Articles on Listening
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Answering the Call
How did I get here? How did a singer and voice specialist end up as a spiritual director – much less the director of Shalem’s Spiritual Guidance Program? I’ve asked these questions a lot over the past year while stepping into my new role within SGP. I share the following reflections upon my own spiritual…
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Reflections on “Watering the Garden”
About nine years ago I became a Deacon at church. Not long after agreeing to lead a small prayer group, I suddenly found myself in situations where I needed to pray out loud and lead others in prayer. Knowing how to pray properly is something I have struggled with for a good portion of my…
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The Gift of Being Here
Opening the kitchen door to gauge the morning’s suitability for an early walk, I inhaled quickly and held my breath in reverence and awe. Cool refreshing air slid over me after days of stifling heat. Huge, puffy clouds rose in the bright blue sky. Even from my city view, obstructed by buildings, wires, and trees,…
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Expanding Into a New Call
“This I know: My life is in your hands. I have nothing to fear. I stop, breathe, listen. Beneath the whirl of what is, is a deep down quiet place. You beckon me to tarry there. This is the place where unnamed hungers are fed, The place of clear water, refreshment. My senses stilled, I…
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Five Gathered
Reflection on the Experience of a Group Spiritual Direction Workshop at Shalem Institute. I had the bountiful blessing of making four very close friends at the Group Spiritual Direction workshop on Zoom last June. It was not your typical friendship. Five individuals gathered together in faith, in silence, in prayer, and in profound empathy. The…
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Grounding in Gratitude
World as Lover, World as Self: Courage for Global Justice and Planetary Awakening 30th Anniversary Edition by Joanna Macy Edited by Stephanie Kaza Excerpt from Chapter Two The root of joy is gratefulness . . . It is not joy that makes us grateful; it is gratitude that makes us joyful. —BROTHER DAVID STEINDL-RAST We have received an…