficult circumstances that press upon our personal lives, but we can still carry the gift of a loving presence with us. We have our inner North Star to guide and direct us. We will have to look, be attentive and deliberate in order to follow that Star. A daily practice for January might be to place one hand over our heart and hold the other hand outward toward the cosmos, uniting our heart’s North Star with all that dwells in the vast universe. Do this for a silent minute, setting the intention to be guided as we move along in the new year. Together let us join in the kinship of hope as we find our way, starry night after starry night.
Abundant peace,
Joyce Rupp
A Prayer for Guidance
“She will guide me wisely in my actions.” (Wisdom9:11)
Trusted Guide,
you are my mentor and Inspiration,
my home of good choices and decisions.
You help me search with confidence
as I find my way to inner peace.
Please gather your wisdom around me.
Guide me carefully as I make choices
about how to use my energy positively.
Place your discerning touch on my mind
so that I will think clearly.
Place your loving influence on my heart
so I will be more fully attentive
to what is really of value.
Teach me how to hear your voice,
to be aware of what is in my mind and heart,
to attend to your wisdom in those around me,
to acknowledge my intuitions and ponder my dreams,
to listen to the earth and all of life,
for in each piece of existence you are guiding me.
Guide of my life,
thank you for all you have given to me.
Reveal my spiritual path
and direct me in the living of it.
Lead me to inner peace and oneness with you.
(Adapted from: Prayers to Sophia: Deepening Our Relationship with Holy Wisdom, Joyce Rupp. Sorin Books, Notre Dame, IN)
