Every day Farmer Murphy has two eggs for his breakfast. But he does not keep hens. No one gives him the eggs and he does not buy, beg, borrow or steal them. How does he manage to have two eggs for breakfast every day?

The farmer keeps ducks! Sometimes we assume lots of things even when it comes to eggs! We assume that the only egg that can be eaten is from a hen. While they may not be as common, duck, goose and quail eggs are also readily available.

The same often goes with spiritual matters too. We can often make lots of assumptions. That perhaps there is only one way to pray, only one way of connecting with God, only one way of taking time out, when in fact there are so many other options available. There are many things that can be said about the God we believe in. Some of these are obvious and some we sense over a longer period of time.

One of these is that the God we believe in is a God of surprise. This means that God can often surprise us when we least expect it and that we can often meet God in the quieter moments of our lives. To begin to limit our experience of God to just one experience does God a massive disservice.

There are endless experiences and many of them are waiting to be discovered. That is why spirituality should never be boring. If we try to box and limit our experience of God or get tied up into the same routine, then the experience will surely over time become boring or dry. Over many years the Church in Ireland put all its eggs in one basket, going to Mass. There was nothing else encouraged or spoken about. It is only now that new ways of spiritually connecting people are gaining momentum.

As we journey towards Advent it is time to reflect on new ways of connecting with God. The good news is that every way, no matter how small, is important and valued.