IGNATIAN SPIRITUALITY, COME LORD JESUS!
I always have a lot to say, but I haven't been saying it lately in this blog. Instead I've been undergoing deep contemplative prayer and preparation-and that quite frankly, has zapped me.
There's something about moving closer to God that draws me further away from my own thoughts and opinions. It's as though I need the distance to hear the Lord more clearly and more succinctly. It seems like the quieter I become, the more intensely I can hear his voice.
For the past several weeks I have been participating in an Ignatian Prayer series for women, "Lord Teach Me to Pray." There are three twelve week programs and I am enrolled in the first one which is "Praying Christian Virtues."
It's fascinating and really rewarding reading the daily scripture assignment, meditating and then journaling the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. It's amazing how every single week, the assigned virtue has had a direct impact on my life. Christian faith, humility, Love, poverty, courage, chastity, forgiveness, patience, obedience and now courage.
Each virtue has stretched me like a rubber band, testing my willingness-to not only uphold the virtue, but to embrace it with a passion. Some virtues have been easier to accept than others-while a couple really surprised me. It was as though God
was speaking directly to me, massaging my mind and cradling my conscience in the warmth of his inspiration.
Sometimes I wasn't too keen on the personal message-but I made a decision to accept each word with an open heart and a willing spirit and that openness has led to a greater awareness of God's call for my life.
It's really important to take the time and to make the effort to step up our personal relationship with God so that he can guide us back to our primary purpose-which is always more amazing than we ever could have planned.
This Ignatian prayer series has been a wonderful tool, not only deepening my prayer life by developing greater intimacy with God...but also altering the way I feel about a lot of people-including myself.
The spiritual exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola are aimed at helping us to see the living God in everything and everyone-including ourselves. It is a stepping stone straight into the spiritual halls of heaven right here on earth.
It can be both exhausting and enlightening...because shifting our consciousness-especially when you are a German/Irish girl-is quite a feat. However for me-it has been a rewarding step in the spiritual journey of this life which is designed to lead us closer and closer to the reality of the next.
There's something about moving closer to God that draws me further away from my own thoughts and opinions. It's as though I need the distance to hear the Lord more clearly and more succinctly. It seems like the quieter I become, the more intensely I can hear his voice.
For the past several weeks I have been participating in an Ignatian Prayer series for women, "Lord Teach Me to Pray." There are three twelve week programs and I am enrolled in the first one which is "Praying Christian Virtues."
It's fascinating and really rewarding reading the daily scripture assignment, meditating and then journaling the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. It's amazing how every single week, the assigned virtue has had a direct impact on my life. Christian faith, humility, Love, poverty, courage, chastity, forgiveness, patience, obedience and now courage.
Each virtue has stretched me like a rubber band, testing my willingness-to not only uphold the virtue, but to embrace it with a passion. Some virtues have been easier to accept than others-while a couple really surprised me. It was as though God
was speaking directly to me, massaging my mind and cradling my conscience in the warmth of his inspiration.
Sometimes I wasn't too keen on the personal message-but I made a decision to accept each word with an open heart and a willing spirit and that openness has led to a greater awareness of God's call for my life.
It's really important to take the time and to make the effort to step up our personal relationship with God so that he can guide us back to our primary purpose-which is always more amazing than we ever could have planned.
This Ignatian prayer series has been a wonderful tool, not only deepening my prayer life by developing greater intimacy with God...but also altering the way I feel about a lot of people-including myself.
The spiritual exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola are aimed at helping us to see the living God in everything and everyone-including ourselves. It is a stepping stone straight into the spiritual halls of heaven right here on earth.
It can be both exhausting and enlightening...because shifting our consciousness-especially when you are a German/Irish girl-is quite a feat. However for me-it has been a rewarding step in the spiritual journey of this life which is designed to lead us closer and closer to the reality of the next.
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