Welcome to this Friday evening meditation. To begin this meditation well, we first become quiet within ourselves. I can do this by taking several deep breaths in and out and sitting as relaxed as possible. As I breathe in, I become aware that I am breathing in God’s love. As I breathe out, I let go of any worries, concerns, stresses I am experiencing at the moment.

I can close my eyes and place myself where I can meet the Good God who knows all my shortcomings and extends a healing hand towards me.

Theme:

Jesus can become a healer of both soul and body.

What I desire:

To see how Jesus’ healing power is at work within me, but also what my own role is in this healing process.

Theme:

I am being personally addressed.

What will I do?

What I desire:

That I may have a better understanding

of what Jesus does with people, including myself.

That I won’t be afraid

to make myself available to Him.

Theme:

Jesus chooses to do what He feels called to do. He will face temptation, but He knows what He has to do.

What I may wish to ask:

That I can choose together with Jesus, that I can make the same choices He made. That I can live my life in the same way He lived His life.

Theme:

How can I find my path in life? How can I discover what I have to do in the particular situation I am living in now? Can I find the mentality which will show me the path I should take by prayerfully listening to the Gospels?

I may wish to ask:

That I may have a clearer awareness of what goes on within me and can learn to deal with that in a better way. That I can learn to choose what will help me the most.

At the beginning of a new academic term in a new year we leave the days filled with Christmas and New Year festivities behind us with all that that evokes in us. And we place ourselves in silence and simplicity before our God who remains at our side in infinite love.

Theme:

Jesus only became the person He is after a long process of internal growth. His realization of His destiny was able to ripen as a result of His relationship with those around him. Jesus chooses what He stands for. It is no different for me.

Welcome in our beautiful chapel just a few days after the busy Christmas period. Let’s become still within in order to be able to receive the baby Jesus. God is welcoming me and looking forward to being with me during this meditation.

*

Theme:

A very human event: a birth while on a journey.

Almost unnoticed a child is here.

But this child intervenes in the story of my life.

What I desire:

That I can lovingly accept this Christ child

and hold Him in my arms.

That the new life He brings will also enter me.

Welcome to this guided meditation on this second day of Christmas. Here, in the quiet and intimacy of this chapel, we prepare ourselves to encounter the Good God.

I sit as comfortably as possible and take several deep breaths. I may choose to close my eyes as I breathe out slowly.

Theme:

God enters our human history by becoming human himself:

He binds himself to us inseparably.

My desire for this time of prayer:

I desire to come to understand what this incarnation means for the world, for the people I know, and for myself.

I desire to come to know Jesus more deeply, in order to love him more and to follow him.

-       Where am I in the multitude, nearby, as one of the disciples.
 Do I want to be hidden, or seen.
What do I hear, smell, touch,
Am I a part of it, or only an observer

-       << Jesus have mercy on me >>   Bartimeus’ words, also my words ?

-       Jesus calls him
Does Jesus call me ?  How ?

-       << Jesus : what do you want me to do for you >>   What is my answer?d

-       What does Jesus say to my answer?

-       What is my final reaction?    

-       Where am I in the crowds? Nearby, as one of the disciples.
 Do I want to be hidden, or seen.
What do I hear, smell, touch,
Am I a part of it, or only an observer?

-       They brought a deaf man, and ask Jesus to cure him .
What do I asl from Jesus for my friends. For my family, for myself

-       Jesus says Effata, be opened.
Does he say that also to me ?
what does Jesus say to me ?

-       What is my reaction?

Theme

That I may overcome my resistance to surrender myself to God’s loving gaze.

That I may be able to entrust myself to God.

We take a few moments to come home to God in this chapel, His house.
Assume a comfortable yet attentive posture and breathe in and out deeply several times.
With every breath in, you become more and more at home in this place.
With every breath out, you can let go of everything that is outside this chapel.

In each one of us there is some evil hidden within.

We hurt Love.

We wound God and each other.

I place myself before God when I look at this evil. I become aware of how God is looking at me: with friendliness, mercy and with love.

What I may wish to ask:

That I dare to open up

so that I can see where I have failed to love.

That I may let myself be found if I find myself lost or snared in life.

Take time to find calm and silence.

Adopt a suitable posture—balanced between tension and relaxation. You don't pray only with your heart, but also with your body: your head, your facial expression, your hands, your torso...

 Try to place yourself in the presence of God, and ask for the grace to listen, to speak, and to let your life and being be illuminated by His presence.

Welcome to this Friday evening guided meditation where, in the silence and intimacy of this chapel, we may encounter our loving God.

Let us sit back and relax, breathe in and out a few times, and wait for what may unfold within us during the next half hour.

The theme of this week is: God’s love rejected.

Theme:

Good and evil dwell within the world. I look at the evil that appears in many forms. God’s love is constantly rejected, openly and brutally.

What I might desire:

That I may see where evil appears in the world; 

That I may see how it harms people and creation; 

That I may discover how deeply it damages Love; 

But also, that I may learn how to deal with all of this.

While the Lord was praying alone, the boat carrying the disciples in the midst of the sea was tossed with the waves, and they laboured in rowing, for the wind was contrary. Precisely when the disciples lacked Christ’s presence, they were subjected to trials. You can share their fear and tribulation: it was pitch dark, the storm was battering them, and the Lord was not with them all night long. And seeing them with his merciful eyes labouring in rowing, about the fourth watch of the night, Christ descended from the mountain and came to them walking upon the sea and drew near them. The fourth watch of the night, this meant just before dawn. The Lord allowed his disciples to experience danger to teach them patience. He did not help them immediately but allowed them to be tested all night long to teach them to wait patiently and not expect deliverance at the first sign of danger. At the first point of this meditation, observe how the Lord did not help them at the beginning of danger, but at the end. He allows us to find ourselves in the midst of trials so that we might become more praiseworthy through struggles, and so that we will have recourse to him who alone is able to deliver us when all seems lost. Divine help comes when human understanding realizes that it cannot provide for itself. Have you had situations like this?

Now watch the Lord, tired out from his lengthy vigil and prolonged prayer, as He descends the mountain by himself during the night. Barefoot, He laboriously makes his way down the rocky hillside. Share wholeheartedly in his effort! See how he walks onto the water with a firm step as if it were dry land. His feet do not sink, even though the water remains liquid and his body has its normal weight. And those seeing him walking upon the sea as he neared the boat were troubled with fright, thinking it was a ghost. Their fear betrayed how weak their faith was, so He would have passed by them. Imagine how Jesus comes to the disciples with their little faith.

But on the other hand, the kind Master did not want to have the disciples overwhelmed with fear, so He says: “Take courage, it is I, do not be afraid!” Jesus is able to deliver them from the dangerous waters. St. John Chrysostom says: ‘They dis not recognize him in the dark, but as soon as they knew his voice, their fear evaporated.’ And Theophylact of Ohrid writes: ‘Whenever we are frightened by either people or demons, let us hear Christ saying: It is I, fear not. That is: I always help. As God, I remain and can never pass away. Do not let false terrors make you lose faith in me.’ Let us pause to contemplate on the Lord’s presence in the midst of trials and see how He calms the wind around us.

begin my prayer by placing myself in God’s presence and becoming aware that He is gazing at me with love.

Music: “Be still” The London Fox Taizé Choir

Be still, be still

Know that I am God

Spotify link:

https://open.spotify.com/track/0sTfya4jNpp0sAmZV8i7Ka?si=7edfc2dff9a941a5

YouTube link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjNeGK0nD_o

I look at my own life story in order to discover where God was present in my life until now. My life with its good and it’s bad days, with moments of light and also moments of darkness.

And I might wish to ask:

That I have the courage to see my life as it really is with all there is to it. That I can accept my life as it has been until now. That I can see how God has been present in my life as it has so far unfolded.

Theme:

Everything has been set in motion by God’s creative power of love.

We are part of this movement which is still in progress.

What I might wish to ask for:

That I am able to discover God’s presence in creation.

That I can look at creation as something which is still taking place.

That I may have a role to play in this ongoing process of creation.

Theme:

God is looking at me with a loving gaze.

He tells me: You are precious in my eyes.

If I have not yet done so, I place myself before God who is looking at me, at all of us, with love.

Take time to find calm and silence

Adopt a suitable posture—balanced between tension and relaxation. You don't pray only with your heart, but also with your body: your head, your facial expression, your hands, your torso..

Try to place yourself in the presence of God, and ask for the grace to listen, to speak, and to let your life and being be illuminated by His presence.

place myself before God and become aware of how he is looking at me lovingly as a friend.

Prayer:

In this moment I come to You,

my God,

still and full of reverence

gratefully knowing that You know me,

completely,

that You are waiting for me

and longing for me,

as my heart longs for You….

And everything becomes still.

Saint Ignatius of Loyola developed the Spiritual Exercises to help people live happier, more loving and more fruitful lives. The Spiritual Exercises are based on Ignatius’ own personal prayer experiences and those of the people he guided. They have been used by the church for centuries to help people see the relevance of Bible texts to their own daily lives. The emphasis is on developing a deeper and highly personal relationship with the God who loves us as well as enabling us to get to know Jesus more and love Him more deeply so that we can follow Him more closely becoming the kind of Christians God wants us to be. The Ignatian meditations follow the structure and phases of the Spiritual Exercises closely over a period of 33 weeks. Normally the Spiritual Exercises are made in an abbey or monastery praying for 5 hours a day for 30 days. Many people choose to follow the exercises in daily life because this fits in better with their lives at the moment. People who commit to the Spiritual Exercises in daily life will pray (meditate) every day for 33 weeks. It is a requirement to have a Spiritual Director who is fully trained in giving the exercises and will see you every week. The spiritual director listens to your experiences during prayer, guiding you to see more clearly how God is communicating with you and helping you to enter more deeply into a personal relationship with God. The Ignatian spirituality is based on a strong conviction that God is seeking a personal relationship with every single person.