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A Sacred Journey

practicing pilgrimage at home and abroad

Spiritual Formation Archives

Spiritual formation is a lifelong journey of drawing closer to the True Self and the Divine, with spiritual practices offering both scaffolding and a firm foundation for the search. Find posts on spiritual formation below, explore specific spiritual practices on the resources page, and sign up here to receive updates on new posts directly in your inbox.

Finding Myself on the Interior Journey (Plus 3 Tips to Help You Find Your Way, Too)

I’m interrupting this June blog break to let you know that my first post on Susan Cain’s new website, Quiet Revolution, has finally published! This journey has been a long time coming, so I’m so excited to finally see my words in print…er, on the screen. Read a preview below and pop on over to read the rest of the post! I’d love to see your own reflections over there in the comments section—I know you’ll be able to relate!

Image from Quiet Revolution

Image from Quiet Revolution

I grew up in a large evangelical church filled with constant activity.

We’d gather twice on Sundays and once on Wednesday evenings for Sunday School, worship, and fellowship (a word that seems to be used only by churches these days, often in conjunction with that other F-word: food). This activity-oriented approach to spirituality was especially true of youth group, where my faith was formed and informed by the exterior world in largely extroverted ways.

In the small town where I lived, youth group was the place to be, and mine was the group to belong to. Because we were young, we had even more activities than the average church-goer. (Capture the Flag, anyone? How about a relay race that involves Jell-O, marshmallows, and eating a cow’s tongue?) Sure—I loved the hay rides, the retreats, and the hours playing cards on our way to our next mission trip destination. But looking back, I realize I was always floating along amidst this flurry of youth-oriented activities with little opportunity to land—something my introverted nature desperately needed in order to maintain a sense of clarity and rootedness.

Back then, I didn’t know what it meant to be an introvert; I’d never even heard the word. What I did know was that it was good to be social, good to be involved. It was also good to invite friends, to pray out loud, and to stand and sing each and every word (bonus points for raising your hands in abandoned praise). As a good Christian girl, I did all the good things without question. This is faith, we were shown. Was there any other way?…

Read the rest of the post at Quiet Revolution »

Finding God in Nature: Prayers and Practices for Earth Day

Finding God in Nature: Prayers and Practices for Earth Day

You all know that I can’t get enough of nature these days.

When it comes to spiritual practice, nature serves as an icon—a window to the Divine—offering respite from the chaotic world both without and within as well as ancient wisdom for my soul. (Think about it—the trees, wind, rocks, and rain have been doing their thing far longer than I’ve been doing mine!)

As with my love for the liturgical seasons, I particularly admire nature and its elements for the invitations they offer in my everyday life. The Celtic Christians would agree, and the practice of seeking inspiration from the elements is something we’ve explored each time I’ve gone on pilgrimage to Ireland with Christine Valters Paintner of Abbey of the Arts (I participated in a journey last year and co-facilitated one for young adults this past March).

You don’t have to travel to Ireland to find inspiration and invitations from nature like the ancient Celtic Christians. In celebration of Earth Day, here are some quotes, prayers, and practices for each element pulled from Christine’s book, Water, Wind, Earth, and Fire: The Christian Practice of Praying with the Elements, as well as my own invitations:

read more »

Signs of Emergence: What the Forest Teaches Me about Wisdom

This week I’m in Louisville, KY, at the Spiritual Directors International conference, where I am honored to participate with other young spiritual directors and guides as a New Contemplative. As part of the New Contemplative Initiative, we were invited to write reflections on the conference’s theme, “Emerging Wisdom,” and I thought I’d share mine here with you. Any surprise that the theme took me straight to my daily walks in the forest? 

Ravenna Park

Each day I make my way down my busy street and into the quiet neighborhood that leads to Ravenna Park.

The park’s entry is along a small path hidden at the dead end, however once you cross the threshold into the park you’ll find that there is nothing small about it. The path begins at a bridge straddling a grand ravine, offering an aerial view of the forest below filled with ferns, streams, woodland creatures, and a few passersby seeking nourishment from the natural world. These sensations of the forest quickly transport me, and it doesn’t take long for me to forget that I’m in the heart of Seattle.

Over the past six months these walks to Ravenna Park have become my most treasured spiritual practice, and I like to think that the forest and I are developing and deep and lasting friendship. As a frequent visitor, it’s been a gift to witness the changing landscape of the forest—from the abundance of summer to the golden leaves of autumn and the quiet hibernation of winter. Now we are slowly transitioning to the season of spring, and the signs of emergence I witness on my daily walks whisper truths to me of the emerging nature of wisdom within our own spiritual search.

read more »

A Prayer for Valentine’s Day (and every day)

Valentine's Day Prayer

I just returned from my annual pilgrimage to the post office to pick up a book of stamps decorated with hearts, which can only mean one thing: Valentine’s Day is almost here.

(I buy Harry Potter stamps otherwise.)

I’ve always been a fan of Valentine’s Day. My family has celebrated the holiday with small gifts and Valentines since I was young. Plus, here in the northern hemisphere it’s always a bright spot to look forward to in the midst of a winter slump.

However, I come across disdain for the holiday year after year—it seems that there are just as many people against Valentine’s Day as there are for it. More often than not, this frustration with the holiday has to do with romantic love and broken hearts. What if we started to think of the holiday it differently?

As my interest in the liturgical seasons in the Christian calendar has grown, I’ve also started to notice the liturgical seasons and feast days we participate in as a culture—summer vacation, the Fourth of July (in the US), the onset of autumn (and everything pumpkin spice), Halloween, the Super Bowl (apparently), and of course Valentine’s Day (the list could go on). Sure, they’re often cloaked with consumerism, but just as with the liturgical seasons of the Church, these cultural holidays offer annual invitations for our everyday lives if we choose to listen.

What if this year you made this Valentine’s Day a celebration of love—not simply romantic love that might come and go with each year’s passing, but rather the Love that brings healing and draws us closer to our True Selves and the Divine?

A great invitation, right? However, as with liturgy, it’s always nice to have a written guide. The prayer below has been pinned above my desk for many years. May it help you celebrate and surrender to the Love that never fails to bring Life—this Valentine’s Day and every day.

THE LOVE PRAYER

Today I remove all boundaries and walls,
Once used as a means of defense,
I forgive those things from the darkened past,
That in love’s divine realm make no spiritual sense.
Releasing all worries, all burdens and doubt,
I bring light to the shadows of fear.
By centering myself with a loving thought,
Harsh judgments I no longer hear.
The greatest experience that life has to give,
Is love from an open heart,
For it moves me to appreciate all there is,
And I’m one with it all, not apart.
It’s love that brings me closer to God,
And leads me according to God’s way,
Love’s light warms my spirit, it nurtures my soul,
And assures me everything is okay.
I am one with God and never apart,
As I live this day with an open heart.

(Poem from a card distributed by Unity Temple on the Plaza in Kansas City, MO)

GO FURTHER…

How can you celebrate love this Valentine’s Day (and every day)?

When I Am Among the Trees: Engaging the Body in Spiritual Practice

Trees Ravenna Park

How do you incorporate your body into your spiritual practice?

Tonight is the second session of the “Pilgrim Principles” class I’m teaching at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church here in Seattle and we’ll be spending time exploring the second pilgrim principle: “A pilgrim practices somatic spirituality.”

The word somatic means “of or relating to the body.” Somatic spirituality, then, is a spirituality that doesn’t ignore the body (as we so often do when it comes to matters of faith), but rather embraces the body as both a valued participant and conduit in our spiritual search.

A spirituality that incorporates the body is essential for the pilgrim, because a pilgrimage is not only a journey that takes the pilgrim to a foreign land, but also a journey that engages the senses—taste, touch, sight, smell, sound—each serving as windows that can lead to Sacred Encounter and transformation.

I know this to be true now more than ever because of my daily walks in the nearby forest. I began taking these walks simply to get exercise, but it didn’t take long for my daily walk to become one of my most treasured spiritual practices.

Ravenna Park

I don’t listen to any music or podcasts on these walks, nor do I bring any reading for inspiration. Thoughts will fill my mind, as they inevitably do. But I’ve learned to allow them to come and go, instead surrendering to the steady movement of my steps and the stimulation of my senses—the sound of the trickling stream, the sight of the bright green moss beside the overcast sky, the feeling of the cool breeze against my cheeks and the soft forest floor beneath my feet.

Ravenna Park

In the few months since I began my daily walks, the sights and sounds and smells of the forest have become ministers to me in ways distinct from the prayers or passages more typically associated with the spiritual journey. As Mary Oliver says in her poem, “When I am Among the Trees,” these walks in the forest “save me, and daily.”

I want to share this poem with you today, alongside images captured from my daily walks over the past few months, in hopes that they might inspire within you a more somatic spirituality that comes to save you, too.

Ravenna Forest
“When I Am among the Trees”
by Mary Oliver
When I am among the trees,
especially the willows and the honey locust,
equally the beech, the oaks and the pines,
they give off such hints of gladness.
I would almost say that they save me, and daily.

Ravenna Park

I am so distant from the hope of myself,
in which I have goodness, and discernment,
and never hurry through the world
but walk slowly, and bow often.

Ravenna Park

Around me the trees stir in their leaves
and call out, “Stay awhile.”
The light flows from their branches.

Ravenna Park

And they call again, “It’s simple,” they say,
“and you too have come
into the world to do this, to go easy, to be filled
with light, and to shine.”

Ravenna Park
Find this poem and more of my personal favorites, including “When Roses Speak, I Pay Attention,” in Mary Oliver’s volume of poetry entitled Thirst.

GO FURTHER…

How do you practice somatic spirituality? How does incorporating your body into your spiritual practice “save you daily” as Oliver implies? Share your response to the question or the post in the comments.

PS: a yoga + prayer practice

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Hi! I’m Lacy—your guide here at A Sacred Journey and a lover of food, books, spirituality, growing and making things, far-off places and lovely spaces. More »

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PILGRIMAGE ESSENTIALS

How to Be a Pilgrim in Everyday Life

Have Wanderlust? How to Use It for Good

5 Steps to Engage the Interior Journey

Threshold Journeys: 8 Steps to Take During Seasons of Transition

WISDOM FROM FELLOW SEEKERS

Pilgrim Podcast 01: SoulStrolling with Kayce Hughlett

Welcome to the Pilgrim Podcast: An Introduction

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