Feeling as a spiritual practice
The pathway into our spiritual experience, and even, I believe, into the heart of God, is through our feelings. Much of our time in spiritual direction is spent following the crumbs of emotions as they wind around in circles, giving us clues to our depths. The path to wholeness is not found by covering up or denying our feelings, but by walking them out– literally and figuratively– with the faithful presence of a spiritual companion.
How do you work with your emotions, and move through them? How do you honor them and give them room to speak? To fully integrate our experiences, we are best served by intentionally creating rituals and practices that allow us a whole person response– body, mind, and heart. As we invite the Spirit into our sadness, our fear, our anger, our grief, we create space for transformation and resurrection. It is a process of allowing the Divine access, a process of surrender that leads to healing.
Practices that can facilitate this prayerful process:
journaling a conversation with the emotion
writing poetry