I am slowly making my way through Larry Warner’s book, “Journey with Jesus,” yet another modern (and insightful) take on the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius Loyola. This past week, the theme was “reverence,” and over and over I was praying for the grace to be in awe of God. Here are a few thoughts from my journal… — Yesterday I walked the wooded path that loops around Mallard Lake near my home. I was still contemplating the theme from …
Blog Posts
For my friends in the Greater St. Louis area, I wanted to let you know about an advent retreat coming up soon, December 9-11, in case you’re interested in a quiet weekend away on the banks of the beautiful and meandering Meramec River in the northern reaches of the Ozarks — one of my favorite places on Earth. Except for the COVID year in 2020, I’ve been presenting this annual advent retreat with my friends Fr. Tom Santen and Lucia …
In a few weeks I will begin another year of guiding another person through the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius Loyola. After a few weeks of “preparation days,” an introduction to this 500-year-old way of drawing closer to God, we will begin what is called “The First Week,” so named because the Exercises were originally created to be experienced over a period of thirty days. This first week is a deep dive into our lives of faith and sin. It’s …
I am up early this morning in Spotsylvania County, Virginia, where we’re visiting family. It’s about 4:30 as I begin to write this and I’m facing east, watching the sky grow orange at its base and ever brighter in its further reaches. The reservoir that lies about a football field away from the porch where I sit is slowly making its way into the light. Sound is amplified by the expanse of water, so I’m hearing the world come alive …
A few weeks ago, Sue and I drove up the California coast from San Jose all the way up into Oregon. Along the way, we stood and walked and rested in the glory of God’s creation. The first half day of driving, north of San Francisco, it seemed like we were pulling into every single scenic view parking lot we encountered on the Pacific Coast Highway. We were so struck with the beauty of waves crashing into rock, so reminded …
As spring comes to America’s Midwest, I am reminded of this reflection I wrote a couple of years ago for a group of spiritual directors. The conversations in it bounce back and forth between what I imagine the risen Christ might say to me and the common struggles of faith that spiritual directors often hear from those who share their stories with us (and also feel ourselves from time to time, of course). The title, “Let Me Easter in You,” …
Yesterday, I presented a day-long retreat on the Parable of the Prodigal Son to a group of friends and alumni of the Aquinas Institute of Theology, where I received my training in spiritual direction and now serve as a trustee. I ended the day with this new prayer of blessing, a reminder of the four important life lessons embedded in the parable that lead to a deeper understanding and experience of God’s extravagant love for us — Stop. Turnaround. Be …
Just a short note today to say Merry Christmas and thank you for reading and commenting throughout the year. Enjoy this holy day, and remember it’s just the beginning… …
All in all, Joseph gets pretty short shrift in the Gospel Christmas narratives, and very little is said about him after that. He’s the quiet guy standing in the back by the shepherds and the sheep. We don’t know how long he lived but it seems clear that he did not live to see Jesus begin his ministry. He’s not mentioned after Jesus’ “missing years,” even when Mary is. But I like to imagine the role he played in raising …
Although a little longer than some of my recent “(Very) Short Stories,” I offer you on this Thanksgiving Day a story of awareness, gratitude and friendship. Take some time today to look around, to count your blessings, and so say thank you to the Giver of all. Adam was up early again on a cool, Thanksgiving morning, just after the sun, and although it was just a few days shy of December, the morning was still more like autumn than …