In ancient times, wise men and women fled out into the desert to find a place where they could be fully present to the divine and to their own inner struggles at work within them. The desert became a place to enter into the refiner’s fire and be stripped down to one’s holy essence. The desert was a threshold place where you emerged different than when you entered.
Many people followed these ammas and abbas, seeking their wisdom and guidance for a meaningful life. One tradition was to ask for a word – this word or phrase would be something on which to ponder for many days, weeks, months, sometimes a whole lifetime. This practice is connected to lectio divina, where we approach the sacred texts with the same request – “give me a word” we ask – something to nourish me, challenge me, a word I can wrestle with and grow into. The word which chooses us has the potential to transform us.
What is your word for the year ahead? A word which contains within it a seed of invitation to cross a new threshold in your life?
Share your word in the comments section below by January 6, 2022 and you are automatically entered for the prize drawing (prizes listed below).
A FREE 12-DAY ONLINE MINI-RETREAT TO HELP YOUR WORD CHOOSE YOU. . .
As in past years, we are offering all Abbey newsletter subscribers a gift: a free 12-day online mini-retreat with a suggested practice for each day to help your word choose you and to deepen into your word once it has found you. Even if you participated last year, you are more than welcome to register again.
Subscribe to our email newsletter and you will receive a link to start your mini-retreat today. Your information will never be shared or sold. (If you are already subscribed to the newsletter, look for the link in the Sunday, December 5th email and at the bottom of each Sunday following).
WIN A PRIZE – RANDOM DRAWING GIVEAWAY ENTER BY JANUARY 6th!
- One space in the Virtual Celtic Pilgrimage: The Wisdom of the Irish Saints Brigid, Ciaran, & Gobnait
- Four people will win their choice of our self-study online retreats (with 18 to choose from!)
- One signed copy of Breath Prayer: An Ancient Practice for the Everyday Sacred
- One signed copy of The Wisdom of Wild Grace: Poems by Christine Valters Paintner
- One signed copy of Dreaming of Stones: Poems by Christine Valters Paintner
Please share your word with us in the comments below
(and it would be wonderful if you included a sentence about what it means for you)
Subscribe to the Abbey of the Arts newsletter to receive ongoing inspiration in your in-box. You can choose daily, weekly, or monthly. Share the love with others and invite them to participate. Then stay tuned – on January 9th we will announce the prize winners!
79 Responses
This years word come forth a few months ago and is GRACE
The grace to receive and the grace to extend
I will be leaning into growing to be
‘full of grace’ like Mary, the Mother of Jesus the year.
My word is HOME. From John 14:23. My childhood home growing up was full of silences, performance, and pretense. Jesus is showing me a different kind of place to belong.
My phrase is “Be Opened.” Every other possible word I explored (trust,
hope, etc.) kept returning me to this simple two-word phrase from the Gospel of Mark.
My word is ‘today’.
Today I have breath
to see, feel, hear, taste, smell, be
all goodness and light
My word is VISION. I was ordained in October of 2017. That December was the first time I participated in Give Me A Word. The word that chose me for 2018 was IMMERSE. That was a wonderful guide for me as I began my first pastorate. The first 5 yrs of my ministry, Give Me a Word has blessed me with IMMERSE, ROOT, EXPAND (as the pandemic began!), WONDER, and now VISION. I am excited to see what God’s vision has in store for me and my faith community in 2022!
Notice… on whatever level of life is present at the moment
MURMURATION is the word that chose me. Shortly after seeing local starling choreography, I read about the way writer Barry Lopez (of blessed memory) used murmuration as a metaphor to shift the idea of leadership from the individual to that of leaderless community collaborations. Barry, in sharing his wisdom, was commenting on the essential and life-giving contributions that writers, artists, and contemplatives can make to feed the human spirit. Such nourishment is as fundamental as physical food.
As an aspiring writer, bead artist, and monk in the world, the MURMURATION theme has healed my sense of isolation. Its invitation opens up new possibilities of what I have to contribute in starling-like responsiveness to the contributions of others.
My word is Home. Home is my house and my heart. Appreciation for the structure that has sheltered me through the pandemic. As I have slowed down my daily pace to be mindful of my daily activities and this space that I care for and cares for me. Also, the home that is my heart–my center, my groundedness.
HOME—-Home Of My Eternity.
My Heart is the Home of Love. Love is the Home of my Heart.
Invite: to invite myself to see things in a new way, to speak up when I hear or see injustice, to engage in sharing truth & love, to slow down & find beauty wherever I look, to invite others into my life & to cherish them.
My words for 2022 is Detach. My phrase would be “I choose to be a feather on the breath of God,” as in the spirit of Hildigard von Bingen.
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