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 5, 2023 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 11th email and at the bottom of each Sunday following).
WIN A PRIZE – RANDOM DRAWING GIVEAWAY ENTER BY JANUARY 5th!
- One person wins a space in our Lent retreat on A Different Kind of Fast
- Three people win a space each in their choice of self-study retreats
- Five people win their choice of one of our digital albums
- Seven people win one of our Dancing Monk Medallions
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 8th we will announce the prize winners!
475 Responses
My word for 2023 is key. Crossing the threshold I may use the key to lock or unlock the door.
‘Relish’ came to me this morning and this feels so right. Last year was ‘sacredness’.
During this retreat words swirled around me with invitations. But ‘relish’ is such a blessing this morning and it is is so much how I want to live this coming year.
Thank you for this adventure. Many blessings to all.
My word for 2023: Comfort
My word for 2023 is ‘see’.
The word that found me is Threshold.
My word was Step. In order to cross a threshold the invitation is for movement.
Then pause, linger, ‘tarry awhile’…
Apologies for any double post – I wanted to add my word poem in a reply to my initial post and can’t find it right now.
Restore/Restorative (in the nature of Hildegard’s greening)
Radiate (the)
Everlasting
Son
Towards
Others.
Reverence (to)
Everyone
It’s seems the word for 2023 is
Restore/Restorative
in the nature of Hildegard’s greening based on my journaling.
I was concerned that anything having to do with healing was being influenced by my recent bout with COVID, but through all the journaling, the healing morphed into the above and makes complete sense. Supportive words that have surfaced: whole-hearted (interesting – the word that arose for a Branding Bootcamp I went through last year), covenant, and sacramentality.
Thank you for hosting this! It is always an adventure!
My Word for 2023 is “support.” It came unbidden and surprised me.
My word is “listen”. I need to listen for the beautiful silence in nature that God has surrounded me with. Listen for his guidance and words.