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This season of the year is a time of waiting and of preparation… the word ‘Advent’ comes from the Latin for a Greek word: parousía… which means presence or being near, and can also mean coming or arrival… Advent is a time of growing sensitivity to the presence of God in our lives… and of allowing God’s presence to take flesh for us in Christ Jesus…
For this Advent retreat, we will pray each week with a Psalm. We encourage you to begin the week with the prayer session, then, savour, carry and pray with all that you have encountered for the rest of the week. You might like to set aside 15-20 minutes each day to do this if you’re able.
At the end of each week, we invite you to pray with our Contemplatio Examen, a powerful prayer of review based on one of the Spiritual Exercises of St Ignatius, to help you see where God has been moving during your week.
Let’s begin this retreat with a time of reflection…
As you enter into this season of longing, here are three questions that might help shape your encounter with God…
Ask yourself first: how do you approach God in prayer…? Spend as long as you need to come into God’s presence just as you…and allow God to be whoever God wants to be with you… Whether you come to God in confident strength, or hesitant fragility, or even buoyant joy, begin your prayer with reverence for the God who comes close…
Ask yourself second: how do you remain with God in prayer…? Recall that prayer comes from the desire for God… Let distractions drift away… Set aside your own agenda… Allow desire to arise within your heart… When you find yourself in the presence of God, simply abide there for as long as you can… giving God the opportunity to transform you into the person God wants you to be…
Ask yourself third: how do you take leave of God in prayer…? Speak with God about what has happened, or rest in silent communion with God… Give thanks for even the slightest of gifts received… Sense your need and ask God for whatever you desire… You might even allow God’s presence to linger with you as you return to your daily life…
How do you approach God in prayer…? How do you remain with God in prayer…? How do you take leave of God in prayer…? If you are faithful to the encounter, then God’s presence will begin to become more and more tangible… just as real as the presence of your mother or your father, your sister or your brother, your companion or your friend… Await patiently the moment when God’s presence will take flesh in your life through Christ Jesus…
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.