Theme: Arise!

I feel the strong thrust of divine life within me.

Divine life in the form of love which sets me in motion.

What I may wish to ask:

That I can start to live with the awareness 

that everything revolves around the love which God gives me.

Welcome! I become aware of my body. Of my posture, my heart rate, my breathing. I listen attentively to what is on my mind and I tell Jesus about it. Do I already want to be guided by Him and by what He has to say to me?

Theme:

As the followers of Jesus become more and more aware of what has happened, they begin to understand their own responsibilities. Jesus’ words become even more meaningful and effective.

What I desire:

That the risen Lord will conquer my resistance and my lack of faith.

That I dare to abandon myself to him.

That I can, and also dare, to act in accordance with his mission for me.

That I can see what that would mean.

While I listen to the music, I consider the lyrics and whether they relate to the mission Jesus has for me in my everyday life.

To begin this meditation well, I take time to become still.

I breathe in and out calmly. And if I wish, I close my eyes as I exhale.

The silence that arises within me is a space where an encounter can take place between me and the Good God.

Theme

In the new reality of the Resurrection, Jesus is still present.

What I Desire

I desire that this new reality may also become visible in my own life.

The music we are about to listen to is a prayer without words.

Can this also become my prayer?

I place myself before God (if I have not already done so).

He is looking at me with tenderness. 

Theme:

The theme is “The New Creation”. 

Step by step, experience after experience leads us to see the full scale of what has happened. The old order of things has been done away with.

What I desire:

That I can find joy the New Creation. That the Lord of all creation will make my life new.

Today there will be a lot of peace and quiet, a lot of reflection. Let your thoughts wander. If they remain focused on something let that be: it is good. Submerge yourself in the music and the text.

I let myself be carried by the music to the tomb of Jesus where Mary stands, to remain there, in the emptiness, waiting and listening for whether the voice of the risen Lord can be heard.

Welcome to this Ignatian meditation. I begin by placing myself before God who is looking at me with love.

Theme:

The theme is ‘Jesus is Risen’. 

We have followed Jesus and stayed with Him while He was betrayed, denied and crucified.

But the story does not end there. Jesus took upon Himself the mission of showing us that God’s unconditional love for us is stronger than death. Christ is still present in the world as we try to follow His commandment to love one another.

What I desire:

That I may live my life in the peace which Jesus promised me.

That I am aware of the presence of Christ in the world.

Theme:

It is Holy Saturday. It is still and quiet. Very still.

The silence is deafening.

What on earth are we to do now?

What I desire:

That what Jesus has lived, may remain in me.

That I abide in his love.

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.

Thank you for coming today.

Through the Ignatian meditations so far this year, we have had the opportunity to experience a lot of joy: the joy of the Nativity, the joy of those Jesus healed, the joy of those called to be one of his followers.

And that experience of joy draws us closer to Jesus as we imagine ourselves as the ones who came to see Baby Jesus, the ones who were healed, the one who were called.

And through this, we’ve been invited to become more than followers of Christ, the Son of God.

Through these meditations based on the Exercises, we’ve been invited to become companions — friends — with the human person, Jesus.

St. Ignatius named his order the “Company of Jesus” and accompanying Jesus iscentral to Ignatian prayer — especially imaginative prayer.

It’s never so easy to see Jesus as fully human than when He’s a baby. But the humanityof Jesus also becomes more visible during His Passion. The last miracle He performs is the healing of the soldier’s ear that Simon Peter cut off.After that, His followers watched and waited for Him to use His divine power to save himself and claim His kingdom — isn’t that what He was supposed to do? Isn’t that who He was? But He didn’t.

Theme:

Jesus is tested to the limit, but He remains faithful.

I am also sometimes tested by external forces and also by forces within myself.

What I desire:

That I can continue to follow Jesus on the way He has chosen. 

That I can persevere in my desire to follow Him, whatever that might involve.

Theme: 

Jesus invites me to join Him for the Last Supper with His disciples.

What I desire: 

That I can feel that I belong to the community of Jesus’ disciples. 

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

Welcome to this Friday evening meditation. To allow the Good God to come close to us, we first become still within ourselves. We do this by sitting comfortably, breathing in and out deeply a few times, and perhaps closing our eyes on a deep out-breath.

The theme of this week is: “The Dark Night.”

The hour of truth in the night is approaching for Jesus.

Everything He has falls away. He is tested to the very limit.

He senses His end drawing near. He prays that this cup may pass from Him.

Welcome in our beautiful chapel. The place where we encounter God. He is inviting me to enter into contact with Him. Am I ready to meet Him? I become still and quiet in myself in order to take up His invitation. 

Theme: Living water.

God makes me thirsty. In this way He ensures that I am able to live in His Holy Spirit.

My desire:

That Jesus can quench my thirst and that I can learn from Him what is good for me.

Welcome in this beautiful chapel for another guided meditation.

I quieten myself by paying attention to my breathing but without trying to change it. With every breath in I breathe in God’s love for me. With every breath out I let go of my worries and concerns.

Theme:

What is essential for my life as a Christian?

Which choices should I make for the rest of my life now that I have encountered Jesus so closely?

What I desire:

That I am able to answer Jesus’ invitation and can make choices for my life which are in tune with what I have seen in Him.

Theme:

In the confrontations with people on His way, Jesus’ identity becomes ever clearer.

I try to see my own position in this more clearly and to remain with Jesus.

What I may wish to ask:

That I can remain faithful to Jesus in the middle of confrontations.

Welcome to this Friday evening meditation with the theme “Jezus gives life”. 

Theme: Jesus gives us food for the journey. In this way, He enables us to live in his spirit.

What I long for: That Jesus can satisfy my hunger and that I may learn to receive from Him.

I take the time to land in this place. I let go of everything outside the chapel and breathe in and out quietly a few times. I can close my eyes while doing so. I breathe in and out quietly a few more times and now place myself before God, who looks at me with love.

I prepare myself for an encounter with God. I am going to meet Him. In order to do that I become still in myself. I adopt a relaxed, and yet active, position. God welcomes me and I welcome Him too.

Theme:

I accept the authority with which Jesus speaks and how He unambiguously points out His way.

What I desire:

That I may sit at Jesus’ feet and hear His message. That I can experience Jesus touching my heart and supporting me in my powerlessness.

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.