Harold John Ockenga and his friends has a passion to reclaim the culture, renew the mind, and reach the world. Which of these areas are you most drawn to? If not one of these, is there another area that tugs at your heart? Why?

I’m actually drawn to something completely different, to stay and pray. My charism is not that of an evangelist, it’s…[Read more]

Are you open to practice some different forms of prayer?

Absolutely, and I very much look forward to learning about them. The Daily Office and Lection Divina (or at least my best attempt at it) have been my bedrock for some time. It’s going to be very helpful to be exposed to new types of prayer, especially of the contemplative family.

6. In the coming week, how will you lean into the joy of developing your skills and gifts for the benefit of others?

So first off, I identified what I believe to be my spiritual gifts as Serving, Teaching, Mercy, and Leadership. In the coming week, I can really see myself focusing on Serving and Mercy in particular. I volunteer at one of the…[Read more]

The text speaks of a community with communal prayer, worship, and a balanced life of work and rest, where everyone’s needs are taken care of. Sounds like a monastery to me!

Accordingly I have been focused on my daily rhythm of prayer for some time. The Liturgy of the Hours is the core of my day. It helps define the structure of my daily life,…[Read more]

4. If you were the priest of levite…

From a religious standpoint if I were one of those two, I might have felt sympathy for him but crossed to the other side anyway. Touching him could / would break Jewish purity laws. I must remain pure to minister to the many, not the one. Also it could come down to fear and just not wanting to get involved.…[Read more]

Consider King David’s story. What resonates with you? Why?

Well like David I’ve been with God since my youth (though I’m not a man after God’s own heart by any means). I was brought up in church, and it very much stuck with that tender hearted Kentucky kid. Church was family, church was home. I was happy to go to the house of the Lord, and I w…[Read more]

3. What is one practice you do on a daily / weekly basis that helps you stay connected to God?

For me it’s the Divine Office / Liturgy of the Hours. My goodness what a gift. It has literally grounded me in my spiritual journey and kept me Christian. It was the initial “thing” that drew me to, and assured me that the Benedictine way of life is for…[Read more]

6. What about Jesus’ example of grieving most speaks to you about embracing your own grief and loss?

For me it’s the fact he allowed himself to fully grieve true human grief. He didn’t stop himself from feeling and “soldier on” as I was raised. By doing so he is actively feeling and processing what is happening, not burying it inside. This is…[Read more]

7. What are some possible reasons you have a hard time accepting and moving through Walls?

Looking back at my adult life, I see a huge Wall. It was a wall that brought everything to a stop. It’s basically “the wall” so far. I’m sure there will be more, but I will talk about this one.

In 2006, 10 days after my son was born, my mom died.…[Read more]

7. Joseph chose to break…. if you were in Joseph’s position?…

If I were in Joseph’s shoes, I would have been very tempted to get back at them. Well, at least a little. Nothing like what they are fearing for sure, but after selling me into slavery, a little lesson might be needed. I know, I’m a bad Christian, God’s working on that.

The…[Read more]

– What are you glad about?

I am glad for second chances. I am glad that God has never left me, nor forsook me even though I wanted him to. In my darkest days, and on more then one occasion I have cursed God and told him I wanted nothing to do with him. I have rebelled totally, and ran the complete opposite direction. Yet despite all of that, he…[Read more]

The two symptoms that jump out at me are: 8. Covering over brokenness, weakness, and failure and 10. Judging other people’s spiritual journey. That’s very hard to admit, and very uncomfortable to think about how these particular two have effected my spiritual life.

– Covering over…. Soldier on my boy! Never let them see you bleed. I don’t…[Read more]

Finally ready to get started with this. It’s been a long time coming, but materials are here, I’m looking forward to it.

Hello all,

Looking forward to digging into the material. Ordered the participant packet, so we’ll see how long that takes to get in!