If we are going to navigate life well, we must nurture the gift of stillness. Distractions will vie for our attention, but only one that is true will be heard if we quiet ourselves and be still. Looking up at the stars through a crisp, clear winters night I wondered […]
Spiritual Practices
70 posts
There is a party going on, all around us, where God is inviting us to stumble on in and enjoy. When we are attentive to the music, it grows depth in our mental health. So I am just back from a holiday in Italy and Spain for a holiday. My […]
When I saw my mother-in-law talking very loudly in a distant relatives’ funeral, I then remembered that she didn’t have her hearing aids in, and of course, this made perfect sense … in a dream. Sleep is good and was made to be good. Within the world of our dreams, […]
It’s not the volume of Bible reading that matters. It is the quality of the chewing. Reading and ruminating with mindfulness builds resilience and strength in the core of your being. I know of an old aunt that used to advise chewing your food 32 times. Not sure if this […]
‘Am I doing ok?’ was the question I was most frequently asked when I was a pastor/chaplain. ‘Is this Church safe?’ was another. Keeping pace were other limping souls … ‘Am I welcome here?’ ‘Does God really love me?’ ‘I can’t seem to get it right.’ ‘… keeps telling me […]
Around the hillside of the sheep farm where I was raised were grooves worn into the soil by hundreds of sheep following each other. It was the easiest route. I also have routes in my thinking patterns that have become ruts. Familiar paths that have been worn deep into my […]
If you were to open my mother’s Bible, the first thing you would notice would be the handwritten notes and Bible verses for mental health that kept her secure in God. Dig a little further and you would come across underlined verses, cut-out sections from the church newsletter, and notes […]
The fuel gauge on this soul wasn’t on E for Enough, it was on E for Empty and Exhausted. How do we restore the soul? Life is exhausting at times. Demands come from everywhere. Things start to fall apart and you’re that little less patient. Anxious and depressive thoughts gain […]
I’m pleased to share a guest post from Laura Cavanaugh of Sacred Pilgrim. I discovered Laura through her daily Lectio Divina podcast. Such a beautiful podcast that I highly recommend to you. The first time I tried centering prayer, I cried. I mean cried. Sobbed, really. I was finishing […]
Recently, I have been reading and practising mindfulness. I have found it very helpful, so I thought it would be good to get some advice and guidance around mindfulness. I tracked down Richard Johnston, who has a website dedicated to Christian Mindfulness. So I sent him some questions. 1. What […]