For anyone with some experience with Ignatian spirituality, you probably recognize the title of this post as the beginning of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius. I’ve prayed with this from time to time in the years that have passed since my 30-day retreat, and it still speaks to me. Here’s a brief excerpt and then my brief reflection…
God who loves us creates us
and wants to share life with us forever.
I think what strikes me most about these words is the sense of God’s initiative in our relationship. God has always had a deep desire for relationship with me, even before I was even aware that God existed. Imagine, God’s desire for…ME. I’m pretty sure that this is the one thought that most helps me keep going when life gets difficult. Knowing that God wants to share my burden, be with me in whatever I’m experiencing…it usually helps to lighten the load a bit.
I guess I’m focusing on the sharing my burden aspect because of the brutal week I’ve had with my work. This week promises to be only a wee bit less intense, so I need to really take it one day at a time. Probably you won’t see any long reflections from me this week, but I’ll try to check in with some similarly brief reflection from my prayer and/or life once or twice this week.
I read a lot of different blogs, and usually I find something that touches me in some way. Sometimes it’s inspiring, or just helps me put things in perspective, cause I’m always trying to get a better understanding of different views.
When you first wrote about Spirtual Exercises of St. Ignatius, I googled it, there are no exercises in my area, but I can get a book to read about them.
Then I was reading it’s a nunslife blog and one of her post was about her seeing some graffitt that said “**** hope”. This just hit me hard, what do people do when they have no God to turn to.
How did you find God in your life?
I have to get to bed, so I’ll respond to your last question when I have more time…
About the Spiritual Exercises, though…you can actually find them wherever you find Jesuits or any retreat/spiritual director whose training includes Ignatian spirituality. Doing them in a group as we are is not the usual way to experience them.
They are often made in the context of a 30-day retreat, or in an alternate form, called the 19th annotation, where one does them while continuing in one’s daily responsibilities. All that is required is connecting with a director who is able to guide you in the exercises.
I encourage you to look into it if it seems to be something you have a desire to do. Let me know if I can help you to find resources in your area.
How I found God in my life…that’s a story for another day…but one thing is for sure, I don’t know how I would survive without my faith.
I sure love Ignatious and his exercises!!!! I remember well my silent/directed retreat in college. talk about powerful! Yowswers!!!!!!!!! One thing that has always followed me from that weekend is that God is with us even in our own darkness….so we don’t need to fear it,for even in darkness there is light. Granted we may have to look harder for it somedays…but,its always there. I still think of all the young men and women on that retreat with me on ocassion greatful for the bond and community that formed there, even in the silence. I know without a doubt we were all praying one another through our rough spots, both collective and personal. And most of all I left that week with an overwhelming sense of gratitude and God’s love. (Hmm…me thinks this week might be a good week to re read my journal from that retreat and see what it speaks to me now.) Blessings….you can be assurred of my prayers during what sounds to be a crazy, busy, hectic, week. Peace…….
Thanks, Kelly…
I’m really glad you had the experience of that retreat in college. Touchstone experiences like that are so important for me. They help me to look back over my life with a lot of gratitude.
Did not mean to change topic. The exercises sound very good. I’m in the Chicago area, I’m not really sure how to find the information. Thanks
thanks for commenting on spiritual Exercises. at least i can see there are many faithfuls who treasures God’s gift through St Ignatius