Reflections
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How to Avoid Spiritual Gluttony During Lent
As a spiritual director, I’ve asked a few people what they are doing for Lent. I was impressed by the variety of responses: a new biblical or spiritual reading plan, extra hours in…
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A Happy Goodbye to a Faithful Friend
In 1995, the diocese gave me a gift: a one-volume Book of Christian Prayer. I was accepted into Aspirancy, a year to discern my call to the diaconate. The formation director said, “Deacons are…
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Two ways to grow in the spirit of gratitude
In the letter to the Ephesians, Saint Paul gives a very specific instruction: “Be filled with the Spirit… giving thanks always and for everything.” (5:19-20) Here are two simple ways to put this…
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When the Spirit Heals with the Gift of Tears
I didn’t expect to start crying, but I did. I was leading a healing retreat. I made the mistake of going off-script. The Holy Spirit took over. What I experienced then is often…
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To follow with love and longing
“Did I tell you I saw my son?” a mother asked me in a spiritual direction session. About a year ago, her adult son cut off all contact. Since then, her texts, emails,…
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What’s the most important step in the spiritual life?
‘ “I need to find a place to live.” Not surprisingly, this is a common request from the homeless people I meet with at Strong Life Rescue Mission each Wednesday. In my response,…
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Enter the New Year “Filled with Expectation”
“The people were filled with expectation.” (Lk 3:15) This is how yesterday’s gospel reading for the Sunday celebration of The Baptism of the Lord began. It seems like a foreign phrase, “filled with expectation.”…
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One dark night, kindled in love with yearnings
I like to pray outside. It’s been a challenge when the temperature has been in the twenties, and the ‘feels like’ is 14 degrees! I’ve been starting a fire. Since my feet were…
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Discovering A New Chapel of Ease in 2025
Jesus said, “When you pray, go to your inner room, close the door, and pray to your Father in secret.” (Mt 6:6) I wonder. As Jesus and his disciples traveled through the Judean countryside,…
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Focus on the Now, not the Next
When my son was in fifth grade, I joined his class on a field trip to the Biltmore House. It’s a mansion in Asheville with over two hundred rooms. In the months before…
