Last Saturday, I returned home from an 8 day Ignatian Retreat at the retreat center I’ve frequented for more than twenty years. I had made my own eight day retreats with the same director for ten years, and those graced experiences drew me deeply into Ignatian spirituality and its vision of “finding God in all things.”
Staying true to St. Ignatius’ vision of building off your own experience to share aspects of Ignatian spirituality with others, I now lead these retreats with the help of other spiritual directors, and this retreat was our third time working together. One of the exciting things about holding our retreats at Bon Secours is the fact that, in addition to those we’ve worked with previously, new retreatants who we don’t know are added to our individual lists. We meet with each retreatant for about an hour each day, and it’s a real blessing to provide spiritual guidance.
In addition to the daily spiritual direction sessions, everyone has the opportunity to go to Mass each day, and also go to the Sacrament of Reconciliation if they desire. Lastly, we end our day with a time of Eucharistic Adoration. This photo was taken during one of those experiences of praying before the Lord, present in the Eucharist.
At the end of the retreat, we gather our whole group together for what is known as the “gathering of graces,” a time when each retreatant can share about their experiences over the eight days and how God was present to them. This gathering at the end is one of my favorite aspects of the retreat. I’m always left with a sense of gratitude, knowing that each person, in their own way, felt drawn to God and experienced moments of grace throughout our days together. What a blessing!
Friends, it seems like the world in getting more and more crazy, and yet Jesus, the Prince of Peace, is calling us to trust in Him. I pray that you are blessed to have a rich and meaningful relationship with God. For many, including me, this relationship with God helps me to keep things in perspective and calls me to trust God more deeply, come what may. If you don’t have a relationship with God, or that relationship has grown cold, let today be the day that you reach out to God, and start that relationship again. He is the one who knows your name and loves you with an everlasting love. God is waiting for you.
