Sunday, March 11, 2012

Everyday God

Wow, went on a retreat this weekend with several other women who are also on the God-quest (that sounds kitschy-you get the idea though). The theme was "The Gift of Joy in all Season" and it was fascinating how it all rolled out. Being with these women affords me more reflection about community. I knew about half of them prior to the retreat. I went on a similar retreat in November and let me tell you, these are not my usual retreats. I am accustomed to having eight days of silence (or three if it's my winter retreat) and meeting with a spiritual director once a day. This coming together to share with other women around themes is different, and in some ways unnerving for me.

On the drive to Siena Center (the retreat place) I kept thinking there were many better ways to spend my weekend, and that the only reason I was going was because I was leading an activity and prayer experience. Well, that was what we used to call poppycock when I was a kid. This was exactly where I needed to be and the themes and sharing didn't kill me (as you might have guessed from my ability to continue blogging). I wonder if my resistance could be that when it comes to my relationship with God sometimes there are no words to express how this love grows. Or, maybe there is discomfort in expressing how deeply I feel the connection to God's love in my life. I watch women like Joan Chittister and Joyce Meyer who preach from their own experiences of God and find my insecurity in the comparison. Well, fortunately the retreat did not require their abilities from me, and such comparisons really are silly. Somehow I was able to bring who I am and use that as the starting point for listening and sharing, and this opened me up to the gift of all the women present. I put together an iMovie for our morning prayer and offer this to you for the week. By the way this video upload takes forever. Blessings, Vicki

1 comment:

  1. So glad the weather cooperated with your weekend, it was lovely. We'd called to invite you to our spontaneous Sunday brunch, but it looks like your momentous retreat moments really energized you. Catch you another time.

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