Did you know September 16-22, 2024, is Thinking of You Week? I had never heard of this week before until recently and think this is a rather cool week to promote and participate in. Yes, maybe it could be another “Hallmarky” reason to purchase a card, but really I think I will dig into my stationary drawer to find some pretty notecards and send some handwritten notes next week to friends I haven’t connected with for a while. Thinking of You Week is sponsored by the Greeting Card Association – no surprise there – but it is a nice touch and reminder to be kind and spread some joy to one another. The world certainly could use some right now! One challenge is to send 7 cards to 7 people over 7 days. That would be fun. A simple hello can brighten up someone’s day in so many ways. I like the idea of a note or card, but I think an unexpected email, phone call, lunch or visit could work as well. Human contact and interaction is lifegiving. Letting your friend know you’ve been … [Read more...]
A Neglected Spiritual Practice
Quick! If I would ask you to name 10 spiritual practices, what would you list? I bet you could do it: Yes these are the basic ones and others I am sure. Yet the other day I was rereading the scripture for the week the story of Elijah in I Kings 19 and was reminded of a spiritual practice I use quite often but rarely mention either in writing or orally and rarely see talked about either - a rather invisible, neglected spiritual practice. Napping. In I Kings 19 Elijah is exhausted from running from Queen Jezebel and quite discouraged. God gives him time and space to rest, sleep, then nourishment to renew his strength physically, mentally and spiritually. Elijah napped. Our mamas were so right when we were toddlers and in the midst of a tantrum – a good nap was just what we needed. Sometimes we all need a nap. I have also learned over the years not to make decisions and to watch what I say when I am tired – that is the worse time. Get a good night sleep … [Read more...]
Unexpected Impact of Kindness
Has kindness ever unexpectedly surprised you? Kindness is such a quiet, simple act. Often a whisper, barely noticed, yet a gentle breeze of hope into another’s soul. Kindness is a choice. It isn’t expensive; often costing nothing at all. All it takes is one person to notice another and to smile and offer something – a drink, an open door, an apology, gentle word. a smile… Mark Twain said, "Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see." A few weeks ago, I was on my annual silent retreat. While attending this retreat I was doing my best to stay within my Weight Watcher plan by avoiding those carbs and desserts without asking the kitchen staff to go out of their way for anything special. At one lunch one of the staff members approach me. She said, “I noticed the other day, you didn’t take any rice and tonight we are having pasta, would you like me to prepare you a chicken breast instead of pasta? It would be quite easy to have ready for … [Read more...]
Book Birthday – Spiritual Retreats: A Guide to Slowing Down to be with God
Spiritual Retreats: A Guide to Slowing Down to be with God by yours truly was first published in May 2016. I have never celebrated a book birthday before and thought it would be fun to revisit this book, its message and its birth. Happy Birthday, Spiritual Retreat little book! Spiritual Retreats: A Guide to Slowing Down to be with God came about through a conversation with a friend who was fascinated by my annual attending retreats compounded by my enthusiasm for the practice of going on retreat. She hesitated to go, not knowing what to expect and if this practice was worth her time. I did explain many of the details to her, but then realized others may also feel that way. I recalled my first time on retreat: how anxious I was about the locations, the agenda, what to do with all that silence. So I outlined a book. Spiritual Retreats: A Guide to Slowing Down to be with God is small, only 54 pages, easy to read, and divided into three parts:*Before the retreat*During the … [Read more...]
Ruthless Trust
The book, Ruthless Trust by Brennan Manning, begins with this story and quote from his spiritual director: “Brennan, you don’t need any more insight into the faith, you’ve got enough insights to last you three hundred years. The most urgent need in your life is to trust what you have received.” Recently I revisited my bookshelves and this book, Ruthless Trust, called to me. Don’t you love to slowly reread an old favorite and savor its wisdom once again in your life? I needed this book at this time in my life; I am sure God knew that. I needed to dig deep and ponder trust in my spiritual journey just as Brennan Manning did in this book. Here is some of his wisdom: “Trust is our gift back to God and he finds it so enchanting that Jesus died for love of it.” “Childlike surrender in trust is the defining spirit of authentic discipleship.” “Trust was not some feature out at the edges of Jesus’ teaching; it was its heart and center.” “The biggest obstacle on my … [Read more...]
I Am Becoming a Person Who…
I am becoming a person who… how would you complete this open-ended sentence? As a spiritual director I like to collect prompts like this one plus wonderful assortment of thought-provoking questions to use as I listen in sacred space with another soul. I often find these nudges also linger into my heart too. What a good spiritual practice to try that invites a quiet reflection and life review. I like the emphasis on the word “becoming” as it gives me hope in what could be and permission to try again when I fail. Here are a few of my reflections on where I am at this season of my life: I am becoming a person who notices and names her emotions better now as I live in this second half of my life. I am becoming a person who is learning to value being with people even as an introvert. I am becoming a person who knows her limits and boundaries. I am becoming a person who knows herself well enough to know it's important to keep showing up even when I don’t feel like … [Read more...]
What are Your Essential Spiritual Practices?
“I am amazed on how you continue to write in your journal,” Jo said during my group spiritual direction group. “I have learned the hard way,” I answered, “I am more lost, more scattered, find myself drifting aimlessly without this practice. I need to journal.” I thought about my words as I drove home - a statement of fact about how the spiritual practice of journaling grounds my life and brings me closer to God. I smiled remembering how my answer to her just tumbled out of my mouth. I didn’t just enjoy journaling, wanting to journal, but I needed, deeply craved/required, this discipline. What are your essential spiritual practices? Sometimes I feel like a toddler searching for her lost blanket – tangible connecting points for this little child of God to touch her Master. Finding the practices that come naturally to each of our own spiritual personalities and naming them – will help ground us and hold us especially in difficult times. For me as I wrote above, journaling is … [Read more...]
Practical Discernment Tools from a New Book by Emily P Freeman
One of my favorite authors, Emily P Freeman, just released a new book, How to Walk into a Room. The host of a wonderful weekly podcast too, Emily accompanies us as we discern the decisions we face in life. As a spiritual director, discernment is often the doorway that directees seek an appointment with me - they are at the crossroad. Do I stay? Or do I leave? And how will I know? Emily’s new book is a practical tool for discernment, full of helpful clarifying questions. Here is her description of the contents: “If life were a house, then every room holds a story. What do we do when a room we’re in is no longer a room where we belong? What do you do when you start to feel a shift and must decide if it’s time to make a change? When it comes to navigating big decisions about when to stay and go, how can we know for sure when the time is right? Though we enter and exit many rooms over the course of our life—jobs, relationships, communities, life stages—knowing how and … [Read more...]