Sitting in the lovely Art Room, overlooking a beautiful orchard and labyrinth, with February sunshine streaming through the window, and a soundtrack of wonderful birdsong, I cannot help but feel blessed. Being a 'writer in residence' here at Penhurst Retreat Centre is both a joy and a delight, and an enormous privilege. This is a perfect place for refreshing the soul and tapping into the creative juices. Where else could I be surrounded by stillness, beauty and prayer, with total freedom to do nothing else except write, eat and sleep? For a writer like me, this comes close to heaven.
Three weeks into my four week stay, the manuscript for my new book on inner healing has been completed and is now with the potential publisher. Its working title has changed to Healing Shattered Lives: Defusing the Timebomb of Tangled Emotions with Jesus and I'm hugely excited to see how God might use it to bring hope and healing (and Jesus) into damaged lives. Please pray for a 'yes' from the publisher!
So, having put that project to bed sooner than expected, I'm now turning my attention to writing new materials for Easter.
Which is where you come in!
It can be life-changing to set aside a few days to do nothing other than immerse yourself in the Easter story. I wonder if you've ever done that? We so rarely allow ourselves to deeply engage with the detail of Christ's journey to the cross and beyond. Because we know the ending: we know Easter Sunday's coming! It's so easy to fast forward through the gruesome bits and race on towards the joy of the wounded but alive again Christ, skipping over the pain, the grief and the not-knowing of the Saturday in between. It's easy to celebrate Palm Sunday without giving much thought to the tears that Jesus wept. And it's easy to miss the love and the healing in the other hidden details of Jesus' final week. Above all else, it's easy to be so comfortable with the familiarity of the story that it doesn't truly disturb us any more.
Taking time to 'live' the experience, reflectively, alongside others, can bring a whole new dimension to our spiritual lives. And dwelling on the emotions embedded in this incredible week enables us to make connections with our own stories and embrace the healing to be found therein.
Join me, if you can, as I lead the Easter retreat this year at Penhurst: A Journey of Radical Love.
Bookings are open now, on the Penhurst website. You won't regret it. I guarantee it will change you.
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