A Flowing Spirit

Longing is the voice of your soul, it constantly calls you to be fully present in your life, to live to the full the one life given to you. Rilke said to the young poet, "Live everything." You are here on earth now, yet you forget so easily. You traveled a great distance to get here. The dream of your life has been dreamed from eternity. You belong within a great embrace that urges you to have the courage to honor the immensity that sleeps in your heart. When you learn to lis...ten to and trust the wisdom of your soul's longing, you will awaken to the invitation of graced belonging that inhabits the generous depths of your destiny. You will become aware of the miracle of presence within and around you. JOHN O'DONOHUE Excerpt from the book, Eternal Echoes Ordering Info: https://www.johnodonohue.com/store Hiking in Killarney National Park Co. Kerry, Ireland Photo: Ann Cahill Aflowingspirit.com

and so it goes for us who are spiritual seekers... www.aflowingspirit.com

Need Lent BUT NOT all the church that goes with it? OR - maybe you need both! Lent begins Wednesday, February 17, 2021 A Flowing Spirit is offering Lent in a Bag Each bag contains elements and symbols for you to create or add to your own altar. We have also included a pamphlet with reflections on what each symbol means and prompts for you to consider during your own inward journey toward the cross. There are ashes to get you started for Ash Wednesday too with a short devotion. Lent offers us time to clear and cultivate our own wilderness and to intentionally remove the obstructions between us and God. It is the season when we focus on deepening our relationship with God as we walk alongside Jesus through the stories of the Gospels. $20 (includes shipping) www.aflowingspirit.com

Lenten Series: To Live Anew Join me for an hour each week to move through the reflections from Joan Chittister called To Live Anew. She writes, Lent is a summons to live anew. But how do you do that? We will spend our time together apart sharing and praying and discussing the different pieces and insight that Sister Joan offers us in this new Lenten journey. There are six different companions that she feels embody a special quality for spiritual growth and she will intr...oduce us to each of them: Thomas Merton brings the gift of contemplation; Teresa of Alivia, the gift of prayer; Rachel Carson, the gift of awe of creation; Oscar Romero, the gift of prophecy; Sojourner Truth, the gift of joy; Mother Jones, the gift of speaking your truth. Small booklet from Bentevision and other materials included with registration. Wednesdays 7:00 8:00 pm on Zoom February 24, March 3, 10, 17, 24, 31 Cost $50 See more

This is much of what Spiritual Direction is about. www.aflowingspirit.com

Consult Your Personal Compass Balance and going through life whole and holy is often a process of beginnings and endings and beginning again. This is especially true for those who yearn to lead a spiritual life. As we move into 2021 it is a good time to pause and take a moment to steady ourselves and explore the metaphor of a Spiritual Compass. Consider the image of the compass and its circular form and the different directions open to us, like the symbol of the mandala;... it encompasses all the pulls and pushes that lay within us. This can be helpful as we work to clarify the direction that we need to move to achieve balance, wholeness, healing, and a more meaningful spiritual journey. Come, pray, listen, share, and check your own spiritual compass to get some deeper perspective for moving forward this year. Materials included with registration. January 23, 2021, Saturday, 10 am 12:00 pm (on Zoom) Cost $25 www.aflowingspirit.com See more

Gratitude and Beatitudes ~ Happy are people who are homelessgrievehumblehungry and thirsty for righteousnessshow mercyhave pure heartsmake peace. Matthew 5: 1-11 What are you most grateful for and what do the beatitudes mean to you? We will meet virtually for this special workshop on gratitude and all we have to be thankful for while exploring the practical and spiritual messages of the beatitudes. We will spend time in safe, scared space with prayerful conversation ...considering our own faith journey and how these two words, adjective and noun are so deeply connected. We will dig a bit deeper with a couple of experiences to enlighten our heart, mind and soul through prayer, music, contemplation, and mandalas. Saturday, November 14, 10:00 am 12:00 noon (on zoom) Cost: $25 Visit my website: Aflowingspirit.com to register See more

Expressions of Prayer Workshop ~ The reality is, my prayers don’t change God. But, I am convinced prayer changes me. Praying boldly boots me out of that stale place of religious habit into authentic connection with God Himself. Lysa TerKeurst Don’t be anxious about anything; rather, bring up all your requests to God in your prayers and petitions, along with giving thanks. Philippians 4:6 Join me for this virtual time together apart as we move through several forms o...f prayer. We will open ourselves to quiet group discussion as we explore with a few different activities like; guided meditation, Taizé music, breath prayers, contemplative journaling and creating a prayer collage. We will share scared conversations about the definition of prayer and how prayer affects our spiritual life and connection with God and everything else in our life. Saturday, October 24, 2020, 10:00 am 12:00 noon (on zoom) Cost: $25 e-mail me at: [email protected] See more

Take time to release, receive and respond.... Please consider joining me in: Walking the Labyrinth - Saturday, September 26, 10 am - noon. www.aflowingspirit.com COST: $25 Register for one and add a friend for $15... [email protected] See more

JOIN ME IN WALKING THE LABYRINTH - WORKSHOP! SIGN UP NOW! This ancient practice of walking this simple circular path has been a form of centering prayer for many sacred seekers. It offers the opportunity for meditation while focusing on the act of releasing, receiving and returning with Creator God being the center of it all. The path is circular allowing one to focus on the steps as a walking prayer. We will spend a couple of hours virtually walking this sacred path and then... create a labyrinth collage while sharing our experience in prayerful conversation together apart. Wednesday, 23 September 2020; 10:00 am 12:00 noon (THIS GROUP IS FULL/SOLD OUT) Saturday 26, September 2020; 10:00 am 12:00 noon Cost: $25 www.aflowingspirit.com or email me at: [email protected] See more