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The retreat has helped me to fall more deeply in love with God. This is the second time I've made this online retreat. The first was in 2001. The graces are great, but subtle - I hesitate to put a name to them. This retreat was truly a unique experience for me. I've made retreats before, but never such an extensive one. At last I could make the Ignatian Exercises Retreat at the age of 80, something that I could only hope for previously. I Thank and praise God and you for enriching my spiritual life tremendously. This retreat couldn't have happened at a more opportune time as my husband was seriously ill and in Hospice Care in our apartment when it started and then passed on to the Lord, 11-19-02. God is showing me that He will always provide for my needs when I turn to Him. He used all of you as His instruments to show me how much He cares. This retreat and my attending the A.C.T.S. Retreat have really made a tremendous difference in my life. Before, I knew that God loved me, but somehow it just never soaked in. Now, after using your materials and the A.C.T.S. retreat, I really and truly know and believe that God loves me so very much. I just want to walk with him and say "yes" to everything he asks of me. I feel I have obtained a more balanced picture of God and (for good or ill!) a more realistic notion of myself. These are both great graces. I believe the greatest gift is an answer to my request for new direction. As a result, I will be working my way off the road, building a homelike atmosphere that welcomes family and friends, writing and exercises, and readdressing my self to causes like Peace and Justice. This retreat has helped to partially fill a need I have for retreat time. It has been especially helpful to have current applications to the on-going events in our world, today. I certainly have gained a more personal relationship with Jesus through the highly personal style of the guided reflections. The resources are consistently rich and insightful, and reading and reflecting on them offer me frequent points of connection with themes in my life. I especially appreciate how the resources are able to offer me God's love and acceptance for who I am in all my fallibility, weakness and sin--doing the retreat hasn't made me perfect!--and at the same time, continue to gently challenge me to greater love, greater service, more committed discipleship. The concept of the "background times" has been very helpful. Some
weeks I find it more effective than others. It seems most effective
when I find a particular image or phrase from that week's themes that
really speaks to me and is memorable The biggest difference is learning to trust God & Jesus at
all times. Especially when I'm thinking maybe I need time away, in community, to get perspective on the reflections presented over the last 31 weeks. Day dreaming and worrisome concerns about the immediate and distant future became less and less dominant in my mind. The main difference was the development of a greater feeling for the human character of Jesus and how so much like the human I am he was (and is?)I was sorry at times that in my growing up years no one had ever presented Him in this way. There was also, in my formative years, a much greater emphasis on conforming to the dictates of the Church (as organization) and very little on the great love of God and the good life of conforming to God's will in all things in a joyful and liberating way. But that was then and this is now and I am grateful. I have a better personal relationship with God, with Jesus Christ, with all people(dead, alive and will-come). I have faith. I have peace. It changes the way I look at life. I saw my own mistakes while I was younger. It gave me a much more concrete realization of the human nature of Jesus and an uncanny ability to view Him in the resurrection with the joy of seeing my best friend come back to life. Knowing that God is in our midst. I trust in the reliability of God's presence, through many little "signs." Daily solace amid daily anxieties. As the exercises progressed I reached points where I thought I should start the entire exercises over; then at later points, especially from the Last supper to the end my spirit opened my mind and my heart and Jesus began to break open the scripture as He must have done for the pilgrims on the way to Emmaus. What an awesome loving God! Thanks so much...this has changed my life and I want to change others the same way. It has been wonderful. It has deepened my life with Christ...demonstrating his humaness. He has become a friend,mentor, guide and more personal guide...I am filled with gratitude. I found this very inspiring, informative and faith stimulating and very enriching spiritually. This retreat has taught me so much. I feel like I have just grown---like I'm becoming the person I'm supposed to be. One of the biggest differences has been learning to understand my patterns--my motives. Since this retreat, I have tried to do that so many times! What are my intentions? And the amazing thing is...I started this retreat one year ago...I dare say...I think I'm starting to see the fruits. I think the "background" time will help me find God in my everyday life--reflecting on God's presence in the shower, driving to work, listening to my kid's turn a 2 minute story into a 20 minute story. One thing they said in the retreat that I thought was so awesome was "being with the One you want to be with". That touched me. I so want to be with Christ, so why not 'be with' Him even if I'm scrubbing the floor! This retreat has given me ways to become closer to God, to understand how I can make changes in my life (mostly by doing everyday things with a slightly different focus), and has helped me to share God's good news with others. I have loved having this retreat as a spiritual resource. Although the 34 week schedule has taken me over two years, I have never questioned whether I would continue or not. This is definitely daily bread for me. I found the retreat at a time when all my physical suffering from several ailments resulting from aging and and chronic congential heart defects was breaking me down. This retreat has given me hope and comfort. This retreat supplemented in a unique way all the many years of teachings that I have absorbed from many different sources to include short retreats. I will not forget the lessons learned here and I plan to stay tuned. The retreat tied all he loose ends of my long and twisting path of life together.This retreat has encouraged me to once again take up my Bible and other inspiration books instead of my usual unproductive reading. This has been a very enlightening and enriching experience for me. Knowing that God loves me and has been so good to me my entire life--giving me the opportunity and privilege of receiving the Body and Blood of Our Lord daily. I have so much to be thankful for. Your retreat provided me with a way to look for Jesus in a more personal way, and that has made a trememdous difference in how I view life and the type of person I want to be. Since starting the retreat I begin each morning thanking God and asking for help in becoming an instrument of His will. At times the exercises in the retreat rocked me to the core, by allowing me to see not just Jesus, but my own frailities. Thank you for making this available. The simple messages that were to be the background wallpaper in my life were helpful in honing my attention. At times I have gone back and forth reflecting on more than one "wallpaper" message. Even weeks after having considered a topic there are times when one will come to the surface and I will gain greater clarity in what the message was meant to be. This retreat has made a significant difference in my life. As I progressed through the weeks, I started slowing my progress through the exercises because I wanted to prolong the program. I had already thought I would simply repeat the retreat. Your retreat has provided me with the ability to think and experience Jesus and God in a more personal way. While I am not the person I would want to be yet, I know that each step I take toward Jesus frees me from fear, selfishness and hate. GRATITUDE to my loving Father in heaven for all the gifts I have been given. I do not want or need anything now except to know Him more clearly, to love Him more dearly, to follow (serve) Him more nearly. I love this prayer. I am successful in using background times because I do now and never did. I am proud of this new habit but the credit goes to my loving Father and the retreat masters. I am so relieved to know that my God loves me even after I totally rejected Him in my earlier years. I am so sorry that I wasted so much time and talent. I know I can never make up the loss, but I know it is never too late to start over. What tremendous consolation this has been. It has made me become more aware of my time with the Lord in prayer. To make the most of every minute I can get with Him. This was the best spiritual program in my life. There were too many graces to write in here. My life is more peaceful, Christ is more real. Scripture with Jesus is more alive. Thank you a ton for this idea. I am a very busy Dad and husband that works sometimes 12 hours a day. I have precious little time or money to afford a solitary traditional retreat setting for a few days or a week. Thank you so much for the sharing of the Ignatian Principle. The graces were shown to me as my wholeness to know that my change to find my purity is found in my courage and will for me to change. I am 52 years old and still in progress. This retreat has taught me so much. I feel like I have just grown---like I'm becoming the person I'm supposed to be. One of the biggest differences has been learning to understand my patterns--my motives. Since this retreat, I have tried to do that so many times! What are my intentions? And the amazing thing is...I started this retreat one year ago...I dare say...I think I'm starting to see the fruits Where do I begin? This retreat has greatly improved my prayer life, and the way I feel and am committed to my relationship with God and the Church. I have come to know that I have another calling, and plan to pursue a graduate degree in Theology with the intention that someday I can devote myself to full time ministry instead of just my volunteer hours. I felt like I put a moderate amount of effort into this retreat, and yet it was the vehicle through which God's grace touched me the most this year. Maybe someday I will be able to enter more fully into the retreat, and I can only tremble to think how God would then touch me. Thank you for being a part of my life and my journey. I made some major changes in my life this year, partly because of this retreat. During Lent I came face to face with my deepest sin, and am still working through it, begging for God's grace to help me face it, claim it and hand it over. I have gained a better understanding of my relationship with God. I feel more joy because I feel closer to God and I know I can rely on Him more rather than on myself. I started this retreat at a very difficult time in my life and it has given me comfort and courage to face my future. Thank you for having these resources available. This retreat has made a difference in my life by increasing my longing for Christ. I received the graces of greater health, deeper joy and ability to put God first. I would probably not have had an opportunity to make an Ignatian retreat -- and probably would never had any exposure to the Spiritual Exercises, other than in books. We used it for prayer each week. the presentation is so lively,
the topics are given in present-day appealing language. Enough is
said with simplicity and clarity and It was helpful to know this was a retreat for busy people and therefore there was a new challenge to use the background moments for reflection. Our spirituality is Ignatian. Annually we have made the Exercises. The 34-week was different. We each had a new refreshing awareness of old material. The simplicity of focusing while putting on the slippers to the urgency of intimacy with Jesus challenged us. Our weekly sharing was the greatest grace. As a Family Physician, I became more aware of the suffering like Jesus that my patients experience. I also listened for Christ in my patients. The major grace is to really believe that God, my Father, forgives me all my disgusting failures and keeps holding out His hand to me. It has brought tears to my eyes many times. It took some time to get into it. Now it is a practical way to be aware of God's presence in my everyday life. I have been much more conscious of a loving God moving through my life in everyday moments. One of my favorite lines from the retreat (and I hope I am paraphrasing fairly well) was the simple "It doesn't take more time, it takes more attention." That shoots down every "I don't have time to pray excuse" ever invented. It has made a difference in my understanding of God's infinite love for me and all his creation. I received many graces of understanding through scripture readings and applying the excersises to my everyday life of work and family. It certainly has enabled my relationship with Christ to grow deeper...acceptance of the weaknesses of myself and others has grown This retreat has been awesome! It is with tears that it ends. It has given me focus and strength. In the past few years I have felt a strong call to serve others. But, it has been hard to actually feel secure about always doing for others. People always say, "How do you do it all?" I have always known it's a gift from God, but now I can voice that. Before I was timid to give God the credit--now I understand and can share that! My mornings, in bed after the alarm goes off, and before I face the cold air, are now spent in a little time of prayer, asking for blessing and graces for the day. Also, I think about how my life can be of service to others for that day. I always thank God for the day as I am crawling into bed. Time in the shower has been turned into prayer time too. I have found that in the car I listen less to the radio (I don't know as much about world affairs today as I used to, but it doesn't seem to matter!) My days have always been filled with "talking" to God, but now it is more frequent and more directed. I think I used to "talk"/pray more about my needs, but now I think about the gospel versus and see Jesus in a whole new light. I loved "being there" during the various weeks, sitting with Jesus and being a part of HIS life! I know I will continue with this after the retreat. I've got to know Jesus much more deeply. I've learnt to listen and trust. I've learnt to be more compassionate and see the good in everyone. The 32 weeks have gone by very quickly it seems. In fact I figure I'll go back through some of the weeks in prayer this comming year. I've been following the liturgical calendar and that has been very enriching especially since I do work in a parish and find myself immersed in the liturgical seasons anyway. The graces are many, but I'm not sure what to say except that I feel much more committed in my faith walk. One thing that is new in my understanding is that loving God means doing something. It involves an action not simply a feeling. I go through my day aware that I want to do something for God. I want to please God. I was very surprised to discover that there was background time in my day that could be put to good use. I was already doing a simple little thing like using a prayer word as a password each day on my computer. However I found the picture to be that much more helpful. The graces are many, but I'm not sure what to say except that I feel much more committed in my faith walk. One thing that is new in my understanding is that loving God means doing something. It involves an action not simply a feeling. I go through my day aware that I want to do something for God. I want to please God. The grace to finally see what was keeping me from being fully open and free to receiving God's life/grace in my life, and to rid myself of that obstacle, through God's grace as given to me through this retreat. ("Only" thoroughly life-changing...) The material was very helpful to me. The best part was the wallpaper each week. I looked forward to seeing it and it kept me focused during the day. The big surprise to me is that there is background time that can be put to good use. I hope to continue using the visual. It provided a framework for our daily prayer over the last couple of months. One of those graces was just being able to share with others and hear them as they journeyed. I am letting go of my attachments and trusting in my Lord more. What was I created for---to love others, to help others, to act like a Christian and to journey toward God. Everything I have is a gift from God no execptions what so ever. These gifts are to be shared with others. I am more responsive toward God's word. For example on Good Friday the homily was on trusting Jesus no matter what. Even my darkest and gloomiest times He is with me. I encountered this here in this retreat and was very responsive to father's talk. It has made a difference, of that I am sure. Certainly in my awareness of the presence of God in all aspects of life, whether I am outdoors riding our tandem with my husband, in the quiet of a retreat house, in the OR giving anesthesia or driving my car. In the past few months I find myself waking up with a prayer of thanksgiving for another day of life and again at night as I pray the Examen. It used to be that I had to consciously remember to do this - not it's 'just there'. I have the deep understanding that 'all is gift' - a gift that flows from the hands of a gracious, loving and merciful God. And even more, that gift is not only meant to be received, but to be shared. Nothing I do or am is on account of anything I have done or am -- it is all pure gift, and with that knowledge came a profound sense of gratitude. God has been so gracious and merciful in His love and forgiveness of me -- I still don't totally understand it, and probably never will, but I know I will never be able to say "thank you" enough. All I can do is hope and pray that my life, words and actions in some way reflect the love I know I have received. I also think that during Holy Week the Lord allowed me to enter into his Passion in a way that I have never been able to do -- which made the joy of the Resurrection even more profound. The retreat helped me take myself out of the cetner of every experience and to see myself more in communion with others in my work community. I am still sorting through the graces. Mostly, I have felt moved to get more involved in my parish community. It has touched all areas of my life, but I move slowly, and changes inside me take a long time to show. It has made a profound difference. I've received the grace to accept myself as a loved sinner. I am able to recognize the patterns that lead to pride. I'm trying harder to be less judgemental of others. I've become more aware of the obstacles to peace and justice. It has helped me to focus more on what is really important in life. I have realized that I had become unaware of some of the things I knew and believe earlier in life. I had taken many things for granted that I am much more grateful for and much more in awe of now. I am in a very difficult situation at the present time. I am a full-time caregiver for my 90 year old mother, who is an invalid and cannot be left alone. I have felt very alone often during the last year and a half. However, participating in the retreat has made me feel that I am never alone, because the Lord is with me I have known a greater peace and reassurance that God has me in the palm of his hand, that he wants me to be willing to follow him regardless of the cost. It is easier for me to consider the potential loss of my beautiful home and family as I follow him. Not knowing what he wants me to do for him across the sea in 6 weeks is a little daunting, but I begin to understand that it is not a task he wants from me, but a presence, a walking-alongside those he puts in my path. It was almost like having a spiritual companion---I live alone and need a source of encouragement---I find I am more calm and accepting of God's way for me in these declining years. I found this retreat very exciting and remained with it for about 26 weeks---too many personal interferences--I went back to it on week 27 and this was just about at the end of the lenten season and couldn't have been at a better time---it was a source of hope and consolation as I had experienced some worries over the health of 2 of my family members I've fallen back in love with Jesus. I think I'm more convinced that I'm forgiven and above all, loved. I also find myself more at peace with my husband's death almost 2 yrs. ago. It helped me solidify my desire to be more positive, and to recognize all the good in my life. I feel less bitterness about some areas of my life and more grateful in others. It has saved my life. It has saved my marriage. It has given me a newly profound relationship with Jesus. It has given me a support system. It has given me hope. It has given me courage to go ahead and risk a risky surgery. It has given me strength to live each day placing my life in God's hands. It gave me eyes to see, ears to hear, and a heart to love in new and different ways. This retreat has made a major difference in my life!! The grace to know Jesus more intimately, love him more deeply and be drawn into the pattern of his life more completely is now a reality I have experienced. The insights into using our imagination to enter into the readings from scripture was a special grace. The retreat has brought me to a wholly new relationship with Our Lord, and in week 10 this led to my being reconciled with the Church after an absence of many years. Although I am not conscious of being "holier" after completing almost all of the retreat, I notice that other people respond to me differently. I consider the BIGGEST grace bestowed on me through this retreat, NOT TO BE SELF ABSORBED!! Because I am introspective, I had never realized that about myself before. You really brought that point home, in a gentle and kind fashion. I know that just realizing this about myself does not mean I will automatically change, but, wow, just shining a light on that dark side of my soul is a step in the right direction. The retreat has helped to deepen my relationship with and commitment to Jesus. I feel like I know Him better and in comtemplating His life, come to some experience of His experience. In not so short, I feel that I know Him and understand His teachings better --- what discipleship means for me. Having long had the desire to make an Ignatian retreat, ever since I first heard about it, I am most grateful for the opportunity to do it online. The graces are many ~ new awareness of God being present in every experience, in every moment, in each and every person; a "healing of memories" kind of recollection early on; a deepened desire to work for peace and justice in the world; more awareness of how deeply we are loved by God; much gratititude. I learnt more about myself as I am today. The importance of my relationship with God/Jesus was reassessed and I am happy that I have an indepth relationship which is nurturing of life in me. It has helped me further identify areas where I need growth and change in my actions, or lack of them, and has gifted me with a fervor to see Jesus in others and/or give Him to others. He has become the true love and focus of my life in a way that I have not experienced before! My biggest grace is probably that regardless of how I feel, I make time every morning for God, for prayer. That when I feel desperate I know that all I have to do is read a passage, or guidepost and that it will bless me in some way and I will be able to move from my stuck position into God's point of view. It has been a source of strength for me. I am reminded each day that Jesus is here for me in joy and sadness. It has been a source of grace to me knowing that 'I'm not in this alone!' For the first time in my life ( I'm almost fifty ), I feel truly cherished by God and his son Jesus. I have come to recognize the ways in which Jesus has been with me, even when I was not wholly aware of it. And I have discovered some ways in which I can return His love, by rededicating myself to nursing as a ministry as well as a job, and by becoming more involved in my parish community. This retreat has brought me closer to God. I have grown in virtues and see people and all of creation in a different light. I recognize the presence of God all around me. This retreat makes me long to grow in holiness. It feeds my soul. I've never made a retreat before. I've always been part of mission parishes or lived quite a distance away. (I make a 40 mile round trip now to get to Mass) Right now I can't imagine not reading this every day. I know I will continue on with the daily readings. It has enhanced my Sunday masses, and any other mass I get to because usually I have been reflecting on the theme of the liturgical week every morning. It has helped me to handle difficult people and situations in my life. I know I am loved by God, and important to him - I grew up not feeling important to anyone, and not feeling particularly loveable. It has enhanced my ability to see Jesus in others, and particularly Jesus-suffering in aggressive, angry people. I feel I can step back more from these people and not feel threatened or angry at their behaviour - I don't react to them, I feel compassion for them because I see this massive battle going on inside them. The graces we received from this retreat have been many. We recently were asked to make a presentation on the Sacrament of Marriage for RCIA. Having gone through this retreat, it gave us a new perspective in our sacramental vocation and aided us in our presentation greatly. "In these or similar words" gave me a jumping off point for my prayer each week, especially when I found myself in tough situations and didn't know quite where to begin. I feel that I can now converse with Jesus as "one friend to another" in freedom. What a blessing! I think the greatest gift was knowing myself better and becoming conscious of God´s great love for me and that this gift is to be used for loving others. This was a real time of renewal for me - a strong invitation to further develop my relationship with God. Mass is a much more vibrant experience of time with God than it has been for me in years. I have become more real with my family - a gift through this retreat that I hope will benefit them. I feel like I am part of a praying community, and when I go to the Sharing pages, I am incredulous at the depth and intimacy of others' sharing. I am profoundly reminded that I am, after all, part of a suffering, rejoicing, hopeful, doubting, faithful web of believers, others who like myself keep showing up, hanging on tenaciously to the God Who has revealed Herself to us in every detail of our lives. It's made a great difference in my journey. Sometimes what I would read I never knew anyone else felt like that. My husband and I did the way of the cross during holy week. The graces were and are a closer walk with Jesus. You have a gentle and real way of helping me on my journey. Since I have made the Exercises in Everyday Life with a director before, this was a refreshing review and deepening of the graces received before. I am a sober member of Alcoholics Anonymous and I spend a lot of time teaching the program to other women through sponsorship. For this reason, I spend time in jails, I go to places to talk to women that I would not have even thought existed before. I take a meeting into a women's cell block. I do lots of thhings than connect me to the poor, the disenfranchised, the broken, and I am always excited to see that AA's heart and spirit are so connected to the heart and spirit of Christ. This retreat never stopped amazing me that way. It had a significant impact on my life and was a source of personal growth, clarity, insight, and getting closer to God. The online retreat has helped me to grow...to grow as a person, to heal and to be happy as a child of God. God has really spoken to me through this retreat and the point in time where it has occured in my life. I am very grateful for God's presence and guidance. The retreat made a great difference in my life. It has helped me to have a closer relationship with God. And it's helped me to make a major move in listening to God's call to me and my desire to really say "Yes" to Jesus. As a result, we literally moved 1000 miles from where we were living. God has taken me out of my "comfort" zone and challanged me to grow, to give, to love, to serve...to step out in faith. I never thought about the background times of my day...they would pass without any consciousness those times are here. This retreat has helped my see those places and to be aware of God in my life every day. The retreat filled a need in me and helped me in my search to get closer to God. In my earlier years he was always "way up there". The retreat helped bring him close to me, the friend I needed. This retreat has changed how I relate to people and circumstances in my life. The graces were: more openess, compassion, acceptance, being more aware of God in my life. Retreat helped to refocus my personal relationship with God in a much more complete manner. I became less self-occupied and more aware of others in a shared, God - given world environment. The retreat gave me back my childhood. I had lost it in a sea of bad memories. The first week of the retreat allowed me to recover the good ones. I have the beginnings of an appreciation for Jesus as a human, that's always been harder for me than accepting Jesus as God. I've lost a lot of fear about speaking to Jesus directly. The retreat has taught me that I can be honest--myself--with Him. That is a great gift. God's loving care throughout my life has been revealed and when I trust in the presence of that loving care my responses to others and myself are both pure and holy. I am more aware of forward and backward movements within myself... This retreat has changed my life. My faith has deepened and my relationship with Jesus has grown much deeper. Jesus used to be an acquaintance and now he is my friend. The retreat was the occasion for several moments of grace given to me; insights that I would not have had, but for the reflection in solitude when God had an opportunity to get a word in edgewise! A bond has been established with Our Lord which is not so easily destroyed by distractions. A particular grace was to find shape for my retirement years beginning next summer. The shape revolves around solitude and contemplation, and a setting aside of the all-engrossing business of earning a living; not to be confused with accumulation of wealth. The retreat has been a tremendous life saver for me since I am almost a recluse because of caring for my husband who is bedridden. At the close of my day, I can hardly wait to get on the Net to see what your guidance is for me for that day. The readings never fail to minister to me. My life is 100 percent graced by your retreat Yes!! Yes!! Yes! I am more at peace. I have become more patient, and I have become much. much more aware of God's love for me. My specific aim was to attempt to open my heart to the love of God and especially the presence of God in Jesus. I feel that my true self belongs in a special loving way to God as my creator and that my hope lies in the love of my saviour who dies and rose to clear my way to a new life when my time to leave this world comes. I feel that my ego has suffocated my true self in the past and that I now need to direct more attention to soaking up the love of God in my true self and be directed by his love flowing into my life and into my actions. It is hard for me to define the graces of this retreat but I have made changes in my life since I began it I was craving some type of learning experience about God and this was truly perfect for me. What I mean by that is that I live a very busy life and so the format of an ongoing online retreat allowed me to experience a renewal while I was participating in my life. I opened to a life-changing experience in the midst of my usual daily activities. This feels like another instance of God finding me where I am and has given me faith that God is truly with me at all times I find myself more able to relate to Jesus as a human being who had the same trials that I do, yet I feel uplifted by a sense of hopefulness by his faith, his works, and his willingness confront death. I found this idea (using background times of the day for reflections) particularly helpful, and I enjoyed having the photo of the week on the screen of my computer as it would at times remind me of the reflection. Many were particularly inspirational; the joyful young woman helping at a mission in another country, the pregnant "Mary", and "Jesus" as a young boy. They spoke to my spirit. The major graces I received related to the personal struggles in my own life rather than the partiular graces mentioned during the retreat. I received graces related to personal sinfulness and graces of inspiration to move in a certain direction in my life. These were wonderful gifts to me. I am 86 years old and have a disease that keeps me indoors permanently so have much time for reflection and prayer. There have been many graces within my family; one was I was reunited with my stepdaughter not seen nor heard of since 1947. The retreat has made me more open to God's call to be in relationship with him and I appreciated the scriptures more and it has come to life. The graces of trusting God in action, knowing Him more clearly and finding God in everything. This retreat has just been a time of seeing God's love more clearly and realizing that he yearns for me to respond to this love. It is difficult to express how much this retreat has touched me. To break a 30 year habit by reflecting on the goodness and love of the Lord daily is a powerful event for me. If that event can happen, other areas of my life can become better with trust in God and his promises. Looking forward to making it happen. This has helped me and will continue to help me to make God more a part of my daily life. I often put off serious praying because I thought I didn't have the time; now I know better - the time is there, I just have to utilize it. I see my relationship with God more as a dance now - His invitation, my timid response, a lot of back and forth, but always that contact with each other. My entire life has changed. I have a new identity in Christ. God has shown me my spiritual gifting and is putting me in a place where I can use that for His glory. I never would have imagined that this would happen to me. It amazes me how different I feel about my faith and my mission. The graces given to me were many. The graces are to speak of God's work in my life with courage and conviction, to realize how deeply God has loved me all along, to feel the walls between us being broken down with very little effort on my part, to love others as God did. My marriage is better, my relationship to both my sons is better, and to all friends. When I read the suggestions on how to use 'background times' for the materials, I doubted that it was possible. Like most people, I find it difficult to find 'extra' time for anything beyond what I'm currently doing. But when I tried to follow the suggestions, I quickly found it that it really can be done. The graces are to speak of God's work in my life with courage and conviction, to realize how deeply God has loved me all along, to feel the walls between us being broken down with very little effort on my part, to love others as God did. My marriage is better, my relationship to both my sons is better, and to all friends. After 32 weeks I'm going to miss the retreat very, very much. Not only has my feeling of closeness to God and being part of God's plan increased, but I find myself wanting to share this information with all who will hear me, because I see the world rather differently now--so much suffering, much of it needless if we can truly trust God to provide what we need, truly absorb the miracle of Jesus' life and its meaning for our own lives. God bless you guys and all the holy women who helped put this program together. I had a personal relationship with God before - all my adult life and probably most of my childhood as well, outside of any organized church. I found this retreat to clarify feelings, and give words where there were not any before. I don't think I could list the graces. There are many. One thing that really stands out - I feel much more that my personal religion has a home within the church. It helped tremendously in remembering to thank God at the end of each day for the many gifts he's given me. I really feel like I've grown closer to our Risen Lord. By having this on-line retreat has forced me into taking time for Christ that I otherwise would not have done. This has been an absolutely wonderful grace-filled time. The readings and prayers have been very helpful in my everyday life. I hate to see the end of this. These reflections are especially helpful if I pray over them the night before. Then I am able to have them on my mind as I go through my daily routine as a 53 year-old stay -at-home mother and grandmother. I especially enjoy Father Gillick's reflections, and his occasional use of humour. I like to think that God laughs at the way I can mess things up so beautifully, and that it is all right to laugh at myself and my often misguided attempts at piety. For me, praying is easy. It is finding God in the marketplace (or in my kitchen!) , that is the struggle. These reflections, and the on-line retreat help me to keep my focus. The biggest grace received is hope. I often feel isolated from a faith community, and have no-one in my hometown with whom I can share the experience. Your on-line retreat has helped me feel connected to Ignatian-style prayer. I have been making in-person Ignatian retreats at a retreat house every year for the past 17 yrs., but I have found the online retreat has really drawn me to Ignatian spirituality even more. After 58 yrs of my life, I feel that I am growing in my familiarity with Jesus as a result of the intensive scripture reading and reflecting. This retreat has helped me refocus on my walk with Jesus, to fall in love with Him all over again, the graces are a deep peace and a knowing what is really real in life. Spiritually, I have come to encounter Jesus in a personal way as I never did before at all. My faith moved from intellectual, to the beginnings of being a friendship with Jesus. I struggled tremendously with doubt in the middle ( is this all wishful thinking and made up? Is the Risen and Present Jesus just a fantasy friend like the ones my eight year old has?!!) But I was blessed with the resources -- other than in the retreat -- insights and comments and parts of homilies -- to grow through that. I have the beginnings of truly wanting to invite Jesus into my work life as well as my spiritual life. I want to do God's work, and I want to discern how worldly success will support that, without needing it when the two are incompatible. The Retreat has been an integral part of letting go and letting God. It is only a fledgling attitude, because it is a daily choice and not easy. But I am more grateful for it than I can tell you. Thank you so much for being open to the promptings of the Holy Spirit in creating this Retreat. You have made a tremendous difference in my life at a time of crossroads I have found that Jesus has begun to occupy my thoughts without my needing to initiate thoughts toward him. This Easter has been uniquely joyful and glorious. I find myself praising the Lord almost without effort. I find him singing songs TO ME!!! There is no other way I would have ever been able to experience the Ignatian Exercises. I think this site is absolutely wonderful!!! I think everything is weaving together to help me maintain a center of gravity in the Lord rather than in the world. So many times the themes seemed to be exactly what I needed to hear that week. I have a deepening sense of the depth of God's love for me, and a growing awareness of Who God Is, which helps me have a better sense of what He wishes of me. The retreat has had a great impact on my life. It helped me deal with the mistakes I made in the past. It has helped me in cleaning my memory. Chased away the "ghost of the past." It has brought me closer to God. I am more sensitive to the movements of my conscience. The retreat experience has been enlightening. I lead a varied life as a mother of a young child, a mature age university student and a small business partner in my husband's small business. So this online retreat which took me 5 months has really been a marathon and wow, has it been worth it!! This daily life format really helps us integrate our spirituality in a real and authentic way with our daily joys and struggles. No room here for a rarified airy fairy spirituality. Here I found a robust and authentic faith and a certainty of God's presence throughout my life. It is difficult to express how much this retreat has touched me. To break a 30 year habit by reflecting on the goodness and love of the Lord daily is a powerful event for me. If that event can happen, other areas of my life can become better with trust in God and his promises. Looking forward to making it happen. I found this retreat to clarify feelings, and give words where there were not any before. I don't think I could list the graces. There are many, and I think more will enter my awareness as time goes on It provides me with a framework within which I place myself now to meet Jesus. I am more aware of myself as a "loved sinner". I have really desired to get to know Jesus better and to be with him. I am a little more able to surrender control to the one who loves me so much. I am more trusting - at least a little - and less fearful and anxious I have been amazed at how present one becomes in the stories. And how my prayer has become conversation with Jesus. The materials were used for prayer daily. They are a reminder that it is necessary for me to be converted DAILY and that each day I must make the choice to follow Jesus. The pictures were used as wallpaper and were very helpful, as each time I passed or used the computer they drew me back. This has been very life changing for me. I can say without reservation that this retreat is among the most helpful and useful spiritual exercises I have ever experienced. It has helped me be actively conscious of Christ's presence in others that I meet during the day. That has resulted in me taking more care in my responses to them. I also have become more aware of my role as one doing God's work on Earth. That is I am responsible in a concrete way to bring joy, comfort, kindness etc to friends, family and community. I have more of a sense of my connectedness in the Body of Christ and a desire to continue with a prayer life. What a marvelous use of background time! I hadn't realized how much clutter there was in the corners of my mind during the day. I learned a valuable technique and will continue using this in my prayer life. I will never again be able to say that I am not worthy - the text that accompanied that week's retreat spelled it out beautifully - my arguments faded and my doubts about my own worthiness were rendered absurd. I will never forget that lesson in the course of my life. Christ's death is so very real to me now and the resurrection is much more joyful! Watching the scenes of Christ walking to the crucifixion and seeing the blood flowing to the ground seared my soul. How could I turn my eyes away again? My life is forever changed by participating in this retreat. The grace to hand myself over to the care of God, to acknowledge the anger and pride in my heart and to realize that everything is gift and part of the path that will bring me closer to Jesus. In the same way that Jesus had to fulfill the Scriptures, I am called to fulfill that for which I have been sent. My English is not perfect but I feel quite at ease on your website. I was very fortunate to have found this place in cyberspace. My wife had asked me continuously me to attend an 8 day retreat at a Jesuit center in Mexico, but I never "had found the time". After the first 5 or 6 weeks of doing the online retreat, I decided to sign up to an Ignatian retreat. The graces received there, in silence, getting closer and loving Jesus more and more, saying yes to him to perform his 'project', have given me so much peace, that now I want to share. I have been able to see God's hand in a disappointment I have experienced with my local parish. In fact I now see this disappointment as a necessary "pruning back" of what was a growing spiritual arrogance. My retreat experience has been great, and gratefully accepted by my heart and soul. Some weeks took a long time to finish ,because I would be jolted into deep thought on the miracles of God in my life, even when I did not know that he was there. How sad I was to discover that much of the past went by without a simple "thank you, my lord". So much of the time I thought that it was "I," when in reality it was "him." At this moment I feel I do not have to search, as God is here with me at all times. A very comforting feeling. I expect to see Jesus at any time at any turn at any rustle in the leaves. That is grace! Jesus is someone for me. It's a kind of personal relationship. Now I feel that I'm following Him because of love and not as a "moral law". The pictures were a great enhancement. I would remember that image all week as I prayed my daily prayers. This retreat has brought me back to meditation and enriched my life. I feel a greater awareness of God's love for me and that in itself is an enormous gift. I can more easily discern what it is that God is calling me to. I would do this again, it truly enriched my life and I have encouraged many people to your site, of all the sites on the internet yours is definitely the best, no insult to anyone else intended. I hope you continue, it is a great comfort in my life that you are here. Somedays I come home for lunch from work just to be fed by your words, they can comfort me for the remainder of the day. It has helped catapult my spirituality to a new dimension in Christ Jesus and has helped me to discern my vocation to religious life! Thank you for this ministry and may God bless you with the graces of his Son always. I am so glad this was available for me to do. I needed this. My faith journey has accelerated as a result of this retreat. I love God. The retreat made me see the person of Jesus in a new light. The personable way you would say, “Well Mary’s making soup” and “Jesus was working,” this humanized them, made me see that I am just like them, and it is possible for me to be as faithful as them if I just keep working at it. The retreat has helped me most by causing me to focus more on what God wants and less of what I want. The graces received were many: better understanding of God's will in my life; temperment in my dealings with family members and staff; thanksgiving; and most of all opening His word through the scripture readings. It was unbelievably wonderful. These reflections have brought me closer to Jesus than I have ever experienced. My entire outlook has changed but I still need lots of work. I thank you for placing this Retreat on line. It has made a big difference in my life. I'm pushing 74 and this experience has rekindled my spiritual fire. Count me as one of your biggest fans. I looked forward to getting up each morning to do the daily readings and prayers. I've grown spiritually. Also, I feel I've become more patient, and more aware of Love. Finding this retreat in the first place was a grace, too. I just "stumbled" across it. I have had to "experiment" and have found that driving and waiting
for children (after school, sports, etc) are good times as are when
I'm walking to class, to the library, etc. |
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