Abbey of the Arts

Transformative Living through Contemplative & Expressive Arts

  • Welcome
    • Prayer Cycle
      • Introduction to the Earth Monastery Prayer Cycle
      • Day 1 Morning & Evening Prayer:
        Earth as the Original Cathedral
      • Day 2 Morning & Evening Prayer:
        Earth as the Original Scriptures
      • Day 3 Morning & Evening Prayer:
        Earth as the Original Saints
      • Day 4 Morning & Evening Prayer:
        Earth as the Original Spiritual Directors
      • Day 5 Morning & Evening Prayer:
        Earth as the Original Icon
      • Day 6 Morning & Evening Prayer:
        Earth as the Original Sacrament
      • Day 7 Morning & Evening Prayer:
        Earth as the Original Liturgy
      • Prayer Cycle Leader Resources
    • About the Abbey
    • About Christine Valters Paintner
    • About John Valters Paintner
    • About the Wisdom Council
    • Monk Manifesto
    • Join the Holy Disorder of Dancing Monks
    • Subscribe to Our Love Notes
    • Website privacy notice
  • Books
    • Sacred Time:
      Embracing an Intentional Way of Life
    • The Wisdom of Wild Grace: Poems
    • Earth, Our Original Monastery:
      Cultivating Wonder and Gratitude through Intimacy with Nature
    • Dreaming of Stones: Poems
    • The Soul's Slow Ripening:
      12 Celtic Practices for Seeking the Sacred
    • The Wisdom of the Body:
      A Contemplative Journey to Wholeness for Women
    • Illuminating the Way:
      Embracing the Wisdom of Monks and Mystics
    • The Soul of a Pilgrim:
      Eight Practices for the Journey Within
    • Eyes of the Heart:
      Photography as a Christian Contemplative Practice
    • The Artist's Rule: Nurturing Your Creative Soul with Monastic Wisdom
    • Desert Mothers and Fathers: Early Christian Wisdom Sayings Annotated & Explained
    • Lectio Divina–The Sacred Art: Transforming Words and Images into Heart-Centered Prayer
    • Water, Wind, Earth & Fire: The Christian Practice of Praying with the Elements
    • Awakening the Creative Spirit:
      Bringing the Arts to Spiritual Direction
    • Lectio Divina: Contemplative Awakening & Awareness
  • Poetry | Art | Music
    • Music + DVD
    • Poetry by Christine Valters Paintner
    • Poetry Videos
    • Dancing Monk Icons
    • Other Art Collaborations
      • Monk in the World art series by Kristin Noelle
      • Saints & Animals art series by David Hollington
      • Sacred Time art series by Alexi Francis
      • Mary block print art series by Kreg Yingst
  • Programs
    • Live Programs: Pilgrimage & Retreats
      • Monk in the World (Ireland)
      • Writing on the Wild Edges (Ireland)
      • Vienna Monk in the World (Austria)
      • Hildegard of Bingen (Germany)
      • Awakening the Creative Spirit: Experiential Education for Spiritual Directors in the Expressive Arts (Northwest)
    • Lift Every Voice: Contemplative Writers of Color Book Club
    • Community Online Retreats
      • The Spiral Way:
        Celtic Spirituality and the Creative Imagination
      • Journey with the Desert Mothers and Fathers (Lent 2021)
      • Dancing with Fear in Troubled Times
      • Novena for Times of Unraveling
      • The Two HT’s-Harriet Tubman and Howard Thurman-on Being Free
      • Writing Into Bloom
        with Christine Valters Paintner
      • Sacred Time: Embracing an Intentional Way of Life (Spring 2021)
      • Poetry and the Sacred Garden of the World:
        An Online Writing Retreat
    • Self-Study Online Spiritual Retreats
      • Creative Flourishing in the Heart of the Desert:
        An Online Retreat with St. Hildegard of Bingen
      • Dreaming of the Sea:
        A women’s discernment journey through the story of the Selkie
      • Earth, Our Original Monastery
        A Companion Retreat to the Book (SELF-STUDY)
      • Exile and Coming Home:
        An Archetypal Journey through the Scriptures
      • Eyes of the Heart:
        Photography as Contemplative Practice
        (Companion retreat to the book)
      • Honoring Saints and Ancestors:
        Online Retreat for the Season of Remembrance
      • Lectio Divina:
        The Sacred Art of Reading the World
      • A Midwinter God:
        Making a Conscious Underworld Journey
      • Sacred Rhythms of Sky, Sun, Sea & Stone:
        A Creative Retreat with the Elements (SELF-STUDY)
      • Sacred Seasons:
        A Yearlong Journey through the Celtic Wheel of the Year
      • The Soul of a Pilgrim:
        Eight Practices for the Journey Within
        (a companion retreat to the book)
      • The Soul's Slow Ripening: 12 Celtic Practices for Seekers of the Sacred (a companion retreat to the book)
      • Water, Wind, Earth & Fire
      • Watershed Moments
        in the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures
      • Way of the Monk, Path of the Artist:
        A 12-Week Companion Retreat to The Artist's Rule
      • The Wisdom of the Body:
        A 10-Week Online Companion Retreat to the Book
      • The Wisdom of Mary and the Sacred Feminine
  • Calendar
  • Reflections
  • Contact

Monk in the World Guest Post Series

Monk in the World Guest Post: Michele Chung

I am delighted to share another beautiful submission to the Monk in the World guest post series from the community. Read on for Michele Chung's reflection "Discovering the Joy of God."

"I tend to be somewhat melancholy, which means I usually see the glass as half empty rather than half full. When I’m alone, the negative emotions often rise to the surface. This personality trait has been a challenge in my contemplative practices. The more time I spend in solitude and introspection, the easier it is for me to sink into my negativity.

Recently, my exercise app challenged me to laugh 3 times a week, and I became more aware of those moments where things really tickled my heart. When I stopped to pay attention and be mindful during those times of joy, I was surprised to encounter a deep sense of peace and clarity.

I found that it was almost impossible for joy and anxiety to co-exist. Maybe that’s why kids laugh so much more than adults. As we get older, the responsibilities and worries of life creep in, and squeeze out our joy. During those moments of joy and laughter, I forgot about my worries and concerns. My heart felt lighter just because I laughed at a silly joke. Laughter and joy also changed my perspective. I noticed that when I was in distress, laughter will often jolt me out of my downward spiral into negativity. And as I breathe a sigh of relief, the Spirit reminds me that life is not so hopeless and grim after all.

For most of my spiritual life, my image of God was a stern one. God may not be an angry God, but he was definitely serious. The first few years when I started to pray in intercession, I often wept as part of my prayers. I could relate to a suffering Christ, but a Jesus who laughed in joy? He was foreign to me. Nevertheless, as I became more mindful of the joyous events during my day, I became more grateful for the gift of laughter in my life.

I looked up scriptures about joy, and was surprised at how often joy was mentioned. David wrote many psalms about rejoicing and having joy in God’s presence. Apostle Paul encouraged people to rejoice regardless of their circumstances. One theme I see repeatedly was that joy was often connected with God or the presence of God. When Jesus was born, He was the reason that heaven and earth rejoiced. God seemed to be a source of great joy.

If joy is such a major part of who God is, how then do I incorporate rejoicing into my contemplative practices? How does one contemplate the joy of God? The first thing that came to mind was for me to keep a childlike heart. For when I welcomed the simple things in life, and stopped taking myself too seriously, I seemed to laugh a lot more often. When I gave myself more grace, I was more receptive to the divine touches and happy accidents that happened throughout the day.

In God’s presence, there’s fullness of joy. (Ps. 16:11) During my personal worship one night, this verse came to me again. Joy is connected to the presence of God. I started to focus my meditation time simply on who God is. I realized I needed to think differently. Instead of preferring to meditate on the sufferings of Jesus, I needed to also remember our God who is full of joy. In fact, God is One whose presence is filled with joy. Even in the midst of difficult circumstances, God is not surprised nor anxious. His work is finished. Because Jesus has gone through the deep anguish and affliction, we can now share in his joy. Joy is his gift to us.

Although I can still be a tad grey in my attitude, I’m much more intentional in opening my heart to joy. On some days, it means I need to learn to trust in order to focus on joy. At times, I have to protect my childlike heart and not allow cynicism to snuff it out. I’m definitely still a novice at discovering the joy of God. However, little by little, my image of God is changing. Now, I can see Jesus smiling at me in joy."


Michele loves playing with colors and having deep conversations. She lives in Silicon Valley with her husband and a house full of books. You can find more of her writings at SabbathCafeBlog.com. She also shares her art on Instagram: @imagochele.

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Leave a Comment February 27, 2019

Upcoming Programs

The Spiral Way:
Celtic Spirituality and the Creative Imagination

Hosted by the Rowe Center
February 1-21, 2021
with Christine Valters Paintner, PhD

Journey with the Desert Mothers and Fathers
Retreat for Lent 2021

February 17-April 1, 2021
with Christine & John Valters Paintner and Betsey Beckman

Recent Reflections

  • Celtic Spirituality and the Spiral Way ~ A Love Note from Your Online Abbess
  • Hildy Tales 3: Ní heolas go haontíos ~ by John Valters Paintner
  • Humility + Join us today for live prayer! ~ A Love Note from Your Online Abbess
  • Hildy Tales 2: Tús maith leath na hoibre – by John Valters Paintner
  • New Book Club for 2021: Lift Every Voice ~ A Love Note from Your Online Abbess

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