On Hints of Gladness, spiritual director and coach Rod Janz interviewed a number of spiritual directors about contemplation. I was thankful to be one of them.

In our conversation, Rod asked what contemplation means to me and what it looks like in my life. I talked about a few pivotal moments and how writing this blog has become a life-giving spiritual practice.

I enjoyed sharing my journey with Rod who was in the same cohort as me in our spiritual direction training with SoulStream fifteen years ago. I was also grateful to have the opportunity to lead him and our listeners in an Ignatian Prayer of Imagination with the story of Zacchaeus. 

Here’s what Rod put on Hints of Gladness. 

“Just sit there and let me love you,” Esther heard God say to her in silence many years ago. “That invitation anchors me to this day, and I hope that in my writing and in spiritual direction and retreats, others will hear God’s loving invitation too.”

Esther is a writer, spiritual director (trained through (SoulStream) and co-facilitator of SoulStream’s Living from the Heart course. She is also a mother, grandmother and wife married for 43 years to her husband, Fred. She and Fred live in Burnaby and love the outdoors, spending as much time as they can hiking in the mountains, biking in wide open spaces, and walking in the woods or by the sea. Esther is the author of three books and a blog, An Everyday Pilgrim.

Click here to listen to the Hints of Gladness interview.

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Love Mischief for the World

Wintering brings about some of the most profound and insightful moments of our human experience, and wisdom resides in those who have wintered.
— Katherine May, Wintering

A Call to Wintering:
Finding God in a Season of Dark Mystery and Starry Wonder
An Ignatian Weekend Retreat Online

Is your heart calling you to encounter God in your wintering? I would love it if you would join Jan Evans and me for a silent, guided prayer retreat on November 18-20, 2022. More details here.

What love mischief are you and God doing for the world?
Let me know and I will include it in an upcoming post.

Credits and References:
“Happy smiling child” by verkeorg. Used with permission.
Photo of Esther on Lion’s Gate Bridge 2021 used with permission.
Photo of night sky creative commons license.

© Esther Hizsa, An Everyday Pilgrim, 2022.
The unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without permission from Esther Hizsa is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used provided there is a link to the original content and credit is given as follows: © Esther Hizsa, An Everyday Pilgrim 2013-2022.  http://www.estherhizsa.com