Drawing near to God

Sometimes we are afraid to draw near to God in prayer. Instead of coming close to him we pull away, clinging to our suspicion that He will not receive us.

Henri Nouwen encourages us: "Perhaps you can find your way to prayer by carefully listening to the words of the angels to Zechariah, Mary, the frightened shepherds, and the women at the tomb: "Don't be afraid." Don't be afraid of the One who wants to enter your most intimate space and invite you to let go of what you are clinging to so anxiously...

Don't be afraid to offer your hate, bitterness, disappointment, to the One who is love and only love. Even if you know you have little to show, don't be afraid to let it be seen. Often you will catch yourself wanting to receive your loving God by putting on a semblance of beauty, by holding back everything dirty and spoiled, by clearing just a little path that looks proper. But that is a fearful response, forced and artificial. Such a response exhausts you and turns your prayer into torment."

>

Silence

Sometimes just the thought of a few hours of silence can freak us out.

Kathleen Norris writes about the reaction of one of her students to sitting in silence: "It's scary," a fifth grader complained. "Why?" I asked, and I believe that he got to the heart of it when he replied, "It's like we're waiting for something--it's scary!"

Exactly! When we're at The Springs we enjoy leisurely hours of silence and we are expectantly waiting for the Lord. The first time, it can be scary. Once we get used to the idea, it becomes one of the true gifts of the retreat. There is so much we can experience when we listen and wait. It really not actually very scary after all.

We come to understand what the psalmist had in mind when he wrote: "Be still and know that I am God."

>

Rest

One of the gifts of The Springs is time to take a nap. It's usually one of the first things I do.

I may want to jump right into a time of prayer or Bible reading, but if I’m too tired, I can’t concentrate, I can’t reflect or think deeply or keep from nodding off when I close my eyes. What I need is a nap.

It's wonderful to have my own room so I can lay down and get the sleep my body needs. And that's OK!

>

Does journaling really help us resolve our emotions?

Listen to a 60 second podcast by psychologist, Matthew Leberman, on his recent findings that putting our feelings into words (journaling) helps to reduce the intensity of our emotions. (Scientific American, "60 Second Science")

>

Praise the Lord!

PRAISE THE LORD!!

Psalm 133 reminds me (Christy) to praise the Lord from the rising to the setting of the sun from now to forever. The Psalm goes on to remind me that I am a barren woman who has been made the happy mother of children. Oh how hard this is to remember!

The SPRINGS retreat is coming and I am so excited this year I can hardly contain myself. Being the mom of two amazing children is such a blessing, but it is so hard for me to praise the Lord every moment for this. I get so caught up in being busy - working part time distracts me; doctors appointments, physical therapy, speech therapy, etc for my lovely little one with a genetic disorder; and dance class, library time, parks for my energetic three year old - all leave me exhausted and clinging to God's promises of strength and grace for each day. I can't wait to have three days to just bask in His presence without having to cling so desperately to his promises. I want to just love God for God, not only because he gives me strength and peace and love, but because he is God and worthy to be praised! I get to walk trails, nap, praise him with singing, fellowship with beloved sisters, read my Bible for hours, journal, sleep without interruption -

OH PRAISE THE LORD.

(Written by Christy Wold)

>