Our Compass host, Rev. Ryan Dunn, explores Christmas presence, spiritual practices, and everyday connection with God in this holiday episode.
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This Christmas season, let’s be real—distraction and busyness can drain our joy. But the true gift isn’t in doing more; it’s about being more present. Host Rev. Ryan Dunn shares how simple spiritual practices—like focused breathing, one-word prayers, and sacred noticing—can interrupt the stress loop and reconnect us with what matters: ourselves, others, and the God who meets us right where we are. This year, embrace presence as your most transformative gift. Merry Christmas and stay grounded in what truly counts!
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This episode posted on December 17, 2025
Episode Transcript:
Ryan Dunn [00:00:02]:
Hey there and welcome to Compass Finding Spirituality in the Everyday. I'm your host, Ryan Dunn. I want to begin this episode with a confession. Sometimes I get so caught up in my to do list or my screen that I'm scrolling through that I forget to be fully here. You know, fully present, even in the moments that matter the most. And maybe you felt it too. It's Christmas, or almost Christmas as we're putting this together. And while this season is supposed to be about joy, peace and connection, it often leaves us feeling frazzled, distracted or emotionally depleted.
Ryan Dunn [00:00:43]:
So today I want to offer a pause, a reset, a chance to reflect on what the Christmas story and the very idea of God coming near to us in Jesus, what that might teach us about being present. Because maybe, maybe the most transformative gift you can receive or give this year is your own sacred presence. Let's begin there. We live in a world that's constantly pinging us. I know I've been on this kick a lot recently about attention and what tries to steal our attention. There's social media, email, texts, news alerts. It's all designed to grab our attention. When we doom scroll, our brains are actually responding to a kind of stress loop.
Ryan Dunn [00:01:33]:
Our stress hormone cortisol rises when we read distressing headlines or arguments online. And in response, our brain then tries to soothe us with a burst of dopamine, which we like. That rewards us for staying in this loop. So we keep on scrolling. We chase after a hit of relief while staying hooked to the anxiety. And that, that sounds exhausting. In truth, it is really exhausting. It leaves very little space for wonder, for peace, for divine presence.
Ryan Dunn [00:02:06]:
All these things that we kind of reflect upon the most at Christmas time. But here's the good news. We can interrupt this loop. Spiritual practices, especially the ones that cultivate a sense of presence, literally help our brains rewire. They calm the stress response and open us to deeper connection with God, deeper connection with others and, you know, deeper connection within ourselves as well. Now let's go back to the Christmas story. In this season, the Gospel of Luke paints a beautiful earthy scene. In chapter two, we have Mary, a young mother and giving birth in a barn.
Ryan Dunn [00:02:46]:
We know this story, right? The shepherds, low wage workers pulling an overnight shift suddenly find themselves enveloped in light and angelic song. For sure, it's disorienting, but they go, they go to find the child lying in a manger. The text says this. When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another lets go to Bethlehem and See this thing that has happened which the Lord has told us about. So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph and the baby who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child. And all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.
Ryan Dunn [00:03:35]:
But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. That's Luke 2:19. That line sticks out with me. She didn't rush past the moment. She treasured the moment. She valued the moment. She pondered it in her heart. That's presence over in Matthew.
Ryan Dunn [00:03:56]:
We can look at Matthew, chapter 1, verse 23, and we hear this. Look. The virgins shall conceive and bear a son. They shall name him Emmanuel, which means God is with us, not. This is me talking again now. End quote. I should say that is not meaning that God was with us. It's not meaning that God will be with us.
Ryan Dunn [00:04:19]:
God is. God is here. God is now. And that's the central promise of Christmas. Not just that a savior was born some time ago, but that God shows up in the middle of our mess, in the middle of our circumstances, in of the middle, in the very moments that we often overlook. And overall, that's really what this podcast is about, cultivating a sense that we can identify God's presence in the moments where we might not feel a connection, or in the moments that feel mundane. All right, let's turn to a few simple ways that we can cultivate this kind of holy presence, holy connection, or holy awareness in our lives. These aren't long or complicated.
Ryan Dunn [00:05:03]:
And you don't need candles. You don't need perfect silence. You don't need that mystical mountain view, really. You just need a willingness to pause and pay attention. So the first practice is just grounding with breath. You can try it together right now if it doesn't feel too weird for you. Wherever you are, you can sit or stand with both feet flat on the ground. Close your eyes if it feels safe.
Ryan Dunn [00:05:29]:
If you're driving, of course not. But if you can, close your eyes, take a deep breath in for a four count. One, two, three, four. Hold it for another four count. One, two, three, four. And then exhale slowly, maybe for a six count. Five, four, three, two, one. Again.
Ryan Dunn [00:05:56]:
Breath in for four, hold it for four and then exhale for six. As you breathe, you might quietly say something in your mind. We post all over our social medias breath prayers. But you might Just use simple words like inhaling and saying here, and exhaling and saying now. And repeat that as you need it, maybe for a minute or two. Let your thoughts drift away like clouds, and each breath can become a reminder you're here, God is here, and that is enough. I've been through some therapy, and my therapist has often questioned me, when, with the idea that, do I have what I need right now in this moment? And the answer is always yes. I'm living.
Ryan Dunn [00:06:54]:
I'm sitting on a couch. You know, nothing is threatening my life at that moment. It is enough. You are here. God is here in this moment, right now. It is enough. All right. Practice number two is the one word prayer.
Ryan Dunn [00:07:10]:
This is a practice that you can return to throughout your day, when you're, I don't know, washing dishes, when you're standing in that checkout line with the stocking stuffers, when you're stuck in traffic because it gets a little worse this time of year. Choose a word that centers you. Some suggestions might be. Well, in the season that we're in, we can think about Emmanuel or peace or joy. Or you might just want to think about with me or love. Or maybe you're just craving that sense of peace that comes through stillness. So maybe your centering word is stillness. You can breathe in, say the word slowly in your mind, breathe out, and feel the meaning of it wash over you.
Ryan Dunn [00:07:53]:
This prayer doesn't need answers. You're not actually asking for something. It's just a way of staying tethered to something deeper than our anxieties. Okay, here's a third suggested practice. It's kind of new to me, but in researching this, I found it kind of fascinating. And it's called sacred noticing. I don't know, maybe it's not. But that's just what I heard it called in one point.
Ryan Dunn [00:08:16]:
At some point today, pause and notice. What do you see that's beautiful? What do you hear that brings you some sense of comfort? Who do you love? Who loves you? And where do you feel God's presence? You might write those down. You might whisper a quiet thank you as a sense of prayer. And this is a form of prayer, and it builds gratitude, which recent studies show is one of the most effective ways to increase the emotional resilience and spiritual connection. Now, we do need to note that there are a whole number of people who are not feeling very present this season. Christmas can feel like a turn off. Maybe. Maybe because it's painful, it's alienating.
Ryan Dunn [00:09:06]:
Maybe you're missing someone. Maybe you're struggling financially or grieving or just feeling numb, know this. I offer this as a reminder. God's presence is not reserved just for the cheerful. This isn't just a season for those people who are overcome with joy. In Isaiah 7:14 the prophecy of Emmanuel comes comes in the midst of a conflict. It comes with a whole bunch of fear and uncertainty around it, the promise there is of God's withness or God's connection coming to not necessarily the serene, but in that case the scared. So whatever you're feeling, you're invited to bring it honestly.
Ryan Dunn [00:09:48]:
Your vulnerability is not a barrier to a sense of presence with God. It's often in fact, a doorway to a sense of presence and connection with God. So this Christmas, I hope you'll receive the invitation to be present, not one more thing to do, but as a way to be gently more you, more inside of yourself, more grounded, more aware, more in tune with the God who is already here. Take a breath, let it out, and be here in the present. Thanks for joining me on this special Christmas episode of Compass Finding Spirituality in the Everyday. If you found this meaningful, I'd really appreciate it. It would make me grateful if you subscribed on your favorite podcast app, or you can leave a rating or review that really helps others find us. Or you can share this episode with someone who could use a sense of presence this season.
Ryan Dunn [00:10:50]:
As always, you can explore more episodes, resources and spiritual [email protected] Compass Merry Christmas to you and may the presence of God, the Emmanuel, meet you right where you are. Peace.
